Biblical Teaching

The Bible is absolutely true, without error, divinely inspired by God. Period.

We, as Bible-believing Christians, should be thankful that God has used men (and women) of God throughout the centuries to preserve the Tenets of the Faith. This weekend we were introduced to one of most recent men in this long list of faithful.

Dr. Peter Beck, http://www.christianity.com/blogs/beck/11600313/, a graduate of Southern Seminary, who completed his PhD in Church History, was a former member of Parkway Baptist Church. This is where we currently attend church, and continually are blessed by the sound Biblical teaching by the pastor and leadership. Dr. Beck considers Parkway his 'home church', although he is now a religion professor at Charleston Southern University.

He is truly a man of God who is not afraid to 'step on toes' for the Word of God and discernment. This weekend he took us through how Baptists through the centuries beginning with Luther and Zwingli started a movement that is still going today. The reformation did not stop at Calvin and Wesley.

One of my take-home messages was the fact that those theologians from Zwingli's disciples to Spurgeon's detractors had the same issues that the we have had in the 1980s through today. 'Liberals' (Cooperative Baptist Fellowship) claim today: 1- Scripture is not divinely inspired, it is biased by those who wrote it. 2- We can fellowship with many faiths to enlarge our 'tent'.

Jesus gives us a very sobering warning that we need to take seriously: Matthew 18:5-14, and Mark 9:42-48. (v. 6)
1. It is better to be dead than to lead one of my 'little ones' astray.
2. Stumbling blocks are part of a fallen world. BUT woe to you if you 'willingly' allow one to come through you! (v. 7)
3. It is better to take drastic spiritual/physical action (cut it off) than to suffer eternally. (v. 10)

Paul many times in his writings warns the leaders to 'be on guard' for 'perverse teachers' (Acts 21). He instructs us to be alert and don't be fooled by these who want to 'tickle your ears'.

EMERGING SYNDROME

Our Generation is now dealing with the Post-Modern Theology and seen in the Emerging Church 'Syndrome':

1. "The Shack": No reverence for Almighty God (who is pictured as a Female), and that there are may paths to God, not one narrow way.

2. Brian McClaren: ("The church has been preoccupied with the question, "What happens to your soul after you die?" As if the reason for Jesus coming can be summed up in, "Jesus is trying to help get more souls into heaven, as opposed to hell, after they die." I just think a fair reading of the Gospels blows that out of the water. I don't think that the entire message and life of Jesus can be boiled down to that bottom line."

3. Josh Reich: "Some of the values of the emerging church are an emphasis on emotions, global outlook, a rise in the use of arts, and a rise in mysticism and spirituality."

4. Tony Jones: "I now believe that GLBTQ can live lives in accord with biblical Christianity (at least as much as any of us can!) and that their monogamy can and should be sanctioned and blessed by church and state."

Tony Jones, Part Two: "Since then [college years], I’ve become more uncomfortable with the notion that people are inherently bad, prideful, etc. I don’t deny the reality of sin. But I do doubt that human beings are depraved from birth. So, without quoting the Bible, what do you think? Are human beings predisposed to good or evil?"

Whaaaaaa? "Without quoting the Bible?" It's all about TONY and TONY's GLORY, forget God's Glory.

5. Rob Bell: "God has an incredibly high view of people. God believes that people are capable of amazing things." And in Velvet Elvis he writes: "So this is reality, this forgiveness, this reconciliation, is true for everybody. Paul insisted that when Jesus died on the cross, he was reconciling “all things, in heaven and on earth, to God. All things, everywhere. This reality then isn’t something we make come true about ourselves by doing something. It is already true. Our choice is to live in this new reality or cling to a reality of our own making." (p 146)

Bell also states: "This is part of the problem with continually insisting that one of the absolutes of the Christian faith must be a belief that “Scripture alone” is our guide. It sounds nice but it is not true… When people say that all we need is the Bible, it is simply not true." (pps. 067-069)

SOLA SCRIPTURA

All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Tim 3:16-17).

But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self,… For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. (2 Timothy 3:1-2; 4:3-4, NASB)

LUTHER, ZWINGLI, CALVIN, WESLEY, BUNYAN, AND SPURGEON

OF THE 21ST CENTURY

Today, when our '5 Sola' Leaders stand up and warn us, we had better listen! When John MacArthur, Al Mohler, Alstair Begg, Mark Dever, and others (now I count personally Peter Beck!) start naming names, we had better listen and dive even deeper into the Bible.

We as parents need to ensure we train up or children so that we are not the conduits of stumbling blocks. Whether actively or passively allow this GARBAGE to enter our homes, God has warned us that it is better off if we were DEAD.

I (and my wife) now take that even more seriously after this past weekend.

Top Ten Things I Will Miss about Beaufort

10. The only traffic encountered is when the 'Turn Bridge' is open to let sailboats through and being able to see the dolphins swim along side the causeway.
9. The home we brought Boo to after she was born and where J & M had many friends of late.
8. The church were we got the best Bible teaching that may be hard to beat!
7. The best five years of my Army Career in Savannah at the 429th.
6. Fresh seafood straight from the dock to the grill!
5. The closeness of our staff at the hospital and our department. Great people and friends.
4. Small town feeling and security where most reported crime was petty and insignificant.
3. Driving onto Parris Island (Marine Recruit Depot), and having the Marines salute the car. For a long time my boys didn't know how they knew I was an officer- I told them it was my Jedi Powers! The finally figured out- on their own!- that it was the color of the sticker on the windshield!
2. Having my parents close by. It was great to have them so close- it won't be long when they will move back to Indiana where they will be only a couple of hours away.

And the Number One Thing I will miss about Beaufort, South Carolina

1. My daily runs with M.D.S. (my friend, mentor, and boss) who was my spiritual Paul during my five years working with him on many projects from actual 'work' to home repair! The Lord may surprise me, but it will be very hard to find someone like Mark to work for in the future!

Top Ten List: Why I'm Glad to Be Leaving Beaufort

Top Ten

Things I will not miss about Beaufort, SC

10. Swing bridge open means your 20 minutes trip to Walmart is now 45".
9. War of Northern Aggression.
8. Dysfunctional School System and School Board.
7. Vast number of Liberal and Ungodly churches.
6. Limited number of Theologically-sound Biblically-based churches.
5. Racism: It is alive and well, both ways, in Beaufort.
4. Driving an hour to get to the closest Mall (Savannah).
3. More Mexican restaurants per-capita than Mexico City.
2. People think they are 'big shots' in Beaufort, but are nothing but a stinky fish in a very small pond.

And the Number One Reason why I am glad to be leaving Beaufort, SC...

1. Those !$%@*&@$ Sand fleas that only come out when the temperature and humidity are perfect for sitting on the Front Porch.

Top Ten List

I'll be doing a top ten list about Beaufort, SC.

Friday: Top 10 things I WILL NOT miss about Beaufort, SC
Saturday: Top 10 things I WILL miss about Beaufort, SC

Later Today, a post about what happened 15 years ago today...

Good Bye 'Little Buddy'

Our 'Little Buddy' left us last Thursday, 9 October 2008. We had 12 healthy and enjoyable years together. He was truly "Man's Best Friend".

It was a difficult time for us and our two boys. They are struggling, for the first time, about the concept of death. It is a productive and difficult experience, but is needed. It will make them stronger, especially spiritually. We have emphasized that only Man was created in God's image, not animals. However, God still loves animals, as he knows when 'every sparrow falls to the ground'. He has given Man the responsibility to care for the animals.

We don't know what happens to our beloved pets when they die, but we didn't give the boys a false sense of hope. What they do know is that God gave us the privilege of taking care of one of his very special animals, a miniature schnauzer named Oliver.

Oliver, from the first day we saw you with your brothers and sisters in Brandon Florida until last Wednesday, 8 October snuggling with you on the couch for the last time. You will always be our first 'Little Buddy'. There will be no others. We will always treasure our memories with you.

