Busy, busy, busy

It's a disease of modern times, but it is also evidence of life - of God's continuing mercy and grace. When I visit the nursing home at our local hospital, I don't complain to the people there that I'm too busy!

Some of the family has been busy with music. Juanita accompanied several singers and the girls sang and played piano last week at our regional music festival. The girls have been invited back to sing at the Grand Concert in Hinton on Wednesday evening. That's cool, but it means another trip down the highway.

Josh and Juanita were at the last Bible quizz meet of the year over the weekend. The last one is held at a camp that's about two hours away. Josh's team did well again, and he had a great time.

On Sunday afternoon, right after Juanita and Josh arrived back from quizzing, we went to visit some family that was up from the States. My mom met a couple of here great-grandchildren for the first time. That alone was worth the trip (about 900 km total), but we had a good visit with everyone.

Between the two vehicles, I think we're on pace for over 2000 km in two weeks.

It seems that everyone is busy, and we are not unique in this regard, but it is hard to balance family, church and community activities and obligations in a way that is responsible and God-honouring.

I've been thinking a lot about what to post here - particularly as it relates to what God is teaching us in our loss of Emily. It's hard to sort out what's too personal, what's irrelevant, and what may be helpful as posts on this blog.

I think things may be slowing down around here for our family in a little while, so I hope to get back to more thoughtful posts soon.

Thank you to my few faithful readers who have been putting up with pretty slim pickin's here lately!

P.S. I started a new sermon series on 1&2 Samuel on Sunday. The link is on the top right corner of the blog.

The Secret to Soul Satisfaction

One way to fulfilment ...

Joy is not a luxury ...

Is that from a John Piper sermon?

Nope. It is from a brief BMW ad that I saw on TV at the gym today. Between the two statements, they flashed a picture of a 3-series cabriolet.

That's just sad.

It did make me glad that God is working on my heart so that I saw the foolishness of that commercial. The one way to fulfilment and joy is not stuff.

This is a work in progress --my heart is drawn in all sorts of sinful directions -- but thanks be to God that this work is at least in progress!

News

Great messages have been made available online this week. I already linked to the SGM Pastors Conference, but the Gospel Coalition Conference took place in Chicago last week. I watched live streams of a couple of the messages, but plan to listen to them all soon.

Due to a gracious offer this weekend, our church is on the verge of getting a website up and running. We've had a host and a domain for a while, but now it looks like we have the budget for professional developing.

Last, and least, my latest message (Hebrews 1:1-4 part 2) is up as well.

** Update - Links for my message, both in this post and in the widget, have been fixed.

SGM Pastors and Wives Conference Messages 2009

... are up. Find them here.

Hebrews 1:1-4 Part 1

I posted a new sermon yesterday. If you're interested, it can be found under General Sermons at the link on the top right of the page. Or, you can click here.

Sovereign Grace Conference Trip

On April 6-8, Juanita and I had the opportunity to attend the SGM Pastors and Wives conference at Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland (near Washington, D.C.). We decided to take a family vacation at the same time - as a homeschool family we couldn't miss the educational opportunities in the area and, besides, we like being with our kids.

We left for D.C. on March 31 and arrived home in the wee hours of Good Friday. The trip overall was great, but the conference was the highlight. It was refreshing to hear the preaching, participate in the worship and meet several people who were very encouraging.

There is much more that could be said about the conference, but I'll just encourage you to get the MP3s when they are available (soon, I hope). I'll link to them when they show up.

We're thankful that we had this opportunity and for the new friends that we made along the way.

We took lots of pictures, but here's a brief representation of where we went before the conference:

Williamsburg, VA. Highly recommended!

Jamestown, VA - We only took a quick tour here, but this community was established in 1607. The recreations were neat, but the ships were the best!

The National Gallery, Washington, D.C. I took lots of pictures here, but I'll just post two.

There were a couple of copyists working at the gallery. We talked with this fellow for a while.

A view of the main gallery from the modern art gallery. Notice the cherry blossoms - we hit D.C. for the Cherry Blossom Festival.

