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10.30.2009 |
UPDATE: John sent me the years
I was missing, so now the Jack O' Lantern picture set is complete for the
last six years. Scroll down to see his pumpkin
carving masterpieces! Enjoy!
Remember how I had the refrigerator repairman coming
between 1:00-4:00pm on Wednesday? Not so much. I got
a call from the company (around 4:00pm) saying he
was running late and wouldn't be there on time.
Since we have the whole church thing on Wednesdays,
I had to reschedule. Now he's supposed to be here
between 9:00am-12:00pm this morning. We'll see.
In an unrelated story: Halloween is tomorrow!
Tricia has posted some thoughts on the celebration
of this holiday
on
her blog, so you should swing by and check it out.
And speaking of Halloween: my brother John, who is
talented in many areas, also happens to be an awesome carver of Jack
O' Lanterns. I thought I would share some of his
masterpieces to help get you in the
Halloween mood. The only problem with this montage
is that I can't seem to find pics of his pumpkins from 2007 or 2008 --
John, if you read this, can you hook a brother up?
The first one is this year's, and it's a picture of
Gavin, John and Kira's dog. I don't know many dogs
that get their likeness carved into a pumpkin, do
you? You can also see logos for Purdue (2004) and
Louisville (2005) as well as Gizmo from Gremlins
(2008), John's former employer Allied Automation
(2007), and even Aerosmith
frontman Steven Tyler (he's one of Kira's favorites)
that was carved in 2006.
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2009 / Gavin |
2008 / Gizmo |
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2007 / Allied Automation |
2006 / Steven Tyler
(Aerosmith) |
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2005 / Louisville |
2004 / Purdue |
Pretty amazing, huh? I honestly have no idea how he
does it, but the results speak for themselves. Some
of the pictures are a bit grainy, but as a person
who has tried to photograph jack o' lanterns before,
let me tell you that it can be tricky. But all of
these turned out well enough to see what they are --
and to see my brother's carving skills!
Happy Halloween, everybody!
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10.28.2009 |
Last night, Tricia went to grab a pizza out of the
freezer for dinner...and it was soggy. Turns out
everything in the freezer had thawed out (and we had
just gone to the store last weekend, so it was fully
loaded). We enjoyed some baked pasta instead, and I
placed a call to a repair service, and they told me
they would be at the house on Wednesday between 1:00
and 4:00pm.
So while I'm at home on a Wednesday afternoon waiting for
the tech to show up, I thought I'd post another of
my favorite hymns (with bonus commentary!) in my
countdown. Today we continue with #9 on the list. You can read
a bit about it below, and catch up with numbers 20
through 10 of the countdown
here:
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Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
E’en though it be a cross that raiseth me,
Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Though like the wanderer, the sun gone down,
Darkness be over me, my rest a stone.
Yet in my dreams I’d be nearer, my God to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
There let the way appear, steps unto Heav’n;
All that Thou sendest me, in mercy given;
Angels to beckon me nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Then, with my waking thoughts bright with Thy praise,
Out of my stony griefs Bethel I’ll raise;
So by my woes to be nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Or, if on joyful wing cleaving the sky,
Sun, moon, and stars forgot, upward I’ll fly,
Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
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Do
we truly desire to be
“nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to
Thee?” Are we at all concerned
about growing in fellowship and communion
with our Creator and Savior? Do we give any
thought to the depth of our relationship
with God? Do we know Him more than we once
did? Do we trust Him completely? Are we
drawing near to the Father?
Of course, the ability to approach God at
all is only found in Jesus Christ because
“no one comes to the Father except through
Me.” [John 14:6] And it is referring to
Christians when Paul says that because we
“have been justified by faith, we
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ. Through Him we have also obtained
access by faith into the grace in which we
stand…” [Romans 5:1-2]
The word “Christian” literally means “little
Christ.” It was first used in a derogatory
manner against early disciples who were so
much like Jesus in their way of life that it
reminded others of Him, who then lashed out
in hatred against those who identified
themselves with Christ.