Oliver 'Little Buddy' Winslow

26 July 1996 - 9 October 2008

The Third Most Stupid Dog Breed

Need I Say More?

Yes, I do! This is from the CBS "Early Show". I didn't make this up, see the article here.

Great New Site

I was introduced to a new website that shows how much Darwin was right. (Not really, his idea of survival of the fittest really looks good on paper...)



This site, http://www.fark.com/, is excellent in that it links many obscure and outrageous articles in a nice, neat format.




One interesting piece is where the author will offer up a recent published picture and ask people to 'Photo Shop' and post it. There are rules, but does not apply to 'Sacrilege'. For example, there is a photo of Barack "I'm a Marxist Baby Killer" Hussein Obama on a plane surrounded by reporters. Here is what some came up with:



1. Obama's face superimposed on Jesus' body with the 'masses' in awe of him.

2. Obama's face superimposed on Jesus' body with the 'Little Children' surrounding him.

3. Obama's body replacing Charlton Heston's parting the Red Sea and leading the Hebrews to the Promised Land.



All very wrong, but yet at the same time, sadly thought of true by many of his adoring fans...



Hmm, and we let these people vote...

You think you wrecked your car...

This is what happens in Bosnia when an car full of angry drunk locals with various weapons tries to pass a military convoy...



Yes, it is photoshopped by a buddy back at home, but the Hummer accident was real, along with the four of us inside. It was in 2002 in Bosnia. My first, and hopefully my last.

I was sifting through pictures and decided to keep this one for posterity, especially since I still had my posterior!!!

Rule of Thumb for those countries in the Former Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), if the ground is tilled and turned over, there are no landmines. When we crawled out of the top, we were very grateful that we ended up in a recently tilled field!!!

Camping and Training Up Children

Dad and Grandad took Monk and Tic Tac on their first camping trip this weekend. I thought that Monk would be so germ-o-phobic that he would want a backpack full of wipes and concerned about the diseases he could get by not taking a shower for one night!

For Tic-Tac- I was expecting to have to call in a helicopter to rescue him from the top of a tree that he climbed up but not able to get down.

I was close on latter one: I overheard Tic Tac tell Monk "just push the boat out with me in it, I can catch fish out in the middle easier!"

To commemorate our first official camp-out, I gave them both a compass and a special little light with a white and red light. Late into the night they were both using their compasses and their lights in the woods. There were other boys who were there with their Game-boys, PSPs, iPods, etc. There were others who were playing football and fishing also. However, there were two older men who had brought 'adopted' boys that either did not have a dad to bring them or whose dad were deployed overseas.

During the weekend, they both made comments about how impressed they were with Monk and TicTac and how they were so interested in figuring things out together as brothers, involved in the 'outdoors', and how polite and knowledgeable they were with their compasses.

I am so proud of my boys. Even though the homeschoolers had been there all day Friday, we got there after the evil public school let out. That meant there were a few of us who had to set up in the less desirable areas. But for only one night? I've camped in worse areas!

R and I have stopped counting how many people have made comments about how impressed they are with our boys. We know that God calls and convicts people to many different ways to teach and raise up children.

The last time I checked, there is no command in Scripture that says "Thou shalt instruct thy children until the 18th year age in thy home setting and deem all other methods as evil." We are commanded to train up our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, but the decision to homeschool or not is up to individual families to decide. Sometimes when we are around very committed homeschooling families, we are made to feel that we are living in sin by not making the same decision for our family. We did not make our decision lightly and we are aware that we are responsible to train our children. However, I do read passages where many mighty men of God were trained in the local 'schools'.

Daniel was probably 12-14 years old when he was carted off to Babylon and was enrolled in the Babylon Independent School District where King Nebuchadnezzar was the Superintendent. God was faithful!

Also, I believe that Jesus also grew up in the Nazareth Public School System- of course back then it was run by the local Rabbi and they were 'enrolled' until they reached the age of manhood. As did most other boys in the Jewish culture like Peter, James, John, and Andrew.

We are called to be the salt and light: Matthew 5:13-16

13 You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.
14 You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

My boys are being salt and light in their world. They are sealed by God's Grace because they have professed Jesus as their Savior. That's the bottom line! Everthing else in life is for God to lead them. God has sealed them and belong to Him! God has blessed us with the privilege to be their earthly caretakers, aka 'parents'. We take our calling to train them in the Lord seriously.

We do not 'worry', as we learned this morning in church. Worry is a sin! God has led us to entrust our children to Him, and He will lead us in the way to raise them. Whichever way He leads us, we will never have regrets or feel guilty! We do pray often about how to raise our children, and we want to be faithful stewards of the blessings God has entrusted to our care.

Feeling guilty or worrying after obeying God's instruction? Seems to show a lack of faith or one who is confused.

Hmm... kind of like asking someone if at the grocery store is out of bananas and the reply is yes, we have no bananas. Huh?

Or to quote anyone who has given or received directions while driving (especially with your wife): Driver: Do I turn left here? Passenger: Right. Hmm...

Hypocrisy and Murder: Barak-Style

Barak 'The Baby Killer' Obama,



In my hospital parking lot, I have noticed quite a hypocrisy of sorts. It doesn't make sense, at least to this author and casual observer.



Maybe it is sad that some physicians, or medical professionals, are thought of being astute and scientifically savvy. Of course there are exceptions. Click on the Empty Suit, courtesy of the New Yorker, and read the article on Barak's Abortion Stance. This is not about the abortion debate, it is about murder. Cold Blooded Murder of living humans who survive birth but are unwanted. It is chilling to think this is someone who may win on charisma and flash. Some say he has no record to stand on, short on credentials.

I submit to you he does have a record to stand on. A scary and purely evil record. And just when you thought Barak was bad, read about his wife and her beliefs...

http://www.townhall.com/columnists/column.aspx?UrlTitle=obama_is_the_most_pro-abortion_candidate_ever&ns=TerenceJeffrey&dt=01/09/2008&page=1

Abortion is a very important issue to me, but one that I don't especially line up with because I understand that there is more power in how the states treat this issue. The president usually does not have much legislative power (bar the Supreme Court) to affect this area. However, when it comes to the most heinous stances, sometimes it boils over and must be said.

Bottom line: I can understand physicians who are pro-life, pro-choice, anti-choice, pro-abortion. Call it what you want. But I cannot process with my mind how an Obstetrician, if he/she is worth their salt, look at the stance Obama has taken and be in favor of him? This is Obama's only significant stance he has taken during hit time in the Illinois Senate and the US Senate.

Of course they would probably say it is a minor thing, his message of change is what is important. Well, let's see and go back in time: 1935 a similar person had a message of Change and his name was Adolph Hitler. "Unite for the Good of the Fatherland" was his election mantle, sounds eerily similar to Obama's trademark saying in 2008. Hitler, as we all know now, began the 'extermination' of the less-than-desirables: Elderly, handicapped, gypsies, blacks, non-native Germans, finally the Jews.

Obama thinks it is acceptable to kill human beings because it might lead to the infringement on Roe v. Wade. What a pathetic and evil stance to take.

Obama, and those who stand with him, have innocent blood on their hands. Too bad that baby who survived birth, but died an hour later of starvation and exposure to the elements doesn't have a voice or a vote.

I guess for that doctor with the Obama sticker missed the day they discussed the "Do No Harm" class.

Hypocrisy at its finest.

Mr. Magoo and Contacts

I remember it well. It was January 6, 1992. I began my Master's degree at the University of Florida and needed to get a new driver's license.

It was the first test I flunked. There was no Bell Curve. There was no extra credit. Unless one memorized it, like many non-English speaking landscape workers. There was only one solution- go see the eye doctor and get glasses.

