Love, Love, Love...Love Is All You Need

We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.

No matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.

We have three things to do...Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly [because He loves extravagantly]. And the best of the three is love.

For if we are in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but [the only thing that counts is] faith activated and energized and expressed and working through love.

Taken from 1 John 4, 1 Corinthians 13 and Galatians 5

Africa needs God

I thought this article was interesting. It is by an atheist and runs counter to what I hear from other atheists who want to rid the world of religion, positing that it is of no value. Here are a few excerpts:


Now a confirmed atheist, I've become convinced of the enormous contribution that Christian evangelism makes in Africa: sharply distinct from the work of secular NGOs, government projects and international aid efforts. These alone will not do. Education and training alone will not do. In Africa Christianity changes people's hearts. It brings a spiritual transformation. The rebirth is real. The change is good.


I used to avoid this truth by applauding - as you can - the practical work of mission churches in Africa. It's a pity, I would say, that salvation is part of the package...I would allow that if faith was needed to motivate missionaries to help, then, fine: but what counted was the help, not the faith.


But this doesn't fit the facts. Faith does more than support the missionary; it is also transferred to his flock. This is the effect that matters so immensely, and which I cannot help observing.


There is much more to the article. He makes some good observations, but misses the mark as to why the transformation takes place. I guess "the power of God" doesn't factor into his mindset.

Hunger

You called, You shouted, and You broke through my deafness. You flashed, You shone, and You dispelled my blindness. You breathed Your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for You. I have tasted You, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me, and I burned for Your peace.

Augustine of Hippo

Evolution of Dance

I thought this was hilarious

What Type of Blog Do I Have?

According to typalyzer

I am an ISTP - The Mechanics

The independent and problem-solving type. They are especially attuned to the demands of the moment are masters of responding to challenges that arise spontaneously. They generally prefer to think things out for themselves and often avoid inter-personal conflicts.

The Mechanics enjoy working together with other independent and highly skilled people and often like seek fun and action both in their work and personal life. They enjoy adventure and risk such as in driving race cars or working as policemen and firefighters.


Sounds about right...

Secure

Now to Him Who is able to keep you without stumbling or slipping or falling, and to present you unblemished (blameless and faultless) before the presence of His glory in triumphant joy and exultation with unspeakable, ecstatic delight.

But the Lord is faithful and will give you strength and will protect you from the Evil One.

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope, comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say.

Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is so good, and by raising Jesus from death, he has given us new life and a hope that lives on. God has something stored up for you in heaven, where it will never decay or be ruined or disappear. You have faith in God, whose power will protect you until the last day. Then he will save you, just as he has always planned to do.

Taken from Jude, 2 Thessalonians 2 and 3, and 1 Peter 1

Falls Mill

The Mrs. and I went to Falls Mill today. The leaves weren't as pretty as I hoped they would be. As a side note, the owner (John Lovett) was my "Materials and Manufacturing Processes" instructor in college. Here are a few pictures from the trip.

The Assurance of Grace

What the law demands from us, grace promises and performs for us. The law deals with what we should do, whether we can do it or not. The law, motivating us out of fear and love, stirs us up to do our best. But it gives no real strength and thus only leads to failure and condemnation. Grace points to what we cannot do and offers to do it for us and in us.

The law comes with commands on stone or in a book. Grace comes in a living, gracious Person who gives His presence and His power.

The law promises life if we obey. Grace gives life, even the Holy Spirit, with the assurance that we can obey.

Andrew Murray

It's Tough Getting Old

(Copyright Gospel Communications International, Inc - http://www.reverendfun.com/)

Vienna

It has been over 30 years since Billy Joel released "The Stranger" album. It has always been in my top 10 list of favorite albums. It is one of the few albums I have listened to where I like each song on the album. One of my favorite songs on the album, if you haven't already guessed, is "Vienna." I am not sure if there is a Christian lesson in there, but there is a lesson there about living. I found this on YouTube...the quality of the graphics isn't that great, but Enjoy!

In Jesus Name

And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. John 14:13-14

What does it mean to ask in the name of Jesus? Does it mean that we should tack, “In Jesus Name” onto the end of all our prayers? Possibly! I have heard others explain that it really means praying with His authority and asking God the Father to act upon our prayers because we come in the name of His Son, Jesus. That sounds like a reasonable explanation and it’s probably true, as far as it goes. But I believe that there is more to it than that. Look what it says in 1 John 5:14-15

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us and if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

John 14 tells us to ask in the name of Jesus and 1 John 5 tells us to ask according to his will, is this a caveat or a contradiction? I think that is neither.

Who is the only one who knows the will of the Father? Matthew 11:27 tells us:

All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.

If Jesus is the only one who knows the Father, doesn’t it follow that He is the only one who can pray according to God’s will? But what about the name of Jesus? What if we were to take onto ourselves the name of Jesus like a bride takes on the name of her husband? I know, it’s a rhetorical question! So, what is it to pray?

Prayer is to put on, as if a garment, the holiness, righteousness, worthiness; yes, the very name of Christ and appear in them before God the Father on the behalf of Jesus. It is Jesus praying through us, as us, on the behalf of ourselves and others.

