Here is another video clip from Desiring God ministries. Ever since Dr. John Armstrong visited our church during our 20th anniversary celebration and introduced to concept of being missional, I have really been challenged on how "church" is done. These video bits and pieces that I have found are very thought provoking and I am interested in any thoughts that my readers have on these. I'll be posting these bits in between my semi regular posts on various other things. This particular video is from Dr. David Wells. You can read more about him at this link. The video isn't very long so take some time and watch.
Friday, June 15, 2007
Thursday, May 31, 2007
I'm Being Challenged
This clip is from Pastor Mark Driscoll. He leads Mars Hill Church in Seattle and I have been listening to a lot of his sermons of late. I think I am going to be posting several items in reference to him and some other pastors/theologians who have been challenging my thinking lately. The below clip is from some pre conference interviews from Desiring God ministries 2006 conference. The conference title was Above All Earthly Powers and centered around the postmodern mindset and the emergent church. Many of the clips discuss engaging the culture. Great stuff.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Whats Going On?
So I have been really busy lately. My dad had brain surgery to help combat the symptoms of his Parkinson’s, I went to Columbus Ohio for work for several days, and I am getting busier at work all the time. It’s crazy crazy crazy, and because of this several things I like to do (like Blog) is falling behind. Add to this the upcoming graduation season, weddings I'm involved with and (as of last night), my involvement with the children’s musical Jailhouse Rock, I felt I needed to make myself update the world. I'm still here!! So here are some random thoughts on some topics that I am interested in.
1. The iPhone - I don't think anyone would be surprised that I like gadgets, and I especially like cool gadgets that do multiple things. I have high hopes for the iPhone, but there are several factors that will hold me back from getting one when it is released in June. Number one on that list is the price. It’s over $500 for the 4Gig version. I'm just not willing to pay that. The other reason I won't run out and get one is that it’s new. I so want to be an early adaptor, but I also have a stronger aversion to purchasing anything this complex in its first generation. I think that Apple needs to have a generation or two to get the kinks worked out. There is no doubt about it that this device is really cool and I will eventually own one, maybe sometime in 2008 or early 2009. This is of course subject to change if something crazy happens.....like I get a deal I can't pass up.
2. HDTV - So a few weeks ago I decided that I would dive into the HDTV world and upgrade my television to a flat LCD TV. I did a lot of research and stumbled on a great open box deal for a 36 inch LG at Circuit City. It was a nice TV, and I bought it on the spot and took it home. This is where I learned that I was not ready for HDTV. The issue.......I don't have digital cable, and I'm not willing to upgrade to it. As I watched regular TV stretched to fit the screen, it was blah. When I adjusted it so it looked correct, the picture was significantly smaller and I had a lot of black space on the edges. I didn’t' like that. DVD's looked great, but I hated everything else about it. So I took it back the next day and got a refund. I decided that until the prices dropped more on the TV's and that a solution came about to solve my cable issue I would wait. Regardless, my 32 inch Sony is still a great picture and still has a nice size for my condo.
3. Jail House Rock - What do I get myself into? Last night I was asked to participate in the audition process to help the leadership team pick parts for the annual kid’s musical help in July. So with my regular "big ideas" mouth I made several suggestions and then without even thinking I said, I can coach those kids on that. Bam the team jumped on it and now I have a group of boys and one girl that I am coaching on how to be a rap gang. They'll be beat boxing and rapping during one of the songs. This will be a challenge, but also a lot of fun I think. One thing for sure is that it will take time. I know I will enjoy it, I really like musical theater, and I’ve just never been on the coaching directing side of it before.
4. My Dads surgery - So my dad had brain surgery. I know you can either think wow, that’s serious or you can insert joke here. He has Parkinson’s disease and it’s been almost 20 years since the symptoms started to show. Of late he has really been having a rough time with it. The shaking is the least of the problems. When he walks he needs a walker. He could be going along and his legs will freeze, but his momentum continues to carry him forward and so he falls a lot. He has to wear knee pads to protect him. So after several months of consideration he had surgery to implant a really cool gadget into his body. This device is sort of like a pacemaker (it’s in his chest) and it has two leads that are strung up through his neck and implanted into parts of the brain. They fire an electrical current in sequence and this helps to offset many of his symptoms. It’s no cure, but they turned it on yesterday and he says that he was able to walk without falling and the shaking is noticeably less. This is good news. It buys him some more time before he will be really forced to a wheelchair. I have a lot of thoughts about when a parent becomes disabled....I'll share them in the future.
That’s all for now, hollar if you are reading.
RAV
1. The iPhone - I don't think anyone would be surprised that I like gadgets, and I especially like cool gadgets that do multiple things. I have high hopes for the iPhone, but there are several factors that will hold me back from getting one when it is released in June. Number one on that list is the price. It’s over $500 for the 4Gig version. I'm just not willing to pay that. The other reason I won't run out and get one is that it’s new. I so want to be an early adaptor, but I also have a stronger aversion to purchasing anything this complex in its first generation. I think that Apple needs to have a generation or two to get the kinks worked out. There is no doubt about it that this device is really cool and I will eventually own one, maybe sometime in 2008 or early 2009. This is of course subject to change if something crazy happens.....like I get a deal I can't pass up.
2. HDTV - So a few weeks ago I decided that I would dive into the HDTV world and upgrade my television to a flat LCD TV. I did a lot of research and stumbled on a great open box deal for a 36 inch LG at Circuit City. It was a nice TV, and I bought it on the spot and took it home. This is where I learned that I was not ready for HDTV. The issue.......I don't have digital cable, and I'm not willing to upgrade to it. As I watched regular TV stretched to fit the screen, it was blah. When I adjusted it so it looked correct, the picture was significantly smaller and I had a lot of black space on the edges. I didn’t' like that. DVD's looked great, but I hated everything else about it. So I took it back the next day and got a refund. I decided that until the prices dropped more on the TV's and that a solution came about to solve my cable issue I would wait. Regardless, my 32 inch Sony is still a great picture and still has a nice size for my condo.
