The Voice of Truth Tells Me A Different Story

Last night our family sat down to watch Facing the Giants. We had wanted to rent this because our boys like football and movies like Friday Night Lights are a little too over-the-top for kids to watch. Anyway, it turned out to be a great movie. it's a movie of restoration of faith, dependence on God and one of my favorite lines, "If we win, we'll praise Him. If we lose, we'll praise him. "

In doing some digging, I found out that Facing the Giants was essentially made by a church, Sherwood Baptist in Albany, Ga. The movie's $100,000 budget was donated by the church congregation and it was directed and co-written by Sherwood's associate pastor of media ministries Alex Kendrick, who also stars as the football coach. The crew and the cast was mostly made up of volunteers from the church. The money the movie makes will go to a youth recreation facility for the church.

One last thing, the movie's PG rating was given to it by the MPAA because they thought the overt evangelical content of the film might offend some parents. Sheesh...

If you haven't seen it, give your faith a boost and rent it.

Blog of the Day

Well, apparently I won...drumroll, please... (thank you)... a "Blog of the Day" award. I'm not exactly sure how this happened, but I'm a guy, so I'll take an award.

My wife, however, is a bit peeved that I won an award based upon her pain and suffering. (Hey, she got good meds. What more can you ask for?)

So, with that being said, I shall endeavor to uphold the sanctity of this honor that was bestowed upon me.

You like me. You really like me!.. umm... OK, I almost made it through without cracking up.

Kida, family, ahhh...

Today, I had the priviledge of getting off of work at 1:00 to spend some time with my family.
The kids and I played outside for a while. We played ball, I had a chance to play games with Jules.

After playing a while, we decided on pizza for dinner. I took Juliana to "Little Snesars", as Juliana would say, with me. We waved at the "mascot" and had a great time and good conversation. It reminds me that one on one special time is a necessity for parents.

Just a stones throw away...

After having been in pain with a fever for 4 days, Diana conceeds to the idea that we need to go to the emergency room. For those of you that know her, this is not a usual task as she has a really high pain threshold. There were a lot of things that really worried me; the fever, body aches, sore throat; inability to sleep.

Rign around 6:00PM we decided that "yes, it was time", so she told me that she would be back soon.

"Back soon," I relplied. "Where are you going?"

"To the hospital."

"Alone? Oh, no. I'm driving you"

"I'll be OK."

"Ummm, sweetheart, I REALLY want to drive you there."

Luckily, she relented.

When we arrived, the ER was totaly empty so we were seen relatively quicky.
After some IV fluids and an anti-biotic, we were told that Diana had a kidney infection and pharangitis.

All in all a 3 hour tour didn;t turn out that bad; after all, we could've ended up on a deserted island. (I know, bad...very bad)

God is good, all the time!

Whitestone

My wife and I just returned from a wonderful weekend at Whitestone, a Christian Bed & Breakfast in East Tennessee. I have to say that it was such a wonderful experience!

BTW, the picture is from our picnic lunch (more pics are below), which was really cool... fruit, cheese, crackers, huge sandwhiches and a bottle of Sparkling Grape Juice.

Diana and I really had a time to reconnect. I think that sometimes as married couples, we don't know "how" to talk after a while. We talked about each other and the kids. We talked about the wonderful friends that gave us this trip here.

The coolest thing was that we actually had a chance to "talk". We sat up most of the night pouring our hearts out and pouring our souls into each other in a tremendous spirit of affirmation, honesty.

As for the other points, the meals were awesome, with large portions. Heck, after the breakfast appetizer, we left because we knew that neither of us could finish the next course. Dinner was also great. We had backened tuna and there was a roaming violinist who played for the couples.

I couldn't have thought of a better weekend, nor anyone else that I would rather have spent it with.

I love you, Diana!

The Best of Both Worlds

One of the television shows that Juliana likes to watch is Hannah Montana. She really just likes the music.

Today she was so cute. She was walking around the house in her "toasty" (sleeper), wearing black boots and holding a flashlight for a microphone. She was singing the Best of Both Worlds, a song by Hannah Montana.