That is what I did. and came back a week later and got my driver's license. I firmly believe that I could have been a straight-A student during my undergraduate years had my vision been corrected then. I should sue someone...

Anyway, after years of fumbling with glasses, prescription sunglasses and not wanting to fork over 4 grand for eye surgery, I looked into contacts. No pun intended.

It has been two weeks since I began wearing them, and it has been a very positive experience.

Here are some changes I have had to make:

1. Don't wear your prescription sunglasses when you are wearing contacts. Things are EXTREMELY blurry!

2. You get to buy inexpensive sunglasses at the gas station now.

3. You get to walk in the rain again and not worry about the glasses getting wet.

4. You get to walk into or out of a building and glasses don't get foggy.

5. When working outside, your contacts won't slide down your sweatty nose and face.

6. Wear protective eyewear. My old glasses that I wore when working outside doubled as protective eyewear, as they were issued by the military. The other day I learned the hard way that I needed to wear goggle while cutting some wood. I could see clearly, and thought I was wearing my glasses. I wasn't, and spent the next few minutes rinsing!

7. I can now put a pencil behind my ear when working on my MPs (man-projects).

8. Those unsightly chronic nose-indentions are going away!

9. I won't have to use those silly 'flip-up' sunglasses when I lose my prescription glasses!

10. Touching my eyeballs is not as bad as I thought it would be.

No more Mr. Magoo!

Ben Stein's 'Expelled'

I ran across this while doing a routine search this morning. Check out the trailer about Ben Stein's upcoming movie on Darwinism and evolution. The Secular Left's agenda is about more than abortion and blind political correctness.

A recent Pew research study found the following concerning 'evangelicals' and evolution:
(A summary is at this website for Indiana Baptist Perspectives)

"...In contrast, 40 percent said they believed that humans had evolved over time; but of those, 18 percent said that evolution was “guided by a supreme being,” and 26 percent said that evolution occurred through natural selection..."

What a slap in the face to our Almighty God by people who apparently see Genesis 1-11 as not literal but just a nice allegory.

Those who claim Christ as their Savior, dismiss the entire 'after His own image' verse about the creation of Adam. It seems to be a simple conclusion for me. Jesus, through Mary, is a decedent of Eve. God told Satan that there will be a seed that will 'Crush your head'. If we dismiss these foundational verses of the Redemptive act of Christ that is prophesied in Genesis, then we dismiss the entire purpose of redemption of Christ on the Cross.

As we have studied Genesis 1-11 in our Sunday School, then those people who subscribe to evolution and dismiss Genesis as just a story, then their belief in Salvation through Christ is flawed.

If one doubts God's Word of the OT, then His NT is just as flawed. Therefore, one's salvation is flawed. And that is an area where I would not want to wander into.

The Evil Human Resource Director

Catbert, The Evil Human Resource Director, is my hero. Thanks to the US Army, I am working on advanced studies for Human Resources. I'm learning things like how to eliminate people from the 'payroll system', and disallowing travelling expenses with the help of Accounting Trolls.

Just think, your tax dollars at work! Ain't America Great?

Church Membership and the SBC

Thomas Ascol presented this resolution (again) for honest reporting and who is a 'regenerate church member'.

Watch the video below.

http://sbcvoices.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2007-06-16T15%3A33%3A00-04%3A00&max-results=7

Resolution Committee, a lot of 'FEELINGS', The committee 'Feels' or 'Felt'

Our church decided to honestly report our numbers because of the honesty issue. We don't have 450 members (which is what we reported). Salvation is not based on church membership. We have around 200 members with 110 who come to Sunday School.

Pastor Ascol's discipleship and 'Foundations' for teaching children and adults is outstanding and true discipleship.

Too Many Coincidences...

These two pictures are way too close in so many ways...

1. Both are 'out of touch' with reality. Or, maybe they are too much in touch with reality. I was watching Benny Hinn (like an accident, when you scroll by it on the TV, you just cannot help to stop and stare in disbelief!) healing a lady from a limp she had. She could barely talk, as she mumbled most of her words. It was quite funny to watch.

2. One's name is Dr. Evil, and the other could be called Dr. Evil based on the Bible! Benny sucks in millions of dollars a year scamming people into believing he is healing them.

3. Birds of a feather, flock together! Hmm- just looking at the Benny-man's attire makes me laugh (not to mention his TV antics). It is amazing how anyone can take him seriously. But, the world is full of people who are 'foolish'.

4. They both think that they are going to 'win'. Just look at this world's scammers, especially the TV types. Many wind up disgraced, according to the world's standards. Unfortunately, the spiritual implications are much more serious.

I think they are the same person! Benny Hinn and Dr. Evil are the same people. They have the same personality, tailor, and outrageous methods to get what he wants.

They both belong in Ripley's...or at least the people who think the Benny-man is legitimate and send him money.

End Game

What happens when 'Fatigue' is the number one reason to stop doing something?

Edmund Burke, the Irish politician and philosopher said this very true and famous observation:

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.

While I am assisting one of our units deploy to Iraq, I came across this story that was given to me when I went to Iraq. I am not sure if the author, Irma S. Chambers, is true or the title "A Lesson to my Son" is legit or not. It really doesn't matter to me.

When we get 'tired' of this 'War on Terror', we need to remember the reason and purpose. It is so much bigger than just Iraq. America is far from perfect. We probably should have been involved in more 'wars' and conflicts over the years. We should have gone into Bosnia and Kosovo a couple of years earlier, and saved the lives of 100,000 plus lives. We should have gone to Darfur a long time ago and saved 300,000+ lives there. The list goes on.

We are not a perfect nation, but over the past 231 years, we have fed and cared for many nations. Below is a 'picture' of not just Iraq, but the many times we have come the aide of a country in need:

The other day, my nine year old son wanted to know why we were at war. My husband looked at our son and then looked at me. My husband and I were in the Army during the Gulf War and we would be honored to serve and defend our country again today. I knew that my husband would give him a good explanation. My husband thought for a few minutes and then told my son to go stand in our front living room window.

He told him: "Son, stand there and tell me what you see? " "I see trees and cars and our neighbors houses. " he replied. "OK, now I want you to pretend that our house and our yard is the United States of America and you are President Bush. "

Our son giggled and said "OK. ""Now son, I want you to look out the window and pretend that every house and yard on this block is a different country. " my husband said.

"OK Dad, I'm pretending. "

"Now I want you to stand there and look out the window and see that man come out of his house with his wife and he has her by the hair and is hitting her. You see her bleeding and crying. He hits her in the face, he throws her on the ground, then he starts to kick her to death. Their children run out and are afraid to stop him, they are crying, they are watching this but do nothing because they are kids and afraid of their father.

You see all of this son. . . . what do you do? "

"Dad? "

"What do you do son? ! "

"I call the police, Dad. "

"OK. Pretend that the police are the United Nations and they take your call, listen to what you know and saw but they refuse to help. What do you do then son? "

"Dad, but the police are supposed to help! " My son starts to whine.

"They don't want to son, because they say that it is not their place or your place to get involved and that you should stay out of it, " my husband says.

"But Dad. . . he killed her! ! " my son exclaims; "I know he did. . ." but the police tell you to stay out of it.

Now I want you to look out that window and pretend you see our neighbor who you're pretending is Saddam turn around and do the same thing to his children. "

"Daddy. . . he kills them? "

"Yes son, he does. What do you do? "

"Well, if the police don't want to help, I will go and ask my next door neighbor to help me stop him. " our son says.

"Son, our next door neighbor sees what is happening and refuses to get involved as well. He refuses to open the door and help you stop him, " my husband says.

"But Dad, I NEED help! ! ! I can't stop him by myself! ! "

"What do you do son? "Our son starts to cry.