3. Jail House Rock - What do I get myself into? Last night I was asked to participate in the audition process to help the leadership team pick parts for the annual kid’s musical help in July. So with my regular "big ideas" mouth I made several suggestions and then without even thinking I said, I can coach those kids on that. Bam the team jumped on it and now I have a group of boys and one girl that I am coaching on how to be a rap gang. They'll be beat boxing and rapping during one of the songs. This will be a challenge, but also a lot of fun I think. One thing for sure is that it will take time. I know I will enjoy it, I really like musical theater, and I’ve just never been on the coaching directing side of it before.
4. My Dads surgery - So my dad had brain surgery. I know you can either think wow, that’s serious or you can insert joke here. He has Parkinson’s disease and it’s been almost 20 years since the symptoms started to show. Of late he has really been having a rough time with it. The shaking is the least of the problems. When he walks he needs a walker. He could be going along and his legs will freeze, but his momentum continues to carry him forward and so he falls a lot. He has to wear knee pads to protect him. So after several months of consideration he had surgery to implant a really cool gadget into his body. This device is sort of like a pacemaker (it’s in his chest) and it has two leads that are strung up through his neck and implanted into parts of the brain. They fire an electrical current in sequence and this helps to offset many of his symptoms. It’s no cure, but they turned it on yesterday and he says that he was able to walk without falling and the shaking is noticeably less. This is good news. It buys him some more time before he will be really forced to a wheelchair. I have a lot of thoughts about when a parent becomes disabled....I'll share them in the future.
That’s all for now, hollar if you are reading.
RAV
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Pollution and Tending The Garden
On Tuesday night I attended a concert at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Wilmington. It was offered by the University of Delaware Choral program. Over the course of the evening they shared competition pieces that they will be using at an international choir competition in Estonia. Much of the music was beautiful, and a good deal was sacred. As a side note, I find it very interesting that secular universities use sacred music in their music programs. I wonder if at some point this will be considered offensive, but I digress.
The music was beautiful and at one point a young man read a statement before the choir sang a Venezuelan piece. The statement was a list of environmental disasters and their effect on the environment. After each disaster he dramatically spoke the word "Listen". He then quoted an old African saying about the "earth being tired." I have to say that I am not a proponent of global warming theory; at least not the theory pushed my many. I do believe that the earth is going through changes and that in some cases, we are responsible. When God placed Adam and Eve in the garden, he gave them the duty of tending it (Genesis 2:15). He also gave man dominion over the planet (Genesis 1:26-30). Now dominion is a serious responsibility. I am consistently disappointed with my brothers and sisters in the Lord who are so against anything that resembles agreement with liberals, that they dismiss the responsibility God gave us at our creation.
Let me be clear, I am not saying we are in a environmental crisis. Nobody would call me a tree hugger or a hippie, or a left wing environmental wacko. What I am saying is that we can all take our responsibility to be good stewards of the gift God gave us a little more seriously. Conservation isn't just to appease the environmentalists. Its good stewardship of the world we were give dominion over and asked to tend. We can also do all we can to eliminate pollution and live a little more clean. If everyone did a little it would add up to a lot. Global warming is debatable, but pollution is not. It’s happening and it doesn't have to.
The music was beautiful and at one point a young man read a statement before the choir sang a Venezuelan piece. The statement was a list of environmental disasters and their effect on the environment. After each disaster he dramatically spoke the word "Listen". He then quoted an old African saying about the "earth being tired." I have to say that I am not a proponent of global warming theory; at least not the theory pushed my many. I do believe that the earth is going through changes and that in some cases, we are responsible. When God placed Adam and Eve in the garden, he gave them the duty of tending it (Genesis 2:15). He also gave man dominion over the planet (Genesis 1:26-30). Now dominion is a serious responsibility. I am consistently disappointed with my brothers and sisters in the Lord who are so against anything that resembles agreement with liberals, that they dismiss the responsibility God gave us at our creation.
Let me be clear, I am not saying we are in a environmental crisis. Nobody would call me a tree hugger or a hippie, or a left wing environmental wacko. What I am saying is that we can all take our responsibility to be good stewards of the gift God gave us a little more seriously. Conservation isn't just to appease the environmentalists. Its good stewardship of the world we were give dominion over and asked to tend. We can also do all we can to eliminate pollution and live a little more clean. If everyone did a little it would add up to a lot. Global warming is debatable, but pollution is not. It’s happening and it doesn't have to.
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Berries and Cream
Ok, I know that my posts have been pretty serioys lately, but today in church Tony told me I had to watch this video and I have to tell you......it is scary funny. Enjoy.
Friday, March 30, 2007
The Westminster Larger Catechism Q3
Question 3: What is the Word of God?
Answer: The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word of God, the only rule of faith and obedience.
Again the Westminster Divines have given us some foundational stuff on which to build the rest of the Catechism. How can we venture forward into the deep truths of the Lord, unless we know what foundation it is being built upon? The Word of God is that foundation. God has told us the story, and in the process made a provision for us. His Word is the well spring of life, the source of wisdom, and the means of grace. We would only have a general revelation of God without His Word; sufficient to damn us certainly, but it is His Word that delivers the revelation necessary to save us.
