In FIVE (5!!) Short Weeks

There are big changes on the horizon for the Vermeulens. Not just the baby coming--that is happening too, at the end of September most likely. There is another change to announce as well. 

For those who are local and already aware of this news, this post is intended to clarify the reality that we've perhaps not been clear or firm enough in saying over the past couple weeks. 

We are moving to Casnovia, Michigan. I will be stepping into a role as a pastor at Casnovia Reformed Church (henceforth CRC). Casnovia is a village of about 300, situated a mile from a town of about 2,000, about 15 miles north of Grand Rapids. Yep, we're becoming country folk! We anticipate this being a nice change from where we currently live in a busy suburb of Orlando. 

The church has been in existence for about 50 years, but has struggled for the past 4-5 years to maintain sustainability. For those familiar with ministry language, this is a revitalization project.  They say revitalization is just as hard, and sometimes harder, than planting a new church. But I've spent time via Skype and in person with the people of CRC. The core group of about 30 people has been together for a long time and are a family. They have realized that it's time to make some changes as a church in order to welcome new folks into their family so that this local expression of Christ's body can go on in years to come.  We've talked through quite a few issues, including a new vision and goals, and sense that the church has great potential to flourish once again. 

Our friends Nate and Andrea Deward, whom we served alongside of at LifeSpring Church in Fish Hawk FL, have been working on a temporary basis with CRC to broker a smooth transition. Initially I will revamp the music ministry of the church and preach 1/2 of the time, while Nate and Andrea remain on board preaching and assisting with leadership.  In January of next year, I will take over all responsibility, effectively serving as solo pastor. 

If all goes as planned, we will load the moving truck on July 18, and roll out of Florida the next day.  As I mentioned above, that's only 5 weeks away! The only contingency on this, and the reason that we've waited so long to express this to everyone, is that I have an interview next week in Grand Rapids with a committee from the denomination that the church is part of (RCA). This committee oversees my ordination process within the denomination, and the interview is the final piece that I need to pass in order to be approved to come under care and be granted a preaching license. Full ordination in the RCA will take a couple more years to complete.

I've been told by the committee leader that this interview is not just a formality, but is intended to assess my readiness to work in ministry and become a pastor. That's why there is no 100% guarantee. It's been a bit frustrating having to communicate it this way to everyone, particularly since there is only a month between the interview and the scheduled moving date. That's the way the timing has worked--the interview couldn't be scheduled earlier, and the move couldn't be pushed back, mainly because Anne is so pregnant!  So Anne and I decided this week to set our hearts and minds and communicate to others that we are going. It's time to get organized for a move and begin saying our goodbyes. 

Goodbye is painful. We are overwhelmed with the weight of saying goodbye to family and to dear friends we have here in Orlando--Anne's best friend and her husband, some men from a small group of guys I'm in, and the many people from Grace Orlando, past and present. While goodbye is tough and awkward, the best way to do it is to just let it be difficult. Feel the weight and sadness of it, because the sadness means that something very significant relationally has happened. We are incredibly grateful for the many people who have shared their hearts with us, loved us, supported us, and given us gifts of varying kinds big and small over the years. We know that 5 short and already busy weeks will not be enough time to say goodbye to everyone properly, but we hope to have whatever chances we can to say them.  

There are some friends and family in Michigan awaiting us, besides the new church family. Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents, and my brother and his family--their kids will be a great playmates for Aidan and Brendan (and Baby #3!). In just a few weeks, everything will be new for everyone in our family. Please pray for special, large measures of peace and a spirit of adventure as walk through it all.

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." --Joshua 1:9. 

Frustration, Control, and Maturity

My fellow blogger Leanne Penny had a post last week in which she said this: "Do you know what frustration is? It’s the conflict between expectation and reality."  

I mentioned this idea yesterday in my sermon at Motion Church, but was yet again forced to reckon with it this morning, as happens often when I'm driving, by the myriad of red lights.  Red lights in Central Florida are just RIDICULOUSLY long, like nowhere else I know.  I hit the one my friend Kelly calls "the nexus of the universe" just as it turned red, so I checked up on twitter.  Then after 4 minutes, I got to move a whole 400 feet to the next red light.  Then a 1/4 mile later I hit another epically long light which everyone wanting to go to Starbucks Maitland is now forced to wait for. 