"OK, no one wants to help you, the man across the street saw you ask for help and saw that no one would help you stop him. He stands taller and puffs out his chest. Guess what he does next son? "

"What Daddy? "

"He walks across the street to the old ladies house and breaks down her door and drags her out, steals all her stuff and sets her house on fire and then. . . he kills her. He turns around and sees you standing in he window and laughs at you."

"Daddy. . . "

"What do you do son? "Our son is crying and he looks down and he whispers,

"I close the blinds, Daddy. "

My husband looks at our son with tears in his eyes and asks him. . .

"Why? "

"Because Daddy. . . . . the police are supposed to help. . . people who need it. . . . and they won't help. . . . You always say that neighbors are supposed to HELP neighbors, but they won't help either. . . they won't help me stop him. . . I'm afraid. . . . I can't do it by myself. . . Daddy. . . . . I can't look out my window and just watch him do all these terrible things and. . . and. . . . . do nothing. . . so. . . . I'm just going to close the blinds. . . . so I can't see what he's doing. . . . . . . . and I'm going to pretend that it is not happening. "

I start to cry. My husband looks at our nine year old son standing in the window, looking pitiful and ashamed at his answers to my husbands questions and he tells him. . . . "Son"

"Yes, Daddy. "

"Open the blinds because that man. . . . he's at your front door. . . What do you do? ! "

My son looks at his father, anger and defiance in his eyes. He balls up his tiny fists and looks his father square in the eyes, without hesitation he says:

"I DEFEND MY FAMILY DAD! I'M NOT GONNA LET HIM HURT MOMMY OR MY SISTER, DAD! I'M GONNA FIGHT HIM, DAD, I'M GONNA FIGHT HIM! ! ! ! ! "

I see a tear roll down my husband's cheek and he grabs my son to his chest and hugs him tight, and cries. . .

"It's too late to fight him, he's too strong and he's already at YOUR front door, son. . . . . you should have stopped him BEFORE he killed his wife.

You have to do what's right, even if you have to do it alone, before. . . . . . it's too late. " my husband whispers.

THAT scenario I just gave you is WHY we are at war with Iraq. When good men stand by and let evil happen is the greatest EVIL of all.

Our President is doing what is right. We, as a free nation, must understand that this war is a war of humanity.

WE must remove this evil man from power so that we can continue to live in a free world where we are not afraid to look out our window and see crimes on humanity. So that my nine year old son won't grow up in aworld where he feels that if he just "closes" the blinds the atrocities in the world won't affect him. Today the second day of "WAR on IRAQ" I felt compelled to write this and pass it along.

Hopefully, you will understand the lesson my husband tried to teach our son.

"YOU MUST NEVER BE AFRAID TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT! EVEN IF YOU HAVE TO DO IT ALONE! "

BE PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN! BE PROUD OF OUR PRESIDENT! BE PROUD OF OUR TROOPS! SUPPORT THEM! SUPPORT AMERICA! SO THAT IN THE FUTURE OUR CHILDREN WILL NEVER HAVE TO CLOSE THEIR BLINDS. . . .

The Two Gates

It's never a coincidence when I read a passage of scripture, hear it talked about on the radio, read about the same concept in a book, then (amazingly enough) hear it preached at a non-denominational military service.





The fact that the chaplain did not use one watered down homile (which I am used to hearing in the usual chaplain services) and talked about entering into His Heaven through the narrow gate was a great relief to hear.

The passage I read was concerning Naaman, the Syrian, being healed by God through His prophet Elisha. It's in 2 Kings 5. The bottom line is this-

When God calls us, He calls us for His purpose (to Glorify Him), through His methods (To Glorify Him), at His timing, at His location, and who He wants.

Naaman was a Syrian/Aram. NOT A JEW. He and His people were unclean. Of course, Elisha was a Jew, and one of God's prophets. In order for Naaman to be healed of his leprosy (Naaman was not only not Jewish, he was a leper, strike two!). Save the point that the Aram/Syrians were the enemies of the Jewish Nation (Israel, the Northern Kingdom).

This dude had three strikes. But what did God do? He demanded that if Naaman wanted to be healed he had to do it His way. Naaman is a picture of all of us Christians. We want to be 'cleansed' the easy way. He wanted to do it with money and gifts. He brought the equivalent of over 75 million dollars to Elisha to be healed. But when Elisha demanded he go through the healing process His (God's) way, Naaman refused. We have all done this. When we finally realize that we must do something uncomfortable and unnatural (Which is God's way), we refuse.

This is our sinful nature. We initially repel all things that are of God. We are depraved. However, if Naaman wanted to be healed, he had to do it through the narrow gate. He had to do it God's way.

Matthew 7:13, Jesus talks about the narrow gate. Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress is an excellent picture of a Christian's (and Christian's) spiritual walk. Both gates are together, next to each other. Interestingly enough both paths parallel each other, as a picture of our life here on earth. We sit next to people (in church!) who are on the wicked path and don't even know it. They refuse to cleanse themselves in the Jordan River, as God demanded of Naaman. They are going back home to cleanse themselves in their own 'filthy' water. The water of the world.

So many of us refuse to be cleansed by God's Spirit and His power. It is not a coincidence that in this passage of Matthew Jesus sums it up by saying "Not everyone who cries Lord, Lord will enter the Kingdom of Heaven". Not everyone who raises their hand during an invitation.

Naaman 'walked the aisle'. Naaman 'tithed'. However, the picture paints a man who knew the physical state he was in. He was cursed, as we are cursed with our sin-state. He recognized he could not save him self. He needed others to tell him this after his first denial.

Naaman finally realized he could not do it himself. This is a problem we all have. Naaman was a powerful man, the King of Syria's right hand man, General of all the armies. However, he finally realized his fate. He humbled himself to be washed clean by order of someone else.

Many of us, especially today, wander back to this point. We will consistently refuse to abide by God's instruction. Naaman, as we read it, may have had a full conversion. As he requested soil from Israel to put down in his home/temple so he would offer sacrifices to The God, and not to the gods of Syria/Aram. And he asked for forgiveness for helping his king bow to those gods.

It seem he had a true change of heart. He entered through the Narrow Gate. I am not a theologian, but the next chapter talks about the sons of Elisha, so it seems that Naaman may(hopefully) died, because Syria/Aram are back at their war again...

Anyway. We must enter through the Narrow Gate. We cannot bypass it and say, I'll enter the Narrow Way later. That is not an option. We cannot 'cut in' at the last moment. Jesus said, 'Enter through the Narrow Gate', not join us on the Narrow Path somewhere down the way.

No. That is a very dangerous way to play with one's eternity. It is very serious. It is something we must be ever mindful in our lives as we help others see the two gates. There are two gates. The easy wide open gate leads to eternal destruction. The other gate is the Narrow gate that is difficult to get into, but it leads to Almighty God and His Eternal Glory.

A Godly Woman

Psalm 31: 10-12, 25-31

10 An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels.

11 The hear of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain

12 She does him good and not evil all the days of her life.

25 Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she smiles at the future.

26 She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

27 She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.

28 Her children rise up and bless her; her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

29 "Many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all."

30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

31 Give her the product of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

.

.

Over the past few weeks I have done a lot with the military (just ask my wife, and my boys...) and have encountered many who are one of the following:

1. Unhappily married (as if it were an arranged marriage!)

2. Happily divorced (some multiple times)

3. Going through a divorce (with and without children which is a tragedy)

4. The "I Just got married because I am about to go Iraq and want the extra money" group.

5. The "I just got married because I really love my girlfriend and were going to get married anyway so why not now" group.

6. The "I tolerate the old lady because it's too hard to train another one" group.

Then there is the group I am in, which I have found to be in the small minority. It is the one that many feminist groups would think holds women down in a subservient role. A role that is detrimental to the growth of young women, especially young mothers. We can't stop there, it's even worse in the World's view: how horrible it is to be a stay-at-home Mom.

.