Keep in mind that Christ Himself made it
clear: all of His people would suffer in the
same way He did. Jesus reminds us that “a
servant is not greater than his master. If
they persecuted Me, they will also persecute
you.” [John 15:20] Paul echoes this
sentiment later by saying “indeed, all who
desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus
will be persecuted.” [2 Timothy 3:12]
So the question is not “will we suffer?” for
we are certain that we will. The question is
“will suffering drive us away from God or
nearer to Him?” This is the question that
Sarah Adams so wonderfully answered when she
penned “so by my
woes to be nearer, my God, to Thee.”
If suffering comes, may it serve only to
cause
us to cling all the more tightly to the One
True God and the promises of His Son, Jesus
Christ.
There are times that God might
“let the way
appear, steps unto Heaven” and
there are other times when
“darkness be over
me, my rest a stone.” In either
case, God remains faithful. Do you believe
that? Imagine what the disciples must have
thought seeing Christ on the cross. If ever
there was a moment when all hope seemed
lost, that was it. But hope only seemed
lost; God had not forgotten His promises.
The resurrection of Christ proved that He is
still the sovereign Lord.
This is what led the apostle Paul to rejoice
in his own sufferings; because Christ
endured suffering, and if his own suffering
made him more like Christ, then he welcomed
it. Writing to the church in Philippi, he
longed “that I may know Him and the power of
His resurrection, and may share in His
sufferings, becoming like Him in His death,
that by any means possible I may attain the
resurrection from the dead” [Philippians
3:10-11]
It’s shocking how counter Paul’s plea runs
to our own hearts, which so often cling to
worthless, earthly things. Do we see our own
comfort, convenience, and even life itself –
as things to be sacrificed in
sanctification? Is our desire to be like
Christ so strong that we would be raised on
a cross? Can we truly say that we have such
a strong burden to be near to Christ that we
would endure anything to be with Him,
“even though it be
a cross that raiseth me”?
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10.27.2009 |
Time Travel Tuesday #13
Is there anything better than ice cream? Well, yes.
But when you're a kid hanging out at your grandma's
house, ice cream ranks pretty high, as you can see
from the picture of my brother Luke (he's on the
left) and I enjoying some yummy desert. I'm not sure
exactly when the picture was taken, but from the
leather chair we're squeezed into I do know that it
was taken at my Grandma Jackie's house:
To me, the irony of this picture is that Luke has
actually become an accomplished triathlete and
probably hasn't had ice cream in years. In fact, you
can read all about his training methods, race
results, and upcoming events on his blog, which he
updates several times a week. It's very
well-written, and you should check it out by
clicking the link below:
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10.26.2009 |
Before we get to the weekly football update, I have
a question: last night the Yankees clinched a berth
in the World Series, meaning they will face the
Phillies for the title. As a Mets fan, who am I
supposed to cheer for in that matchup? The
Phillies have whipped the Mets in the NL East for
the last few years and the Yankees are the
long-time, cross-town rivals. Can they both
lose? Not likely. Unless, of course, they both take
lessons from one of the three football teams I cheer
for, in which case losing is nearly a guarantee!
On that note, as you might have guessed, it's
time to examine yet another disappointing week for my three teams.
Here's the new win-loss records for each team:
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers travelled 'across the pond' to play the
Patriots in London. Which to me seems like a silly
place to play a football game (well, American
football, anyway) unless you buy into the idea that
the NFL is considering a franchise for London (and
possibly Mexico City) within the next 10 years. Of
course, none of that has anything to do with
yesterday's game, in which the Pats, fresh off their 59-0 drubbing of the
Titans, kept their momentum going and cruised past
the Bucs 35-7. The only good news? Next week is
Tampa's bye week, and they can't lose if they don't
play, right? Right?
Games left: 9
Things looked more positive for the Louisville Cardinals
earlier in the week as it was announced that
Cincinnati's starting quarterback would miss the
game due to a shoulder injury. Then the game
actually started, and UC's back-up QB sliced and
diced the Cardinal defense with ease, rolling to a
41-10 victory. With only 5 games left, and 6 wins
needed to become bowl eligible, the Cards chances of
playing in December are slim to none. If they have
any hope, they'll need to take care of Arkansas
State at home this Saturday.