Here are the thoughts as they flowed, all in about 10 seconds: 
%)$@#!!! 
OK, you're frustrated. 
Because you expect that all lights should just be green for you within 10 seconds or less.  
And that's just not reality.
Are red lights really in your control anyway? 
Mature people don't often get bent out of shape about things out of their control. 
Accept that this is out of your control and use it as a moment to connect with God. 
Hi, God. Sorry for not loving you in that moment, which I preached about just 20 hours ago. 

*Light turns green. 
*Guy in big luxury SUV in front of me is not paying attention and takes 5 seconds to hit the gas.
*The cycle begins again. 

Thankfully, God's love is faithful, sure, and steadfast.  And patient. Eventually, slowly, I will learn to just let these things go right in the moment they happen, and control what I can, which is my attitude. 

Book Review: Leaving Egypt

I posted this on Amazon, but figured I would post it here as well:

Over the years, Chuck DeGroat has studied and listened to many different voices and perspectives in the areas of theology and psychology—and how those two intersect in Christian Spirituality. He has done masterfully in navigating a path to clarity in describing a humble, honest relationship with God. Chuck does a superb job making his main point, and yet managing to know the variety of readers and what they’re thinking as they read.

It would be hard to summarize that main point, but if I could try: All Scripture is God’s gift to us, to help us get to know God and ourselves. As we read Scripture, Scripture reads us. In this way, Chuck takes the Exodus narrative and really unpacks it creatively and articulately as it relates to the way we live with God. He shows clearly, through the lens of his years of study and working with people in classroom, church, and counseling settings, how the story of Israel is so similar to our stories today. As a whole, the book is the beginning of a framework for understanding ourselves, coupled with a challenge to enter more fully and deeply into the story of our lives with God.

Two quotes that reflect basic points of the book:

--We compensate [in destructive ways] for the difficulties we experience early on in life. And we find ourselves living under the power of slavery rather than entering into the life God offers” (151).

--“This ancient story teaches us that freedom is truly difficult to embrace. Living into God’s liberating story for our life comes at a price. A wilderness awaits. But the wilderness is also where our lives begin to be redefined” (75).

Particularly helpful for me (once understanding the foundation of the first half of the book) was the chapter on the Beatitudes, where Chuck really hones in on the heart that Jesus is looking for. Talking about the cost of discipleship, Chuck says, “A life of messy spirituality, in other words, does not mean the freedom to cuss, to drink, and to dance just because you weren’t allowed to when you were a kid…Brokenness strips us of everything that is false in us, including the new personas we exchange for the older, rigid ones. It manifests not necessarily in a more raw or edgy ethos, but in humility” (211).

This book is helpful to a wide variety of readers from many backgrounds, including those who do not have a relationship with Jesus. Those who come from a very conservative Reformed background may take some issue with it, as well as those who adamantly reject modern therapeutic models. But the open-minded reader, willing and hungry to understand their lives and how pain and brokenness and suffering make sense in their walk with God, should find nourishing hope and connection in Leaving Egpyt.

You can read much more from Chuck at www.drchuckdegroat.com. And to my old friend—well done, brother, well done.

Goodbye Orlando

Just writing that title seems so surreal! Eleven years in a place is a pretty significant chunk. Especially since it's where my real adult life began. Here I finally stopped sitting in classrooms after 24 years, dug into ministry full time, met and married a wonderful wife, and started a family. Each of those things are significant on their own. Add to it the many friends and the closest friends who have come and gone over the years here... It's quite amazing how much God has poured out loving mercies to me. His loving presence and grace has always been there, whether I've been bitter, angry, unaware, or simply living in survival mode, or fully engaged with Him.

