the power of context

in and of itself, Proverbs 26:12 is pretty pointed:

"do you see a man who is wise is in own eyes? there is more hope for a fool than for him."

however, when taken with the first 11 verses of the chapter, it becomes more like a sledgehammer!!!

"like snow in the summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool.
like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying, a curse that is causeless does not alight.
a whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools.
answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself.
answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.
whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.
like a lame man's legs, which hang useless, is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
like one who binds the stone in the sling is one who gives honor to a fool.
like a thorn in that goes up into the hand of a drunkard is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
like an archer who wounds everyone is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.
like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.
do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? there is more hope for a fool than for him."

*** o Lord, protect me from the dangerous pride of being wise in my own eyes!

praying for revival

a couple of weeks ago, as we were reading the 'resh' section of Psalm 119 (vs. 153-160) responsively in the morning worship service, the repetition of the phrase "revive me" stuck out to me.

we use the nkjv in worship, but when i went back to look at it later and read it in the esv, i noticed that it is translated there, "give me life..." what a marked contrast to several local billboards whose slogan reads: "we bring church to life." (they have rubbed me the wrong way ever since i first saw them!) here is the true answer - a plea to our God to give us life!!!

what follows is a look at the various ways that the psalmist offers up this prayer throughout Psalm 119.

"my soul clings to the dust, give me life according to Your word!" Psalm 119:25

"turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in Your ways." Psalm 119:37

"behold, i long for Your precepts; in Your righteousness give me life!" Psalm 119:40

"in your steadfast love give me life, that i may keep the testimonies of Your mouth." Psalm 119:88

"i am severely afflicted; give me life, O Lord, according to Your word!" Psalm 119:107

"hear my voice according to Your steadfast love; O Lord, according to Your justice give me life." Psalm 119:149

"plead my cause and redeem me; give me life according to Your promise!" Psalm 119:154

"great is Your mercy, O Lord; give me life according to Your rules." Psalm 119:156

"consider how i love Your precepts! give me life according to your steadfast love." Psalm 119:159

O Lord, may Your Word be used to inform and instruct my prayer life! O God, GIVE US LIFE!

a strange kind of transplant...

my heart was moved
800 miles today
she took it with her
when she went away
although i knew
she wasn't gonna stay
i can't help feeling
a little blue
because of you
now that you're gone

a good refresher of a camp theme

so i read the following this morning in Living Water by brother yun:

the kingdom of God does not advance in this world through human endeavor. it advances through the life of Jesus Christ flowing through His servants who have died to themselves and their own desires. peter explained, "since Christ suffered in His body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. as a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God." (1 Peter 4:1-2)
the will of God should be the primary focus of all Christians. to glorify Him should be our greatest honor and privilege. all else is a waste of time, and this world is perishing while too many Christians live out fleshly lives full of compromise and selfishness.
the good news is that our Lord is loving and merciful, and He will forgive all who come to Him in humility and meekness. He can take your life and make you as bold as a lion and bring your days as a timid Christian to an end. are you willing to submit to this process of being daily shaped and molded by the Holy Spirit?
if you are, you will not regret it.

sometimes i need a shake up/wake up

it generally comes in threes - the hearing or reading about a concept or idea that stirs my brain, (kinda like the way i have someone read a verse to me three times in the memorization process) and then i guess the telling or the blogging is just the next natural step (like the repetitive quoting to make it stick).

have you ever put off doing the things your mom left on a to-do list because she wouldn't be back for quite some time? or have you ever been in "mad cleaning" mode because someone was coming to the house? i guess my thinking's sort of along those lines... but in a much grander, eternity type serious mode...

the sermon last night came from 1 Peter 4, and the part that really struck me was verse 7: "the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers." (nkjv) the point which the pastor emphasized was how very different our prayer lives would look if the impending end of the world was in our view! too many times we can become like the people before the flood, or of sodom and gomorrah, or worse, like the scoffers of 2 Peter 3:3-7. Jesus himself warns in Luke 17:26-30 that the last days will be full of oblivious people. too often, i am that oblivious one... WITH NO EXCUSE FOR MY STATE.