Games left: 5
It was equally rough for the PRP Panthers
who were admittedly outmatched against
#1-in-the-state St. X, who made it look easy with a
38-8 win. PRP threw three interceptions and had two
punts blocked, never a good sign. This drops the
Panthers to 1-2 in their division, and while I don't
know if they are mathematically eliminated from the
playoffs, they are practically finished after next
week's road trip to Central.
Games left: 1
So, if you did the math this week,
not only did my three teams lose, they lost by a
combined total of 114-25. Granted, they
were all playing very good, highly ranked teams. But
they weren't even competitive, which makes for a
long season if you are a fan. Here's the current
overall standings:
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10.25.2009 |
Ask someone if they are a Christian, and they will
almost always point to an initial moment of
conversion as evidence. Perhaps they walked down a
church aisle at one point, or prayed with someone at
the end of a revival service, or maybe they were
baptized as a child.
Of course, there is nothing wrong with any of those
things, but when the Bible answers the question of
assurance, it doesn't look back to a point in the
past as the main evidence of salvation. Instead, it
looks to the present. Think about this quote from James
Fraser [ Am I A Christian?, 73] about
the ongoing nature of salvation:
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God does, as it were, act my conversion over and over again. He convinces
me more and more, not only of my actual and
my open sins, but still more now of my
secret and my soul-sins, of the plague of my
own heart, and of that fountain-sin of my
very nature, which carries me away from God
and from his holiness continually.
He convinces me also that this is a matter in which I cannot really help
myself, or redeem myself, or in any way cure
myself, do all I can. And all that, till I
am shut up to believe, and to trust, and to
live in and on Christ as never before.
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So we see that salvation, although most certainly a
one-time, once-for-all event in terms of redemption
and justification, is an ongoing process in the
Christian's life in terms of "the will of God,
your sanctification." [1 Thessalonians 4:3]
This means that a Christian's assurance is based
first and foremost on God. Since salvation is
something that He accomplishes through His own
provision (both in terms of His Son's sacrifice for
sin and His Spirit's drawing and regenerating of our
hearts), we can trust with absolute confidence that
He will keep His promise and that our inheritance is
guaranteed.
The secondary means of our assurance isn't in our
sincerity at the moment of conversion, of any other
past event. Instead, it is in the continual faith
and repentance that mark the life of all those who
are in Christ. God's Spirit remains at work in His
people, "training us to renounce ungodliness and
worldly passions, and to live self-controlled,
upright, and godly lives in the present age"
[Titus 2:12]
Is there evidence in your life of a deeper faith
than there was before? Have you increasingly turned
away from sin and turned toward God? These are the
marks of a Christian, so ask the Lord to examine
your heart and reveal the truth to you. Becoming a
Christian happens in one moment; being a Christian
is a process that lasts until our final breath. Are
you a Christian?
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10.24.2009 |
Last night, I finally finished The Count of
Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. I read the
unabridged version, which clocked in at 1,462 pages
-- so you can understand why it took a while to get
it done!
Although I was familiar with the story (and really
enjoyed the 2002 film with Jim Caviezel and Guy
Pearce), I had not read the book before. It proved
to be a challenging read on many fronts: the length
was daunting, many French titles and customs peppered
throughout, and there were several unexpected changes in flow. I
later found out that this story was originally
published as a serial in a French magazine over the
course of 1844-1845, which explains the sometimes
jarring shifts of characters and Dumas' penchant for
recapping events at the beginning of chapters.
Having finished the book, I do admit to enjoying a
certain sense of accomplishment. I'm also surprised by how
different the movie was. The first half was very
similar to the book, but the conclusion was markedly different.
I understand the limitations of Hollywood when it
comes to adapting such a long novel, but it seemed
to be too far of a departure. I still like the
movie, but now I can see why others may have felt it
deviated too much.