The truck is packed. I'm exhausted but thankful, especially to three close friends who helped load up today. It's been a week of "lasts"--last meals at favorite restaurants, last days of school or daycare, last meetings with friends, and currently enjoying my last java chip from my favorite Starbucks. What I've sensed as I've experienced these "lasts" is that I've left my mark on the people here, and they've left their mark on me.

From the meat market manager, to the county ditch-digger, to the professors, to the men with whom I've walked and talked around campfires and living rooms, to the hundreds of men, women, and children at the various churches where I've served--most significantly Grace: All have been a part of how God is writing the story of my life. And I know that the chapter that starts tomorrow is a new CHAPTER, a continuation of the book. All that has come before is very important to what comes now.

To change metaphors, tomorrow beings a new journey with many firsts. Thankfully Jesus will already be where we're going, while also being here where we've been.

White Knuckles

There's going to be lots of people "white-knuckling" it over the next few days in weeks. Whatever bad habits we want to break, or good habits we want to begin, at the start of a new year we always "try harder" and ratchet up our willpower to make those choices that we hope will help us be better people.

I was reading David Benner this morning about the how we often make obedience and doing the will of God in our everyday lives just like new year's resolutions:

"First, we become aware of some change we feel we should make--more exercise, more praying, less anger, less eating, more play or something along those lines. Then we determine to do the thing we are trying to choose, screwing up our determination and fortifying our resolve. In short, we chose things that are not naturally attractive by reliance on willpower...

"...Don't misunderstand me. Bolstering our determination in order to do important things is obviously crucial for living. And doing things that are not naturally attractive is essential if we are to live responsibly. But what a tragedy if we lump choosing God in with things that are not naturally attractive. Is it any wonder that the thought of surrendering to God's will evokes mixed feelings? Choosing God's dream for us feels like choosing to take bitter medicine" (Discerning God's Will, p. 18-19).

There are a TON of directions to go in just out of these two paragraphs. I find Benner to be the kind of writer that stirs heart and soul and completes thoughts to many of the questions he sparks in my head as I read. I look forward to the remainder of the book.

The reality is that because of the fall it is not naturally attractive to us to choose to say YES to God. The Serpent convinced Adam and Eve that we are not God's beloved. But, the reality of the redeemed heart is that because of the Spirit of Jesus in us, we ARE the beloved. Choosing to say YES to God can become naturally attractive to us over time. But so often we skip over knowing whose we are and where we stand with Him when we become aware that our souls crave more/better life. We attempt to "pray more" or even "surrender more" out of our own willpower. What if the first step is to come to God and simply confess the desire for more/better, which is at its core a desire for HIM, and our inability to achieve "better" on our own? What if we waited and listened and sought Him rather than (or as the foundation of) tightening up our belt?

(Incidentally, this is not the stuff you see on the grocery checkout shelves... this is that part about the foolishness of the Gospel to all of us, until we surrender and receive, that Paul talked about in 2 Corinthians.)

Benner says, "Surrendering to God's will makes little sense if we are not first convinced of the depths of God's love for us.... Learning to prefer God's way to ours and discovering our identity and fulfillment in God's kingdom way demands that we know Love, deeply and personally" (p. 15).

Hoping that in the many decisions you and I face at the start of this new year, we will be able to pause, even for a split second, and acknowledge our Traveling Companion, and surrender to His "good, pleasing, and perfect will."

Thanks-giving is an Act

In this particular day, for whatever reason (though I think it has to deal with feeling a little worn down), I'm finding it somewhat difficult to feel thankful. There have been many times in my life where that meant I simply didn't give thanks. I numbed out, or went about my day, or continued to feel bad about whatever circumstance I was in.

The reality is that I have a TON to BE thankful for, whether I feel thankful or not. And sometimes, just the writing it, the act of thinking it and acknowledging it, can help bring the emotions in line. Giving thanks is an act of the will at this particular moment, one which I hope will spring up from deep in my soul and incline my heart to God.

Sidebar on "to God": I saw a great quote today on Facebook from Cornelius Plantinga Jr.: "It must be an odd feeling to be thankful to nobody in particular. Christians in public institutions often see this odd thing happening on Thanksgiving Day. Everyone in the institution seems to be thankful "in general." It's very strange. It's a little like being married in general."