With the importance of God's Word in mind, it is worth noting that the very fact of its foundational position targets it for frequent attack. We see this at the beginning when Satan asked Eve "Did God really say..." in Genesis 3:1. We see that today as those opposed to the message of Christ attempt to use any means available to prove the text of God's Word wrong. The most recent failed attempt is chronicled in the Jesus Family Tomb documentary produced by James Cameron.
Why do they try so hard? Simple, if they can prove the word of God wrong, they prove Christianity wrong. In all the media interviews and hype surrounding this latest attack, it was sad to have heard many people disassociate their faith from the truth claims of the Bible. I’m sure that some thought that they were standing up for Christianity, but in reality they were sharing that they have no faith in the Bible and therefore the message it proclaims. Statements about how the discovery of Jesus’ tomb wouldn’t affect their faith, points to a lack of understanding of what the “rule of faith and obedience” says. These individuals have reduced Christianity to a psychology, a lifestyle drug that gets them through the day. How very sad.
The Word of God is about history. It makes a claim. Prove that claim wrong and we have all been wasting our time in church. Question 3 reaffirms the authority of scripture and sets another foundation block for the systematic discussions ahead in the Catechism. Please, I beg you. If you claim to be a Christian, delve into what you say you believe. Understand its foundations; explore the only rule for faith and obedience.
Friday, March 23, 2007
The Drop That Grew into a Torrent
I will open rivers in desolate heights, and fountains in the midst of valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water and the dry land springs of water. (Isaiah 41:18)
Hymn Text
1. All my soul was dry and dead,
Till I learn'd that Jesus bled.
Bled and suffer'd in my place,
Bearing sin in matchless grace.
2. Then a drop of heav'nly love
Fell upon me from above,
And by secret, mystic art,
Reach'd the center of my heart.
3. Glad the story I recount,
How that drop became a fount,
Bubbled up a living well,
Made my heart begin to swell.
4. All within my soul was praise,
Praise increasing all my days;
Praise which could not silent be:
Floods were struggling to be free.
5. More and more the waters grew,
Open wide the flood-gates flew,
Leaping forth in streams of song
Flowed my happy life along.
6. Lo! a river clear and sweet
Laved my glad, obedient feet!
Soon it rose up to my knees,
And I praised and prayed with ease.
7. Now my soul in praises swims,
Bathes in songs and psalms and hymns;
Plunges down into the deeps,
All her powers in worship steeps.
8. Hallelujah! O my Lord!
Torrents from my soul are poured!
I am carried clean away,
Praising, praising all the day.
9. In an ocean of delight,
Praising God with all my might,
Self is drowned; so let it be:
Only Christ remains in me.
- Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Hymn Text
1. All my soul was dry and dead,
Till I learn'd that Jesus bled.
Bled and suffer'd in my place,
Bearing sin in matchless grace.
2. Then a drop of heav'nly love
Fell upon me from above,
And by secret, mystic art,
Reach'd the center of my heart.
3. Glad the story I recount,
How that drop became a fount,
Bubbled up a living well,
Made my heart begin to swell.
4. All within my soul was praise,
Praise increasing all my days;
Praise which could not silent be:
Floods were struggling to be free.
5. More and more the waters grew,
Open wide the flood-gates flew,
Leaping forth in streams of song
Flowed my happy life along.
6. Lo! a river clear and sweet
Laved my glad, obedient feet!
Soon it rose up to my knees,
And I praised and prayed with ease.
7. Now my soul in praises swims,
Bathes in songs and psalms and hymns;
Plunges down into the deeps,
All her powers in worship steeps.
8. Hallelujah! O my Lord!
Torrents from my soul are poured!
I am carried clean away,
Praising, praising all the day.
9. In an ocean of delight,
Praising God with all my might,
Self is drowned; so let it be:
Only Christ remains in me.
- Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
From Depths of Woe I Raise to Thee
From depths of woe I raise to Thee
The voice of lamentation;
Lord, turn a gracious ear to me
And hear my supplication;
If Thou iniquities dost mark,
Our secret sings and misdeeds dark,
O who shall stand before Thee?To wash away the crimson stain,
Grace, grace alone availeth;
Our works, alas! are all in vain;
In much the best life faileth:
No man can glory in Thy sight,
All must alike confess Thy might,
And live alone by mercy.
Therefore my trust is in the Lord,
And not in mine own merit;
On Him my soul shall rest, His Word
Upholds my fainting spirit:
His promised mercy is my fort,
My comfort, and my sweet support;
I wait for it with patience.
What though I wait the livelong night,
And till the dawn appeareth,
My heart still trusteth in His might;
It doubteth not nor feareth:
Do thus, O ye of Israel's seed,
Ye of the Spirit born indeed;
And wait till God appeareth.
- Martin Luther
The voice of lamentation;
Lord, turn a gracious ear to me
And hear my supplication;
If Thou iniquities dost mark,
Our secret sings and misdeeds dark,
O who shall stand before Thee?To wash away the crimson stain,
Grace, grace alone availeth;
Our works, alas! are all in vain;
In much the best life faileth:
No man can glory in Thy sight,
All must alike confess Thy might,
And live alone by mercy.
Therefore my trust is in the Lord,
And not in mine own merit;
On Him my soul shall rest, His Word
Upholds my fainting spirit:
His promised mercy is my fort,
My comfort, and my sweet support;
I wait for it with patience.
What though I wait the livelong night,
And till the dawn appeareth,
My heart still trusteth in His might;
It doubteth not nor feareth:
Do thus, O ye of Israel's seed,
Ye of the Spirit born indeed;
And wait till God appeareth.