I am still rolling this idea around in my pea brain. I will continue to pray about it as well. If you happen by, feel free to give me some feedback.

Happy Birthday Matthew

May the Lord bless and keep you

May his face shine upon you

And be gracious and give you peace.

Have a blessed day!

Who Am I?

I am one who knows, by the Word and Spirit of God, that I am in Christ, and that my life is "hidden with Christ in God." In Christ I died to sin and the world. I am now taken out of them, separated from them, and delivered from their power. I have been raised together with Christ; and in Him, I live unto God. My life is "hidden with Christ in God." I can come to God to claim and obtain all the divine life that is hidden away in Him for today's need and supply.

Yes, this who I am. I say it to God in humble, holy reverence. I say it to myself to encourage others, as well as myself, to seek and expect nothing less than grace to live the hidden life of heaven here on earth. I am one who longs to say, who does say, "Christ is my life." The longing of my soul is for Christ, revealed by the Father Himself within the heart. Nothing less can satisfy me.

Andrew Murray

I thought I was Nonsense

You Are the Sense of Sound

You love to talk, but you also love to listen. You are simply a natural conversationalist. You can have a deep conversation that lasts for hours and come out of it feeling energized. You have a good ear for foreign languages and accents of all sorts. You can imitate people quite well. You also are a huge lover of music. You probably love music more than most people you know.

Which of the Five Senses Are You?

Do as you please!

If it pleases you, always and only, to do what pleases God...you can do as you please!

The Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, "You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased."

So Jesus said, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me and He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him."

Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever.

Amen!

Quote by: Major W. Ian Thomas

Scripture taken from: Luke 3, John 8, Hebrews 13

Apparently I Am Well Balanced...

Your Brain Usage Profile:
Auditory : 64%
Visual : 35%
Left : 50%
Right : 50%


Gary, your hemispheric dominance is equally divided between left and right brain, while you show a moderate preference for auditory versus visual learning, signs of a balanced and flexible person.

Your balance gives you the enviable capacity to be verbal and literate while retaining a certain "flair" and individuality. You are logical and compliant but only to a degree. You are organized without being compulsive, goal-directed without being driven, and a "thinking" individual without being excessively so.
The one problem you might have is that your learning might not be as efficient as you would like. At times you will work from the specific to the general, while at other times you'll work from the general to the specific. Sometimes you will be logical in your approach while at other times random. Since you cannot always control the choice, you may experience frustrations not normally felt by persons with a more defined and directed learning style.

You may also minimally experience conflicts associated with auditory processing. You will be systematic and sequential in your processing of information, you will most often focus on a single dimension of the problem or material, and you will be more reflective, i.e., "taking the data in" as opposed to "devouring" it.

Overall, you should feel content with your life and yourself. You are, perhaps, a little too critical of yourself - and of others - while maintaining an "openness" which is redeeming. Indecisiveness is a problem and your creativity is not in keeping with your potential. Being a pragmatist, you downplay this aspect of yourself and focus on the more immediate, the more obvious and the more functional.

I think it's mostly right...I don't believe I have problem's making a decision and I think I am creative, just not in an artsey-craftsey way.

Braintest

Simeon's Moment

And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said,

"Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace,
According to Your word; for my eyes have seen Your salvation,
Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
A light of revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel."

Painting: Simeon's Moment by Ron DiCianni. Copyright 2008.

All Rights Reserved.

Available Here

Over Saved

I know that I have someone in mind...

Only Believe!

Cast yourself into the arms of your Father who gives His children the Holy Spirit much more readily than an earthly father gives his children bread. Only believe and count on the love of God. All your self-dedication and surrender, all of your faith and integrity, are not works by which you have to move God or make Him willing to bless you. Far from it.

God desires to bless you and will Himself work everything in you. God loves you as a Father and sees that, to be able to live in perfect health and happiness as His child, you have need of nothing but this one thing - to be full of His Spirit. Jesus has by His blood opened up the way to the full enjoyment of this love.

Enter into this love, abide in this love, and by faith, acknowledge that it shines on and surrounds you, even as the light of the sun illuminates and animates your body. Begin to trust this love. I do not say trust in its willingness, but in its unspeakable longing to fill you entirely with itself. Your Father's love waits to make you full of His Spirit. He Himself will do it for you.

Andrew Murray

Father's Love Letter

My Child,

You may not know me, but I know everything about you. Psalm 139:1

I know when you sit down and when you rise up. Psalm 139:2

I am familiar with all your ways. Psalm 139:3

Even the very hairs on your head are numbered. Matthew 10:29-31

For you were made in my image. Genesis 1:27

In me you live and move and have your being. Acts 17:28

For you are my offspring. Acts 17:28

I knew you even before you were conceived. Jeremiah 1:4-5

I chose you when I planned creation. Ephesians 1:11-12

You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book. Psalm 139:15-16

I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live. Acts 17:26

You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14

I knit you together in your mother's womb. Psalm 139:13

And brought you forth on the day you were born. Psalm 71:6

I have been misrepresented by those who don't know me. John 8:41-44

I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love. 1 John 4:16

And it is my desire to lavish my love on you. 1 John 3:1

Simply because you are my child and I am your Father. 1 John 3:1

I offer you more than your earthly father ever could. Matthew 7:11

For I am the perfect father. Matthew 5:48

Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand. James 1:17

For I am your provider and I meet all your needs. Matthew 6:31-33

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope. Jeremiah 29:11

Because I love you with an everlasting love. Jeremiah 31:3

My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore. Psalms 139:17-18

And I rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17

I will never stop doing good to you. Jeremiah 32:40

For you are my treasured possession. Exodus 19:5

I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul. Jeremiah 32:41

And I want to show you great and marvelous things. Jeremiah 33:3

If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me. Deuteronomy 4:29

Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

For it is I who gave you those desires. Philippians 2:13

I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine. Ephesians 3:20

For I am your greatest encourager. 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you. Psalm 34:18

