Where does your greatest respect and confidence lie?

If you were to type in your search engine, "most powerful military in the world," you would clearly learn that the United States of America reigns supreme in all military sectors. The U.S defense budget is greater than 600 Billion dollars, which is more than the next ten top militaries in the world COMBINED. Our biggest conventional military advantage would have to be our fleet of 19 aircraft carriers,

a technologically advanced fleet of weaponry, a very well trained human force, and not to mention the worlds largest nuclear arsenal.

 I think it is safe to say, that America is the strongest, prowess country in the world. As I was reading through Psalm 147 this morning, verses 10-11 caught my eye...

"His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of man, but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love."

This word "strength" in the Old Testament is most likely referring to/ or in comparison to military strength. When the author in this text talks of the Horse and the Legs of man, we can assume that he is referring to weaponry and infantry used in military defense or what "man" would consider strength.  

What I am reminded of in these verses and in the entire Psalm is, that the greatest strength or force to have on our side, is not our military (although it comes in very handy, and I don't want to loose it) but it is The Lord God, Himself. 

He is stronger than any number of aircraft carriers, a technologically advanced fleet of weaponry, a very well trained human force, and not to mention the worlds largest nuclear arsenal.

What He looks for are the qualities of Reverence and Hope.

Reverence: Deep respect for someone or something.
Hope: A feeling of confident expectation and desire.

Where does your greatest respect and confidence lie?

Santa Claus is Coming? Or Jesus Christ is Coming?

Christmas! Yes, it is the most wonderful time of the year.

From spending time with family and making life long memories, to picking out the perfect gifts, I love this holiday and none other compare for me.

However, as I watch my son become engulfed in the commercialization of the Christmas season, (be it from the commercials on television, the Christmas songs he learns from school, or the first question that everyone seems to ask him which is, “So, what do you want for Christmas?”) my wife and I find ourselves trying to figure out how to keep the “main thing,” the main thing.

During this Christmas season, join us in remembering that though it is great to give and expect gifts, our greatest expectation should NOT be in the advent/coming of Santa Claus but in the advent/coming of Jesus Christ.

Not only did Jesus COME to this earth, born of a virgin, wrapped in swaddling clothing, lying in a manger, but the bible goes on to tell us that He is coming again. That should be our greatest expectation!

So as you are wrapping those gifts, watching those timeless Christmas movies and creating those family traditions, remember the coming of Christ. That He came, and He is coming again.

Here are a few passages to help you remember.

He Came…

Isaiah 7:14

Isaiah 9:6-7

Luke 1:30-35

He is Coming Again…

Acts 1:11

Philippians 3:20

Colossians 3:4

Revelation 22:20-21

God is Great, God is Good!

A lot has happen since the last time I posted on my blog; one being, the birth of our baby girl, Hannah Elizabeth. Though I am not getting much sleep at night, to hold her and gaze into her eyes has been far more rewarding than sleep. I have decided when she wakes for her 4:30AM feeding, to remain up and spend a few hours in prayer and meditation.

Tim Keller, in his latest book called, Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God, talks about how one of the greatest ways to grow in your prayer life is by reading the Psalms, because they are prayers to God. As a result, I have been doing this over the last few weeks and it has definitely helped strengthen the quality of my prayer time. This morning one of the Psalms I read was Psalm 31. You may remember, this is the Psalm that Jesus quoted in His most difficult time of trouble and sorrow... "(Father) Into your hands I commit my spirit." If the son of God Himself found this prayer to be the consummate expression of his heart's desire for rest in the hands of his father, could we find any more  adequate expression for our own?

David says in the 19th verse, "How GREAT is your GOODNESS, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you." 

Immediately, after reading verse 19, I was reminded of the beginning of a simple yet profound prayer we teach our three year old son to pray, "God is GREAT, God is GOOD..." It is easy for me (and I would assume you as well) to skip over this communicable attribute of God or view the word "Good" as a generic concept. However, this morning I am reminded (In the words of Berkhof) that God is in every way all that He as God should be, and therefore answers perfectly to the ideal expressed in the word "God. He is good in the metaphysical sense of the word, absolute perfection and perfect bliss in Himself...He is the foundation of all good, and is so represented in a variety of ways throughout the bible...And not only that, but God is also the summum bonus, the highest good..."

