Hard work isn't hard to the hard-worker.
Easy work isn't easy to the lazy.
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Thanksgiving Dinner
This turkey left his home of wood
To give us what no other could.
His smoke ascends to heaven with our prayers.
Family Visit
Briefly perched upon my hand
--Butterflies from distant lands.
With the winds they did depart
With them went a piece of heart.
S. Knox White
Monday, November 5, 2012
The Lie of Choice
As the Lord sovereignly chooses us in salvation, so He determines all of our lives. In other words, we do not choose the important and determinative things in our lives; rather, they choose us. We do not rationally, impartially, and objectively determine who and what will be our God, our families, our uprbringing, our marriage, calling/work, passions, homes, friends, treasures, values, and convictions. We may weigh the options in our minds, but we are only making a pretence of self-determination, which would almost certainly appear ridiculous to those who truly know us.
To argue that we have chosen the things which will reside in our heart is actually to devalue them, to make them interchangeable and peripheral to our identity. To argue that we have chosen them, rather than the other way around, is to make them arbitrary choices. The treasures of our hearts surprise us suddenly, demanding our allegiance, and to them we gratefully submit. While we do have the power to nurse or starve the growth in our hearts, we can neither plant the seed nor pull out the roots. Only the Lord plants and uproots.
This does not diminish our responsibility, but rather heightens it, for what is easily chosen, is also easily dismissed, forgotten, and betrayed. To argue that we choose the determinative things in our lives is to make us lord over them; we will bend them to our will- we will dismiss them when we no longer have need of them. But to recognize that they have chosen us is to recognize that we serve them, and that the bond is stronger and deeper than our own power to make or break. The Lord's sovereign determination always works in complete harmony with our responisibility.
To argue that we have chosen the things which will reside in our heart is actually to devalue them, to make them interchangeable and peripheral to our identity. To argue that we have chosen them, rather than the other way around, is to make them arbitrary choices. The treasures of our hearts surprise us suddenly, demanding our allegiance, and to them we gratefully submit. While we do have the power to nurse or starve the growth in our hearts, we can neither plant the seed nor pull out the roots. Only the Lord plants and uproots.
This does not diminish our responsibility, but rather heightens it, for what is easily chosen, is also easily dismissed, forgotten, and betrayed. To argue that we choose the determinative things in our lives is to make us lord over them; we will bend them to our will- we will dismiss them when we no longer have need of them. But to recognize that they have chosen us is to recognize that we serve them, and that the bond is stronger and deeper than our own power to make or break. The Lord's sovereign determination always works in complete harmony with our responisibility.
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Monday, February 13, 2012
What Would Jesus Say about Homosexual Marriage...
Homosexual marriage ought to be forbidden by the state in the same way that suicide ought to be forbidden- because it is never loving to allow your neighbor to destory himself.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
So I've been thinking about the desire to behold, adore, and experience beauty...
To be immersed in beauty is a sweet drowning.
S. Knox White
S. Knox White
Friday, January 6, 2012
A Vision Statement for Ministry at Covenant EPC
Vision Statement: To evangelize, disciple, and integrate into Covenant the young adults whom God sends our way.
To Evangelize: In word, deed, and life, whether by means of conversation, teaching and preaching, prayer, service, attitude, ethic, writing, or any other godly means which God blesses, to proclaim, manifest, explain, defend, persuade towards, and apply both individually and corporately, to both believer and unbeliever, the power, truth, glory, beauty, desirability, other-worldliness, offense, healing, reconciliation, new life, restoration, redemption, blessings, curses, warnings, exhortation, encouragement, mystery, profoundity, and reliability of the gospel. Although evangelism logically preceeds discipleship and integration into church life, it also permeates, epitomizes, grounds, and guides all of ministry, as it is the power of God unto salvation (which encompasses deliverance not only from the penalty of sin, but also the power and presence of sin, from which we have full rescue only in the life to come), driving the entire Christian life, accomplishing not only justification, but sanctification and glorification as well.
To disciple: to lead towards, promote, inculcate, instruct in, exemplify, encourage, nurture, pray for, counsel, and solemnly warn and defend against the lack of holistic Christian growth in life, maturity, wisdom, faith, good works, godliness, faithfulness, fruitfulness, holiness, and righteousness. To disciple, in other words, means for one believer to lead another in sanctification. The heart, power, and glory of discipleship is growth in the gospel of grace, in which we more fully and deeply become what God has already declared us to be in Christ. Sanctification can only be built on the foundation of justification. As in all of the Christian life, the believer proceeds in discipleship by grace through faith, not by works, lest any man should boast. At the same time, this faith must be a living faith, the test of which is works. The mature disciple must be able both the examine himself to see whether he is in the faith, to test the genuineness of his faith and to ascertain whether he is a fruitful branch or an unregenerate, while simultaneously being deeply rooted and assured in the gospel, knowing and trusting that beilievers are justified, accepted, adopted and loved only for the sake of Christ whom they have only by grace through the free gift of faith, not by works, lest any man should boast.
To integrate: to incorporate into the life of Covenant those Christian disciples who do not already have a healthy church home, in order that they might more fully fulfill their duties as disciples and that they might enjoy and contribute to the blessings of our corporate covenant life.
To Evangelize: In word, deed, and life, whether by means of conversation, teaching and preaching, prayer, service, attitude, ethic, writing, or any other godly means which God blesses, to proclaim, manifest, explain, defend, persuade towards, and apply both individually and corporately, to both believer and unbeliever, the power, truth, glory, beauty, desirability, other-worldliness, offense, healing, reconciliation, new life, restoration, redemption, blessings, curses, warnings, exhortation, encouragement, mystery, profoundity, and reliability of the gospel. Although evangelism logically preceeds discipleship and integration into church life, it also permeates, epitomizes, grounds, and guides all of ministry, as it is the power of God unto salvation (which encompasses deliverance not only from the penalty of sin, but also the power and presence of sin, from which we have full rescue only in the life to come), driving the entire Christian life, accomplishing not only justification, but sanctification and glorification as well.
To disciple: to lead towards, promote, inculcate, instruct in, exemplify, encourage, nurture, pray for, counsel, and solemnly warn and defend against the lack of holistic Christian growth in life, maturity, wisdom, faith, good works, godliness, faithfulness, fruitfulness, holiness, and righteousness. To disciple, in other words, means for one believer to lead another in sanctification. The heart, power, and glory of discipleship is growth in the gospel of grace, in which we more fully and deeply become what God has already declared us to be in Christ. Sanctification can only be built on the foundation of justification. As in all of the Christian life, the believer proceeds in discipleship by grace through faith, not by works, lest any man should boast. At the same time, this faith must be a living faith, the test of which is works. The mature disciple must be able both the examine himself to see whether he is in the faith, to test the genuineness of his faith and to ascertain whether he is a fruitful branch or an unregenerate, while simultaneously being deeply rooted and assured in the gospel, knowing and trusting that beilievers are justified, accepted, adopted and loved only for the sake of Christ whom they have only by grace through the free gift of faith, not by works, lest any man should boast.
To integrate: to incorporate into the life of Covenant those Christian disciples who do not already have a healthy church home, in order that they might more fully fulfill their duties as disciples and that they might enjoy and contribute to the blessings of our corporate covenant life.
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