It's also made me curious as to what the abridged
version of the book reads like. Maybe someday I'll
read that version and find out...
In other news, Tricia's blog is back and this week's
poll asks an important question: What should we name
our baby? Head over and
cast
your vote!
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10.22.2009 |
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Why Go To Church?
It's always interesting to hear people give reasons
why they don't go to church. Many claim it is
boring, just after their money, too early in the
morning, or any other number of reasons. At the
heart of these claims is the belief (whether spoken
or not) that church isn't really necessary; that it
can be neglected without any real consequence.
For those who profess to be in Christ, however,
intentional investment in a local fellowship of
like-minded believers is not optional. Quickly
consider the following reasons that God gives us for
joining with a local church:
Unity
God has adopted His people into His family, so when
we say we are 'brothers and sisters in Christ' we
literally mean it. This is our family. Jesus unifies
His people, and then instructs us to preserve this
unity. Don't mistake unity for uniformity -- we
aren't all clones of each other or any such
nonsense. Instead, we are parts of one body, working
together in unified submission to Christ, who is
"the Head of the body, the church." [Colossians
1:18]
Growth
One of the means by which God makes us more like
Christ is through His Word. As we sit under faithful
preaching and teaching from Scripture, we "grow
in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ" [2 Peter 3:18] and are shaped
more into the image of Jesus. And, by the way, if a
church doesn't faithfully preach and teach the
Gospel, they may be many things, but they are not a
church, and you should look elsewhere.
Accountability
Not just for areas of personal weakness or sin, but
also so that we can together identify and weed out
false teaching, that we won't be "tossed to and
fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of
doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in evil
schemes." [Ephesians 4:14]
Service
God has saved us "in Christ Jesus for good
works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should
walk in them." [Ephesians 2:10] Since we have
been saved to serve, the local church provides us
opportunities and means to direct our spiritual
gifts and minister to others in the name of Jesus
Christ.
This is by no means an exhaustive list (we didn't
even specifically discuss worshipping with other
believers, for instance) but the concept is clear:
God expects His people to join together in the local
church. In light of that, consider these parting
thoughts:
1) If you are already part of a
solid fellowship that loves Christ, is faithful to
His Word, and provides opportunities to learn and
serve in an environment of unity and grace -- then
be thankful! With so many social clubs and feel-good
seminars masquerading as churches in our culture,
genuine Gospel-centered fellowships seem to be a
rare breed.
Along those lines, if you ever find yourself
considering a move to a new city, or heading off to
college, make sure there is a similarly-orientated
church nearby that you can invest in and trust with
your growth. We can't just assume that we will
always find a Christ-honoring church, and it falls
to us to investigate and consider these things as
part of any transition.
2) If you profess Christ and are
not invested in a local church, think of what you
are neglecting in terms of your own walk with
Christ. Are you so bold as to disregard God's means
of your sanctification? Cutting yourself off from
the very people He has called you to be a part of is
not only counterproductive, it is disobedient.
Friend, do not put this off another day or believe
any of your weakish excuses a moment longer: find a
church that teaches the truth of Christ you claim to
believe and join with them, "eager to maintain
the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."
[Ephesians 4:3]
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10.20.2009 |
Time Travel Tuesday #12
In my senior year of college, the BSU sponsored a
mission trip called RoadQuest. Three teams would
each travel to three different cities over the
course of a week, do a mission project of some kind,
and then all meet in one location at the end. Tricia
and I were on the Green Team, as seen below. We went
to St. Louis, Memphis, and Birmingham before meeting
everyone else in Gatlinburg, but I don't remember
where this picture was taken. The photo's a little
grainy (it was before digital cameras!) but you
should still be able to spot both of us:
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10.19.2009 |
Now that another week is upon us, it's time for the
latest football roundup! Here's where
my three favorite teams are after this past weekend's games:
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers almost
pulled off their first win of the season. Down 21-7,
they run back a kickoff for a touchdown, then
returned an interception for another touchdown, and
tied the game 21-21 late in the 4th quarter. Then
Carolina drove all the way down the field by running
the ball straight at the defense and basically
walked into the end zone for a 28-21 win. The good
news: At least the Bucs did better than the Titans,
who got beat 59-0 by the Patriots. The bad news:
Tampa plays the Patriots this Sunday. Yikes.