- Martin Luther
Monday, March 19, 2007
The Jesus Family Tomb
I watched the James Cameron produced documentary on the Discovery channel a few weeks ago. I found myself talking back to the television several times about the leaps of logic or lack there of that the participants took. You need more faith to believe some of their conclusions, than you do to believe that Christ rose from the dead physically. I subscribe to a biblical archaeological newsletter (just another odd thing I'm interested in). They had a great article/analysis on the book and documentary. Check it out, its one of the better ones I've read. I'm interested in any comments you may have.Saturday, March 10, 2007
Emerging Technologies
This morning I will be giving a presentation to the MARK INC board and some key volunteers and staff on emerging technologies and he digital lifestyle. I have high hopes for this presentation, because I think that many people are just not aware of what is going on in the tech world and on the internet (though they may have their suspicions). This will be a good opportunity to give them some information about where content delivery is going and what the technology will look like. I'll report back later.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
So I just caved and set up a facebook page. I have to say that it is an exceptionally better system than My Space. If your interested, friend me!
Ordinary Women and Their Extraordinary God
Hello old friends. Its been a while since I posted..... I know...... I'm sorry. I was just so overwhelmed with jet lag and catching up on my life here in the USA after my trip to Spain. I promised to resume my posts on a more regular basis. So with that being said, here are some details about my trip.
Monday February 12th
We left the church at 5ish to be at the Philadelphia International Airport. Ian took us via the church van. We were packed for the trip with several extra bags. Deb and Chuck both had huge black suitcases that were heavy. When we checked in, I believe that Deb's weighed in at 78 lb.. We checked in and got on the Us Airways plane to leave. We took off and flew to Paris, France and landed in the worst airport I have ever been in. Charles de Gault Airport. It was not easy to navigate and it wasn't very attractive. We had a two hour layover and then we took an Air Europa plane to Malaga. This last leg of the trip was the worst flight I have ever had when dealing with turbulence. It was non stop the entire 2 hours to Malaga. I wanted to sleep so bad, but I just couldn't because every couple seconds the plane would shake or rattle again. I don't mind flying, I just hate turbulence and before 9/11 that didn't even bother me so much. I just had to keep reminding myself that God was in control and if He wanted me to die and be with Him, then that was it. I needed to trust Him.
Tuesday February 13th
We arrived in Malaga Tuesday afternoon and our driver picked us up in his van and drove us to the Las Piramides (The Pyramids) Hotel.
We met the conference administrator Pamyla and got our room info and went and put our stuff away. We then kicked around for a while and had dinner at 7pm. As part of the conference the Hotel provided breakfast and dinner each day. This consisted of very nice buffets in two separate dinning areas. We were required to dress a little more formally (no jeans or t-shirts) for dinner, but I think it was worth it. After dinner we checked out the room we were going to be using for the meetings and then went to bed.
Wednesday February 14th
Although some of the ladies for the conference had arrived the previous day (like we did), today was the day when the lions share came. Their planes would come in throughout the day and they trickled into the lobby of the hotel. During this time, we were setting things up in the Menfis conference room so we would be ready for the ladies at the appropriate time. We also spent a couple hours practicing music. We quickly discovered that some of the music we were planing on wouldn't work with just a piano and guitar/drum. I think that Chuck, Tony and I realized that many of the songs we sing weekly need lots of instrumentation to work or to cover over their poor musical construction.
At 5:15 there was informal reception for everyone sponsored by the hotel and I must admit that being one of three men amongst the many women was intimidating. I think that they were a little curious about what we were going there as well, but I was a bit shy and didn't really talk to anyone. I played wallflower when in this room and ran off to be of use in the main meeting room. I know that most of you don't believe that I am a shy person, but I can be....especially around large groups of people I don't know.
The main meeting began at 6pm and we led worship for about 20 - 30 minutes. Longer than the average Sunday morning. I must admit that I was a bit surprised by the involvement of these ladies. There were about 60 of them max, but the sound they produced at times rivaled our congregation, at least to my ears. They were engaged in the worship, some weeping and some reach out their hands to the sky. It was moving. Then Jan, one of the ladies who is actually a missionary to Madrid, spoke on Mary....an ordinary woman. That was the theme of the week, Ordinary Women and their extraordinary God. After this we went to dinner and we were still a little separated from the ladies in the dinning room. We had one lady (I think it was Jill who ministers in the Ukraine) sit with us and really broke the ice. We had a great conversation with her. Afterwards we had several of the ladies share with us that they really appreciated our leading hem and being there. It was the first time in a long time for some to be able to worship the Lord in english. I never realized how important this is, but then how often do we think about those serving the Lord in the trenches of missions. We are comfortable here in the American church. I'll expand on my thoughts on missions in a later post.
Thursday February 15th
I got up and had breakfast and it was really good. I have to say that the hotel had really good food. I was quite impressed. For the rest of the conference the sessions were in the mornings. We started at 10am and the speaker was Lisa S. who is working in a sensitive area of ministry so we won't talk about that much. She spoke on Ruth, another ordinary woman of the Bible. The ladies then broke out into some seminars, but we were finished for the official part of the day and went to a nearby town of Mijas, which was in the mountains. Mijas was a mining community as well as being the last place in Spain that the Moors were before being driven out in the 1400's. What a view!!
We then came back and had dinner at the hotel. I split from the team and sat at a table full of ladies and really began to get to know some of them. I believe that this was the highlight of the trip, just getting to know these ladies and the things that were going on with their countries. So work with children, some are pastors wives and others are striving to build relationships with indigenous women. I truly valued this time with them, it had a large impact on my world view. That evening one of the ladies help a seminar/class on country line dancing. The men tried to stay out of the way so that we wouldn't make the women uncomfortable.
