I'm kind of sad that this blog is languishing. There have been more than a few times in the past month and a half where I wished I had something to say - something to share, but I've been surprisingly short on ideas lately.
Maybe this is fatherhood.
Maybe this is lack of sleep.
Maybe those two are related somehow.
Yeah, probably.
Here's a picture of my peanut. :-) I'm not going to lie...she's pretty darn sweet. And yes, her eyes are huge.
Another entity I can blame for my lack of posting recently is Facebook. I've found that it's much easier to share an interesting blog post I read or a video I find on Facebook than it is to craft a blog post around it. Plus it reaches a few more people. (especially now that most people have probably quit reading this regularly)
Here are a few links I've shared on Facebook lately, for those of you who aren't my Facebook "friends".
And last, but certainly not least, Heidi & I are excited about being able to attend a Paul Tripp Parenting Conference hosted by Grace Presbyterian in Peoria. I helped design the Mechanical Systems in their new building too, so it'll be neat to experience it full of people.
This poem by John Newton touched me this morning. How true is this? Does this cause you to be more tentative when asking for growth and sanctification? Should it?
Prayer Answered by Crosses By John Newton
I asked the Lord that I might grow In faith and love and every grace, Might more of his salvation know, And seek more earnestly his face.
‘Twas he who taught me thus to pray; And he, I trust, has answered prayer; But it has been in such a way As almost drove me to despair.
I hoped that, in some favoured hour, At once he’d answer my request, And by his love’s constraining power Subdue my sins, and give me rest.
Instead of this, he made me feel The hidden evils of my heart, And let the angry powers of hell Assault my soul in every part.
Yea, more, with his own had he seemed Intent to aggravate my woe, Crossed all the fair designs I schemed, Blasted my gourds, and laid me low.
Lord, why is this? I trembling cried; Wilt thou pursue this worm to death? This is the way, the Lord replied I answer prayer for grace and faith.
These inward trials I now employ From self and pride to set thee free, And break they schemes of earthly joy, That thou may’st seek thy all in me.
This is a powerful message from Paul Tripp entitled "Broken Bones Hymns". I know it's a little longer than the usual "quick read blog post", but it's packed with Biblical insight and powerful truths to mold our thinking.
I know I've been doing a lot of "re-posts" lately from other blogs, but I've just been really challenged and encouraged by this stuff. It's great. Someday maybe I'll have some original thoughts again. :-)
This one is from Desiring God again. Here's the link if you just want to read it off of their website.
I've been thinking a lot about relationships lately, specifically in a Christian context. Personal relationships are one of the most difficult, and at the same time, the most rewarding aspects of life.
This post isn't going to be well thought out and cohesive, because my thoughts are not that way right now.
Here are a couple of questions I've been asking myself.
1. Why are we so quick to assume we can correctly gauge others' motives and intents? When in reality we can barely get a firm grasp on our own personal motives and intentions.2. Why does it hurt so bad when people make wrong assumptions about my motivations and intentions?I'm not sure if this is Biblical here, but I really make an effort to assume people's motives are good until I have strong reason to believe otherwise. It's proven very beneficial in my relationships to remember how diverse our experiences are as Christians. Our Sovereign God has taken all of us down very unique paths. We exist in the body of Christ to share those experiences with each other and to refine each other in the journey.
That process is a painful one sometimes, and sometimes it's a beautiful one.
My call here is for us to recognize that process as it's happening and not neglect to be thankful for it in all it's difficulty and beauty. We are called to Love one another, but let's remember that Love is not exclusively about good feelings. It's about making choices that are for the good of others, not necessarily ourselves. God loves us enough to discipline us, not just hold us when we cry.
Over the last couple of days, I've listened to the following two sermons entitled "A Passion for the Supremacy of God".
I've found them to be paradigm shifting, challenging, and worshipful. I really hope you'll take the time to sit down in a quiet place, listen to them, meditate on them, and be as encouraged by them as I was/am.
God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in Him!
In part one he lays the groundwork for the main message. In part two he defends the thesis against common arguments using contextual scripture.
I'd love to hear your guys' thoughts on it after you've listened to them both. Are there any other objections to his thesis you can think of that he hasn't already addressed?