this morning, i listened once again to the online preview of listener's new album, and was struck by the closing lines:

"there is something coming, and everything matters. guard your heart, and watch the wind."

finally, i was rereading over thomas watson's "heaven taken by storm" in preparation for sunday school and was gripped by these words on the way we listen to the preaching of the Word of God:

"it may be the last time that God will ever speak to us in His Word; it may be the last sermon that we shall ever hear; we may go from the place of hearing to the place of judging. if people would think thus when they come into the house of God... with what devotion would they come! how would there affections be all on fire in hearing!"

as i think on these things, may i take peter's admonitions to heart:
1. being self-controlled and sober minded in prayer (1 Peter 4:7)
2. living a life of holiness and godliness (2 Peter 3:11)
3. being diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish and at peace (2 Peter 3:14)
4. taking care not to be carried away by lawless error (2 Peter 3:17)
5. growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18)

what's it worth to ya?

"my son, if you

RECEIVE my words
and TREASURE up my commandments with you,
making your ear ATTENTIVE to wisdom
and INCLINING your heart to understanding;
yes, if you CALL OUT for insight
and RAISE YOUR VOICE for understanding,
if you SEEK it like silver
and SEARCH for it as for hidden treasures,

then

you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God."

Proverbs 2:1-5

cling to the crucified

from horatius bonar's lyra consalationis

"Cling to the Mighty One, Cling in thy grief
Cling to the Holy One, He gives relief
Cling to the Gracious One, Cling in thy pain
Cling to the Faithful One, He will sustain

Cling to the crucified, Jesus the Lamb who died
Cling to the crucified, Jesus the King
Cling to the crucified, Jesus the Lamb who died
Cling to the crucified, Jesus the King

Cling to the Living One, Cling in thy woe
Cling to the Loving One, Through all below
Cling to the Pardoning One, He speaketh peace
Cling to the Healing One, Anguish will cease

Cling to the Bleeding One, Cling to His side
Cling to the Rising One, In Him abide
Cling to the Coming One, Hope shall arise
Cling to the Reigning One, Joy lights thine eyes"

for those who are interested...

from the camp forms:

CAMP BIBLE MEMORY MATERIAL

We will be memorizing and quizzing over the book of John from the following passages:
6:25-59 (I AM the Bread of Life)
8:12-30 (I AM the Light of the World)
8:48-59 (Before Abraham was born I AM)
9:1-12 (I AM the Light of the World)
10:1-21 (I AM the Gate, the Good Shepherd)
11:17-44 (I AM the Resurrection and the Life)
14:1-31 (I AM the Way and the Truth and the Life)
15:1-17 (I AM the True Vine)
18:1-11 (I AM He)
(New International Version, Copyright 1984).
Please feel free to start studying in advance to be prepared!

delighting in God's glory

"as it is desirable in itself that God's glory should be known, so when known it seems equally reasonable it should be esteemed and delighted in, answerably to its dignity. there is no more reason to esteem it a suitable thing, that there should be an idea in the understanding corresponding unto the glorious object, than that there should be a corresponding affection in the will. if the perfection itself be excellent, the knowledge of it is excellent, and so is the esteem and love of it excellent. and as it is fit that God should love and esteem his own excellence, it is also fit that he should value and esteem the love of his excellency. and if it becomes a being highly to value himself, it is fit that he should love to have himself valued and esteemed. if the idea of God's perfection in the understanding be valuable, then the love of the heart seems to be more especially valuable, as moral beauty especially consists in the disposition and affection of the heart."