Friday February 16th
Pretty much the same schedule as Thursday, except I didn't go out site seeing with some of the others after the morning sessions. I was feeling tired and wanted to spend some time reading and resting. I had the good fortune to have an extended discussion wit Cindie Pike who ministers in the Ukraine. I think we chatted for about an hour about the ministry to the Ukraine and the people there and the eastern european world view. It was truly fascinating and enlightening. That night I had dinner with several different ladies from France, Slovakia, and Romania and the Ukraine. I have to say that by this point in the week I was in awe of these women. They have sacrificed so much for the Lord. They have raised their children in foreign lands, some have left creature comforts and they only desire to serve the Lord more. Of course there is discouragement to them at times, but they persevere. How often do we quit when things are hard, or uncomfortable. Some of these ladies were single and they have forsaken dreams and desires for marriage to serve our God. And they would just tell you that they are not anything special.
That night we shared a concert with them in which we sang a few solos between me and Debbie, and led them in some songs (some we taught them). At the end of the evening, they didn't want to stop. A group of about ten gathered around Kathleen who used Tony's guitar and led them through about ten songs. It was beautiful to hear this group of women sing in harmonies to these songs. At times they sounded better than any other group I have ever heard. We then went and sat up with several of them until about 2am talking. It was a real time of fellowship and encouragement. If we did nothing else on this trip, but to make them feel appreciated I think it was well worth it.
Saturday February 17th
I had breakfast with several of the ladies and then our sessions. We have the church office back at GRPC fax us lots of music over the week to supplement what we brought. We were constantly adjusting the orders of worship to better minister to these ladies. We wanted songs with deeper meaning or had better musical quality, and it was a daily evaluation based on what we felt the Spirit was leading.
After the morning sessions we went to visit Malaga proper and visited a huge cathedral (the biggest I have ever seen), we also visited a castle on the mountaintop. We had to walk tot he top of the mountain and I must say that I am proud of the fact that I made it all the way up. The view again was spectacular. Somehow our party got split up and we all met back up at dinner at the hotel.
That night the hotel sponsored a Flamenco show, and had a band play. It seems that the weekend after Valentines day is a huge deal in Spain when the couples go out for dinner and dancing. The crowd was full of a diverse age group of people who were not shy to get up and dance. Deb actually convinced some of the locals to teach her the traditional dances and they adopted her for the rest of the night. It was a great time. Again we were up late talking with the ladies about ministry and their lives and needs in the field.
Sunday February 18th
We had church of sorts Sunday morning, and Barbara shared a message on Abigail for the ladies. I think this woman was a powerful speaker and our own women's ministry would do well to have her at one of their conferences if it was ever possible. Afterwards the group prayed for specific needs amongst the women and we prayed for them and their needs. They asked us to sing a couple songs to end the event and we were glad to. Then they presented with some gifts, but they couldn't match what they had given us in the form of their hearts and wisdom. I was so blessed to be a part of this event, and I know that the Lord used us to encourage them as well. As we were finishing up, some of the ladies had to leave to make their flights. We were leaving Monday morning so we got to say goodbye them in waves as they departed. We also had the opportunity to go out to lunch with several ladies from the England and Spain teams. Oddly enough The Sun Coast of Spain is to Europe what Florida is to the United States. It is a very international area and we had a traditional English Roast Sunday meal. Mine was lamb roast with yorkshire pudding. As we sat around the table, we got to share some more. We then went back to the hotel and spent time with the remaining ladies who were leaving the next day. We hung out in the hotel lobby and played cards and games with several of them. And then to bed. We had to be up early the next morning.
Monday February 19th
We had to be in the lobby ready to go at 7:30am to meet our taxi. I was up and ready. I was going to miss this place. I found myself humming the song "If Your Presence Doesn't Go With Us, We Don't Want To Leave This Place" the whole morning. We got to the airport and we were off. We flew from Malaga to Madrid (thankfully not France) and then from Madrid to Philadelphia. It was something like 9 hours (give or take). I don't remember exactly because I was so tired. I just remember that on the flight I watched two movies (Grid Iron Gang, and The Guardian) and four episodes of TV on my iPod. It was good to be home, but it was really cold. Apparently we missed a major ice storm. It was 65- 70 degrees each day in Spain, but it was in the 30's here. I have so much to think about and digest from this trip, and I know that God wants me to make some changes in my life because of it. I truly hope we get invited to do something like this again some day.
Monday February 12th
We left the church at 5ish to be at the Philadelphia International Airport. Ian took us via the church van. We were packed for the trip with several extra bags. Deb and Chuck both had huge black suitcases that were heavy. When we checked in, I believe that Deb's weighed in at 78 lb.. We checked in and got on the Us Airways plane to leave. We took off and flew to Paris, France and landed in the worst airport I have ever been in. Charles de Gault Airport. It was not easy to navigate and it wasn't very attractive. We had a two hour layover and then we took an Air Europa plane to Malaga. This last leg of the trip was the worst flight I have ever had when dealing with turbulence. It was non stop the entire 2 hours to Malaga. I wanted to sleep so bad, but I just couldn't because every couple seconds the plane would shake or rattle again. I don't mind flying, I just hate turbulence and before 9/11 that didn't even bother me so much. I just had to keep reminding myself that God was in control and if He wanted me to die and be with Him, then that was it. I needed to trust Him.
Tuesday February 13th
We arrived in Malaga Tuesday afternoon and our driver picked us up in his van and drove us to the Las Piramides (The Pyramids) Hotel.
We met the conference administrator Pamyla and got our room info and went and put our stuff away. We then kicked around for a while and had dinner at 7pm. As part of the conference the Hotel provided breakfast and dinner each day. This consisted of very nice buffets in two separate dinning areas. We were required to dress a little more formally (no jeans or t-shirts) for dinner, but I think it was worth it. After dinner we checked out the room we were going to be using for the meetings and then went to bed.