Jordan Schroeder is breathing deeply, singing praises, and casting his jewel filled crown at our Sovereign's feet! We prayed for a miracle of healing and the Lord delivered. It was not delivered in a pretty package with a warm fuzzy card, but it was delivered exactly in the way God intended and it brought praise, honor, and glory to His awesomely deserving name! Praise Him!
Jesus took Jordan home around 9:30ish Saturday night. Let's put a hedge of prayer around Katelyn, her girls, and her family. Pray that Satan will not be allowed to whisper lies in their ears, but rather that Jesus will declare truth, peace, and love. May they feel the warm embrace of our Savior.
We weep for the occasion...Jordan will be missed. We will miss him at our young couples Bible Study. We will miss his passion for Christ. But one thing is certain. He would not choose to come back to this sin infested and broken world.
May we all be called to remember that this world is not our home. Christ went to prepare mansions for us, and He will call us there one day! Oh for that glorious day. May our eyes be turned to the fields that are white for harvest.
Phillipians 3:8 - More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,
Do you? Do I?
Is Paul able to count all things as rubbish just because he suffered the loss of those things? Can we still have "all things" and count them as rubbish?
Paul admits that losing all those things caused him suffering, so did he not count them as rubbish until after he lost them?
What do I need to lose?
What do you need to lose?
What does it mean to "gain Christ"? Once we're saved, have we gained Him and now that part's done?
This short documentary touched me. There is so much pain - so much hurt - so much brokenness in this fallen world. And yet, there are God's people scattered throughout this sharing His love and showing His grace. Here's Lindsay's story.
We are a people of the Book. We know God through the Book. We meet Christ in the Book. We see the cross in the Book. Our faith and love are kindled by the glorious truths of the Book. We have tasted the divine majesty of the Word and are persuaded that the Book is God's inspired and infallible written revelation. Therefore, what the Book teaches matters…
There is no salvation from sin and guilt and condemnation and hell apart from faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12; Romans 10:13-17; 1 John 5:12). And there is no other authority besides the Scriptures to show you who Christ is and to give you his Word. So don't leave the Bible, children. Don't leave the Bible, young people. Don't neglect the Bible, dads and moms. Don't ignore the Bible, single people. Under God, the "sacred writings," the Scriptures, are the greatest treasure in the world. They alone make us wise unto salvation through Christ. O don't neglect this Book!
Wow, I've been gone a long time from this blog. It's almost been a month.
I recently read a couple of quotes on the sovereignty of God (a favorite topic of mine), and I wanted to share them and hopefully get some feedback from my readers.
The following quotes are from the Desiring God blog. The first one relates to God's sovereignty in salvation, and the second relates to God's sovereignty in everyday occurrences.So what do you think? Are these quotes supported by scripture? If you disagree with these quotes can you think of scripture that contradicts these thoughts? For more resources on this topic see here.
"So yes, we husbands need to hear things we're blind to—like reminders that she likes ice, and that the kid needs orange juice not grapefruit juice—and we need to then lay it down and stop sulking and being self-pitying and go lead."
Love that challenge!
For facebookers who can't see the video: http://lrknapp99.blogspot.com/2010/05/go-lead.html
Psalm 139:14 - I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. Heidi & I went to her 20 week appointment yesterday, and we were blessed to find out we're having a little girl! Introducing Bridget Ann Knapp!
It looks like she's a thumb sucker. :-) She's measuring in the 59 percentile, so if she keeps growing at this rate she'll be approximately 8lbs at birth. Heidi thinks that sounds plenty big. :-) We continue to appreciate your prayers and praises for a healthy little girl!
Genesis 30:22 Then God remembered Rachel, and God gave heed to her and opened her womb. Psalm 71:6 By You I have been sustained from my birth;You are He who took me from my mother's womb;My praise is continually of You. Psalm 127:3 Behold, children are a gift of the LORD,The fruit of the womb is a reward. Psalm 139:13 For You formed my inward parts;You wove me in my mother's womb. Isaiah 44:24 Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb,"I, the LORD, am the maker of all things, Stretching out the heavens by MyselfAnd spreading out the earth all alone,
Here's a really neat tool that will show you which is better from a strictly monetary perspective. Of course there are many other considerations, other than monetary, when you're making this decision, but there aren't interactive graphs for those. :-)
On April 17th, 1521, Martin Luther appeared before the Diet of Worms under the charge of heresy. A pile of his own writings was set before him, many written in critique of the Roman Catholic Church, and he was asked to either defend or revoke them.