As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart. Isaiah 40:11

One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes. Revelation 21:3-4

And I'll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth. Revelation 21:3-4

I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus. John 17:23

For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed. John 17:26

He is the exact representation of my being. Hebrews 1:3

He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you. Romans 8:31

And to tell you that I am not counting your sins. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19

Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19

His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you. 1 John 4:10

I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love. Romans 8:31-32

If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me. 1 John 2:23

And nothing will ever separate you from my love again. Romans 8:38-39

Come home and I'll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen. Luke 15:7

I have always been Father, and will always be Father. Ephesians 3:14-15

My question is…Will you be my child? John 1:12-13

I am waiting for you. Luke 15:11-32

Love, Your Dad
Almighty God

'Father's Love Letter used by permission Father Heart Communications Copyright 1999-2008 www.FathersLoveLetter.com'

Grace

Thank You Lord, For Being There!

The Lord searches all the earth for people who have given themselves completely to him. He wants to make them strong.

Lord, you are my shield, my wonderful God who gives me courage.

The Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.

I love you, LORD! You answered my prayers. You paid attention to me, and so I will pray to you as long as I live.

Taken from 2 Chronicles16, Psalm 3, 2 Thessalonians 3, and Psalm 116

Good and Evil

A man in our Sunday school class made several comments on the material we were studying, but one kind of stood out in my mind, "All evil is sin, but not all sin is evil." His claim was that a man can do good yet sill sin (wrong motives, etc), but he is still doing good, not evil. I know that in the eyes of others the man is doing good, but in the eyes of God is the man doing good? Is man capabable of good apart from God? Does anyone care to weigh in? Any verses you can think of to support or deny this assertion? Verses that come to my mind are:

Genesis 6:5
Romans 3:12

Never Less Than Adequate

"If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit," and this is what it means to walk in the Holy Spirit: to take one step at a time, and for every new situation into which every new step takes you, no matter what it may be, to hear Christ saying to your heart, "I AM," then to look up into His face by faith and say, "You are! That is all I need to know, Lord, and I thank You, for You are never less than adequate."

THE LORD is my Light and my Salvation--whom shall I fear or dread? The Lord is the Refuge and Stronghold of my life--of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1

Major W. Ian Thomas

Repentance

I am sure that every Christian has heard the word “repentance.” To many, the word means that we stop doing something. We stop worrying, we stop fornicating; we stop our adultery; we “JUST STOP SINNING!” Is that what true repentance means? Surely we will stop those things if we are repentant, but is the act of stopping equal to repentance or is it the result of repentance?

Maybe I should start by looking at how God deals with His children when they sin. Note that God isn’t dealing with His children on the basis of condemnation and punishment, but out of a loving caring for our wellbeing and for our relationship to His other children. He knows what’s good for us and He doesn’t want to see us hurt ourselves and to hurt others.

So when we sin, God brings about a conviction in our lives. He says, “Gary you made the wrong choice!” “The path you have chosen will only bring you pain and will hurt those who are close to you.” At this point I have two choices, I can choose to agree with God (confess). I can say, “You are right Father, I made a choice that was wrong; I was choosing to do it my way instead of trusting you.” The other choice I can make is to go my own way. I can say, “Father, I hear what you are saying, but I am choosing not to trust you with this, I think my way is better.” Of course most of us don’t actually verbalize it in that way, but the result is the same as if we had.

I still haven’t got to repentance yet. I have talked about conviction and I have talked about confession, but what is repentance? The Greek word for repentance is “Metanoia” and literally means “to change your mind.” So what are we changing our mind about? Well, in the context of what has been discussed thus far, it means to change our mind about our direction; to choose God’s way instead of our way and it takes the form of a change from unbelief to belief; from distrust to trust. It is telling God that I no longer want control of this area of my life and that I am giving Him control of it…I am trusting Him with it.

Notice that in all of this there is no mention of an attempt on our part to change our behavior. That is because I have only been talking about our part in this. It is up to us to change our mind, but it is up to God to change our direction, to change our behavior…for we can do nothing apart from Him!

The Force

The "force" of religion* always makes it about the battle, about the doctrines and theology and layers of tradition that man "needs" to pile on top of Jesus. But Paul scraped through all of that in his first letter to the Corinthians:

And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.

To me it all boils down to Jesus and His power working in our lives. Unfortunately, I get so caught up in stating my case; trying to prove my point; and never giving up until "I win," that I forget we are part of the same body. In the end, what did I win if I caused my brother pain.