Wednesday February 14th
Although some of the ladies for the conference had arrived the previous day (like we did), today was the day when the lions share came. Their planes would come in throughout the day and they trickled into the lobby of the hotel. During this time, we were setting things up in the Menfis conference room so we would be ready for the ladies at the appropriate time. We also spent a couple hours practicing music. We quickly discovered that some of the music we were planing on wouldn't work with just a piano and guitar/drum. I think that Chuck, Tony and I realized that many of the songs we sing weekly need lots of instrumentation to work or to cover over their poor musical construction.
At 5:15 there was informal reception for everyone sponsored by the hotel and I must admit that being one of three men amongst the many women was intimidating. I think that they were a little curious about what we were going there as well, but I was a bit shy and didn't really talk to anyone. I played wallflower when in this room and ran off to be of use in the main meeting room. I know that most of you don't believe that I am a shy person, but I can be....especially around large groups of people I don't know.
The main meeting began at 6pm and we led worship for about 20 - 30 minutes. Longer than the average Sunday morning. I must admit that I was a bit surprised by the involvement of these ladies. There were about 60 of them max, but the sound they produced at times rivaled our congregation, at least to my ears. They were engaged in the worship, some weeping and some reach out their hands to the sky. It was moving. Then Jan, one of the ladies who is actually a missionary to Madrid, spoke on Mary....an ordinary woman. That was the theme of the week, Ordinary Women and their extraordinary God. After this we went to dinner and we were still a little separated from the ladies in the dinning room. We had one lady (I think it was Jill who ministers in the Ukraine) sit with us and really broke the ice. We had a great conversation with her. Afterwards we had several of the ladies share with us that they really appreciated our leading hem and being there. It was the first time in a long time for some to be able to worship the Lord in english. I never realized how important this is, but then how often do we think about those serving the Lord in the trenches of missions. We are comfortable here in the American church. I'll expand on my thoughts on missions in a later post.
Thursday February 15th
I got up and had breakfast and it was really good. I have to say that the hotel had really good food. I was quite impressed. For the rest of the conference the sessions were in the mornings. We started at 10am and the speaker was Lisa S. who is working in a sensitive area of ministry so we won't talk about that much. She spoke on Ruth, another ordinary woman of the Bible. The ladies then broke out into some seminars, but we were finished for the official part of the day and went to a nearby town of Mijas, which was in the mountains. Mijas was a mining community as well as being the last place in Spain that the Moors were before being driven out in the 1400's. What a view!!
We then came back and had dinner at the hotel. I split from the team and sat at a table full of ladies and really began to get to know some of them. I believe that this was the highlight of the trip, just getting to know these ladies and the things that were going on with their countries. So work with children, some are pastors wives and others are striving to build relationships with indigenous women. I truly valued this time with them, it had a large impact on my world view. That evening one of the ladies help a seminar/class on country line dancing. The men tried to stay out of the way so that we wouldn't make the women uncomfortable.
Friday February 16th
Pretty much the same schedule as Thursday, except I didn't go out site seeing with some of the others after the morning sessions. I was feeling tired and wanted to spend some time reading and resting. I had the good fortune to have an extended discussion wit Cindie Pike who ministers in the Ukraine. I think we chatted for about an hour about the ministry to the Ukraine and the people there and the eastern european world view. It was truly fascinating and enlightening. That night I had dinner with several different ladies from France, Slovakia, and Romania and the Ukraine. I have to say that by this point in the week I was in awe of these women. They have sacrificed so much for the Lord. They have raised their children in foreign lands, some have left creature comforts and they only desire to serve the Lord more. Of course there is discouragement to them at times, but they persevere. How often do we quit when things are hard, or uncomfortable. Some of these ladies were single and they have forsaken dreams and desires for marriage to serve our God. And they would just tell you that they are not anything special.
That night we shared a concert with them in which we sang a few solos between me and Debbie, and led them in some songs (some we taught them). At the end of the evening, they didn't want to stop. A group of about ten gathered around Kathleen who used Tony's guitar and led them through about ten songs. It was beautiful to hear this group of women sing in harmonies to these songs. At times they sounded better than any other group I have ever heard. We then went and sat up with several of them until about 2am talking. It was a real time of fellowship and encouragement. If we did nothing else on this trip, but to make them feel appreciated I think it was well worth it.
Saturday February 17th
I had breakfast with several of the ladies and then our sessions. We have the church office back at GRPC fax us lots of music over the week to supplement what we brought. We were constantly adjusting the orders of worship to better minister to these ladies. We wanted songs with deeper meaning or had better musical quality, and it was a daily evaluation based on what we felt the Spirit was leading.
After the morning sessions we went to visit Malaga proper and visited a huge cathedral (the biggest I have ever seen), we also visited a castle on the mountaintop. We had to walk tot he top of the mountain and I must say that I am proud of the fact that I made it all the way up. The view again was spectacular. Somehow our party got split up and we all met back up at dinner at the hotel.
That night the hotel sponsored a Flamenco show, and had a band play. It seems that the weekend after Valentines day is a huge deal in Spain when the couples go out for dinner and dancing. The crowd was full of a diverse age group of people who were not shy to get up and dance. Deb actually convinced some of the locals to teach her the traditional dances and they adopted her for the rest of the night. It was a great time. Again we were up late talking with the ladies about ministry and their lives and needs in the field.