I feel so blessed that God has given us 4 beautiful children. I am thankful for the little glimpse of Heaven that He gives us in the smiles and joy of our children.

Watching Juliana sing and "rock out the show" without a care in the world was such a precious treat for me. It was my own private performance. She had directed it just for me. What a precious gift!

It makes me think that God delights Himself in us when we delight ourselves in Him.

It really makes me glad to know that I have the best of both worlds.

Is Water Baptism A Part of Salvation?

Is water baptism a part of salvation? This is a discussion that a good friend and I are having. There are basically two answers to this; yes and no.

There is a saying that goes like this, "Give me the Reader's Digest version", which means, the short answer without a long drawn out discussion. The "Reader's Digest" answer is: No

I am one, however, that likes to followup an answer with an explanation, so here we go...

My friend points to Acts 2:38 in the NASB, which says,

Peter [said] to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

I am of the school of thought that says that baptism is the outward sign of our obedience to the Lord and our profession of faith as a Christian and that it is not a component of salvation.

Now, the quote above looks pretty straight forward. I can read that and think, "OK, that's what is says," however, before we conceed that point, we have to interpret scripture in light of scripture.

John MacArthur, in his book, The Crucified Christ, makes an intersting point here...

People say, "Look, Acts 2:38 says, 'Repent, and be baptized . . . .' How do you get around the fact that Peter said you've got to get baptized to be saved?" Well, it's very simple, actually. Luke 18 contains a helpful illustration. Look at verse 18: "And a certain ruler asked Him [Jesus], saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" Now, that's a good question. In fact, it's basically the same question the people asked in Acts 2:37. Skipping down to verse 22b, Jesus answered his question, and said, "Sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven . . . ." Is Jesus saying that salvation is an issue of economics? Is He saying that in order to be saved, a person has to hock everything and then give all the money to the poor? Of course not! Salvation isn't a question of economics. It isn't a question of giving all one's money to the poor. You say, "Well, that's what He said!" No, that's not what He said. Look again at verse 22. After telling this man to sell all that he had and to give the money to the poor, Jesus then said, ". . . and come, follow Me." In other words, Jesus was saying, "There's a barrier in your way, fella. You're never going to know salvation until you give up your one big hang-up - money." You see, Jesus read his heart and knew that this young ruler loved money. And the reason we know that Jesus' analysis was correct is because the guy turned around and went home. He wanted his money more than he wanted eternal life.

The point is this: It's not until you want Jesus Christ more than anything else that the conditions are removed. As long as God knows there's something in the way, He'll point it out. The biggest stumbling block to Jewish conversion was the fear of persecution, being "unsynagogued," and being put out of their whole Jewish world. So Peter says, "I know that's your problem. so that's what you're going to have to get out of the way." They had to be baptized as a public acknowledgment that they were naming the name of Jesus Christ - fully aware of what it was going to cost.

The Word of God, then, does not teach baptismal regeneration. It simply indicates, here in Acts 2:38, that the Jews were to be baptized in response to what had happened in their life. It was to be a public confession of their new union with Christ . . . and it was a high price for them to pay.

It's been argued that the "for" in Acts 2:38 makes baptism a part of the process. Let's go back to the Bible.

There are instances of people being saved without being baptized.

In Luke 23:43, Jesus is dying on the cross,

And He said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise."

The first question that springs to mind is how can the thief be saved, if baptism is required? He was dying along side of Jesus.

In looking at Acts 10:44-48, Cornelius' household became believers, received the Holy Spirit, and began speaking in tongues, before being baptized in water.

While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. And all the circumcised believers who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the Gentiles also. For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter answered, "Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?" And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days,

This is significant because tongues is a sign-gift given to believers. Also, verse 46 says they were "exalting God." Unbelievers don't praise God. They can't because praise to the true God is a deep spiritual matter that is foreign to the unsaved.