There is nothing in ourselves that seeks after God; correct theology can't bring us to Him and incorrect theology can't keep us away. Our gracious God meets where we are. He knows we are stubborn, prideful, weak and slow to understand, yet He loves us and patiently works in our lives to break through our fog and reveal to us the depths of His love. I believe that we can only love (agape) others to the extent that we are convinced of His love for us.

I certainly don't know all of the answers and I have asked God to deliver me constantly believing that I do. I have given up on the wisdom of men, even my own. My desire is to rest my faith in the power and wisdom of God.


*that thing that MAN has created to put his relationship to God in a neat little box that somehow makes sense.

Happy 4th of July

Have a happy and safe 4th of July!

The Answer

(Copyright Gospel Communications International, Inc - http://www.reverendfun.com/)

My Husband Test Score

110 As a 1930s husband, I am Very Superior Take the test!

The Past is Forgotten

Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new.

So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

When you were dead in your sins, you were not set free from the sinful things of the world. But God forgave your sins and gave you new life through Christ. We had broken the Law many ways. Those sins were held against us by the Law. That Law had writings which said we were sinners. But now He has destroyed that writing by nailing it to the cross.

I, even I, am He Who blots out and cancels your transgressions, for My own sake, and I WILL NOT REMEMBER YOUR SINS.

Taken from 2 Corinthians 5, Romans 8, Colossians 2, Isaiah 43

Emphasis Mine

I Met God in the Morning

I met God in the morning
when the day was at its best,
And His Presence came like sunrise,
Like a glory in my breast.

All day long the Presence lingered,
All day long He stayed with me,
And we sailed in perfect calmness
O'er a very troubled sea.

Other ships were blown and battered,
Other ships were sore distressed,
But the winds that seemed to drive them,
Brought to me a peace and rest.

Then I thought of other mornings,
With a keen remorse of mind,
When I too had loosed the moorings,
With the presence left behind.

So, I think I know the secret,
Learned from many a troubled way:
You must seek Him in the morning
If you want Him through the day!

I have found that to be true in my life. I make it a practice to get up every morning and get on my knees and pray. Not in a legalistic way, but in humility I seek His face and admit to Him that I can do nothing without Him and need His wisdom and guidance to see me through the day. I ask God to fill me with His Spirit so that I might bear the fruits of righteousness and to teach me by His grace to say no to unrighteousness. By faith, I trust that God has given me all that I have asked for and then I go out to face the world. I have found that when I do this, I have peace and rest in stormy seas, but when I don't seek God in the morning, it's like the poem says...I get blown and battered

Has anyone else noticed this in their walk?

Poem by Bishop Ralph Cushman

Rooted and Established in Love

I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him.

Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Taken from Ephesians 1 and 3

Thank You

If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is "Thank You", it will be enough."

Meister Eckhart

Written in Stone Before the Foundation of the World

Even so Abraham BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS. Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham. The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, "ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE BLESSED IN YOU." So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.

For you are ALL sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are ALL one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendants, heirs according to promise.

Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called "Uncircumcision" by the so-called "Circumcision," which is performed in the flesh by human hands--remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who MADE BOTH GROUPS INTO ONE and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into ONE NEW MAN, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both IN ONE BODY to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. AND HE CAME AND PREACHED PEACE TO YOU WHO WERE FAR AWAY, AND PEACE TO THOSE WHO WERE NEAR; for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

Taken from Ephesians 2 and Galatians 3

(Emphasis mine)

Guidance

The Lord will always lead you. He will satisfy your needs in dry lands and give strength to your bones. You will be like a garden that has much water, like a spring that never runs dry.

People may make plans in their minds, but only the Lord can make them come true. Depend on the Lord in whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Taken from Isaiah 58, Proverbs 16, and Romans 12

I Saw God Today

I heard this song on the way home from work...liked it...thought I would share.

Cool High Nerd

Apparently that's what I am...



I don't think I agree with the percentages

To know, know, know me...

In your entire life, have you ever...

gone on a blind date? Yes

skipped school? Yes

watched someone die? No

been to Canada? No

been to Mexico? Yes

been to Florida? Yes

been on a plane? Yes

been lost? No, just momentarily disoriented

been on the opposite side of the country? Yes

gone to Washington, DC? Yes

swam in the ocean? Yes

had your booze taken away by the cops? No

lettered in a high school sport? No

cried yourself to sleep? No

played cops and robbers? Yes

played dolls? Do GI Joes's count?

recently colored with crayons? Yes

sang Karaoke? No

paid for a meal with coins only? Yes

done something you told yourself you wouldn't? Yes

cheated on an exam? Yes

made prank phone calls? Yes

laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose? Yes

caught a snowflake on your tongue? Yes

danced in the rain? No

written a letter to Santa Claus? Yes

been kissed under the mistletoe? Yes

watched the sunrise with someone you care about? Yes

been arrested? No

blown bubbles? Yes

gone ice-skating. Yes

been skinny dipping outdoors? Yes

had a nickname? Yes

been to Africa? No

eaten cookies for dinner? Yes

been on TV? Yes

stolen any traffic signs? Yes

been in a car accident? Yes

What is your....