Hmm...that's another post.

.

Anyone who thinks that because she stays at home with three children is not 'living up to her potential' as a liberated woman doesn't have a concept of what it means to be a Godly Woman. Of course what really matters is what God says through His Scripture as to what it really means to be a Woman.

.

She has raised two Godly boys who continue to amaze her as to their knowledge of the Bible their understanding of their place in God's plan for their lives. This is where I fall down as the spiritual leader of the home, and she has taken the lead in many ways. This is part of the reason I am writing this today.

.

She needs to work on her self-confidence! She often wonders if she is being a 'good mom'. The boys are the apple of her eye, or the 'femur of the dinosaur', or the 'eye-patch of the pirate' to make it applicable to each of them! From each of their teachers in school, to their Sunday School Teachers who continue to be amazed by their knowledge of the Bible, to strangers at the store who complement her on their behaviour.

.

They reflect the Godliness they see in her. She has, many times, been a single mom, because Dad has been gone probably three of the eight years since our oldest has been born.

I am continually amazed by what she had done over our wonderful almost 14 years of marriage.

.

Who would have thought that the quiet 'strange girl' I met 15 years ago (who had lived in the same house her entire life, except for college) would have stepped out of her comfort zone so many times I have lost count. She has joined churches on her own with two little boys while I was away. She has endured physical trials while I was gone and not able to be with her. Who would have pictured her as persevering and tough?

.

God does, as he has given her sufficient Grace, in His time, in His amount. She has weathered many of these things because of her desire for God. I continue to be amazed at her walk with the Lord. Daily she is in the Word, praying and seeking God's guidance for her and her family.

.

I love the Godly Woman I married. Her boys love their mother, and will seek a wife that has a heart for God like their mother. Her infant daughter will come to love her mother, and strive to be a Godly Woman like her mother.

Now, if I could get her to complete verse 16 "...she considers a field and buys it and plants a vineyard." Maybe when our littlest one is in kindergarten, she'll have some extra time...

Trust Me, It's Not a Doctored Photo

There we were, the sun was going down. The cool wind blowing in from Wyoming.

Then, from above the crest of the hill, we heard them. We heard 40+ of them. Coming our way.

The little ones at first.

Then the Mothers.

Then the Teenagers.

Then the Fathers.

Then the King, the Master of the Herd, the Behemoth of the Buffalo.

Standing over 8 feet tall. He was the last to come over the crest, as if to say to HIS herd, "I am king, move that car out of the way so I don't have to walk around."

Of course, the high quality camera I had was not enough of a picture to capture all of him, just his eyes in the dark.

He was huge, and was just calmly watching over his 'Family'. Where was the Crocodile Hunter when you needed him? I don't think there is a Buffalo Hunter, at least not living. I wouldn't think about looking oddly at one of the 50 lb babies.

Hmm...they are beautiful, and they say there are 3-4 herds in this area. That's a lot of 'Buffalo Piles'.

Then, after winning the staring contest, he meandered across the dirt road as if to say, "Now that my family is across the street, you may pass. Don't tell anyone what you saw here tonight."

Military Travel

We can all relate to Calvin.

This is how the airlines make you feel sometime. I believe that the Department of Defense (DoD) has a deal with the airlines. The more connections and longer delays, the cheaper the flight. We had four connections coming, and leaving- two days late.

Hmm...sounds like the $200 toilet seats from the 1980s. Someone's hand is getting greased in this deal. And it's not me.

We feel like Calvin on the ground and the Airlines are Hobbes. You are at the whim of them. Pay homage to us, or we will bump you and lose your luggage. Well, you have already done both, so they need to come up with something else to torment us with.

They have, hand over your dime-sized chap-stick. You might be MacGyver and do something with it on the plane.

We were supposed to leave on Friday, now it's Sunday. It's not looking good:

1. The first flight leaving this AM was two hours late leaving.
2. Hortense (made up name of the ticket agent) said my bag was overweight. I saw the scale, 53 lbs. Apparently 50 lbs is max. She wasn't budging. Well, add an 'l' to the word and her shirt and belt were but that's another story.
3. Even when I asked for some slack since UNITED AIRLINES lost my luggage coming here for three days. Nope, Nada, Nyet, Zilch, Zero. She gave me a bag to empty some stuff out. How nice of her!
4. UNITED AIRLINES had that big glitch this past Thursday where 250,000 people were stranded/backed up due to a computer glitch. Hmm...
5. The bumping has now begun. There are seven of us flying back. Two were bumped to tomorrow. No explanation, just a hotel voucher and $20 in meal vouchers.
6. We overheard the next UNITED flight announced that it was overbooked and looking for volunteers. Hmm...
7. When I asked Hortense (again, not her real name) about our flight, she replied "The computers say it's on time". The same computer that ran a smooth operation this past Thursday for United. Hmm...

Why get upset. It's your tax dollars at work (mine, too). I'm sitting here getting paid by the DoD because the Airlines can't get their act together.

I will probably never see that little bag with my uniforms and boots again. I think I see Rudy (Not his real name) trying on my boots.

Maybe I can catch a flight on Aeroflot...

Flexibility

It was 89 degrees when I left home, and up in the Black Hills of South Dakota/Wyoming it was 33 degrees, snowing, and 50-60 MPH gusts. When I called back home, it was 91 with miserable humidity.



Which is worse? My motto has always been to be hot rather than cold. I think that changed when I went to Iraq, when the thermostat hit 138 degrees. I would rather have been cold!



It is a nice respite from the heat and humidity. As long as we have our 'snivel gear'- clothing items for wimps who can't handle the cold weather- we are doing just fine.



Anyone up for a snowball fight?

The Army and the Boy Scouts

My Chief Warrant Officer and I (and about 5 other guys) are doing some training with our reserve unit. He is a 20 year veteran and has been around the block. He is an aviator, dustoff pilot, been to Iraq, Kuwait ('91), and other places. He knows his stuff. After some typical Hurry Up and Wait things with our higher headquarters, he turns around to me and says:

"Sir, do you know what the difference between the Boy Scouts and the U.S. Army is?"

"No I don't Chief, what is it?"

" We have artillery, they don't."

After realizing he was absolutly right, and 10 minutes of humorous reflection, I though about that. I had to correct him, though.

I said, "Chief, considering some other items today, there is no difference. You know those MRE heaters that when you add water to them, they heat up? Well, as you know, if you mix the powder into a 2 liter bottle and twist on the cap, it will explode. Well, both of my sons love to do that and what them blow up. Therefore, one could consider that similar to an artillery piece. The only item they are missing is the launch vehicle!"

He replied, "That's scary. Our local troop would probably do a much better job than some of the units we dealing with here."

Hmm...some points to ponder about our national security.

Of course our unit is not one of them. We have our 'Stuff' together. All of us have been to Iraq (some multiple times) and know how to get stuff done. This is our unit's 'Crest' from their time in Iraq. I was there the same time, but doing a Civil Affairs mission. I think it's pretty cool.

Purposeful Denominational Ignorance

Caveat, I do understand the times we live in. We need to be discerning and harsh when it comes to apostate preaching in our churches. We need to test the spirits.

http://www.christianresearchnetwork.com/, where Ken Silva is Editor, for the most part helps many of us to be aware of the apostasy that is attempting to creep into the Christian Church. However, it seems many times recently he enjoys tearing down brothers in Christ with snippy, smarmy, and flippant comments. Many times, it is quite ignorant and the 'research' in 'christianresearchnetwork.com' is quite often skewed to fit his 'agenda'

His recent article mentions Al Mohler's recent article about a recent event in the Methodist Church, then goes on to make points about Al Mohler's comments about the UMC problems, and accuses him of not making the same comments about the SBC.

As an SBC pastor, Mr. Silva is quick to personally attack people and leaders.