Anyways, here goes. Thank you, Heavenly Father:

For Your precious, amazing, beautiful Son, Jesus

For the Bible, your very words, whereby I may learn and be fed and be transformed.

For the incomprehensible mystery that I may share in the life of Christ

For Holy Spirit living in me and guiding me

For the rich content of the books I've been reading this year that are drawing me closer to You

For the loving, life-giving friendships of the people around me

For my wife, who is a living, breathing, loving means of Your grace to me

For my son Aidan, who is making me feel completely inadequate as a father, thereby making me seek you daily for sustenance and grace to fail.

For my son Brendan, who is simply so cute and loving and mischievous and playful, he is a living picture of what you meant when you said, "Unless you become like one of these, you cannot enter the kingdom of God."

For parents who simply did the best they could, and who continue to love me and be available

For the many family and friends who offer prayers on my behalf.

and For hearing their prayers.

For this season of rest and renewal, and the freedom to let it be that as much as it has been.

For cooler temps to enjoy being outdoors and enjoy You there.

For a roof over our head, gas in our cars, plentiful food in our fridge and pantry

For the variety of music that helps me turn in awareness to You as I go about my activities.

For a forum to write, and gracious readers (all 5 of them...)

For helping my heart come just a little closer to you in gratitude as I write.

It's a Dangerous Thing, Frodo...

"...Going out your doorstep. You step out onto the road, and there's no telling where you may get swept off to!"

Every time I read this line from Bilbo or get to it in the "Fellowship of the Ring" movie, tears well up. There is something about it; the sense of adventure, excitement, the unknown road ahead. Just now I began reading CS Lewis' The Horse and His Boy for at least the 10th time. It's another book about a long journey, you might say out of "Egypt," which is Calormen in Lewis' fantasy, to the homeland, the one Shasta was created for, Narnia--though he's never even heard of it until now. He and his new friend the horse embark: "Then, still at a walking pace, it went northward till the cottage, the one tree, the donkey's stable, and the creek--everything, in fact, that Shasta had ever known--had sunk out of sight in the grey summer-night darkness."

It's the same moment in the journey where Samwise Gamgee stops in his tracks, and Frodo looks at him, and he says, "This is it, the most amount of steps I've ever been from home." It's this moment that leads Frodo to quote Bilbo's line, above. It's the moment in Pilgrim's Progress when Christian dons his backpack and heads out of town, driven by a specific call and purpose, into a path that he's never been on.

It's the moment when Jesus sees Peter and John near the shore hauling in nets, and says, "Leave your nets, and come follow Me."

He calls each of us to such a journey as well, and he promises, "I will never leave you or forsake you." He invites you and I into the journey, an irresistible call, and promises we will have his companionship no matter what "weathertops", Mines of Moria, "Battles of Helm's Deep" lay ahead. He knows we feel completely ill-prepared for the journey. In fact, that's kind of how he wants it, because then we have to depend on him, and let Him teach us along the way. Will you step out onto the road? Have you already? What's he saying to you in this particular part of the path? Fix your heart and mind on Him, and keep walking.

Know Your Place

I live and operate near an area of town that is known as a “rich” area. The Starbucks I frequent (VERY often…) always has Escalades, Land Rovers, Audi’s, and BMW’s parked outside it. My wife works in a job that involves customer service and interaction in the same area. Frequently, we observe an attitude of entitlement present in those who have enjoyed worldly success. What one person sees as something that would be nice, another person sees as something that’s due them. Jesus warned that money and knowledge so often foster pride and arrogance in our hearts.

But oh how often I do this too! Most often this has to do with waiting—we get upset if there’s more than 1 person in front of us at the sub counter. I get annoyed at the person relating all the days events to the bank teller while I just want to deposit my check and get out of there. When I worked at a small office at Grace, I would get so uptight when all the spots next to the building were taken and I had to walk—God forbid!—another 100 feet to the front door, or park in the tightly laid out spots where there was risk my car door would be banged and scratched by someone else’s car door.