Luther was uncertain about how to respond, so he asked for more time. It was granted. He would appear before the Diet again the next day.
Luther's differences with the Church of Rome had been the result of his own careful study of Scripture. He had read things in the Bible that were at odds with many of the doctrines and practices of the Church in his day, and his conscience under God had become burdened to speak about them.
So he wrote. He originally intended his writing to help return the Church to a more biblical form of Christianity, not cause a split. But few heard him that way. Instead, for most, at least among the religious and political leaders, his cries sounded more like the ringings of rebellion.
On April 18th, when Luther reappeared before the Diet to give his response, his examiner, Johann Eck, restated the question (with some prologue):
Martin, how can you assume that you are the only one to understand the sense of Scripture? Would you put your judgment above that of so many famous men and claim that you know more than they all?
You have no right to call into question the most holy orthodox faith, instituted by Christ the perfect law-giver, proclaimed throughout the world by the apostles, sealed by the red blood of the martyrs, confirmed by the sacred councils, defined by the Church in which all our fathers believed until death and gave to us as an inheritance, and which now we are forbidden by the pope and the emperor to discuss lest there be no end of debate.
I ask you, Martin—answer candidly and without horns—do you or do you not repudiate your books and the errors which they contain?
Luther had his response:
Since then Your Majesty and your lordships desire a simple reply, I will answer without horns and without teeth. Unless I am convicted by Scripture and plain reason—I do not accept the authority of popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other—my conscience is captive to the Word of God.
I cannot and I will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. God help me. Amen.
(Quotations from Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther by Roland Bainton. Paragraphing added.)
1 Corinthians 11:18-19 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I believe it. For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you.
I'm not at all suggesting that we try and create factions in the body of Christ, but rather, is it God's design that a church have a certain amount of divisions for the purpose of exposing false Christians? - Christians who may look (and even act) the part, but are not truly born again.
What do we cling to when divisions are evident among us? Where do we look for answers? Do we look solely to the Word for it's wisdom, or do we think that our wisdom and what we value, personally, has some say in the matter?
This is a pretty neat tool, if you buy much stuff from Amazon.
If you spend more than $25 on one order from Amazon, they'll give you free shipping. This website allows you to type in the dollar amount you need to spend to get your cart up to $25 and then shows you a list of things that are exactly that amount on Amazon.com http://www.filleritem.com/
Odd bedfellows? Perhaps not as much as you'd think.
A number of people have asked about John Piper's decision to invite Rick Warren to the national "Desiring God Conference". Here is a 12 minute clip from last night's "Ask Pastor John" session where he addresses that question and explains why he thinks it will be good for Rick to come.
If you can't see the video, you can check it out here, or here.
Really intriguing article about an ingenious thief.
The plane slowed and leveled out about a mile aboveground. Up ahead, the Viennese castle glowed like a fairy tale palace. When the pilot gave the thumbs-up, Gerald Blanchard looked down, checked his parachute straps, and jumped into the darkness. He plummeted for a second, then pulled his cord, slowing to a nice descent toward the tiled roof. It was early June 1998, and the evening wind was warm. If it kept cooperating, Blanchard would touch down directly above the room that held the Koechert Diamond Pearl. He steered his parachute toward his target.
A couple of days earlier, Blanchard had appeared to be just another twentysomething on vacation with his wife and her wealthy father. The three of them were taking a six-month grand European tour: London, Rome, Barcelona, the French Riviera, Vienna. When they stopped at the Schloss Schönbrunn, the Austrian equivalent of Versailles, his father-in-law’s VIP status granted them a special preview peek at a highly prized piece from a private collection. And there it was: In a cavernous room, in an alarmed case, behind bulletproof glass, on a weight-sensitive pedestal — a delicate but dazzling 10-pointed star of diamonds fanned around one monstrous pearl. Five seconds after laying eyes on it, Blanchard knew he would try to take it...
Wow, I haven't gone this long without posting in a long time. :-)
I'm thankful for something this morning.
You know what I'm thankful for?
I'm thankful that Paul wrote a letter to the Ephesians.
I've been reading the book of Ephesians several times lately, and it's just so rich. There are so many comforting promises of God. It's just so uplifting to dwell on promises like, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places".