Games left: 10
The Louisville Cardinals racked up
another road loss last Saturday with a 38-25 defeat
at the hands of Connecticut. After leading
14-13 at halftime, the Cards were outscored 17-0 in
the 3rd quarter and never really had a chance to
recover. This week doesn't bode much better with a
trip to Cincinnati, who happens to be undefeated and
the #5 team -- in the country.
Games left:
6
Bringing a little hope to the football board this
week, the PRP Panthers defeated
rival Butler 28-13 on the road. This is the
Panthers' fifth consecutive win over Butler, and it
came from a strong running attack and with a
freshman quarterback starting the game. Although
their overall record is still on the losing side,
PRP is actually 1-1 in their division. And with the last
two games being against division opponents, they
could still theoretically make a playoff push. Which
sounds potentially promising until you look at the schedule and
see that this Friday's game is a road trip to the #1
team in Kentucky: St. X.
Games left: 2
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10.18.2009 |
Heaven and Hell. Are they real? What are they like?
Who goes to which place? Questions of eternity often
leave many confused or misguided. The truth is that
there is only one way to Heaven, and that is through
Jesus Christ, who said: "I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father
except through me." [John 14:6]
Following are some quotes from Jonathan
Edwards [ Heaven: A World of Love,
21, 63, 89, 96] about Heaven, Hell, and the
consideration of eternity:
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Even the very best of men, are, on earth,
imperfect. But it is not so in heaven. There
shall be no pollution, or deformity, or
unamiable defect of any kind, seen in any
person or thing; but everyone shall be
perfectly pure, and perfectly lovely in
heaven. That blessed world shall be
perfectly bright, without any darkness;
perfectly fair, without any spot; perfectly
clear, without any cloud.
Everything in the heavenly world shall
contribute to the joy of the saints, and
every joy of heaven shall be eternal. No
night shall settle down with its darkness
upon the brightness of their everlasting
day.
Everything in hell is hateful.
There is not one solitary object there that
is not odious and detestable, horrid and
hateful. There is no person or thing to be
seen there that is amiable or lovely;
nothing that is pure, or holy, or pleasant,
but everything abominable and odious. There
are no beings there but devils, and damned
spirits that are like devils. Hell is, as it
were, a vast den of poisonous hissing
serpents; the old serpent, who is the devil
and Satan, and with him all his hateful
brood.
These things are not cunningly devised
fables, but the great and dreadful realities
of God’s word, and things that, in a little
while, you will know with everlasting
certainty are true. How, then, can you rest
in such a state as you are in, and go about
so carelessly from day to day, and so
heedless and negligent of your precious,
immortal souls?
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Have you ever given any consideration to Heaven or
how you plan to get there? Have you ever considered
the alternative? These are, quite literally, matters
of life and death, and as such we ignore them at our
own peril.
Ultimately, what makes Heaven such a wonderful place
is God. His presence is there, and His people will
be able to enjoy that presence free from sin and its
effects. It will be an eternity of perfect
fellowship with our Creator and Savior.
It's amazing to think that God has made a way for
each of us to spend eternity in Heaven with Him,
especially at the cost of His own Son's life. But
this is a limited time offer. At the point of our
own deaths or Christ's return (whichever comes
first), we are "locked in" forever. If we have
rejected or ignored Christ, we have no hope of
Heaven.
My encouragement for us today is to think on these
things. Are you prepared for death?
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10.18.2009 |
It's been a while since I've put up any pictures, so
here are a few random ones from earlier this month
as well as five from our trip to Huber's yesterday.
Click on each to enlarge and enjoy!