My theory is that Ken Silva may be ordained as an SBC pastor, but he does not demonstrate a very good understanding of how the local Baptist church relates to the SBC as a whole. Any SBC person, especially a pastor, knows how the SBC works and is set up and how the Seminaries are set up. Those churches who desire to ordain women pastors, endorse homosexuality, question the authenticity of scripture, etc, unfortunately might choose to affiliate with the SBC, but in reality that is why the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship was founded almost 20 years ago. There is a reason those apostate churches choose to dually affiliate with the CBF and the SBC. They want the SBC name and resources (and the numbers generated by those older members who want the SBC affiliation and would leave if there were a complete break), yet want the liberal, ungodly theology of the CBF. There are many churches like this. They are the churches of Laodicea.

He spreads disinformation and inflammatory rhetoric to those who are not SBC. He bears false witness toward others outside the SBC denomination. Those outsiders do not understand the workings of the SBC. It is foreign to them. The SBC does not own churches nor employ pastors, like the UMC, PCA, ELCA, and most other Protestant denominations. Each church is autonomous and is freely to affiliate with any organization. Of course, he will deny this.

However, it is obvious he enjoys looking for fights. In fact, I personally know of a church in our own association that chose to be dually aligned with the CBF and the SBC, and our association has told the pastor he can no longer serve on the committees or in postions of leadership as long as his church is affiliated with the CBF. So, to say that no one in the SBC is acting on these kinds of things is not true. These things are typically handled by the local association, not necessarily addressed by the larger Convention.

Unfortunately Ken Silva's message of discernment (which is great ministry tool) gets lost in his rhetoric and personal attacks. He misses the target and loses his effectiveness when he attacks those who are fighting the battle for us and consistently speaking about things that are wrong in evangelicalism today.

Those who claim to be a 'Baptist', which may include over 25 separate entities of 'Baptist'. Of course, one could argue whether some Baptists are truly Christians (we can chase that rabbit in sooooo many directions). Let's redo this map and narrow the search and use the non-negotiables of the faith and then see the distribution of all so-called believers.

I would speculate that not only would the distribution change, but the actual numbers would too. That is what Jesus weeps over when He looks down on this world.

Many will claim the title 'Christian', yet in the Final Judgement, He will say to many:

'I never knew you, depart from me you doer of iniquity'

(Matthew 7:23)

The New Baptist Covenant

The New Baptist Covenant is an interesting idea. A couple of points to get this one started:

They reaffirmed their commitment to traditional Baptist values, including sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ and its implications for public and private morality (1).

They specifically committed themselves to their obligation as Christians to promote peace with justice, to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless, care for the sick and the marginalized, welcome the strangers among us, and promote religious liberty and respect for religious diversity (2).

(1): Former president, Bill "Is-Is" Clinton, supports this organization. His church, in Arkansas, is aligned with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. I guess these 'commitments' are 'flexible', as is CBF theology (Public and private morality) Hmm...

(2): Since former president Jimmy Carter believes that Mormons are going to Heaven, I guess it is not that important to place the Great Commission in as one of the specific commitments.

Since Jimmy "Many Paths" Carter doesn't require accepting Jesus Christ as Savior, I guess Evangelism doesn't need to be on the 'A' list.

Fortunately SBC President had this to say about this organization:

Southern Baptist Convention president Frank Page released a statement reproving former President Jimmy Carter's New Baptist initiative, saying, "I will not be a part of any smokescreen leftwing liberal agenda that seeks to deny the greatest need in our world, that being that the lost be shown the way to eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord."

(1) We see which leader/organization has the TRUE needs of the lost world at heart.

This Generic Brand is a No-Go

There are some things in this life that we can 'Go Generic'. Below is a list of some items that are perfectly fine:

1. Claritin (allergy medication) = Wallitin, the Wallgreen's generic
2. Mountain Dew = Mountain Hollow (Dollar General generic)
3. Frosted Flakes = Crispy Flakes (Food Lion generic)
4. Tylenol/Excedrin/etc pain relievers = Wallbuprophin, Walcedrin, Walenol, etc
(can you tell I frequent Walgreens, Dollar General and Food Lion?)

HOWEVER

There is one thing that I won't scrimp on. That is world Famous

Thomas's English Muffin

This little baby cannot be duplicated. Our hospital's cafeteria recently went from the Original to a generic 'Mediocre Muffin', probably Harry's Hoboken Muffin. I have nothing against Hoboken (New Jersey, the Garden State. That's another story), in fact, I grew up with a friend who was from Hoboken. Nice guy.

However, there are significant differences between the two. The generic fails to have all the precious nooks and crannies that Thomas puts in his English Muffin. It is so sad to not have the ability to fill each little crevice with melted butter. Hmm.

But now I can only blog and complain about it as my Hoboken Muffin's butter just drips off the side because those little nooks and crannies are gone. Poof!

Of course it's George Bush's fault that our cafeteria manager decided to go generic. I knew I could blame someone for it, and since he is the cause of everything evil, I figure I could add to the list this item. It is apparent that the President hates the English, nooks and crannies and loves Hoboken more.

If you put all the dots together, it is obvious to see that it is all a conspiracy. It is all about the 2000 election and Wisconsin. After all it is the Diary State. Butter is a dairy product. He is exacting retribution on this state by eliminating the nooks and crannies thereby reducing the demand for butter. This will result in chaos in Wisconsin and the dairy community. It will spread to Illinois, which also is a Blue State and cause wide-spread panic in the Chicago Commodities Market which will have a domino effect crossing the ocean to the White Cliffs of Dover (That's England).

When will this madness stop? Rise up people and let your voice be heard. The English have stood behind us through thick and thin. We must support them in these difficult times.

To quote Winston Churchill: "We will never, never, never never give up (our English Muffins)"

I added the last few words for emphasis and to make my point.

My Precious Cheese Dip...

The expression on the face of my eight year old son when I told him we (Just him and me) were going to have cheese dip at the local Mexican Restaurant.

A Royal Priesthood

1 Peter 2:9-12

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of the darkness into His Marvelous light;

10 for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

11 Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts, which wage war against the soul.

12 Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing win which they slander you as evildoers, they may on account of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of Christ's coming Judgement.

As we all know, many denominations use these versus to promote their doctrine over others. Who is the Chosen Race? Is it about me personally, is it about literal Israel, is it about which church is replacing Israel (covenant), visible v. invisible church, etc.

Is this about predestination? Am I one of the chosen? What if I desire God, but am not one of the chosen? Can I refuse the call from the Holy Spirit?

These questions can go on and on...

Unfortunately, people take these (and all others) to promote their own 'points of view'.

The bottom line for me today

I am a child of God, who accepted Jesus' Death and Resurrection as the payment for my sins. When I die and stand in front of Almighty God, and He demands payment for my sin, Jesus will be beside me and all God will see is His Grace (Blood of the Lamb) covering me.

Jesus is our High Priest. He went before the Father and sacrificed His life. The Old Testament picture of Passover paints the perfect picture. Once a year, the High Priest went into the Holy of Holies and, in the Presence of God, sacrificed the lamb for the sins of the nation.

Jesus went into the presence of God as the Unblemished Lamb, paying the price of His Children. Sins in the past, present and future.

It is Finished

Jesus paid the price, once and for all. Period. We are now a Royal Priesthood, we have received Mercy, called to be salt and light. What an awesome picture Peter paints as to the privilege of being one of His children. It is not to be taken lightly.

The day of judgement is coming. We need to act accordingly. He will separate the sheep from the goats, wheat from the chaff, hot from the cold.

I pray that I will draw closer to Him daily. I slip daily, if not hourly, probably closer each minute!

These versus should speak to us as ways to live desiring God, not debating doctrine.

Payroll

Why did I come in early on Memorial Day? When I could do it on Tuesday? Is it because payroll deadline falls on a holiday which pushes it to the next day, Tuesday by 10 am.