When you read that does the word "every" sink in for you? Every spiritual blessing, every one of them, God has chosen to bless His people with.
And then there's promises like this: "In him [Christ] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight".
I love the word "lavished". He didn't just pinch out a little grace for us. He lavished us with it.
Then there's the prayer that Paul tells the Ephesians he's praying for them. It goes like this:
17. that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18. having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19. and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20. that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21. far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23. which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Did you catch those power words in there? Glorious, immeasurable, great, far above
This is such an awesome prayer to pray for a body of believers. He's calling down God's blessings upon them. Paul's asking that God "may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him"
You know what, just in case I've inspired you to read slowly through Ephesians 1, here's the full text. :-)That's good stuff right there.
Here is a poem that does a wonderful job of praising our Father in truth. Read through the poem. Think about what it's saying. Then, scroll down a little more and watch the video I posted there. I'll write a little more after the video.
All praise to the name of the savior who reigns. He’s taken our blame, embraced all our shame, He’s raised from the grave so his fame we proclaim. Salvation by grace through faith in his name.
All praise to the name of the savior who reigns. He’s taken our blame, embraced all our shame, He’s raised from the grave so his fame we proclaim. Salvation by grace through faith in his name.
Jesus, the beautiful and blessed Son, Immutable, majestic one Who was resurrected from the grave for the depraved. He paved the path for some Place faith in His passion, son Be saved from the wrath to come.
He’s fabulous, His status is immaculate I’m lacking the vernacular to adequately capture His glory. Incomparable, unconquerable, all powerful, unstoppable Absolutely phenomenal.
No obstacle He can’t navigate. He’s God and so He fascinates. With Him it’s impossible to exaggerate.
Lord of all continents, Source of all consciousness, His compliments are the consequence of His accomplishments Every sphere of life, He’s the Lord of it And every other power is either fraudulent or subordinate.
At first we snubbed Him, Now His vessels of mercy love Him. Your highest thought is infinitely unworthy of Him. Beyond vocabulary His actions vary, His wrath is scary All His adversaries are imaginary.
He has no competitors. Ask Nebuchadnezzar, bro He’ll mess you up, have you eating grass, You can bet He’s amazing.
He takes in blatant, flagrant vagrants, breaks them, remakes them, and shapes them to hate sin.
Jesus! There’s no better name! That’ll never change and He’ll forever reign while we spread His fame.
So all praise to the name of the Savior who reigns He’s taken our blame Embraced all our shame He’s raised from the grave so His fame we proclaim Salvation by grace through faith in His name!
All praise to the name of the Savior who reigns He’s taken our blame Embraced all our shame He’s raised from the grave so His fame we proclaim Salvation by grace through faith in His name!
Now scroll down to see a short video. Well worth your time to listen to the whole thing, and you need to listen to the whole thing to get the whole message.
For those of you on facebook, who can't see the video, here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPZlzDTdSsE
Surprised?
Many people would be.
God forgive us for our prejudices, for our "respecting of persons".
God, help us to remember that you are the ultimate in creative capacity, and man thinks up nothing that God has not thought of. Man just twists the beautiful and uses it to consume upon his lusts in sin.
This is how the genre we've labeled "rap" is meant to glorify our Creator God and His Son, Jesus Christ.
Powerful sermon delivered to lifers and death-row inmates at Angola State Prison. If 48 minutes of sermon seems too long to watch, it's not. This is powerful stuff.
For those of you reading this on facebook and can't see the video, here it is.
Guess what. They're not on CSPAN. They are behind closed doors. This isn't abnormal, but it just goes to show that it's business as usual in Washington. I'm so tired of business as usual.
Go here to find contact information for your congressmen. Let them know you don't want this healthcare bill to strip away any more of our liberties. Let them know you want open and transparent dialog, and broadcasting the debates would be a good first step.
This is from James MacDonald's blog. You might be able to quickly read down through the list above and nod and say to yourself, "Yep, I believe all those." But do you? Really? Do you live like it? Do I?
What would be different in your life, if you really believed and acted on just the first two?
How would your Bible Study habits be different if you really believed and acted on 4 through 8?
Let 2010 bring us a renewed vigor to yearn to know God better through the study of His Word and the application of it's principles.
I started this blog out of curiousity and it grew to become a great encouragement for me in my Christian walk. I hope the writings here can be used by God to further His work in your life.