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10.13.2009 |
Time Travel Tuesday #11
Today's picture includes two shots of Tricia and I,
both taken in July 2006 at John and Kira's wedding
reception. I couldn't decide which one I liked
better, so I decided to put them both together, for
another two-in-one special!
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10.12.2009 |
Last August, I bought one of those pocket-sized
digital voice recorders and since then I've been
recording my sermons. Counting yesterday's
sermon, I've delivered 18 messages in the past
year, and they are now all located in an online
archive!
If you're interested in any of the sermons, feel
free to download and listen to them at your
convenience (but please do not repost them on
other sites or otherwise reproduce or distribute
them without permission). I should also let you
know that the sound quality is only so-so, since
the recorder uses an open-air microphone that
tends to pick up background noises.
I'm certainly not the world's best preacher, but
I do try to preach faithfully to the text that
is being dealt with, and I try to keep the focus
on Christ and His glory. If you ever do listen
to any of these sermons, I hope that you find
them helpful. So, without further ado, click on
the link below to visit the all-new sermons
page!
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10.12.2009 |
I like football. As I'm sure is the case for many
others, it is my favorite sport, and I enjoy getting
to spend some time watching the games on the
weekends in the fall. And although I've seen some
good games this year, none of them have involved my
favorite teams. Take a look at the current standings
for the three teams I follow (one professional team,
along with my college and high school alma maters)
and see what I mean:
So that's a grand total of 4 wins and 13 losses so
far. What's going on with my favorite football teams
this year?
We'll start with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers,
who were 9-3 last season before losing their last
four in a row to finish 9-7 and miss the playoffs.
That led to the firing of the coach, the defensive
coordinator went to work with his son on the college
level, and most of the team's remaining veterans
were cut or traded away. What's left isn't pretty.
Not only are they 0-5, but they are mostly blowout
losses. Two weeks ago, the quarterback's stat line
was 7 of 16 passes for 22 yards. That's 22 yards
for the entire game. (He's been benched, but
the replacement hasn't fared much better.) Before
the season started I was sad that I wouldn't get
many chances to see the Bucs on network TV, but now
that doesn't seem like such a bad thing. I'm just
hoping they don't pull a Detroit and go 0-16 this
year. Games left: 11
The Louisville Cardinals are a bit
better...but not much. Their two wins come against
Indiana State (a Division II school) and Southern
Mississippi, and neither were convincing. Although
they hung in well with Kentucky and had a chance to
win, Utah and Pittsburgh have wiped the floor with
them. Up next are two road games (UConn and
Cincinnati), which could start nailing the season
shut. I'd like to be more optimistic, but what I've
seen in the games so far doesn't inspire a lot of
hope. Games left: 7
Finally, the PRP Panthers are also
struggling. They even (unbelievably) lost the
Snowman this year! Of course, there have been a
lot of off-the-field distractions with the Max
Gilpin tragedy from last year and the subsequent
trial of former coach Jason Stinson. But since I
haven't seen any of the games this season, it's hard
to know what's ailing the Panthers. I can say that
last week's 35-0 loss to Manual doesn't speak well.
Even worse, they have to finish out the season with
three straight games on the road. Ouch.
Games left: 3
As a fan, I hope all of these clubs turn things
around quickly and start racking up some wins this
season. Realistically, it looks like I have to hope
that these teams can make some moves n the right
direction during what's left of this year and do
better in 2010. Either way, you know I'll still be
watching!
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10.11.2009 |
Think of the last three sermons you've heard. What was the theme or main
point of each? Were they about you, or were they
about Christ? That's an important distinction, and
it's one that
T. David Gordon [ Why Johnny
Can't Preach, 76] addresses:
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Faith is not built by preaching introspectively (constantly challenging
people to question whether they have faith);
faith is not built by preaching
moralistically (which has exactly the
opposite effect of focusing attention on the
self rather than on Christ, in whom our
faith is placed); faith is not built by
joining the culture wars and taking potshots
at what is wrong with our culture.
Faith is built by careful, thorough exposition of the person, character,
and work of Christ.