That still doesn't answer the question. Why didn't I just Do It Later? Well, here's why:

1. There are 1100 employees here
2. There are only 10 'servers' available for our payroll system.
3. We have 90 Percenters who call themselves 'supervisors' that do most of the payroll for departments.
4. These 90 Percenters do not plan ahead with payroll details (vacation hours to add, missed punches, etc)
5. What do these 90 Percenters do? They come in and log onto the payroll servers, and realize they do not have what they need to complete their payroll.

6. These 90 percenters STAY LOGGED ON because they do not want to 'lose their spot'. At this point, they begin to wander the halls of our place of employment hoping to find those employees who forgot to clock-in, etc.

7. These 90 Percenters also tend to be the ones who will stop by the cafeteria (while still logged onto the payroll server, one of the ten) and have their third breakfast of the morning. Then proceed to complain about how short of breath they are...hmm...

8. About 90 minutes later, they waddle back to their cubicle to complete their payroll on time.
9. There are about 30 directors/supervisors (I use those terms loosely) who do this every two weeks.

30 x 90% = 27 I estimate that there are 27 of these kinds of people in our place of employment who have to 'clean up after' 1100 x 90% = 990. Quite a mix.

This is a world-wide standard. Do your own calculations at your workplace and you will realize what we are dealing with here!

One may ask why don't I just come in earlier tomorrow? I get up at 5:30am to run 3-4 miles, have my quiet time and be ready to work around 7:30.

Some things are more important. And besides, I've got a great job here. This is the one thing I can complain about!

Milk Theology

It seems that as I prepare for the next year of Sunday School (this September), I begin to mull over the potential curriculum for various classes. We have great teachers in our church and I thank God for the gift of teaching many of our 'volunteers' have. It is a true blessing.

However, I continually struggle with the standard, turn-key, watered down curriculum simplistic "MILK" we have to choose from. There is nothing theologically wrong about it, but for the most part it doesn't challenge people. I will say that it is true that there are many who take this curriculum and do wonders with it.

We mostly struggle with the children's area. It is terribly weak. It doesn't give children a true 'Foundation'. How many times do our kids learn about Adam and Eve, the Apple, Noah's Ark (two of each kind? read it again!), Dave and the five rocks, the three wise men (only three?), and of course Joseph, Mary and Bethlehem.

Sunday after Sunday, Month after Month, Year after Year...

We started one class with an Answers in Genesis class. Something very different. Wow! It has been excellent. These kids (Jr. High) are learning the absolute Foundation of Everything. The pastor and I want to use this curriculum church wide, but are taking a more pragmatic approach.

We are beginning an Expository series of Genesis. One of our members has an incredible gift of teaching and Creation Science background. His first adult class was this past spring and we had an average of 25-35 people in it. It was an incredible study. He is starting part two, "Genesis 1-11, Verse By Verse".

What ever happened to Expository Bible Study? Since growing up in the 70s and 80s, almost all of my Bible Studies have been 'Stovepipe'. Topical. A little here, and a little over there. No foundation.

Alistair Begg is quoted as saying in a recent Hebrew's study that my wife and I are listening to that the primary purpose of a pastor is teaching his flock (Hebrews 5:1-4). Teaching the foundation of the Christian life. Not allowing heresy into the church. John MacArthur has said numerous times that expository Bible Teaching should be the rule not the exception. Unfortunately, it is very rare that expository teaching is the Rule anymore.

Of course, 'Exposing' the Word of God will (and should) make us uncomfortable in our sin and convict us to draw closer to God, not ourselves. It should Expose the false teachings that we hear and see IN THE CHURCH today. It should Expose the Scripture, inerrant and pure and without error. It should EXPOSE the total depravity of ME and that without Christ's Blood Atonement on the Cross and the Holy Spirit's drawing me towards Him, I am but the chaff destined for the fire.

Unfortunately, most of us don't like to be Exposed. We are dirty, filthy rags. Only because of Christ's Blood are we washed white as snow. Because we don't have a foundation of Faith, we fall for false or questionable teachings in the Church.

The whole Purpose Driven Program is a dangerous result of years of this 'Milk Theology'. PDL, and the other PD's are, in my opinion, a whole lot of Milk, and very little steak. Paul warns us of not moving beyond dairy products.

Honestly, I have struggled with Celebrate Recovery (a PDL product). We have had many people come to know the Lord and have turned their life around in the program. However, I still believe that the Holy Spirit is speaking to me every time someone mentions it in Church. I believe that lives are changed through this program. That doesn't mean that we shouldn't critically look at it from a Biblical perspective and ensure it doesn't conflict with scripture for the future. I have two serious points to start off with:

1. I have a serious problem with not being able to correct people in the small group when something needs to be corrected. When someone questions a basic doctrine of Faith and 'crosstalk' is prohibited, that is a problem. Jesus did plenty of 'crosstalk' during His 33 years on earth!

2. The 'CR' Bible: it contains SERIOUS translation ERRORs!

3. New Age psychology. Your path to your Higher Power. Now I understand that Rick Warren uses it to mean Jesus Christ. But if it is coming from an "Evangelical" Pastor, why use New-Age Terminology?

4. We are 'Delivered' from our sins. Period. We don't need to continue in a small group rehashing it over and over again. I don't need to get up in front of people and say, every time, "Hi, I'm Harry, I am a follower of Jesus Christ, and I am recovering from Food Addictions/Co-dependent relationships/Anger/etc. Where is this in Scripture? It seems that many who are sold out to CR try to convince EVERYONE that they have something that they need Recovery from. This is not Scriptural. Our sins are forgiven and they are removed as far as the East is from the West. We need discipleship. We need accountability with one another, yes. But not the ongoing perpetual recovery that never seems to end.

5. The 12-step program is based on Alcoholics Anonymous. Whose founder was a spirit channeler who was given a vision, during an drunken binge, to stop drinking and do it using 12 steps. This is where the "Higher Power" comes from. This guy's higher power was a spirit guide. Does this belong in a church?

I am not one to jump on or off publicly without discussing, praying, studying and researching it. This whole PDL movement has for some reason bothered me from the beginning. I've read the books, discussed some of these points with others.

Here is a link I just found that compares some PDL/CR issues from a Scriptural perspective. It is a very short, yet concise description of the serious theological problems with PDL/CR.

My bottom line is this. We have gone through the Wide Gate onto the Wide Path with our teaching and preaching for so long that we don't even recognize Scriptural error anymore. Solid, expository preaching and teaching is offensive in most 'Evangelical' churches.

Read the Pilgrim's Progress. We got our copy through Truth For Life (www.truthforlife.org), Alistair Begg's ministry. Get the one with today's English, not the King's English! It has Scripture References and is a great picture of a Christian's journey. They have a kid's version, too.

The Christian life and witness is too serious to be 'stovepiped'. Scripture is too important to be brushed off as 'too difficult' to read verse by verse (Homilies, anyone?). We need to Expose each verse, Expose false teaching, Expose our Sin for what it is. Sin. Not shortfalls, mistakes, psychological defects, etc. No. It is rebellion against Almighty God. That is sin. Jesus' Blood Atonement on the Cross fulfilled the cost of my sin. When I bring up my sin that I have already asked for forgiveness for over again (and not recovered from), I'm basically saying that Jesus' death on the Cross wasn't good enough. NO! I am Delivered from that Sin. What I need is to be discipled by Godly people on a daily basis.

Not a gimmicky, smarmy intro line that is plagiarized from AA. Not a program based on the occult.

We are called to be the Salt and the Light. Don't let the salt become bland and worthless.

Teach the Word. Verse by Verse. Expose Evil.

Ecumenical Spines (Now that's an oxymoron!)

With the passing of Jerry Fallwell (JF), we are seeing a resurgence of those who vehemently disagreed with him. Why? Besides being a Christian? Was it more than that?