The attitude can be present and operating no matter how much money one has. When I was a meat cutter my fellow coworkers complained about those customers who “thought their you-know-what didn’t stink.” I myself had the thought today, “What is a rich man but a poor man with lots of money?” While this is true, by such thoughts, are we just trying to promote ourselves as better than the rich person? Are we just wishing the tables were turned, because then we would be happy?

My friend and pastor Mike Adkins used the term “appropriate smallness” a few weeks ago in a sermon. This is the opposite of entitlement. It is seeking re-orienting my heart to the recognition that the rest of the billions of people on the planet are created in the image of God as I am, and have dignity, worth, concerns, struggles, and things to do. It’s recognizing that God is the Creator, and I am the creature, and am no better than the next person, whether I’m redeemed by Jesus’ blood or not.

Jesus said it this way: “Blessed are the poor in Spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Happy, fulfilled, and satisfied are those who recognize their place in the world and in the kingdom of God. Who find their hope and comfort and identity in the sovereign grace of Jesus, and live with gratitude. Who know that whether poor or rich (and I know that I am immensely rich by most of the world’s standards), we are blessed by God.

Behind the Music: Love Like Fire

This morning in worship at Grace Orlando we sang a song from Hillsong "Love Like Fire" (available here). As I was engaged in worship and singing, a stream of thoughts began flowing through my mind, which I wanted to share with you. These thoughts do not reflect the main message of the lyrics of the song, but they are where my mind and heart went this morning particularly.

As a side note, one of the things I find so helpful in my personal worship, that is beginning to seep more and more into my everyday experience and relationships, is my theological training. I guess $50,000 and 10 years is worth it for a rich experience of God that I can bring to my ministry.

We must begin with the reminder that our God is love. There are countless verses in Scripture that make it abundantly clear. In fact, not too many people would argue otherwise. So in my mind the jump I am making is to sing thinking of God the person (God is love, but love is not God, as Mark Driscoll recently pointed out [I don't know where]).

In the Old Testament, the book of Exodus, God begins to manifest himself visually to his people through different representations of fire, starting with the burning bush, then moving to where he leads the whole congregation into the Sinai plain with his presence being represented by a pillar of fire. One that burns for all to see.

When Israel saw it, it was to them a constant knowledge of the presence of God with them. When Israel wasn't hiking across the plain and had their tents set up, God's "portable church" was also set up in the center of the camp, and there the fire would rest, representing his presence with them.

Fast forward through 1300 years of redemptive history to Acts 2. When the Father sent the Holy Spirit, it says that visually what happened is tongues of fire came down--this represented the presence of God entering every person who surrendered their lives to God, who believed on Jesus for Salvation and asked God to reign in their lives. Every person who "loses their life" to find it again in Jesus is given the gift of the Holy Spirit. The overwhelming significance of this is that the God whose presence was represented by a huge pillar of flame in Exodus now resides not in temples made with human hands but in the HEARTS of every believer.

So now, when we say God’s love is like a fire burning for all to see, it does so in an of itself (God displays his character in many ways apart from man's input), but in part he does so through us, as we bring Him to the world. When we sing songs like this in public, it is one way of publicly declaring his name to those who he has yet to bring into his family. The more his love consumes us, it can't help but be seen and touch the lives of the people around us.

******************

P.S. When we sing we want to worship at his feet, what helps is to remember that God is ALWAYS present, and every moment is an opportunity to worship at his feet through prayer, through activity, through service of others, or a host of other ways of inviting him into our daily activity.

Happy First Birthday to Brendan David

A year ago today I was working with a friend from church all day building stage props for Grace Orlando (big signs that said "GOD"). Early in the day, Anne called to just let me know she was starting to feel some contractions, that I could finish up my day's work, but we'd probably be heading to the hospital later that day.

After wrapping things up that rainy afternoon, I stopped by 4 Rivers BBQ, knowing that for the next 3 days I'd eat hospital cafeteria food. Everything went as planned, things were SOOOO much less chaotic than they had been with Aidan. Anne was admitted, nurses did their thing and we went to surgery prep, (required a C-section) everything was done with a sense of peaceful expectation... so different from the chaos of labor with Aidan leading to emergency C-section. At 1:23 AM Brendan emerged.