jonathan edwards, the end for which God created the world

on revival

"the greatest problem confronting us in the Church today is that the vast majority of professing Christians are not convinced of the reality and the desirableness of revivals.... an evangelistic campaign is the Church deciding to do something with respect to those who are outside. a revival is not the church deciding to do something and doing it. it is something that is DONE to the Church...the whole essence of a revival is that it is something that happens to the Church, to the people inside. and they are affected and moved and tremendous things happen.... first and foremost, (they become aware of) the glory and the holiness of God... and that leads inevitably to a deep and a terrible sense of sin, and an 'aweful' feeling of guilt.... then they are given a clear view of the love of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, especially of His death upon the cross.... they begin to get a concern for the members of their own family.... there is a constraint that is driving them. they talk about it to people...and they begin to pray for them.... others who are outside begin to join the meetings and to say, 'what is this?' so they come in, and they go through the same experience."

martyn lloyd-jones, revival

on prayer

speaking of how Jeremiah begins his prayer in Jeremiah 32:16-25:

"This prayer is rich in its praise of the attributes of God. Jeremiah worships God for His omnipotence and omniscience, for His love and justice. His prayer is informed by his doctrine of God.

The same ought to be true of the prayers of every Christian. You must have a theology before you can have a prayer life. Knowing the character of God precedes having intimacy with Him through prayer. Too many prayers are superficial in their grasp of the character of God. Instead, they ought to be saturated with the praise of His glorious attributes."

Philip Ryken, Courage to Stand: Jeremiah's Message for Post-Christian Times

why it's GOOD news.

"The background of the good news of the gospel is the bad news about the sinfulness of sin and the certainty of sin's judgment...

Sin is essentially the resolve - the mad, utterly blameworthy, but nonetheless, utterly firm resolve - to play God and fight the real God. Sinners resolve to treat themselves as the center of the universe and so they keep God at bay on the outer circumference of their lives - or so they think. They won't allow the Creator to rule over them as he wills to do. If they appeal to God at all, they ask God to act according to their will and for their convenience like a servant who gets them out of trouble and bestows on them good gifts. They never serve him from the heart and only resent the claim to dominion that he makes... sin wills the fundamental abolition of God. Sin wills that God should not be there. Sin plays God, sin fights God, and sin wishes that God didn't exist at all...

God cannot help recoiling from that attitude in man that expresses itself in fighting him, defying him, and willing him out of existence. You cannot wonder that he hates the abominations which sin produces. God is holy. Sin is uncleanness in his eyes and he hates it... God is just. This means God does everything right and deals rightly with everyone. God expresses his justice by dealing with sin as sin ought to be dealt with... The just God will deal with sin as sin deserves..."

j.i. packer

as part of the answer to the question of "whether or not the atonement (at the cost of His Son) was necessary" in the book atonement

try saying that 5 times fast

eyjafjallajokull - yeah, that's the name of the volcano that erupted in iceland. with a name like that, it MUST be a bad one.

i have a whoring heart

so it seems that you don't have to look very hard these days to find a celebrity sex scandal. (and i don't think it's necessary for me to post links to make that point...) while it is highly disappointing (especially when it's the team i like or the guy from the show i like or the sport i play), as a christian who understands the nature of sin and the universal effects of the fall, it is not really all that surprising. and for God? definitely not...

i was reading Numbers 15:37-41 about putting tassels on robes as a reminder to obey God's law and "not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after." God KNOWS my inclination!!! (and gives a pretty creative way to fight it)

we've been talking a lot recently in sunday school class about Colossians 1:15-20 where paul is listing characteristics of Christ: God, creator, sustainer, ruler, purpose, reconciler, etc... these are the glasses i need to keep on to have a clear view of the world, but i tend to neglect and forget them. this is the message which i need to be proclaiming with my lips and with my life. too often, however, i act like the king and purpose of my existence. too often, i whore after my own passions and pleasures... after other little gods...

so if you see me with tassels or like ernie with strings on my fingers, know that i am trying to remember, because God knows that my proclivity is to forget!
keep me mindful of You, O Lord! keep me ever in Your Word and Your Word in me! may i love and long for the means of grace and be faithful to them! may i be a reminder for others and may others remind me of You!



btw - HERE is a great sermon on the colossians 1 passage!

who is your God? what are your idols?

here are some verses i sent in an email august 30, 2000 (the title comes from an advertisement for an old mortal album... i recently read the book counterfeit gods by tim keller which fits in with the theme as well - and which i'd highly recommend)

Psalm 119:113
i hate double-minded men, but i love your law.