Of course it was. Whether you liked him or not, he almost never backed down. He did say some things that were probably best said from the campaign trail rather than the pulpit. Putting that aside, his ability to stand firm is what many so-called 'Christians' were, and are, afraid to do.

Gutless Christians

America is filled with luke-warm Christians. Ecumenical Christians. Those willing to sell out. Their fruit is rotten, their faith built on straw and hay. We know what the 'Master' did to those- he cut them off and cast them into the fire. After 9-11 we were filled with TV images of "Evangelicals" praying with Imams, Priests, Bishops, etc. Anyone who questions those on stage were labelled as intolerant and narrow-minded.

I am just as guilty a lot of the time. I'll be the first to admit that I sometimes don't speak up when I should. I fall short many times. However, I am blessed to have a pastor who refuses to 'do the ecumenical thing'. He sets the example for the rest of us and does it Biblically. He has stood firm aligning with Scriptural Integrity.

JF stood firm in many issues. He took the heat because so many of us backed down and slinked back into our holes. Like him or despise him. Agree with the methods of the Moral Majority or not. He stood firm for his Christian beliefs. Provided young people an education at an institution that espoused Scriptural Doctrines instead of the scientific/philosophical garbage of evolution, secular humanism, etc.

People, John tells us in Revelation that it is only going to eventually get worse. We just don't know when. We need to speak the truth. Firmly and in love. Peter, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, says it perfectly (of course it is, it is inspired!)

1 Peter 3:15 "But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence,"

On a Roll...

I can't be too serious all the time. Here are a couple of clips from my (our) Alma Mater. Proud to be a Florida Gator!








Who's next? I'm sure Ohio State is getting tired of the beatings...

Florida Gators and the Crocodile Hunter

For those of you who are familiar with the elusive and terrifying Florida Gator, here is a little clip from the late Steve Irwin...

Innerancy of the Word

Number two on the list of items that are Absolutes for Christians is the Innerancy of the Word.

We just finished an introductory study in Apologetics from one of our truly gifted members in our Church. The teacher is in his 'second' career as a Christian Scientist. He led us through Scripture to show how Genesis is proven throughout the New Testament. It was truly amazing.

Similar to John MacArthur's premise that when one denies the Innerancy of the Scripture, one's salvation is seriously compromised. Christ is the Word. Question the Word is to Question Christ.

If one believes in Evolution, then one denies the Genesis account. Deny Genesis, then Deny Christ. Christ was in the beginning. John 1:1 is pretty plain and simple. In the beginning was the Word (Greek translation = Christ), and the Word (Greek=Christ) was with God (Greek I AM), and the Word (Christ) was God (I AM).

This simple verse has profound theological implications. It lays the foundation for who Christ was/is/ever shall be. It clearly defines the Trinity. It clearly defines Jesus as the Messiah. The Word cannot be changed, as it existed before time, and was only written down through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit by men.

Without error.

Amen.

VSIPs

The world is full of VSIPs. They are everywhere. The most common places to see these VSIPs are:

1. In front of you in line. Any line, usually the slowest moving. The more VSIPs, the slower the line.
2. Driving the car next to, or in front of you.
3. In the seat next to you on an Airplane.
4. The first one on the airplane who puts their eight pieces of carry-on luggage in the first overhead bin above seat #2A. His seat is #86D. It takes him 15 minutes to situate his bags and backs up the entire flight. It's okay, he's a VSIP.
5. She's the one who looks like guy from the Star Trek who is blind with that 'virtual eye' thing to help him see, except she has something like it in her ear at the table next to you at McDonald's.
6. He says "Hi, how are you doing" you answer foolishly because he's not talking to you. You don't think you're that important for him to lower himself to talk to you do you?
7. There's a kid drowning at the pool, and Mom is poolside yelling into space (because she has the Star Trek ear thing, remember?) that she has to go and yell at the lifeguard to save her kid. Too late...

You all remember the days when (in 1993 for me) when the first cell-phones came out. They were the size of a shoebox, and weight about the same as a miniature schnauzer. Now, they are the size of three rabbit droppings stuck together.


At that time, there were only four people who use cell-phones:

1. The guy who carried the 'Football' for the President. He would call the guys who would press 'The Button' when the POTUS would lean over to him and tell him. Obviously the POTUS didn't need one himself. It was too heavy, and would interfere with him shaking hands and kissing babies.

2. Emergency Doctors. Of course, these guys need to have one. That is a no-brainer.

3. Pizza Delivery Guys. We need a way to find out why our pies are over 30" late, and help them find there way.

4. Terrorists (they use them to detonate those IEDs)


Process of Elimination:

1. There is only one 'Football Guy'. And he's usually with the POTUS. The only exception is when he is in the executive bedroom, and I am pretty sure that he isn't sitting in a chair next to the nightstand "Just In Case". Maybe then the President carries it... then it would get in the way of something else...hmm.

2. Emergency Doctors. There aren't that many of them. Statistically, maybe one per plain, and I doubt he is doing his nails talking into the air at the local YMCA watching his kid drown.

3. Pizza Delivery Guys. On the plane? That's some delivery service...but hate to see their 'hidden fuel charges' for their products!

4. I don't think Terrorists are that popular here in the States. Akbar and his little brother, call him 'Spotter', isn't common here. So I doubt that. However, maybe if the cell-phone companies did a 'retro' program making all phone like they did back in early 90's, it would make these IEDs a little more difficult to do. Make "Spotter", Akbar's malnourished little brother, lug the 25 pound cellphone with the external antenna dragging behind a mile to the IED point. By that time the 8 pound battery is dead, and Spotter was so tired, he probably dropped the spare in a pile of donkey poo a half-mile back. That 'Allah Be Praised' mission just flopped. Kind of Spotter did on the side of the road in exhaustion. (Of course the US Convoy see Spotter passed out on the side of the road and stop to render aid and give him Candy. Only to have him and Akbar try it again tomorrow. How nice.)

Who the heck are all of these other people think they are? They are VSIPs. Very Self-Important People.

They are not going anywhere. We are stuck with them. Don't become one of them. Don't talk to them. Don't look them in the eyes. Don't acknowledge them. They are in need of a 12-step recovery program.

'Hello. My name is Cookie (or Chip). I am a recovering VSIP. "

Valentine's Day

A message I heard on the way to work on V-D (no sexual disease pun there- just some symbolism about this Hallmark Holiday and how intimidating this day can for some. Not me, of course!) Talked about the 'Beautiful People of the Bible'.

The Bible talks specifically about three people: Rebekah, Rachel and Joseph (of Technicolor Coat Fame), one of which is who my Beautiful Wife is named after!

Genesis 24 details the beginning courtship of Isaac and Rebekah and their first meeting:

15 And it came about before he had finished speaking, that behold, Rebekah who was born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Abraham's Brother Nahor, came out with her jar on her shoulder, 16 and the girl was very beautiful, a virgin, and no man had had relations with her and she went down to the spring and filled her jar, and came up. 17 Then the servant rand to meet her, and said, "Please let me drink a little water from your jar."

There are some parallels:

1. When we first met in January 1992 I was a stranger in a strange land (From Indiana to Florida to go to school).

2. Proudly she was pure (as so was I)

3. She was beautiful.

4. A good friend of mine (we were roommates) and a friend of hers played matchmakers (not servants, though).

5. She was the one!

There were differences too:

1. I wasn't thirsty, nor was my servant/friend.

2. My Camels weren't thirsty.

3. I didn't totally know she was the one at the time. (v 21: the man was gazing at her in silence, to know whether the Lord had made his journey successful or not.)


She is my loving wife of three beautiful children, and is everything I could have dreamed of. The Lord chose her for me before the foundation of the world, just as He Supremely arranged the Meeting of Isaac and Rebekah.

God is Awesome!