That was a glorious day, and all this past year God has brought so much life into our home through Brendan. Brendan is full of joy, rambunctious, always getting into everything. He recently learned to walk, which makes him SUPREMELY cute as he waddles around the house, frequently trying to go as fast as he can and tripping over himself.

God has used Brendan to show me just how much He loves me. No matter what Brendan does, I am just crazy about him because he's my son, and I care for him, I'd do anything for him, and even when he messes up it doesn't make me love him any less.

Happy first birthday, Bubba... I love you so much my little man, and I'm VERY blessed, overwhelmed with joy, to be your dad. I thank God for the incredible gift that is you. I look forward to all the wonderful times ahead, I pray many things for you, especially that you would live in HIS love all the days of your life.

All Creatures

For Christmas Anne and I decided to invest in a PS3, which of course is made by Sony allowing them to build in their own blu-ray player. Along with it, Anne got me several blu-ray movies and collections, including Planet Earth. We've watched nearly all of the discs over the last couple weeks, and I just have to say it is so humbling and overwhelming at times.

The intricacy with which every square inch of this world was created is astounding. One of the interesting things is just how much in the series is being filmed in rather "uncharted" territory, places where man never ventured to until the last 10-20 years. Places in the great deep, places far underground. If you've seen the series, you know just how amazing some of the sites are that they have found there: great caverns with delicate crystal murals, blind creatures in the Mariana trench seen a pressures that our greatest submarines could barely take, and endless forests in the Arctic tundra built for providing the oxygen for billions of people.

I've also been looking at the APOD app on my iPad. It contains many pictures of far distant galaxies that were unknown to man before Hubble came along. How amazing and perfect these distant worlds are.

When you consider that for 1000's of years (or more...) these things have existed without our knowledge, one must conclude that the Creator made them simply for his own pleasure, simply because he is God and must make his creation equal to his splendor. He spoke, by the Word of his mouth, they came to be.

So the only fitting response to such overwhelming beauty is doxology. We join with the song in Revelation 4: "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being." Another translation is "For thy pleasure." Simply because they bring joy to Him. God also created you and me for his glory and pleasure. Yet, since the fall, the story has been tarnished. But Scripture promises his glory and pleasure are still the theme, they are still God's aim for all things.

A couple weeks ago we were singing "All Creatures of our God and King" in worship at Grace, and the song took on such new meaning and significance in my heart with all this background. The rest of creation worships and honors God so much better than I do sometimes. It simply does that for which it was made. The sun was made to shine, and so each morning it explodes on the scene in such astounding beauty (thanks @KellyAdkins).

My part is simply to join in, to encourage it, to worship Him as humbly as creation does: "Let all things their Creator bless, and worship Him in humbleness, Alleluia..."

Hear the Angels

So I know Christmas is already fading in everyone's mind, but I've been listening to this song over the past few weeks. The musicality of it, the originality really struck me, and when that happens it often leads the listener to re-consider the lyrics. What struck me most was this verse:

And ye beneath life's crushing load,

Whose forms are bending low;

Who toil along the climbing way

With painful steps so slow:

Look now! For glad and golden hours

Come swiftly on the wing!

Oh rest beside the weary road

And hear the angels sing!

At the end of the song, Sara tags what it was the angels were singing: "Glory Hallelujah, Peace on Earth..." There is something about the tiredness, the weariness that we feel as we toil and labor and go about our days. No matter how much we may enjoy that which we do, there are times where we our in touch with that inner ache that exists simply because of being human between the Fall of man and the final return of the Savior.

The coming of the king into a dirty manger in a cave in Bethlehem was so utterly unexpected. He came to those who were able to admit and connect with that ache, those who were hungry not just for food, but for True Nourishment. His inauguration of the kingdom announced the coming of "glad and golden hours." They are STILL coming swiftly. I pray that you and I will take moments this holiday season to REST beside the weary road, just like the young dirty shepherds who guarded Him, and listen, maybe even join in with the song the angels sing.