Sunday February 18th
We had church of sorts Sunday morning, and Barbara shared a message on Abigail for the ladies. I think this woman was a powerful speaker and our own women's ministry would do well to have her at one of their conferences if it was ever possible. Afterwards the group prayed for specific needs amongst the women and we prayed for them and their needs. They asked us to sing a couple songs to end the event and we were glad to. Then they presented with some gifts, but they couldn't match what they had given us in the form of their hearts and wisdom. I was so blessed to be a part of this event, and I know that the Lord used us to encourage them as well. As we were finishing up, some of the ladies had to leave to make their flights. We were leaving Monday morning so we got to say goodbye them in waves as they departed. We also had the opportunity to go out to lunch with several ladies from the England and Spain teams. Oddly enough The Sun Coast of Spain is to Europe what Florida is to the United States. It is a very international area and we had a traditional English Roast Sunday meal. Mine was lamb roast with yorkshire pudding. As we sat around the table, we got to share some more. We then went back to the hotel and spent time with the remaining ladies who were leaving the next day. We hung out in the hotel lobby and played cards and games with several of them. And then to bed. We had to be up early the next morning.
Monday February 19th
We had to be in the lobby ready to go at 7:30am to meet our taxi. I was up and ready. I was going to miss this place. I found myself humming the song "If Your Presence Doesn't Go With Us, We Don't Want To Leave This Place" the whole morning. We got to the airport and we were off. We flew from Malaga to Madrid (thankfully not France) and then from Madrid to Philadelphia. It was something like 9 hours (give or take). I don't remember exactly because I was so tired. I just remember that on the flight I watched two movies (Grid Iron Gang, and The Guardian) and four episodes of TV on my iPod. It was good to be home, but it was really cold. Apparently we missed a major ice storm. It was 65- 70 degrees each day in Spain, but it was in the 30's here. I have so much to think about and digest from this trip, and I know that God wants me to make some changes in my life because of it. I truly hope we get invited to do something like this again some day.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Hola From Spain
Ok here is a quick 7 minute update on my trip to Spain. 7 Minutes because thats how long I have on this Hotel computer. I miss you all, but at the same time I don´t. What a great privelege it is to meet all of these people who have made a great sacrifice to be in the missions field. THey have left their families and friends and in many ways are alone in the countries they are ministering to. I never realized just how much it means to people to worship God in their own language. As we led the first session, their were women crying. One lady who is missionary in Scotland told me that this was the first time in a long time that she was able to sing praise songs that mention Jesus. Why? I asked. She said that in Scottland they only worship by singing the psalms. Wow. It is a wonderful country here and a great environment, but it is more of a privelege to spendtime with these ladies. Pray for us as we continue to interface and encourage these front line embassadors of Christ. I´ll blog again if I get the chance.
Monday, February 05, 2007
Not Gonna Wash That Grey Outta My Hair
As I was coming in to work today, a very nice lady who is in charge of our facilities was riding the elevator with me. She made an off hand comment to me about how the job was making my hair grayer. Boy this is exactly what I wanted to hear. I'm positive she didn't mean anything negative by it, but it doesn't help with feelings of getting older. So I left the elevator and continued on to my desk. As I signed into my email, I noticed the daily proverb subscription that I get. This subscrition provides a proverb a day. I read it and guess what it said.
Now if that isn't God telling me not to worry about the small stuff, I don't know what is. Of course it could just be coincidence, but I beleive God is in control of everything..... Even my email.
Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained by a righteous life. - Proverbs 16:31
Now if that isn't God telling me not to worry about the small stuff, I don't know what is. Of course it could just be coincidence, but I beleive God is in control of everything..... Even my email.
Friday, February 02, 2007
Small is Beautiful
If I believed in the concept of luck then I would have to say that I am having an incredible stretch of it. So over this past couple of weeks it seems that everything I own is systematically breaking. My treadmill broke (I fixed it and then it broke again), my computer died, my gas stove needed a replacement valve, and now my iPod is on its last legs.
I tell this story to share my pain, but also to say that I have taken this opportunity (the dead computer) to make the switch. That’s right, I have purchased a Mac, a mini to be exact. It’s smaller than a cigar box and uses my same monitor, keyboard and mouse. It’s really cool too. I have had it a couple of days and I just can’t believe how fast, sleek and simple it has been to use. When I went to the Apple store to purchase it I also picked up a book for those switching from a PC to a Mac. It has been quite helpful.
There are a few drawbacks to the switch, like having to listen to all my corporate and geeky friends say that it was a mistake. Now I am not a Mac fan boy, but I’m not a Windows one either. I just love technology that works well WITH MY LIFE. I’m not building a corporate network in my condo and I’m not a big PC gamer. I mean come on people the only game console I have is an Atari Flashback that my sister gave me for Christmas. I think I have used it once. The Mac works great, looks great and is fast. If I discover otherwise, I will definitely post something, but for now I’m happy.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
The Westminster Larger Catechism Q2
Question 2: How doth it appear that there is a God?
Answer: The very light of nature in man, and the works of God,
declare plainly that there is a God; but his word and Spirit only do sufficiently and effectually reveal him unto men for their salvation.