mother's name? Marjorie

favorite drink? Sweet tea

favorite alcohol? Rubbing

birthplace? Demopolis, AL

favorite vacation spot? The Beach

favorite salad dressing? Honey Mustard

favorite pie? Pecan

favorite number? 11

favorite movie? Star Wars

favorite holiday? Christmas

favorite food? Pizza

favorite day of the week? Saturday

favorite brand of body wash? Coast

favorite toothpaste? Crest

favorite smell? Grilled Steak

Do you have any...

tattoos? No

body piercings? No

Do you drive a 2-door or 4-door vehicle? 4

What do you do to relax? Rest

How do you see yourself in 10 years? Chasing Sherry

His Joy is in Us

It is the consciousness of the threefold joy of the Lord, His joy in ransoming us, His joy in dwelling within us as our Saviour and Power for fruitbearing and His joy in possessing us, as His Bride and His delight; it is the consciousness of this joy which is our real strength. Our joy in Him may be a fluctuating thing: His joy in us knows no change.

James Hudson Taylor

Our Hope is in Him

The best-equipped army cannot save a king, nor is great strength enough to save a warrior. Don’t count on your warhorse to give you victory—for all its strength, it cannot save you. But the Lord watches over those who fear him, those who rely on his unfailing love. He rescues them from death and keeps them alive in times of famine. We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield.

What can we say about all this? If God is on our side, can anyone be against us? God did not keep back his own Son, but he gave him for us. If God did this, won't he freely give us everything else? If God says his chosen ones are acceptable to him, can anyone bring charges against them? Or can anyone condemn them? No indeed! Christ died and was raised to life, and now he is at God's right side, speaking to him for us. Can anything separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble, suffering, and hard times, or hunger and nakedness, or danger and death?

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him." The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.

Taken from Psalm 33, Romans 8, and Lamentations 3

Quote of the Week

Constantly practice the habit of inwardly gazing upon God. You know that something inside your heart sees God. Even when you are compelled to withdraw your conscious attention in order to engage in earthly affairs, there is within you a secret communion always going on.

A. W. Tozer

Three Things

Three jobs I have had in my life
1. Pizza Delivery Man
2. Draftsman
3. Mechanical Engineer

Three movies I watch over and over
1. Star Wars
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark
3. Sling Blade

Three places I have lived
1. Huntsville, AL
2. Hazel Green, AL
3. Denial

Three shows that I watch
1. House
2. Bones
3. Two and a Half Men (Sorry to say)

Three places I have been
1. San Diego, CA
2. Boston, MA
3. Washington, DC

Three people who e-mail me regularly
1. Sherry
2. Junk
3. Spam

Three of my favorite foods
1. Pizza
2. Steak
3. Ice Cream

Three places I’d rather be right now
1. Beach
2. Coast
3. Waterfront

Three friends I think will respond
1. Moe
2. Larry
3. Curly

Three things I am looking forward to this year
1. A deeper revelation of God's love
2. Some time off
3. Another year together

Quote of the Week

Dear Lord, grant me the grace of wonder. Surprise me, amaze me, awe me in every crevice of Your universe. Delight me to see how Your Christ plays in ten thousand places, lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not His, to the Father through the features of men's faces. Each day enrapture me with Your marvelous things without number. I do not ask to see the reason for it all; I ask only to share the wonder of it all.

Joshua Abraham Heschel

Accepting Our Humanity

I have to admit that my flesh isn't a very pretty thing to behold. It's impatient, short-tempered, selfish, covetous and fearful. I could probably think of a few more things to add to the list if I took some time. My wife could probably come up with a sizable list without having to strain too hard.

Isn't the grace and mercy of God such an awesome thing that Jesus would stoop down and drag such a filthy thing as myself out of the mud and wash me white as snow. He accepted me and adopted me as His son just the way I was. I didn't have to clean myself up...at all...not one speck of mud did I have to scrape off for Him to accept me and to receive me as His own.

Now that I am His child am I to think that this same God now somehow doesn't accept me when I act like I did before my adoption? Does He withhold the grace and mercy from His children that he freely gives to those who don't yet know Him? If you're His child I hope you can answer NO to both questions. Yet, isn't that how many of His children live their lives? In fear and depression because they believe that God doesn't accept them just the way they are...warts and all.

Now don't get the idea that I am saying that sin is OK or that sin is acceptable to God. I am also not saying that Father will not work in our lives to turn us away from the things in our life that will harm us and others (sin). He loves us too much to let us play with matches around a gas can. I think Dan Stone said it better in his book, "The Rest of the Gospel"

Every one of us has something about our humanity-our personality, or for some of us our body-that we wish God would change so that we'd look better for Him, at least from our perspective. We think, "God, if you'd just take that thing away, I'd look better for You." That "thing" may be with us until they plant us six feet under.

We come to a place where we say, "Lord, even though that thing is still in my humanity, I'm going to praise You for it." You know what I discovered? The minute I started praising God for my impatience, I didn't see it anymore. I don't mean it disappeared, but I didn't have a fixation on it. I wasn't anxious about it any longer. That's the way God moves on in us, when we accept ourselves as He does.

