Conversation with Amie

Amie: Papa.  Hungry.

Me: What do you want?

Amie: Oh, watcha TV [exit stage left]

Me: [making incomprehensible Tasmanian Devil sounds]

Thankful

I am thankful for so many things:

• My parents who raised me according to the Word of God and who are still married.
• My sister whom God spared as an infant and maintained by His almighty hand during her early ears.
• My wife without whom my life would truly be incomplete.
• My children: Maggie, Abbie, Amie and Jonathan.
• A house to shelter us from the elements.
• The daily food we eat (and particularly today’s repast which was a gift from a Lake Almanor Community Church).
• A safe vehicle large enough to transport my entire family.
• A job I enjoy: working with, educating and ministering to young people.
• That three of my grandparents are still alive (and are Christians) and my children have been able to get to know them.
• That my grandfather who has passed away did indeed become a follower of Christ several years before his death.
• For God’s amazing, undeserved and irresistible Grace.
• For Christ’s sacrifice and His righteousness imputed to me.
• For God’s patience and forbearance in dealing with me and my constant sin and failure.

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights…”  – James 1:17

Thanksgiving Feast

Even being sick, and not having expected to make a full Thanksgiving dinner (we had to cancel our trip to my parents due to family illness) Jenn still pulled together a fine feast.  Turkey, Potatoes, Gravy, Stuffing, Homemade Bread, etc.

She’s a great wife & mother.

Liberalness of Southern Baptist Schools

Dr. Ron Nash made the following statement in a lecture on Worldviews in Conflict as part of an apologetics course:

Most Southern Baptist Colleges are liberal … I am a Southern Baptist.  But forty-eight or so of the fifty Southern Baptist Colleges in America are basically pagan institutions … They don’t believe anything about the Christian worldview.  They’d sooner hire a sun worshiper to teach New Testament.

While I can’t speak for most, I can say that when I graduated from California Baptist University (one of those SBC colleges) my theology was very muddled.  Baylor University is one of those running, unfunny jokes within the SBC.  “I remember when Baylor was still a Christian school,” the saying goes.  (Of course, if you do, you’d be about my grandparent’s age.)

Why are so many SBC schools promulgating heresy?

Time Management

 

Time management is probably one of my biggest challenges.  There are many reasons for this, some bio-chemical, some historical and some environmental.  I seem to always have more on my plate than I can accomplish in a reasonable time or even by a given due date.  This causes me to stress as I work on more than one project at a time.

I read today part of an interview with Matt Perman, senior director of strategy at DesiringGod and author of What’s Best Next.  The topic was productivity.  Here are some nuggets I took away with me from the article:

1. People tend to try to prioritize their schedule rather than schedule their priorities.
2. Stop using scattershot.  Pick the most important thing, bring it to completion, then move on to the next thing.
3. Remember that my value doesn’t come from my productivity, but from who I am in Christ.  This is something workaholics like myself need to keep in mind.  I don’t serve the ministry, I serve Christ as minister.

 

Sick Kids

We’ve had illness creeping through our family for the past few weeks.  Yesterday I stayed home to take care of Jenn and two sick kids.  Today John seems to have come down with the bug.  Seems like the only time my kids are still enough for a good cuddle is when they’re sick.

Playing In a Winter Wonderland

Friday when we got home Maggie couldn’t wait to dash into the yard and play in our six inches of fresh power.  Amie and John went out and joined her (Abbie’s sick and couldn’t go out).

John loved playing in the snow.

They made a huge snow ball

I neglected to take a picture of the snow fort Maggie built over in the corner of the yard.  Well, we’re supposed to get some more snow today.  I’m sure she’ll built it up some more.  I’ll try to get a shot of it then.

Weather Watch

It’s raining, it’s snowing…

Actually, it’s just snowing.

I dig the fluffy white stuff.

World View

One definition of World View

World View is the sum total of answers that a person gives to the most important questions in life.  –Dr. Ron Nash

Are You?

Are you a Christian?

Wait before you answer.  The word Christian means, “Christ-like.”  Now that you’ve had some time to think about it, let me ask that again:

Are you a Christian?