for thought

"it is not enough to be correct in our beliefs about the Scriptures if God is not day by day dealing with us through the Scriptures." j.i. packer

would i? peg leg!

friday night, i experienced one of those "time slows down, brain makes analysis, body reacts" moments. i was heading for second base, and the shortstop had gotten a ground ball and was running there, too. there were two outs, and my brain did the math on the distance we both had to cover. if i slid HARD, i could beat him there. i did. the bad thing is, the bag didn't really give at all. so, since friday evening, my left leg has been like a giant stoved finger... a big, old club hanging from my hip. it really is troublesome when your knee refuses to bend!

one of the guys said to me as i stood doubled over after the slide, "you know, you really don't have to do that... especially when we're ahead 12-3." well, that's just not me. i go after it, cause that's the way i'm wired.

which brings me to the point of this blog... i was reading 2 Corinthians 12 the other day, and came across verse 15: "i will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls." did you catch that? "i will MOST GLADLY spend and be spent for your souls." that's how paul described his ministry! and that's how i want to be for the sake of the gospel (not just in athletic competition)!

the cool thing is, i can couple the two in softball. after playing 8 or 10 years with my cousins' church, we have our own team this year. it mostly consists of young guys who aren't very active in church and whom i don't know much about their spiritual condition. of course, it's my privilege to have the team devotions before the games and to make sure that the gospel is plainly spelled out for all to hear.

what's my prayer in this thing? "God, i'm asking You for these souls!!! (fred, fred, nate, jake, zach, sam, brian, jess, jeff, steve, matt, nate, brian, louis). i will MOST GLADLY spend and be spent for them! use me."

pilgrims (what may flowers bring)

may has seen me spending a lot of time in the garden, and since i always fill out those email surveys that ask "what do you want to be when you grow up?" with "a gardener," it has been a particularly enjoyable month. (even with all the other "life" stuff swirling around)

i've been tossing this particular blog entry around in my mind for quite some time. in fact, i first started thinking about it when looking at the tulips outside my front door just before leaving for nationals and realizing that they'd bloom while i was gone, and that i'd probably miss most of their "beautiful" days.

(yes, these are azaleas not tulips past their prime blooming)

as i spent time at nationals meditating on all the Scripture that had been memorized throughout the year, 1 Peter 1:24-25 came to mind:

"all flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. the grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever."

praise God for the eternality of His Word! may it fall on good soil.(Luke 8:11-15)

everything i need

so i've been reading concurrently through the old and new testaments... today's reading had me in Exodus 29 and Mark 6. interestingly enough, both had something to do with God's provision for those whom He calls to serve Him.

in Exodus 29:31-34, the priests are to eat portions of the sacrifice of atonement in His presence at the entrance to the tent of meeting. not only does God provide the atonement that allows us to come into His presence, He even provides the food for us to eat!

in Mark 6:30-44, Jesus' disciples are tired after coming back from a time of ministry. He takes them off to "a desolate place" to "rest a while." they hadn't even had the leisure to eat... well, you know the story, the crowd beat's them to the desolate spot and Jesus spends the day teaching them. then He tells the disciples to feed them. talk about blowing their minds! well, who multiplied the bread? Jesus. who gave the disciples what they needed to carry out His command? Jesus. and who provided leftovers for the disciples? Jesus.

even (especially) when i feel like i'm over my head... i can trust the Lord to provide EVERYTHING I NEED! lol - and all the other times? well, He's the one providing then, too, i'm just too dumb to recognize it!

the time between times

may's kinda the month where the quiz season is done, Bible club is wrapping up, and i kinda get a deep breath from youth ministry before pressing on into the coming year. besides a lot of weeding and planting in the garden, i've also been doing some reading... including rereading thomas watson's "heaven taken by storm: showing the holy violence a christian is to put forth in the pursuit after glory." here are some good thoughts on meditation:

"[meditation] is a holy exercise of the mind whereby we bring the truths of God to remembrance, and do seriously ponder upon them and apply them to ourselves.... but where is the meditating christian? here i might lament the lack of holy meditation. most people live in a hurry. they are so distracted with the cares of the world that they can find no time to meditate or scarcely ask their souls how they do.... i dare to be bold to say that if men would spend but one quarter of an hour every day in contemplating heavenly objects, it would leave a mighty impression on them.... but how should we meditate? get a love for spiritual things. we usually meditate on those things which we love. the voluptuous man can muse on his pleasures; the covetous man on his bags of gold. if we loved heavenly things, we would meditate more on them. many say they cannot meditate because they lack memory; but is it not rather because they lack affection? if they loved the things of God, they would make them their continual study and meditation."

pretty applicable stuff from a guy who wrote over 300 years ago!

all things are working together OR He is God, i am not

as previously mentioned, i'm not a way distant thinker, but a "now" type of person. well, today's one of those days when the status quo is being shaken up a bunch (looks like a nursing home's a must :( ), so i'm especially thankful that our sunday school lesson this past week was from Romans 8:28-39!

***there are so many precious promises that i am clinging to in that passage, since life is currently beyond my feeble understanding!

thoughts on prayer (the day after the national day)

"but after we have learned by faith to know that whatever is necessary for us or defective in us is supplied in God and in our Lord Jesus Christ... that we may thence draw as from an inexhaustible fountain, it remains for us to seek and in prayer implore of Him what we have learned to be in Him. to know God as the sovereign disposer of all good, inviting us to present our requests, and yet not to approach or ask of Him, were so far from availing us, that it were just as if one told of a treasure were to allow it to remain buried in the ground." j. calvin

"let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from and evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water." Hebrews 10:19-22

do it!