I'm not advocating sin, by any means. I am saying that when we shift our focus from ourselves-some neutral aspect of our personality that we don't like, or, yes, even some flesh pattern that keeps recurring-and instead focus on Christ in us, God does His work in us. We are transformed into His image as we behold Him, not as we behold ourselves (2 Corinthians 3: 18).

God takes those things that are fixations in us when we're flesh-oriented and turns them into blessings when we're spirit-oriented. What I despised became a blessing in somebody else's life. Those things become the years the locusts ate that God restores, the dung that God makes into a compost pile. He lets it sit there until it's done a work in us. Then we can take our humanity back and say, "It's perfect to God right now. If He wants to do any altering of it, He is at work in me to will and do of His good pleasure. If He wants to change it, He who began a good work in me will bring it to pass. He can finish what He started."

I'm not going to take my humanity back on my own terms. I don't want it back that way. It took me long enough to get rid of it-as the source of my life. When you see it's no longer the starting point of your life, but rather the means by which God's life is manifested, you can take it back. You can accept yourself as you are. You can accept yourself as God's asset.

Finally we are able to say, "Lord, through my family tree and all of the circumstances I've come through, You've made the outer person that I am. You live in that person, and you set that person in the world in a way that's going to attract some people to You. I'm not going to attract everybody. The ones You don't attract through me, You'll catch through someone else."

We don't have to be anybody else; we don't have to submit to anyone trying to make us like anybody else, either. We are free to be ourselves. God is pleased to manifest His beautiful variety of expression through each of us in our uniqueness.

Point of Reference

Matthew had a great post over on his blog, which set me to thinking about grace. Many Christians embrace the grace of God, which is freely given, but are content to feed on (rely upon) that grace to see them through even while they live their lives mostly in the flesh. They can do that, but as Dan Stone pointed out in his book, "The Rest of the Gospel," why would they want to? Here is an excerpt:

It is impossible for a person to know their union with Christ, and live out of that union, if they don't know that they have died with Christ. If I think that the old me is still alive, I am still my point of reference. If I am still my point of reference, I am still trying to correct me, straighten me up, make something out of me, or do something to change me. As long as my emphasis is upon me, it can't be upon Christ in me. So I am a divided (double minded) person.

You know what the Bible says about double minded men...

When Paul asks the question, "Shall we continue to sin just to prove the grace of God?" He concludes, "People who go on living like that don't really know they have died in Christ." In other words, their point of reference hasn't been changed. Their point of reference is still themselves, and they think they are no good and want to sin. Consequently, they are excited about all of this grace of God that they can keep drawing on. Paul would say, "Yes, you can keep drawing on the grace of God for everything you ever do, for every sin you ever commit. But WHY? Why not instead draw on the LIFE of God?"

Quote of the Week

The root of all virtue and grace, of all faith and acceptable worship, is that we know that we have nothing but what we receive, and bow in deepest humility to wait upon God for it.

Andrew Murray

The Blessings of Righteousness

Lovingkindness and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth springs from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. Indeed, the LORD will give what is good, and our land will yield its produce. Righteousness will go before Him and will make His footsteps into a way.

For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in You!

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.

Taken from Psalm 84 and 85, 2 Corinthians 5, Ephesians 1

Humility

A man can counterfeit love, he can counterfeit faith, he can counterfeit hope and all the other graces, but it is very difficult to counterfeit humility. D. L. Moody

The only humility that is really ours is not that which we try to show before God in prayer, but that which we carry with us in our daily conduct. Andrew Murray

The meek man will attain a place of soul rest. As he walks on in meekness he will be happy to let God defend him. The old struggle to defend himself is over. He has found the peace which meekness brings. A.W. Tozer

Whatever makes us feel superior to other people, whatever tempts us to convey a sense of superiority, that is the gravity of our sinful nature, not grace. Phillip Yancey

Humility and love are precisely the graces which the men of the world can understand, if they do not comprehend doctrines. They are the graces about which there is no mystery, and they are within reach of all classes... The poorest Christian can every day find occasion for practicing love and humility. J. C. Ryle

Humility is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of yourself less. Unknown

The man, full of himself, can never proclaim the Christ who emptied Himself. Jacquelyn K. Heasley

A heart that understands what is implicit in God's tenderness is humbled beyond any hope of goodness or worth in itself. Marian Scheele

God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. 1 Peter 5:5

Computer Heaven

I had someone ask for a picture of my monitor setup at work, so here you go.

Quote of the Week

When the living Lord Jesus resides in and is vitally active within a Christian, He cannot and does not overlook the selfishness and sinfulness of a person's motivations, attitudes, and behavior. To do so would be to deny Himself, His character, the essential purpose of His Being. Since the personal relationship the Christian has with Christ is a relational union that establishes our spiritual identity as a Christ-one, the indwelling Christ must be allowed to express Himself in the Christian individual by overcoming all selfishness that is contrary to His character. "All things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do" (Heb. 4:13), and He will lovingly expose and root out all that is not consistent with Himself. Christianity is Christ, and true to Himself He will counter and overcome all that is contrary to His absolute character until He is "all in all" of the Christian's life.

Jim Fowler

Grace, Grace, God's Grace

Grace that is greater than all our sins. Where would we be apart from the grace of God; where would we be without the completely undeserved favor that has been lavished on us through His Son, Jesus Christ? For...