As my friend and I talk more on this subject, I'll keep posting

It's All About the Meet!

Last night a bunch of us guys from Sunday School class got together for one of our regular events, Men's Grub Night. Men's Grub Night or MGN is a chance for the guys to get out and hang with other guys, share a meal, stories and have fun.

The ten of us decended upon Jim & Nicks in Smyrna last night for a time of food, fun and fellowship. It really doesn't matter what we ordered; whether the food was good (or not as was in my case). What mattered is that it's the times like these that are where strong bonds are built and relationships are cultivated.

We talk about jobs, life, families and do "typical guy stuff" like mixing hot sauce with crushed hot peppers and daring each other to eat it (see the picture for proof).

Anyway, for those two and a half hours, we were just at ease doing life together.

The Testimony of the Lamb

This morning, I was listening to a man give his testimony. He had come from an abusive home as a boy and had been in prision, had a bad marriage and had taken drugs and drank heavily.

After a near-death-experience, where he says that he died on an operating room table after having been involved in a fight, he claims to have seen a glimpse of hell that scarred him more than anything that this hardened man had ever experienced.

After his experience, his wife accepted Jesus as her Lord and Saviour and they went to church for the first time.

It was sitting in the back pew that this man heard the preacher talk about Jesus as the Lamb of God who took away our sins. This resonated in him and got his attention.

He continues...

As a lonely 9 year-old boy, he grew up in an abusive home in rural Pennsylvania. One day, while coming home from the school bus stop as was usually the case, he passed through a neighbor's field and the kind lady that lived there called him over and said that she wanted to give him a present. She gave him a baby lamb.

This man, Mr. Reagan, goes on to tell of the lamb and he becoming friends. He said that it was his only friend.

Anyway, the lamb was very curious and would come up to him and follow him whenever he was outside. It would always meet him at the edge of the property when he would come home.

One day when he came home, he saw his father working on an old car that had a flat tire. His dad was angry and was swearing. The boy went out of his way go steer clear of the situation and as he rounded the opposite side of the car that his father was working on, he saw his lamb, his only friend, lying near by.

He screamed and ran up to it and found the pure white lamb dead and covered in blood from being hit by his father with a lug wrench. The image was so vivid.

He ran away screaming and that day scarred him for the rest of his life; until this day, when the Holy Spirit softened his heart. He understood the sacrifice of our Holy God, who sent his only Son, to be the Lamb, the perfect sacrifice for us.

Ron wept for the first time in many years and gave his heart to Christ that day.

Hearing this story weighed so heavy on me. It calls me to remember, that I need to be ever mindful of the mercy, grace and love that our Father has for us.

Happy 13th Birthday, George!

Today is the day of my son's 13th birthday party. Wow... As I sit here and write
this, my eyes look at the young man that my son has become and against that image is juxtapositioned the images of him, our first child, being born.

The day started out with me not getting as much sleep as I wanted last night...lol

Anyway, George invited a couple of the older friends that he knows from school and church to go to the bowling alley with us and then come back for lasagna and cake. Yes, lasagna and cake. We were originally going to do pizza and cake, but George really likes his mom's lasagna (me, too.)

We went bowling for a few hours and then came back to our house. Although the kids wanted to play outside, we didn't let them brcause ther ground is soaked from all of the snow that we've been getting.

All in all, it was a great day. I asked each of the kids if they had fun and they all said yes. BTW, pictures of the day can be seen here.

I thank God for letting us having the privilege of raising our kids for these past 13 years; now I pray that he gives us the strength to survive the teen years...lol

Finding the Right Church

What do you look for in a church home? I've struggled with this question as I'm sure that a lot of people have. Finding a Biblically-based, God focused church where you and your family can grow and give back should be a priority for all believers (that is, unless you're already in one).

I remember moving to Tennessee 5 years ago and thinking "Now, what do we do for a church home?"

I recently came across an interesting article that talks about "interviewing" churches by calling the pastor before visiting them, saving you Sundays and heartache.