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Of course, there are times when challenging the
culture, or discussing Christ-honoring morality, or
encouraging God-enabled introspection are necessary.
But they are not the priority. If the overarching
theme of a man's sermons is anything other than
Christ, then he's missed the point. Not only because
Jesus is the only thing worth centering on, but because
preaching Christ is the very means by which God
calls, comforts, and even
convicts His people.
Along those lines, please pray for me as I endeavor
to
preach about Christ later this morning. The title of
the message is simply "Who Is Jesus Christ?"
Almost everyone can give some kind of answer
for that
question; but what is the right answer? Most
importantly, what does
God say about His Son in His Word? That's what we'll
examine in Colossians 1:15-23, so if you are in the
Parkwood area today, stop by!
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10.06.2009 |
Time Travel Tuesday #10
Here's my dad helping me enjoy some of what appears
to be my first birthday cake. I used all my powers
of deduction to help determine this (with an assist
from the giant "1977" on the wall calendar in the
background):
And, as a reminder, if you've missed any of the
previous Time
Travel Tuesday pictures of my family's history, be
sure to visit the TTT page
here!
Also, I have now crossed the 1,000-page barrier in
The Count of Monte Cristo, so I should be
posting that book review (and others) soon. In the
meantime, don't forget that you can read my 76-word
reviews on 144 other books
here.
And, as promised, here are some pictures from Nick
and Ashley's wedding, which took place at Kye's in
Jeffersonville on September 26. Ethan even got
dressed up for the occasion, although he was not in
a picture-taking mood that day. Tricia and I took
the photos, but since we were both in the wedding,
we couldn't have pulled it off without some help
from Becky, who did a fantastic job and really took
some great shots! All in all, the day went great,
and it was a very pretty wedding. Here are a few
pictures to give you a glimpse:
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10.04.2009 |
Although God's Word speaks of truth in absolute
terms, many people in this postmodern era choose to
see truth as relative. In other words, the idea of
"truth" changes from person to person and is
situationally and circumstantially based. Sadly,
this type of thinking has also entered the church,
often disguised as a form of humility. John
MacArthur
[ The Truth War, 156] discusses the Biblical
nature of truth and the way Christ expects us to
approach it:
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A denial of all certainty has nothing to do
with true humility.
It is actually an arrogant form of unbelief,
rooted in an impudent refusal to acknowledge
that God has been sufficiently clear in His
self-revelation to His creatures. It is
actually a blasphemous form of arrogance,
and when it governs even how someone handles
the Word of God, it becomes yet another
expression of evil rebellion against
Christ’s authority.
Christ has spoken in the Bible, and He holds
us responsible to understand, interpret,
obey, and teach what He said – as opposed to
deconstructing everything the Bible says.
Notice that Christ repeatedly rebuked the
Pharisees for twisting Scripture, disobeying
it, setting it aside with their traditions,
and generally ignoring its plain meaning.
Not once did He ever excuse the Pharisees’
hypocrisy and false religion by apologizing
for any lack of clarity in the Old
Testament.
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When we read and study Scripture, we are not dealing
with a reference book open to our own
interpretation. Nor are we reading "cleverly
devised myths" but we recognize that "no
prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but
men spoke from God as they were carried along by the
Holy Spirit." [2 Peter 1:16, 21]
God is Truth. And as He has revealed Himself to us
(primarily through His Word and His Son), we can be
certain that He intends for us to see His truth as
absolute. It does not need to be updated, reframed,
or modernized -- He is the same yesterday, today,
and forever.
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A B O
U T M E
>
My name is Mark and I was born in 1976.
> I am
married to my beautiful wife and best friend, Tricia.
> We
have a 17-month old son named Ethan.
> We have
another son due in February 2010.
> Tricia
also has a
blog.
Hers is better than mine.
>
I'm Associate Pastor at
Parkwood Baptist in Louisville, KY.
> all
content is (c) 2003-2009
se7enty6ix.com |
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OCT 2009 |
click each title below for review
click here for
review index |
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