There is so much to see in D.C. and area. I don't know if or when we'll make it that way again, but we made some good memories this trip.

Psalm 62

I've been negligent with posting my messages. Truth be told, my last two messages didn't get recorded. We were away on April 5th and Resurrection Sunday was a baptism - the recording got lost in the shuffle.

I have posted a message on Psalm 62 from November 9, 2008, my first Sunday back in the pulpit after Emily's death. I didn't have the heart to jump back in to Ephesians, so I did some other stuff for a few weeks.

I understand that a couple of reporters were present for that service. I didn't meet them. In terms of news, I'm sure they were disappointed, but I hope the seeds of the Gospel bear fruit.

I will be posting some reflections on our 9 days back East very soon. We hit the ground running when we got home!

C.J. Mahaney

A post by C.J. Mahaney on his blog reminded me of the first time I ever heard him. It was a Nine Marks interview by Mark Dever from February 2003. Three things stood out from that interview: First, the subject of his blog post -- the great stress relief and humility builder that only God always gets His to-do list done. Secondly, his comments on recognizing evidences of grace in the local church, using the example of Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:4-9. And last, but not least, the emotion and gratitude that C.J. displayed in giving his incredible testimony.



I'll let you read what he says about to-do lists, but I will give a few words on the second subject, which is one that I happen to be preaching on this coming Sunday (and I decided that before I saw the blog post). On Sunday, I'm preaching my last message on Ephesians from 6:21-24 and the title is "The Art of Benediction." That discussion in the interview about celebrating God's work in His people convicted me and continues to do so. I tend to be weak on recognizing evidences of grace and showing appreciation. There is a message by C.J. on 1 Corinthians 1:4-9 here. I encourage you to download it and give it a listen.



After that Nine Marks interview, I did some more research on this joyful basketball fan and found a real treasure-trove of material. Juanita and I and our church family have benefited greatly from Sovereign Grace Ministries. We are very thankful for the sermons, the conference messages, music, and even the Sunday School Curriculum that our church uses from this group of churches.



We've seen many people read and benefit from C.J.'s book Living the Cross-Centered Life. We have a book table in our church and I don't know how many copies of that book have gone out. A few others have read Humility by C.J. as well. I read it on the way back from Together for the Gospel in 2006.



I'm aware that showing appreciation and telling others about people can devolve into hero worship, but it's hard to worship a man who so faithfully points to his sin, the cross and the need for humility in the face of God's astonishing grace.

Just Keep Reading, Preacher

Last week I shared my concern that I was missing something in my preaching. In my mini-series on spiritual warfare from Ephesians 6:10-20, I felt that I was being too "safe" and that I needed to inject a more topical message before I wrapped things up.

Well, as I prepared a message on prayer last week, I was blown away but what the Apostle Paul really says about prayer in three short verses (just note the cross-references at the Bible Gateway link). From these verses, I found seven points:

1. Pray in the Spirit
2. Pray at All Times
3. Pray About Everything
4. Pray With Your Eyes Open
5. Pray for All the Saints
6. Pray for Gospel Preachers
7. Pray for Gospel Opportunities

The message is up on box.net (just click the link at the top right corner of this blog), but if you don't want to listen, let me explain a couple of the more obscure points above (my obscurity, not the text's).

4. Pray With Your Eyes Open might seem odd, but what I'm getting at here is spiritual alertness and perseverence in the face of temptation and opposition to prayer that will come. I was picking up on Paul's "eyes of the heart" allusion from Ephesians 1.

7. Pray for Gospel Opportunities is an admittedly loose interpretation of Paul's description of himself as an "ambassador in chains." Paul's confidence in God's sovereign providence made him conscious of the fact that the Gospel was not hindered by his chains. See Philippians 1:12-14 for more proof of this assertion. The application of this is that we can't blame God for our lack of Gospel witness. None of our "chains" can keep God from working in us.

I was really convicted by this message. When you carefully consider what Paul says in context, serious prayer is an urgent component of spiritual warfare. It expresses our dependence upon God. That is a very practical application of the metaphor of the full armour of God in the previous verses.

So, all this to say that I was particularly schooled by the text last week.