Below is a lost of 24 questions that I got from CWN:

1. What is man's biggest problem?

Seeker sensitive and felt-needs churches focus on man’s hurts and problems. The Bible says that man’s biggest problem is sin.


2. What must a man do to inherit eternal life?

Repent and trust is the Biblical answer. If the word “repent” is never used, say, “Thank you.”


3. How do you deliver the salvation message?

Ask the pastor to describe specifically what he says. Does he encourage people to simply say a prayer? Does he tell people to ask Jesus into their hearts? The salvation message should include: God’s holiness, man’s sinfulness, God’s response (hell), God’s kindness (Jesus on the cross), man’s response (repentance and faith).


4. How hard is it to become a Christian?

The “formula” is simple, doing it is not. It is not easy to believe.


5. How often do you talk about sin, righteousness and judgment?

Balance is key. This should not be the only emphasis, but it should be a regular emphasis.


6. How seeker sensitive is your church?

It is o.k. for a church to be “seeker aware” but seeker sensitive means that they lean toward seekers and not the saved.


7. Who do you do church for, seekers or members?

“Both” is not acceptable. Church should be done for members and the unsaved are welcome to attend.


8. Do you dumb down your sermons?

If he says yes, he is probably not trying to wean his members from milk to meat. Answers like, “We try to make our sermons accessible to everyone” are sermons that are not meaty.


9. What is your mixture of topical vs. expository preaching?

Topical preaching is fine, but if a pastor never or rarely preaches expositionally (verse by verse), then you are going to be learning from the pastor and not God’s Word.


10. Do your sermons emphasize theology or are they relevant?

Everyone should say their sermons are relevant, what you are looking for is if they teach theology.


11. Describe your youth programs.

If fun and games is the major (and usually first) emphasis, you have a youth program that is trying to compete with MTV.


12. Describe your evangelism programs.

Don’t just accept, “We have an evangelism committee.” Dig. Are they serious about saving
souls?


13. What church growth model do you follow?

Hopefully they don’t have one. Churches should be reaching out to the lost, but churches that are plugged into new church growth models tend to follow man’s modern ideas rather than the Bible.


14. How much do you give to missions and the hungry?

Again, this reveals the heart of the church. While most churches give to missions, many never consider the poor.


15. Do you believe the Bible contains no errors or contradictions?

No equivocation allowed here.


16. Do you believe in a literal 6 day creation?

Jesus did (Matt.19:4).


17. Do you believe in a literal hell and eternal punishment?

Jesus did (Matt.25).


19. When you distribute the Lord's Supper, do you emphasize the need to examine yourself?

Paul did (I Cor.11:27-32).


20. Can a person who is living in a persistent lifestyle of sin inherit eternal life?

Sinners can certainly be forgiven, but practicing sinners cannot inherit eternal life (I John 3:8,9).


21. Does your church exercise church discipline?

Paul said we should (I Cor.5).


22. Do Sunday school teachers, nursery, and youth volunteers fill out an application to answer questions about their core beliefs, or are all volunteers accepted?


23.What are the essentials of the faith?

Father, Son, Holy Spirit, Salvation through faith alone, the inerrancy of Scripture.


24. Do you have a cross in your sanctuary?

Many remove it because they fear it will turn off seekers. They should glory in the cross. The cross should be the central focus of every church.

I hope this helps!

Emerging Errors

I recently read an article that spoke about someone who was involved with and left the emergent movement/conversation.

These errors include:

• A highly ambiguous handling of truth.
• A desire to be so inclusive and tolerant that there is virtually no sense of biblical discernment in terms of recognizing and labeling false beliefs, practices, or lifestyles.
• A quasi-universalistic view of salvation.
• A lack of a proper appreciation for biblical authority over and against personal experience or revelation.
• Openness to pagan religious practices like Hindu Yoga and incorporating them into the Christian life and Christian worship.
• Openly questioning the relevance of key historical biblical doctrines such as the Trinity.
• An uncritically open embrace of the Catholic and Orthodox churches.
• An unbridled cynicism towards conservative evangelicalism and fundamentalism.
• A reading of scripture that is heavily prejudiced towards a social gospel understanding.
• Little or no talk of evangelism or saving lost souls.
• A salvation by osmosis mentality, where if you hangout with us long enough you’re in.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I just wanted to wish everyone, OK, specifically Diana, a Happy Valentine's Day!
I Love You! You are the most wonderful woman that I know!