David reminds us in Psalm 31 that not only is God Great and Good, but He stores up His greatness and goodness for those who fear Him, giving it (his greatness and goodness) out freely to those who find refuge in Him.

So I pray, in the words of my three year old son, God is Great, God is Good!

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

Over the last 5 years I have become an avid book reader (seminary will do that to you). However, because of the insermountable number of books I was tasks with reading during seminary, the moment I finished my degree program I decided that I would take some time to read a few books that I have wanted to read for awhile. One of them being, Eric Metaxas biography on Dietrich Bonhoeffer. (Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy) For more information on Dietrich Bonhoeffer's life click HERE.

As I am still processing all of the great transforming wisdom found in the life of Bonhoeffer, here are a few of the things I've learned while reading this book...

"If the state is not creating an atmosphere of law and order, as Scripture says it must, then it is the job of the church to draw the states attention to this failing."
-Dietrich Bonhoeffer saw how the German Government was mistreating a people group (the Jews) and instead of just sitting around and watching it happen, he acted in a mighty way. We must do the same as we are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28)

"One should aim to live in the way Jesus commanded his followers to live in the sermon on the mount...The church will start being the church when this happens..."
-What better way to become mature in Christ (Col 1:27-29) and transformed to the image of God's son (Gal 4:19) than to meditate on Matthew 5-7 regularly?

"God was interested not in success, but in obedience. If one obeyed God and was willing to suffer defeat and whatever else came ones way, God would show a kind of success that the world couldn’t imagine. But this was the narrow path and few would take it."

-True success is in obedience to God, even in the midst of suffering! 

"It is not your LOVE that sustains the marriage, but from now on, the marriage that sustains your LOVE.

-Bonhoeffer, in this statement is trying to express the fact that marriage is more than our love for one another, for it is God's holy ordinance through which he wills to perpetuate the human race till the end of time. Marriage is also our way of "pointing" to God's unconditional covenant with his people.

"No one has yet believed in God and the kingdom of God, no one has yet heard about the realm of the resurrected, and not been homesick from that hour, waiting and looking joyfully to being released from bodily existence...Death is the last station on the road to freedom...Death is grace, the greatest fit of grace that God gives to people who believe in him...Death is not the end of life, but the beginning of life and freedom."

-As beautiful as LIFE on earth can be, it does not even begin to compare to TRUE LIFE which comes to believers in eternity.

A simple bike ride gave me a NEW PERSPECTIVE...

I went for a 20 mile bike ride the other day on a beautiful scenic trail not too far from my house. I have ridden this exact trail numerous times over the past 2 years, however this ride was unlike any other ride I had ever taken.

 I was listening to a Tim Keller sermon podcast (as I do pretty much every time I ride). But, on this day Tim (yeah, Tim and I are are on a first name basis) was teaching on the Theology of Ecology: that is the study of God with respect to the environment. He began to talk about Psalm 19 and how "The heavens (which from the perspective of the writer would have included sky or even earth) declare the glory of God...Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world."

He concluded with the notion that the sky (earth, nature) has a voice. Not only does nature have a voice but it is speaking to us everyday, all day. When you goggle at the sun, feel the trickles of rain fall on your arm, when you hear the wind blowing through the trees, when you gaze at a waterfall, even when you look at your pet fish, remember she (nature) is speaking words to you. She is obediently saying, "Hey you...look and see the glory of God."

Not only should we recognize the voice of nature, but we should honor nature. Nature is being obedient to God in a way that we are unable to be. In fact, Romans 8:19-21 tells us that "creation eagerly awaits (on her tippy toes) the revealing of the sons of God." In other words, nature is waiting in love for us to catch up with them, with respect to obedience to God.