In the Name

This is from Paul Miller, A Praying Life, pg 135:

"Imagine that your prayer is a poorly dressed beggar reeking of alcohol and body odor, stumbling toward the palace of the Great King. You have become your prayer. As you shuffle toward the barred gate, the guards stiffen. Your smell has preceded you. You stammer out a message for the Great King: 'I want to see the King.' Your words are barely intelligible, but you whisper one final word, 'Jesus. I come in the name of Jesus.' At the name of Jesus, as if by magic, the palace comes alive. THe guards snap to attention, bowing low in front of you. Lights come on, and the door flies open. You are ushered into the palace and down a long hallway into the throneroom of the Great King, who comes running to you and wraps you in his arms.

"The name of Jesus gives my prayers royal access. They get through. Jesus isn't just the Savior of my soul. He's also the Savior of my prayers."

Why Brendan David?

A little over 19 months ago our first son was born, and I wrote about Aidan's name here. Our second son Brendan David is now 36 hours old, and doing very well.

The name Brendan we settled on in keeping with Irish first names and felt that it fit well after Aidan. Brendan means "prince." And what is a prince but a son of the King? Brendan is first and foremost a child of God, the King.

Also since I first heard the album Beyond These Shores by Iona have had some interest in the story of St. Brendan, an Irish monk living around 500 AD. It has been hard for historians to verify the details, but legend says he sailed off from his home to uncharted waters for 7 years in search of a land of paradise. The idea of being wholly devoted to God and setting off into sea is a great picture of the kind of life God wants us to lead, the kind of life I hope and pray Brendan will lead. One of the prayers of St Brendan goes like this:

Help me to journey beyond the familiar
and into the unknown.
Give me the faith to leave old ways
and break fresh ground with You.

Christ of the mysteries, I trust You
to be stronger than each storm within me.
I will trust in the darkness and know
that my times, even now, are in Your hand.

Tune my spirit to the music of heaven,
and somehow, make my obedience count for You.

I LOVE the second half of the first paragraph! Similarly, the lyrics of the last song on the Iona album:

Beyond these shores
Into the darkness
Beyond these shores
This boat may sail
And if this is the way
Then there will be
A path across this sea

And if I sail beyond
The farthest ocean
Or lose myself in depths below
Wherever I may go
Your love surrounds me
For you have been before
Beyond these shores

Beyond these shores
Into the darkness

And now for the middle name, David. It means beloved, and the Biblical man David was known, dispite all his failures, as a man after God's heart, the greatest King of Israel in the Bible. His love for God is evident in the Psalms. We want Brendan to know that he is a "Beloved Prince."

Your mom and I are so blessed to have you, dear son, and so excited to see who you become!

Matt Chandler on how the modern church does Heb. 11

A Life Worthy of God, pt 4

Paul says he prays for the Colossians, that they would be people who live their lives to please God in every way, that they would “live a life worthy of the Lord.” Such a person will be bearing fruit for God, and growing in the knowledge of him (1:10).

Now Paul says those seek to live their lives this way should find themselves “being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience…”(1:11).

Those who have walked in the way of Jesus for any length of time come to understand soon that they can’t do it on their own. Without Christ, I have very little endurance or patience. Sometimes even with Christ I don’t have those things. But someone who lives close to Christ, whose heart is set on pleasing God (and not self), will have patience and endurance in increasing measure.

The key to having patience and endurance (or any other fruit of the spirit) is “being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might.” Think about that for a sec—you and I are people who belong to God, who are adopted as his sons and daughters because of what Christ has done for us, who have the Spirit of God dwelling inside of us. The God of glorious might, through His Holy Spirit inside of us, strengthens us with ALL power.

The Christian life is NOT easy. If you call yourself a Christian and your life is easy, something’s wrong. (For more on that, read Crazy Love by Francis Chan). BUT, by the power of God strengthening us, we can face this life and thus it will seem much easier than life without Him. Do you want to live your life in honor of Him for all He’s done for you? Do it in HIS strength, not your own.