Love Always!

Romance & Roses

I wanted to talk about Romance & Roses. It's an event that our church put together and hosts every year. Diana and I have been to it for the past 2 years.

This year's was wonderful! I had an incredible and fun evening with my Sweetie :)

It's such a great time for the both of us to just reconnect and focus on us.

It was also a fun time. There was a comedian, Kenn Kington
who was incredible funny and made us see a lot of ourselves in his routine.

Thanks for going with me, Sweetie! I Love You!

On the Radar

I recently read an article that said that in a marriage that "the wife" was the radar system of the home. She keeps up with everything at all times and is able to fill "the husband" in on what's going on since he at work all day. She knows about the kids, house, finances, etc. while he is away.

The article went on to say that we, as husbands, should give our wives a bit of a break when we come home and claim to know it all.

Any good pilot/commander/leader would do well to look at the "intelligence information" before going into battle or my sons' room (same thing).

To this, I would like to address to my wonderful wife, a humble, "I'm sorry for not taking the time to pay more attention to what you tell me when I get home."

"Yes, dear. It's rhymes with song."

Prominent Godly Men

After watching the Super Bowl with my kids, I was watching the awarding of the Vince Lombardi trophy and listening to the comments of Tony Dungy, Peyton Manning, etc. and was pleasantly surprised at the way that they spoke and gave glory to God.

It was refreshing and gave me something to talk to the kids about later.

Here is a quote from an article that talked about what was said...

Colts' owner Jim Irsay credited God with the victory as he held the sparkling Vince Lombardi trophy in his hands.

"Now there's an awful lot of shining glory, even more than last time up here," Irsay said. "But we're giving it all to God again because that's what got us here ... sticking together and believing that we could, and I know God has looked after us on this journey and bonded us into such a tight family."

Dungy has had a close relationship with Bears' head coach Lovie Smith since 1996, when Dungy hired Smith to coach linebackers for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

"My relationship, first, is with Jesus Christ, and he is the center of my life," said Smith when asked about his faith earlier this week. "I try to live a Christian life. I would like for players to know my faith based on what they see on a day-to-day basis."

CBS anchor James Brown, himself a strong believer in Jesus Christ, told the Baptist Press this year's Super Bowl could be a welcome change in a sport that hasn't had that many Christian players and announcers in the past.

"Personally, I'm gratified to see that change," Brown said. "I think their faith is a wonderful example to see and I think both men are sterling examples of what character coaches should be. That's what we should be promoting."

Game Day Central

This past Thursday and Friday, we had the honor of going to watch two of our kids perform for a group of churches that came to Lifeway in Nashville to see the 2007 Vacation Bible School program.

On Thursday, the kids performed in front of 450 people. On Friday, the crowd was 650, not including parents.

Wow, they did such an incredible job! I am so proud of them!

Raising A Modern Day Knight

A group of fathers of boys and I have been reading (well, we finished it) Raising A Modern Day Knight by Robert Lewis.

It's a book that talks about Biblical manhood and compares it to stages, training and rites of passage that medieval knights once went through to have a definative mark of the stages of life and when they enter manhood.

Today, we took our boys bowling, but unbeknownst to them, we had reserved a room and had decorated it for the occasion. This day would mark their entrance into the process of Biblical manhood by having the process explained to them capping it all off with signed proclamations .

Rather than retype the main gist of the book, here is a quote from an article at Ledership Universtity

Robert Lewis suggests three major ideals for modern-day knights: a vision for manhood, a code of conduct, and a transcendent cause.