• We have received grace upon grace. (John 1:16)
• Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. (John 1:17)
• Grace encourages us to remain true to the Lord. (Acts 11:23)
• We are justified by Grace. (Romans 3:24)
• We stand in His grace. (Romans 5:2)
• The abundance of grace causes us to reign in life, in Christ Jesus. (Romans 5:17)
• Where sin abounded, grace much more abounded. (Romans 5:20)
• Sin is not our master, because we are under grace. (Romans 6:14)
• The grace of God leads us to be thankful. (2 Corinthians 4:15)
• We were made rich by His grace. (2 Corinthians 8:9)
• Grace provides abundance for every good deed. (2 Corinthians 9:8)
• Grace causes us to yearn for each other. (2 Corinthians 9:14)
• His grace is sufficient for us. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
• We have redemption and forgiveness according to the riches of His grace. (Ephesians 1:7)
• The riches of His grace is kindness toward us. (Ephesians 2:7)
• We are saved by grace. (Ephesians 2:8)
• By grace, we have eternal comfort and good hope. (2 Thessalonians 2:16)
• We have a holy calling, according to His purpose and grace. (2 Timothy 1:9)
• Grace brought salvation to all men. (Titus 2:11)
• Grace instructs us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly. (Ephesians 2:11-12)
• By the grace of God, Jesus tasted death for everyone. (Hebrews 2:9)
• Grace helps in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)
• We are strengthened by grace. (Hebrews 13:9)
• Grace is given to the humble. (James 4:6)
• Our hope is completely fixed on the grace of God revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:13)
• We are stewards of the manifold grace of God. (1 Peter 4:10)
• We are to stand firm in the grace of God. (1 Peter 5:12)
• Grace is multiplied to us in the knowledge of God and Jesus. (2 Peter 1:12)
• We are to grow in grace. (2 Peter 3:18)

Amen.

Pretty Amazing Grace

I don't know if any of you watch American Idol, but I this week was Neil Diamond week. I can usually take him or leave him...I like some of his older stuff, but in general, meh. He sang one of his new songs and I really enjoyed it. I thought I would share it for those who didn't get a chance to hear it.

Here are the lyrics:

Pretty amazing grace is what You showed me

pretty amazing grace is who You are

I was an empty vessel

You filled me up inside

and with amazing grace restored my pride.

Pretty amazing grace is how You saved me

and with amazing grace reclaimed my heart

love in the midst of chaos

calm in the heat of war

showed with amazing grace what love was for.

You forgave my insensitivity

and my attempt to then mislead You

You stood beside a wretch like me

Your pretty amazing grace was all I needed.

Stumbled inside the doorway of Your chapel

humbled in God by everything I found

beauty and love surround me

freed me from what I fear

ask for amazing grace and You appear.

You overcame my loss of hope and faith

gave me a truth I could belive in

You led me to a higher place

showed Your amazing grace

when grace was what I needed.

Look in a mirror I see Your reflection

open a book You live on every page

I fall and You're there to lift me

share every road I climb

and with amazing grace You ease my mind.

Came to You with empty pockets first

when I returned I was rich man

didn't believe love could quench my thirst

but with amazing grace You showed me that it can.

In Your amazing grace I had a vision

from that amazing place I came to be

into the night I wandered

wandering aimlessly

found Your amazing grace to comfort me.

pretty amazing

pretty amazing

pretty amazing

pretty amazing

pretty amazing

pretty amazing

pretty amazing

pretty amazing

You overcame my loss of hope and faith,

gave me a truth I could believe in.

You led me to that higher place

showed me that love and truth and hope and grace were all I needed.

(arrrgh...sometimes the formatting on blogger drives me crazy...the text above is supposed to be divided into paragraphs, but blogger refuses to cooperate.)

Quote of the Week

Creation discloses a power that baffles our minds and beggars our speech. We are enamored and enchanted by God's power. We stutter and stammer about God's holiness. We tremble before God's majesty...and yet we grow squeamish and skittish before God's love.

Brennan Manning

Religion....NOT!

Joel's excellent series of posts on "Jesus is not a Religion" reminded me of something I wanted to share.

We were having a discussion in Sunday school, this past Sunday, about religion and tradition. It was my turn to lead the class, so I got to steer the class in a direction to talk about some things that were on my mind. I didn't steer it too far off topic as we were discussing what "good works" meant in Ephesians 2:10.

We were wondering what church would look like if you removed all of the man-made traditions and trappings of religion that have been injected over the years. Note that I am not saying those things are necessarily bad, but what would happen in your typical church, for example, if you threw the order of worship out the window and worshipped and shared from your heart.

What a wonderful thing it must have been, when He walked the earth, to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to Him teach and share the heart of the Father. The good part is that we still have that same privilege today, but how much of our Sunday is spent running around like Martha?

Which Sports Car Are You?

I'm a Chevrolet Corvette!

You're a classic - powerful, athletic, and competitive. You're all about winning the race and getting the job done. While you have a practical everyday side, you get wild when anyone pushes your pedal. You hate to lose, but you hardly ever do.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

I don't know about the powerful athletic part, but I am competitive and hate to lose.