Preacher, when you think something's missing, just keep reading.

Practical Spiritual Warfare

I've been preaching through Ephesians and I am almost at the end. Being an impatient sort of fellow, I've been itching to get on with a new series and I could see the light at the end of the tunnel on this one. What a strange thing it is for me to want to be done with Ephesians!

This coming Sunday (the 22nd), I was going to preach on Prayer and Perseverence as a wrap-up to 6:10-20, but after Sunday's message, I had a nagging thought that I really haven't done this passage justice. It is safe to generalize, and that is just what I've done. Maybe I should do one more week and get more pointed in the application of these crucial concepts of spiritual warfare.

During my first message, I made the point that spiritual warfare is a topic as big as the Bible. I can't get to everything, so I might as well move on.

On Monday morning, I listened to a podcast from the Christian Counseling and Education Foundation by Dr. Ed Welch on Shame. This message tweaked my conscience. Talk about a practical aspect of spiritual warfare! Since then, I've been thinking about extending my Ephesians series by one week and revisiting the key issues of guilt, shame, forgiveness and justification. There is both illegitimate and legitimate shame in Scripture, and it is a key battlefront where we need to apply the Gospel.

I like to outline my sermons ahead of time, but I do need to be flexible from time-to-time.

So, what's the purpose of this post? Call it confession. I have been more conscious lately about my "safe" preaching - at least it's pretty safe within the walls of my own church. I need to think and pray and visit with people and find out where the battle is really raging in my own congregation and in my own life. I must listen to where God's Word - even in passages that I've "handled" - speaks to these issues and be brave enough to preach boldly.

Plans

I've been thinking a lot lately about a conference that we're planning to attend in early April. For several years, we've appreciated the ministry of Sovereign Grace Ministries, and now, Lord willing, we will be at their Pastors and Wives Conference. If you're not familiar with Sovereign Grace, they have a ton of resources on their website, including downloadable music (for a fee) and free MP3 messages (sermons, conferences, seminars etc.). Take some time to look around - your efforts will be richly rewarded!

We have tickets booked and we've notified some family that live out that way. We're looking forward to seeing them, too. Being a homeschool family, we're also hoping to have some enjoyable educational experiences in D.C. and places like Jamestown, VA.

As is to be expected, I've had a few invitations to speak at various places. I've said no to a couple of them due to scheduling issues, but I've also said I'd speak at two of them so far, both of them in Alberta. In some ways, it is hard to accept these invitations because I know why I'm being asked. I do want to be available to point people to Christ through the Gospel, however, so I'll consider these opportunities as they come up.

I think that part of the reason that I'm looking forward to the SGM Pastors and Wives is that Juanita and I can just sit and soak - recharge our batteries with great teaching and worship.

We continue to hear from people that are still praying for us. We appreciate that very much and are humbled by the kindness of God's people - family, friends and even people we don't know.

Our plans and our lives are in God's hands, and He is good.

P.S. Yesterday's message is up - just click on the sermons box on the top-right side of the blog, if you're interested.

A Cold Day in March

It was -38 in Edson this morning. Edmonton International Airport recorded -42. That's a new record low. Since they've been recording, -29.4 was the lowest temperature on this date.

If your a Fahrenheit person, remember that -40 C and -40 F are the same.

That's cold no matter how you slice it.

Things are looking up, though. Tomorrow morning is only supposed to be -27 C.

Ephesians 6:10-20: Spiritual Warfare I

Last week I said I wouldn't do any more posts about my messages. I changed my mind. I guess I should do a post to let people know that a new one is up.

Yesterday's message was on spiritual warfare. As I was preparing, I realized that this is a theme from Genesis 3 all the way to Revelation 21. That's a big subject.

Next week, Lord willing, I'll tackle the armour and the following week will be prayer and perseverance.

If you're new here, the sermons can be found by clicking a link in a box on the top right-hand side of this page.

You Must Be Born Again

My copy of John Piper's new book, Finally Alive arrived in the mail yesterday. I don't always get the latest Piper book, but the concept of this one gripped me. Do I really emphasize the necessity of the new birth enough in my teaching and preaching? There is nothing more important, nothing more central to Christianity.