As I get dressed for my 20 mile ride this morning, I dress ardently to listen to the trees as they shout out the "Glory of God..." I dress ardently to see the cardinal as it flies in complete obedience to God.

Are you listening? Are you watching?

Additional References:
Psalm 24:1-2
Psalm 97:1-6
Colossians 1:16
Romans 1:18-20

Well Done...

Well, I am happy to announce that after four hard years... along with thousands of hours of studying... tens of thousands of pages read... hundreds of books absorbed... thousands of verses exegetically examined... biblical coherency in Hebrew and Greek and after sitting through thousands of hours of lectures, seminars and instruction, I can confidently say that I have graduated from seminary.

Im sure you can imagine (juggling the many roles I have as Husband, Father, Pastor, Friend and Student) that the past four years have been the most difficult in my life. There were days I wanted to give up on school, give up on God's calling and go back to corporate america where I saw personal success and financial gain. However, each time my wife (Alice) was always there to talk me off the ledge (so to speak). Not only was my wife there but my family, friends and most of all God's word.

Jeremiah 29:11 has been a passage that I have quoted over the last four years to myself probably more than any other. Jeremiah, was given these words directly from the heart of God to the people of Israel. "I know the plans I have for you says the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. To give you a future and a hope."

My greatest hope over the last four years was not in simply graduating from seminary... or becoming the pastor of a healthy, thriving, Christ centered church one day. My greatest hope was not even in getting a chance to spend more time with my loving, beautiful family with no reservations (even though that might be a close second). My greatest hope is and was in HEAVEN. The day that I get to see Jesus face to face in the flesh and hear him say, "Well, done my good and faithful servant."

I pray that is your  greatest hope too...“For the hope which is laid up for you in Heaven, of which you heard before in the Word of the Truth of the Gospel.” Colossians 1:5.

Intergenerational Relationships

I've learned over the last few years that I have a tendency to glean more, when I focus my attention on a certain book of the bible over a years time, rather than choosing random pericopes in the bible to read in a days time, or even attempting to read the entire bible every year.

I have decided to spend 2014 in 1- 2 Timothy. One of the first things that jumped out at me in my reading was how Paul (the author of this letter) refers to Timothy (the recipient of this letter) as, "my true child in the faith." (1 Timothy 1:2)

Between an older Paul and a younger Timothy, we find a beautiful intergenerational relationship, which are so often vitally helpful to both individuals. Many times in peer to peer (or same age) relationships both parties have similar goals, struggles and aspirations.

These types of friendships are definitely important. However, in intergenerational relationships, many times both parities are able to complement each other well, due to the fact that they are in different stages of life. (A similar relationship is found with Peter and John)

This morning I am asking myself a few questions that I challenge you to ask of yourself...

1. Who (is) are the "Paul's" in my life? (Older relationships besides my parents and grandparents. Normally either double your age or at least 20 years your senior)

2. Who (is) are the "Timothy's" in my life? (Younger relationships besides my children, nieces and nephews. Normally half your age or at least 20 years younger)

3. How intentional have I been in pursuing an intimate, consistent relationship with these people?

4. How can I grow in this area in 2014?

Other passages to ponder...
Deuteronomy 6:4-7
Joshua 4:4-8, 21-22
Joel 1:3
Rm 8:14-17, 12:4-6
Eph 1:22 
1 Cor 12
Titus 2:3-5

...on Phil Robertson and the "church"

My thoughts concerning the recent "colloquy" in lieu of the Phil Robertson interview in GQ Magazine:

As the "church" we are called to be as Paul so eloquently states in 1 Timothy 3:15, "a pillar and buttress of the truth." 

Both of these nouns  (στῦλος and ἑδραίωμα in the Greek) represent a immovable structure that supports or gives stability to something...that "something" according to Paul is the "truth."

If we are the church, we must gracefully, humbly and with hospitality, give support and stability to God's Truth, so that the world around us does not falsely build its foundational structures on non-truths and subsequently fall.

Additional verses to ponder...
Psalm 43:3
Psalm 86:11
Psalm 119:60
Matthew 22:16
John 17:17
1 John 3:18