Sing of His Power

But as for me, I will sing about Your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about Your unfailing love. For You have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress. O my Strength, to You I sing praises, for You, O God, are my refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love.

From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been a refuge for me, A tower of strength against the enemy. Let me dwell in Your tent forever; Let me take refuge in the shelter of Your wings.

My soul, wait only upon God and silently submit to Him; for my hope and expectation are from Him. He only is my Rock and my Salvation; He is my Defense and my Fortress, I shall not be moved. With God rests my salvation and my glory; He is my Rock of unyielding strength and impenetrable hardness, and my refuge is in God!

Taken from Psalm 59, 61 and 62

Deep Water Faith

I have mentioned in the past that when I think that I am writing something for the benefit of others, it turns out that I am really writing to myself. Or maybe more correctly, God is writing to me. The “Swinging-Bridge of Grace” post was one of those occasions. After I wrote it God began to point out the area in my life where I have refused to get on that swinging-bridge. It all comes down to fear. So Aida, this part two and it may not be what you expected, but it is where I am.

I have mentioned this in the past, so it is no big secret that I don’t like to speak in front of a crowd. This includes leading a group in prayer. I will do it if I am asked, but I usually go out of my way to avoid putting myself into a situation where I might be asked. I will not, as a general rule, be the initiator. When I do pray out loud, it is usually not from my heart. It is usually canned phrases strung together…it’s what people expect to hear in an opening or closing prayer. It is nothing like my prayers when I am alone with God.

I do, however, long to be fearless in this area. I long stand up and boldly speak and pray from my heart, or should I say God’s Heart, and to get on that bridge in this area of my walk. As usual (at least lately), Casting Crowns has provided the sound track to my struggle. It is their song, “Somewhere in the Middle” and here is the chorus from that song.

Fearless warriors in a picket fence, reckless abandon wrapped in common sense
Deep water faith in the shallow end and we are caught in the middle
With eyes wide open to the differences, the God we want and the God who is
But will we trade our dreams for His or are we caught in the middle
Are we caught in the middle?

Deep water faith in the shallow end, indeed! How will we ever know how deep our faith is if we never get out of the shallow end? To be sure, I have walked into deeper water and trusted more and more areas of my life to Him. But, have I ever jumped in over my head and completely surrendered to Him with reckless abandon? I don’t think so, at least not in this particular area. So much of what we do is wrapped up in common sense and protecting an image we have of ourselves; the one we portray when everyone is looking.

I was listening to an mp3 series on the Book of Ephesians by Steve McVey recently and he made a statement that set me to thinking and praying. He said (paraphrased) that we should pray for God to make us aggressive and bold witnesses and ambassadors for Him. When we say amen, we have been given boldness (fearlessness). I believe it is God’s will that we should be fearless for the Bible tells us that we haven’t been given a spirit of fear. Steve said, “How will we know we have been given boldness?” He said do this, “Go out and act bold! When you act bold you will be bold.” Is it just that easy? Why not? Since He has given you boldness, then you will just be acting like who you are, or more correctly, who He has made you to be. If He has given you boldness, then to cower in fear is to purposely act like something you are not. Something to ponder!

I have attached the music and lyrics to the Casting crowns song. To be continued Lord willing…keep praying for me.

"Somewhere In The Middle"

Somewhere between the hot and the cold
Somewhere between the new and the old
Somewhere between who I am and who I used to be
Somewhere in the middle, You'll find me

Somewhere between the wrong and the right
Somewhere between the darkness and the light
Somewhere between who I was and who You're making me
Somewhere in the middle, You'll find me

Just how close can I get, Lord, to my surrender without losing all control

Fearless warriors in a picket fence, reckless abandon wrapped in common sense
Deep water faith in the shallow end and we are caught in the middle
With eyes wide open to the differences, the God we want and the God who is
But will we trade our dreams for His or are we caught in the middle
Are we caught in the middle

Somewhere between my heart and my hands
Somewhere between my faith and my plans
Somewhere between the safety of the boat and the crashing waves

Somewhere between a whisper and a roar
Somewhere between the altar and the door
Somewhere between contented peace and always wanting more
Somewhere in the middle You'll find me

Just how close can I get, Lord, to my surrender without losing all control

Lord, I feel You in this place and I know You're by my sideLoving me even on these nights when I'm caught in the middle

Lay 'em Down

Be gracious to me, God, be gracious to me, for I take refuge in You. I will seek refuge in the shadow of Your wings until danger passes. I call to God Most High, to God who fulfills [His purpose] for me. He reaches down from heaven and saves me, challenging the one who tramples me.

Think about that and reflect

God sends His faithful love and truth.

Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.

For your unfailing love is as high as the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

Amen

Screen Cleaner

For those of you with dirty computer screens, this screen cleaner should do the trick.

2008 Resolutions of the Televangelists

I don't know if any of you read the Wittenburg Door, but I thought this was hilarious.

Sample:

Joel Osteen: I resolve to frown at least 15 minutes each day so my smile will look genuine the rest of the time. But I will do it hanging upside down in my gravity boots so that the frown looks like a smile.

Happy New Year!

May the LORD bless you, and keep you.
May the LORD make His face shine on you, and be gracious to you.
May the LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.