Then, today, I read today's Morning and Evening morning reading. Here it is:

“Ye must be born again.”

- John 3:7

Regeneration is a subject which lies at the very basis of salvation, and we should be very diligent to take heed that we really are “born again,” for there are many who fancy they are, who are not. Be assured that the name of a Christian is not the nature of a Christian; and that being born in a Christian land, and being recognized as professing the Christian religion is of no avail whatever, unless there be something more added to it-the being “born again,” is a matter so mysterious, that human words cannot describe it. “The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” Nevertheless, it is a change which is known and felt: known by works of holiness, and felt by a gracious experience. This great work is supernatural. It is not an operation which a man performs for himself: a new principle is infused, which works in the heart, renews the soul, and affects the entire man. It is not a change of my name, but a renewal of my nature, so that I am not the man I used to be, but a new man in Christ Jesus. To wash and dress a corpse is a far different thing from making it alive: man can do the one, God alone can do the other. If you have then, been “born again,” your acknowledgment will be, “O Lord Jesus, the everlasting Father, thou art my spiritual Parent; unless thy Spirit had breathed into me the breath of a new, holy, and spiritual life, I had been to this day ‘dead in trespasses and sins.’ My heavenly life is wholly derived from thee, to thee I ascribe it. ‘My life is hid with Christ in God.’ It is no longer I who live, but Christ who liveth in me.” May the Lord enable us to be well assured on this vital point, for to be unregenerate is to be unsaved, unpardoned, without God, and without hope.
- C.H. Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, March 6th

This Sunday is communion Sunday at our church. I'm also preaching on Ephesians 6:10-20, the first of three "Spiritual Warfare" sermons on this text.

Perhaps God is trying to tell me something? It's time to emphasize the need to be born again very strongly and clearly this Sunday at Edson Baptist Church.

New Sermon Posted - Slaves and Masters

This will be my last post about my sermon links. Why? Because I've created a new gadget on my blog that links to my box.net list of messages.

If you have any comments or constructive criticism, I'd love to hear it in the comments.

An Audio Experiment

I've posted my first sermon online at box.net. Our recording has been hit and miss, but when our church finally gets a website up and running, I'd like to upload regularly.

It's a humbling thing to post a sermon even if only one or two people download it.

Paradise

Juanita took this picture of a Bird of Paradise at the Dole Plantation garden on Oahu. It's a beautiful picture.

However, if you look closely, you'll see that there is an ugly bug on one of the blue petals and some smaller bugs on the back of the far right petal. Maybe you like bugs, but I don't. The bug on the Bird of Paradise is kind of a life metaphor. In this fallen world, even the most beautiful things have bugs on them.

There's one more thing about the Bird of Paradise flower that our guide told us: It grows an new part of the flower every day for four days and then it dies. Talk about life metaphors.

The word "Paradise" is thrown around in Hawaii quite freely. It is indeed a beautiful place, but they still have traffic, pollution and evidence of sin and death all over the place. We even came across what looked like a drug deal one evening (one of the guys yelled at us, "Aloha! Which means get out of here ..."). While I enjoyed Hawaii, it made me long for the real Paradise even more.

This reflection has raised a tension in my mind. It's like the tension that the Apostle Paul shares with us in Philippians 1:23, I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.

The tension heightens when we consider that this is the same Apostle that told us, For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving (1 Timothy 4:4). As we are told in other places in Scripture (like Ecclesiastes), it is good to enjoy life as a gift from God.

For most of my Christian life, I've envied "Heavenly minded" Christians. I don't like the line "so heavenly minded that he's no earthly good," because I'm convinced that the problem with most Christians is the exact opposite. We do live as if this life were everything.

Since Emily's death, I've had (almost in an instant), a greater longing for Heaven. I'm learning that my sinful heart can put bugs on the most beautiful flower, however, and I'm struggling with the sin of not appreciating God's good gifts and beauty right now. It is a very good thing to take time to reflect on the blessings that God gives. I don't want to mope around and just exist until the Lord returns or I die. I don't think I've been doing that yet, but the temptation is very real.