A Vision for Manhood - The author states four manhood principles: Real men (1) reject passivity, (2) accept responsibility, (3) lead
courageously, and (4) expect the greater reward. He suggests that though men have a natural inborn aggressiveness, they tend to become passive at home and avoid social responsibility. These principles, if followed, prevent passivity from becoming a significant problem.

A Code of Conduct - The code for modern-day knights comes from the pages of the Bible. Lewis lists 10 ideal characteristics appropriate for modern-day knights taken from the Scriptures: loyalty, kindness, humility, purity, servant- leadership, honesty, self-discipline, excellence, integrity, and perseverance. Modern-day knights must be trained in three important areas. First, the modern-day knight needs to understand that there must be a will to obey (God's will) if there is to be spiritual maturity. The young man must come to know that life is inherently moral and that there is a God who knows everything and who rewards good and punishes evil.

He must know that absolute values exist and that the commandments of God are liberating, not confining. Lewis states "True satisfaction in life is directly proportionate to one's obedience to God. In this context, moral boundaries take on a whole new perspective: they become benefits, not burdens."

Second, the modern-day knight needs to understand that he has a work to do that is in keeping with his inner design. This work is not just his profession or trade, but refers to work in his home, church, and community. Life is certainly more than a job, and your son should hear this from you lest he get the mistaken perception that manhood is just one duty and obligation after another.

A third realm of responsibility for the modern-day knight is a woman to love. The code of chivalry requires that all women be treated with respect and honor. Sons need to see and hear from their fathers the importance of caring for women in general and loving, leading, and honoring their wives in particular.

The knight in training should be taught the value of work, have summer jobs, do chores around the house, and study hard on his school work. The goal here is to establish patterns of industry and avoid sloth so that a solid work ethic is in place as he gets older.

A Transcendent Cause - Life is ultimately unsatisfying if it is lived solely for self. Jesus said if you give up your life you will find it, so if you live for a cause greater than yourself, you'll be happy and fulfilled. A transcendent cause is a cause that a person believes is truly heroic (a noble endeavor calling for bravery and sacrifice), timeless (has significance beyond the moment), and is supremely meaningful (not futile).

The only antidote to the futility of life is a transcendent cause and a vision for life that "integrates the end of life with the beginning," and connects time and eternity. Obviously becoming a Christian, developing a personal relationship with Christ, and living for Him are basic, irreplaceable elements for having a meaningful life.

13 percent

I recently heard a sermon from Central Christian College of the Bible and it talked about being aware of people around you and how often people die. The statistics given were that 2 people die every second on Earth.

At the end of the day, that is 230,000 people. Of those who pass away, only an estimated 30,000 are Christians and will go to Heaven.

What an alarming statistic that only 13% of the people who die every day go to Heaven.

It certainly makes me feel my calling to ministry even more. I know that I have to proceed according to God's will and timing, but it seems so much more urgent when I'm presented with those numbers.

Well, Hopefully I'll Look Distinguished

Yesterday I took my oldest daughter with me to the eye doctor. We both had appointments. That's something a bit unusual for me since I have't seen an eye doctor in...ohhh... 33 years or so.

We went into each other's appointments. Her vision actually improved greatly from her previous annual visit, now it was my turn. As the doctor turned me into a robot as my daughter termed it (from the huge "thing" they put ofer your face, I sat wondering what was to happen.

The doctor told me that my vision was "normal for my age." Um... "for my age?" She said that most people need glasses between 38 and 42. Well, I'm 38...

She told me that it was due to all of the wisdom that I had stored up and although I knew she was kidding, it still made me feel good :)

What had happened was that I was getting farsighted and my eyes couldn't focus properly between looking at objects up close and then in the distance. She said that this was normal and due to strain.

I'd love to tell you its from hours and hours of in-depth exegetical Bible study, but it's more probably from my current profession as a Computer Network Engineer and the long hours that I have to stare at the screens.

Anyway, my sweet daughter and I will be going for glasses soon. I'm hoping that it'll make me more "distiguished looking" and not "dorky" as Meg says.