2 Chronicles 25:2
he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, BUT NOT WHOLEHEARTEDLY.

Joshua 24:14-15
now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. but if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, WE WILL SERVE THE LORD.

1 Kings 18:21
elijah went out before the people and said, "how long will you waver between two opinions? if the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him." but the people said nothing.

2 Kings 17:38-41
"do not forget the covenant i have made with you, and do not worship other gods. rather, worship the Lord your God; it is he who will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies." they would not listen, HOWEVER, but persisted in their former practices. EVEN WHILE these people were worshiping the Lord, they were serving their idols. to this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their fathers did.

Matthew 6:24
NO ONE can serve two masters. either he will HATE the one and LOVE the other, or he will be DEVOTED to the one and DESPISE the other. you cannot serve both God and Money.


- think 'em through... and remember:

Psalm 24:6
such is the generation of those who seek Him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob.

oh the memories...

as i was leaving fca at the christian school today, one of the guys stopped me to show me a devotion he had written based on 1 Timothy 4:12. (it's really cool - a group of students there is staying everyday after school for devotions and prayer!)

well, i was mentally transported back to the days of the 4-1-2 fellowship that began by asking the question: "if the entire body of Christ looked like me in how they talked, lived, loved, believed and were pure, what would the body of Christ look like?"

with those days in mind, when i got back to the office, i started looking back over some of my old "daily verse" emails that i used to send to that group in pre-facebook, blogging and even im-ing days. it was a real blessing to reread some of the stuff. (this kind of encouragement is a great reason to journal!!!) they are mostly just scripture and a few thoughts. some of them i have reposted previously at http://timmy5jack.tripod.com/dailyverses/, but i thought that i'd go ahead and put some of them here over the coming days. God's truth doesn't change, and i pray that He would continually enable me to communicate it!

here's one from august 7, 2000 that fits in perfectly with this year's quiz material:

faithful?

1 Corinthians 4:1-5
"So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. Now it is required that THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN GIVEN A TRUST MUST PROVE FAITHFUL. I care very little if i am judged my you or by any human court; indeed i do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He WILL BRING TO LIGHT what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God."

***check out 1 John 1 to go along with this......

make mine a willing heart

the other morning, i reached the beginning of jonah in the commentary on the minor prophets that i've been reading. shortly thereafter, my ipod (set on random) played the song "hold fast hope" by thrice (which just happens to be based on the story of jonah)...



so i guess the place that leaves me is saying, "o God show me who is my ninevah today, and make mine a willing heart!"

chisel me

picked up "entermission" by dj official... this is definitely the one that's getting the most play:

chisel me, holy God
break me down with Your love
don't spare Your holy rod
though this pain will be tough
chisel me, Lord
mold me to look like You
this isn't easy but...
do what You gotta do!

a helpful analogy

a quote from g.i. williamson:

"the fact of the matter is that the Bible cannot possibly be proved to be God's word by anything external to God Himself. this does not mean that the testimony of the church is useless. a guide who points out various masterpieces in an art gallery is of use. he does not make doubtful paintings into masterpieces. he does not even prove masterpieces to be such. but he may be the instrument by which we are brought to see the intrinsic qualities which make them to be masterpieces. so the church may point out that the Bible is the word of God. but this is possible only because it is God's word - because it already displays everywhere within itself the excellencies which belong to word-divinity. it must be there in order to be seen to be there."