A Life Worthy of God, pt 3

God desires that our knowledge of him would lead to great things in our lives. A person who wants to please God with his life will be one who is "bearing fruit in every good work."

There is a close link here with John 15, where Jesus talks about the Vine and the Branches. There, as in Colossians 1, we see a link between knowing Christ deeply and bearing fruit for him. "Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself, it must remain in the vine" (v 4).

The real kicker is verse 2: "he cuts off every branch in me that does not bear fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful." I don't think this verse implies that we can lose our salvation, but it does imply that we can become useless to God, and if we are useless to God, we ought to wonder about our salvation in the first place. A fruitless Christian is like salt that has lost its saltiness (Matthew 5:13-16).

Rather, Paul and Jesus both urge us to bear fruit in every good work. This requires us to think not only of ourselves, but of others as we go about our lives. Even more, we should think about others within the context of God's kingdom, of their relationship to Jesus. It's great to spread love across the earth, to think of others, but even those who are not followers of Jesus can do that. Our desire in all our "good works" should be to point to Jesus.

If you serve or volunteer in church, all that you do for your church is about bearing fruit. At Grace, you're fruitful for God if you've helped someone take their next step toward Christ. If you invite a friend,co-worker, neighbor, and they come for the first time, they've taken a step. You've become fruitful to God.

Now it's your turn to do a little research: the concept of pruning in John 15:2 is very important and rich with meaning. Try looking it up through Google or your favorite online Bible study resource! Give us links in the comments below!

A Life Worthy of God, pt 2.

Paul says a person living a life worth of God will be "growing in the knowledge of God." A person who wants to please God will HUNGER for more knowledge of Him. He or she will be eager to read and study his word, books, sermons, whether alone or with others. There are many ways people grow. How do you grow?

The Bible makes clear (James 1:22) that gaining knowledge is basically pointless unless you ACT on it. If you take a course or study about how to be financially responsible the way God would want you to, what good is it if you don't take steps with your finances based on the study?

God wants you to know Him. He does not hide Himself from us. He's revealed himself through his Word, through Jesus, and through creation. It's important to note here that knowledge is more than just knowledge about God. It's personal, relational. He desires that you would know him deeply and intimately, and that your knowledge would lead to great things in your life.

A Life Worthy of God

This morning I was reading in Colossians 1, and I came across verse 10, and those following it, where I think we gain some really important truth. We all hunger for significance, and for those who belong to Christ, our goal and aim in life should be, as Paul states, "that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way." Paul outlines four things that will get us far down the path in doing exactly this:

1) Growing in the knowledge of God
2) Bearing fruit in every good work
3) Being strengthened with his power and might so we will have patience and endurance
4) Joyfully giving thanks to the Father for His incredible gift to us--that he qualified us to be a part of his kingdom of light.

Paul of course did not intend for this to be a comprehensive list for pleasing God, but it's a good start. We'll look further into these things over the next few entries.

Ready to Meet With Jesus?

Tomorrow morning you and I will be gathered together with other followers of The Way. Hundreds of millions of people will be gathering to worship the Savior, Emmanuel, God with us. Are you ready? Where is your heart tonight? Where are your thoughts? Do you have any grievances and struggles with others? Are you running away from dealing with those, or from giving them to God? Are you being pulled away God and your relationship to him by the movie your watching? Have you stopped to reflect on your day, your week, and go over it with Jesus?

Truth is, I've watched at least one movie and more TV today among doing all the other things I needed to do. There's nothing wrong with that, but now I find I'm not as connected to God right now as I want to be. I am aware of my own weakness, lack of discipline, distractedness. Yet now all is quiet in our home. The TV is off, I must be early to bed to rise and begin the morning of serving early with many others who will do the same.

May we think over questions like these, and admit to God our shortcomings in the answers to them, and look to Him for the filling grace and joy, so that tomorrow we can serve with hearts full, while at the same time seeing Him, hearing from Him, and being filled more.

Come, Emmanuel. Ransom the captives.