So how do we know that there is a God? I mean really, how can you know for sure? I think every person has asked this question in some form during his or her life. Curious to see what was out there, I did a quick Google search on the internet. It seems that there are many well meaning and thoughtful people who want to use science and nature to prove that God exists. I applaud them in their efforts to a degree. They are merely expanding and commenting on Paul’s statement in Romans 1:19 –20,
19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
I only wish that those who invest so much time on the debate on God’s existence would focus equal or more amounts of energy on the second part of the answer to Catechism question 2. What I mean is that the first part of the answer, when viewed through Romans 1 does nothing more than raise our culpability level. It plainly says that we all know that God exists (The very light of nature in man, and the works of God) and are without excuse. We can’t stand before the Lord and say “look God, I really didn’t know about you so how can you sentence me to Hell?” When we start to focus on the second half of the answer “; but his word and Spirit only do sufficiently and effectually reveal him unto men for their salvation”, we start to really define the God we are to believe in. His existence is proven, but knowing that God exists is not enough for salvation. Thankfully He has spoken to us and told us effectually and sufficiently in the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Fun Email Storehouse
So I have created a new blog for a couple different reasons. This new blog will be a repository of forwarded emails that have funny joke, funny pictures, crazy stories, etc....Sort of an public archive of what some people may call junk mail, but others love and love to forward. I have attached some ads to try to generate some cash flow, though I'm sure it will be minuscule. Go check it out. Its in my links section as Fun Email Storehouse. I there is also an email address on that page that you can forward any "fun" emails to that you want me to consider for addition to the list, or if you know me and have my address you can feel free to send it there. I have already posted the 3 or 4 I have gotten in the last several days. Check it out and let me know what you think.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Strange Delaware - Chicken Fighting
This day in 2006 in the state of Delaware:Two men were arrested for cruelty to animals near Laurel when thirty-five others gathered at their cockfight. In addition, thirteen fighting cocks were confiscated by authorities.
Some may find it interesting that Chicken Farming is in the top five industries in the state of Delaware. It is highly concentrated in Sussex county and home of many plants ryn by companies such as Perdue and Mountaire Farms. I mention this because it doesn't surprise me to find such a barbaric activity such as cockfighting here. What I find more interesting is that it is apparently illegal to own birds who fight and to hold an event where they fight, but it isn't illegal to gather to watch that fight. What's up with the 35 people who were there? I would imagine that if you held them accountable as well, it would really be hard for would be chicken event promoters (Don "Chicken ala" King) to get people to come and watch such a horrible event. Strange I say.
By the way, there is a funny story about the lady with the chicken above. I may blog about it in the future if people are interested.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
The Westminster Larger Catechism Q1
Question 1: What is the chief and highest end of man?
Answer: Man's chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy him forever.
Why did the Westminster Assembly of Divines choose this to be the first question in the larger catechism? Interesting thought, at least to me. I must admit I have not completed enough research or gained enough insight into the actual workings of the assembly to say I know the answer, but I will present some conjecture on my interpretation. Let me start with an examination of the words they used in their documents. I do this because specific words are used for specific reasons. I think that many times modern readers don't quite understand the language of the past and so they just assume certain things. The nuance of language needs to be taken seriously, especially in documents of religious import (though not as important as actual scripture.)
The first question in the Westminster Catechism asks what mans chief end is. The word "man" is not used to exclude women, but is used to identify the whole of humanity. Many today would use this term humanity or perhaps humankind in a politically correct pattern of speech. Regardless, the Divines are saying that we are all included. Those born male and female are part of this discussion.
The phrase “chief and highest end” isn't that widely used in modern day speech, so it could be hard for us to understand its meaning in today’s vernacular. I looked the word "end" up in the Webster’s online dictionary. The definitions that I believe apply are below:
- 2a: c (2) the ultimate state
- 4a: an outcome worked toward b: the object by virtue of or for the sake of which an event takes place
In the catechism's first question, the Divines feel that we need to get this out of the way first so that we are not examining the rest of the catechism from a selfish internal point of view. It is rightly establishing from the beginning that our understanding and experience of Christ centered theology is just that, centered on Him and not us. There is no room for self at the center, only the Trinity. Our chief end is to worship God first and then to enjoy him. His purpose is not for us to enjoy Him, and then give Him worship because of that enjoyment. He deserves the worship regardless of our enjoyment, but through his purposes the result of that worship is a benefit to us in enjoyment. The moment we take the Trinity from the center of our focus and place it elsewhere, we have moved ourselves into the place of honor. Then the chief end is to glorify self. Our selfishness moves us away from the truth and helps perpetuate the lie that leads to separation from and inability to satisfy our real chief end...."to Glorify God and fully to enjoy Him forever."
Lord, help me to realize that my chief end is not to glorify myself. My goal in life is the expansion of Your worship in my own life and the lives of others through to declaration of Your Gospel. Allow me to constantly enjoy you through discovery and rediscovery of the depth of your grace and mercy revealed through worshipping you in my daily life, not just the Sunday service. Be lifted up Lord as we bow down.
New Blog Series
Hello Friends,
I have decided that there are some things that I want to do this year and things that I have to do this year. Here is a quick recap:
1. War on Debt
2. Teach/Lead a program on leadership to our teens at church
3. Loss more weight
4. Continue to grow in my faith and maturity
5. Be more disciplined
And there are many others. To help me with #4 I have decided to work through a study of the Westminster Confession of Faith as well as the Catechism. I constantly want to know what I beleive and why I beleive it (to quote one of my favorite programs "The White Horse Inn"). So I figured I would blog my way through the questions. I'll try to do at least one a week, if not more frequently. If you don't know what the Catechism on the confession are, here is a link to some historic context.
I have decided that there are some things that I want to do this year and things that I have to do this year. Here is a quick recap:
1. War on Debt
2. Teach/Lead a program on leadership to our teens at church
3. Loss more weight
4. Continue to grow in my faith and maturity
5. Be more disciplined
And there are many others. To help me with #4 I have decided to work through a study of the Westminster Confession of Faith as well as the Catechism. I constantly want to know what I beleive and why I beleive it (to quote one of my favorite programs "The White Horse Inn"). So I figured I would blog my way through the questions. I'll try to do at least one a week, if not more frequently. If you don't know what the Catechism on the confession are, here is a link to some historic context.
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