It must be getting closer...

last night, i dreamt that i was emceeing the opening rally for nationals. i was introducing the various ministries that were there but realized that some were still arriving - the auditorium was only about half full. in order to kill some time, i decided to just walk around the crowd and ask random questions. i stuck the microphone (a long sticklike one - kinda like price is right) in kyle keeney's face and asked, "to kill a mockingbird. yes or no?" kyle answered, "yes," and then my alarm went off to wake me up. i found myself very curious as to what the crowd response would have been.

zacchaeus, coke, liberty mutual and the transforming grace of God

at the end of our study of titus a couple weeks ago, i was talking with one of the girls about attitudes with bothersome people, especially a particular teacher of hers, and how our christianity should be evident even in those situations. i reminded her of zacchaeus' words in Luke 19:8 that she had memorized last year: "but zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, 'look, Lord! here and now i give half of my possessions to the poor, and if i have cheated anybody out of anything, i will pay back four times the amount.'"

talk about a dramatic response to the presence of Jesus! we discussed what this would look like lived out practically in our lives. as an example, i suggested that instead of saying bad things about the teacher, a reaction of grace might be to bake her brownies - "because Jesus had mercy on me, and because i have spoken poorly of you." she said that she can't really bake brownies, and i said, "it was merely metaphorical."

after she left that day, i continued to think about the concept of the ripple effect of our truly living out of the transforming grace of God shown to us in the death of Christ. astounding. then i began to think about a coke commercial i had seen. (thanks matt c. for finding it and pointing out the liberty mutual ones, too)





if these companies "get it" enough to use this concept to sell us soda or insurance, how much more so should those around us understand that the grace of God has "gotten us?" so i'm gonna keep meditating on Titus 2:11-3:8 and looking to bake some metaphorical brownies to the glory of God!

new deepspace 5 is coming!!!

seems it's been awhile since i picked up bakesale to help 'em fund this one, but judging from this sweet video dust has done for "from the outside" the drop date is getting closer. :)

challenging quote (to say the least)

the following is from the chapter, "the discipline of the mind" in r. kent hughes' book "disciplines of a godly man":

"i am aware of the wise warnings against using words like 'all,' 'every,' and 'always' in what i say. absolutizing one's pronouncements is dangerous. but i'm going to do it anyway. here it is: it is impossible for any Christian who spends the bulk of his evenings, month after month, week upon week, day in and day out watching the major TV networks or contemporary videos to have a Christian mind. this is always true of all Christians in every situation! a Biblical mental program cannot coexist with worldly programming.... i am not suggesting a new legalism which forbids tv and the cinema. (there are many worthwhile things to view; moreover, while Christianity is by nature countercultural, it is not anti-cultural.) but i am calling for believers to take control of their minds - what comes in and what goes out."

definitely a thinker... this book was written in 1991 and quotes a 1984 survey that showed U.S. citizens viewing an average of 4 hours of television a day. i am sure that number has not decreased since then. using that figure, that's 28 hours of tv a week... think if even half of that time was spent in serious Bible study and prayer, in loving service to other Christians and neighbors, in talking with my family and friends... how much greater could my impact be?

Bible math

it never ceases to amaze me the way the Bible works together as a unified whole! as i read in Psalm 119:160 today, "the sum of your word is truth."

my old testament reading this morning had me in Numbers 7. this is NOT one of the more lively, exciting passages i have ever read. it takes place in the 12 days following the original setting up of the tabernacle and the consecration of the altar. on each successive day, a list is given for what each chief among the tribes of israel brings to offer for his tribe. it's a fairly long list with each one bringing a couple silver bowls full of grain, a gold bowl full of incense, oxen, bulls, goats and lambs... and... EACH ONE BRINGS THE SAME LIST OF STUFF! it gets fairly repetitive, but there is an impressive tabulation at the end: after 12 days, they'd brought 2,400 shekels of silver (60 lbs.), 120 shekels of gold (3 lbs.), 12 bulls, 24 oxen, 72 rams, 72 male lambs, and 72 male goats - and this was just the first 12 days of the sacrificing that would continue on for hundreds of year! All pretty mindblowing, but how does this account relate to me now? and more importantly, what does it teach me about God?

well, my new testament reading just happened to have me in Luke 23. (God is so cool the way He works out even the little details of what i'll be reading together in a day!) what's Luke 23 about? Jesus' trial before pilate and herod, His suffering at their hands, and His crucifixion.

the verses that immediately spring to mind are 1 Peter 1:18-19, "knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot." praise God that He did Himself what i could never do, even with stacks upon stacks of sacrifices: pay the price for my sin with the blood of His own Son. may the preciousness of that impress itself more and more and more on me, and may the idol of my self-sufficiency be replaced by His all sufficiency!

"for since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sin? but in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sin every year. for it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.... but when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool at his feet. for by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified." Hebrews 10:1-4, 12-14

good stuff for chewing

i've been reading the institutes of the christian religion. at the rate i'm going, it'll probably take me 2 or 3 years, but it's good stuff that i've gotta get in good bite sized pieces. here are some samples from book 1, chapter 1:

"our wisdom, insofar as it ought to be deemed true and solid wisdom, consists almost entirely of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves.... in the first place, no man can survey himself without forthwith turning his thoughts toward the God in whom he lives and moves; because it is perfectly obvious, that the endowments which we possess cannot possibly be from ourselves;... in the second place, those blessings which unceasingly distill to us from heaven, are like streams conducting us to the fountain... the infinitude of good which resides in God becomes more apparent from our poverty. in particular, the miserable ruin into which the revolt of the first man has plunged us, compels us to turn our eyes upward;"

"there exists in man something like a world of misery, and ever since we were stripped of the divine attire our naked shame discloses an immense series of disgraceful properties... we are accordingly urged by our own evil things to consider the good things of God; and, indeed, we cannot aspire to Him in earnest until we have begun to be displeased with ourselves... every person, therefore, on coming to the knowledge of himself, is not only urged to seek God, but is also led as by the hand to find Him."

"man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he has previously contemplated the face of God and come down after such contemplation to look into himself. for (such is our innate pride) we always seem to ourselves just, and upright, and wise, and holy, until we are convinced, by clear evidence, of our injustice, vileness, folly, and impurity. convinced, however, we are not, if we look to ourselves only, and not to the Lord also - He being the only standard by the application of which this conviction can be produced."

"so long as we do not look beyond the earth, we are quite pleased with our own righteousness, wisdom, and virtue; we address ourselves in the most flattering terms, and seem only less than demigods. but should we once begin to raise our thoughts to God, and reflect what kind of being He is, and how absolute the perfection of that righteousness, and wisdom, and virtue, to which, as a standard, we are bound to be conformed, what formerly delighted us by its false show of righteousness will become polluted with the greatest iniquity; what strangely imposed upon us under the name of wisdom will disgust by its extreme folly; and what presented the appearance of virtuous energy will be condemned as the most miserable impotence."

"as Scripture uniformly relates, holy men were struck and overwhelmed whenever they beheld the presence of God.... men are never duly touched and impressed with a conviction of their insignificance, until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God.... when He shall exhibit His refulgence, and give a nearer view of it, the brightest objects will, in comparison, be covered with darkness."

hoping for a broken heart

a poem by paul david tripp from his book, "whiter than snow: meditations on sin and mercy":

I am too satisfied
with the things I say
the things I do
the attitudes
of heart
that shape my reactions
day
after
day
after day.
I too easily
accept
quick assessments
of my own righteousness
in situations
where I have been
anything but
righteous.
I am too skilled
at mounting
plausible arugments
structured
to make me feel okay
about what I think
what I desire
what I say
what I do.
I am too defensive
when a love one
makes an attempt
to call me out
and suggest
for a moment
that what I
have decided
said
or done
is less than
godly.
I am too
comfortable
with the state of things
between You and me
too relaxed
with the nature
of my love for You
too able to
minimize
my need for Your
grace.
In the recesses
of my private
world
there is so much
that is wrong
that I am able
to convince myself
is right.
There are attitudes there
that should not be.
There are words there
that should not be
spoken.
There are thoughts
that do not agree
with Your view
of me
and mine.
There are desires
that take me in a
different direction
than what You have planned
for me.
I make decisions
based more on what
I want
than on what
You will.
So I am hoping
for
wise eyes
that are able
to see through
the cloud of
self-righteousness
and see myself
as I actually
am.
I am praying
for
wise ears
that are able
to hear through
the background noise of
well-used platitudes
and hear myself
with clarity.
And I am longing
for
a humble spirit
that is willing
to
accept and confess
what You reveal
as You break through
my defenses
and show me
to me.
I am hoping
for
a broken heart.

"A broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise." Psalm 51:17

read old books

john piper quotes c.s. lewis in "God's passion for His glory" (the quote is originally from lewis' introduction to athanasius' "on the incarnation"):

There is a strange idea abroad that in every subject the ancient books should be read only by the professionals, and that the amateur should content himself with the modern books. . . . This mistaken preference for the modern books and this shyness of the old ones is nowhere more rampant than in theology. . . . Now this seems to me topsy-turvy. Naturally, since I myself am a writer, I do not wish the ordinary reader to read no modern books. But if he must read only the new or only the old, I would advise him to read the old. . . . It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between. If that is too much for you, you should at least read one old one to every three new ones. . . . We all . . . need the books that will correct the characteristic mistakes of our own period. And that means the old books. . . . We may be sure that the characteristic blindness of the twentieth century . . . lies where we have never suspected it. . . . None of us can fully escape this blindness. . . . The only palliative is to keep the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds, and this can be done only by reading old books.

doxology

during opening for our sunday school youth department, we've been talking about what different words mean - recently, words such as "advent,""hark,""herald,""Emmanuel," and "frankincense," just to name a few. since words are what we use to communicate, it's important for us to know what they mean, or else they don't really communicate much.

the Scripture reading for last sunday's sermon finished up with 1 Timothy 1:17, so i started thinking about singing "immortal, invisible, God only wise" this week for sunday school and thinking about the word "doxology."

now of course when we sing "the doxology," i know it's the song that goes:

Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise Him all creatures here below.
Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts.
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

then, when i looked the word up on dictionary.com, i found that it means "a hymn or form of words containing an ascription of praise to God," and that it's origin is "[Medieval Latin doxologia, from Greek doxologiā, praise : doxa, glory, honor (from dokein, to seem; see dek- in Indo-European roots) + -logiā, -logy.]"

it also intrigues me how often in their epistles after making key doctrinal points, the apostles would just burst out in doxology - spontaneous praise to God. just scanning through quickly, i found at least the following examples: Romans 11:33-36, Romans 16:25-27, Ephesians 3:20-21, 1 Timothy 1:17, 1 Timothy 6:15-16, 2 Timothy 4:18, 1 Peter 4:11, 1 Peter 5:11, 2 Peter 3:18 and Jude 24-25.

this brief survey is just a reminder of where all our doctrine should bring us, where our religion should point, what is in fact our chief end and why gram and i could enjoy five iron frenzy together! PRAISE GOD!

a great way to start the new year...

from "jonathan edwards' resolutions and advice to young converts":

"being sensible that i am unable to do anything without God's help, i do humbly entreat Him by His grace to enable me to keep these resolutions, so far as they are agreeable to His will, for Christ's sake.

remember to read over these resolutions once a week.

1. resolved, that i will do whatsoever i think to be most to God's glory and to my own good, profit, and pleasure, in the whole of my duration, without any consideration of the time, whether now or never so many myriads of ages hence. resolved to do whatever i think to be my duty, and most for the good and advantage of mankind in general. resolved to do this, whatever difficulties i meet with, how ever so many and how ever so great."

(he's got 70 of 'em. they're worth checking out!)