As a family, we did really enjoy taking time to enjoy the beauties of God's creation in Hawaii - fish, birds, ocean, flowers, trees and sky. There was a person missing in that trip, but Emily's absence didn't ruin our time - not at all. We made some great memories, and we have a bunch of pictures and stories to enjoy for a long time.

I'm learning about what's eternal, more and more. By God's grace, I hope I will also cultivate a greater love for people and a deeper appreciation for God's everyday blessings while I wait for the Real Paradise.

Hawaii

Yes, we've just been there. It was very nice - we made some great memories and had a real break.

I didn't say anything about our trip here before we left because I didn't think it was wise to advertise our absence from our home on this open forum on the internet.

A vacation to Hawaii is not something that we would have done on our own, but some very gracious people made it happen for us (it was a pastoral care network - I don't know if they want the publicity for this, so I'll leave the identification at that). We are very thankful. When we first heard about the trip, it didn't seem real or possible, but we've been there and back, so I guess we can stop pinching ourselves.

We certainly did feel Emily's absence on this trip, but we were able to enjoy ourselves nevertheless. I must admit that it was nice that no one recognized us there and we didn't have to answer the phone at all.

We went to Oahu and stayed right near the beach in Waikiki. We rented a car for the week and we did a lot of travelling to see the sights. It is a beautiful place. The natural beauty of birds, fish, plants, mountains and ocean was delightful.

Twin highlights for the family were a catamaran snorkeling adventure (it included a sail out past Diamond Head) and a trip to Hanauma Bay for more snokeling. We had the bonus of sailing along with a pod of dolphins during our catamaran trip.

There is a lot to see on Oahu, let alone all the Hawaiian Islands, so our "to do list" wasn't finished, but, given the time available, we had a nice balance of busyness and relaxation.

Dolphins off Waikiki

Waikiki from the top of Diamond Head (an old volcanic crater)



Hanauma Bay

(Sorry about the sloppy formatting - I gave up fighting with Blogger to get this post to look right)

Making Gospel Connections

I began a sermon series on the book of Ephesians back in September, 2007. With breaks over Christmas and summer, I am still working through that series. In September 2008, I began the series again at chapter 5. On September 27th, the day that Emily was killed, I was working at home on my sermon introducing the “household table” of 5:22-6:9. I finally preached that message – mostly unchanged – last Sunday (January 11th).

This is the first part of the introduction:

The most important thing that a church and a preacher can do for people is to help them make Gospel connections in every area of their lives.

The first and most important thing is clear communication of the Gospel of Jesus Christ so that people who are under God’s wrath and on their way to Hell may come to repentance and faith in Christ so that they are forgiven and clothed with the righteousness of Christ.

We are to be ambassadors of the Gospel – together, every day. The Gospel must be the centerpiece of our weekly worship service as well – singing, preaching, prayer – everything.

The Gospel is the Good News that God saves sinners like you and me through the life, death, resurrection and eternal reign of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Gospel is news to be believed, not advice to be followed.
- Advice says, “If you do these things, if you are good enough, you might make it to Heaven.”
- Good News declares, “Believe this message that God in Christ has done all that is necessary for your salvation!”

The Bible makes it clear that the Gospel is for all of life – for real life. In our relationships as husbands and wives, parents and children, employers and employees, at home, church, as citizens of Canada, we must be Gospel people if we claim to be Christians.

I paused at this point to make a last minute decision. I hadn’t decided until that moment whether I was going to mention the date on the top of that sermon (September 28) or the fact that I wrote it on that last afternoon of Emily’s life. I decided I would mention it – in spite of the fact that it might prove to be a distraction – because I wanted to testify to the fact that I am so thankful that Emily understood the Gospel and was being formed by God through it. This reality underscores the central importance of getting the Gospel right, living in it and applying it to real life.

I went on to say that the importance of the Gospel means that it must be lived out in the little, everyday details of home, work and neighbourhood. What Paul teaches in 5:22-6:9 is built on the foundation of the Gospel declaration that comes earlier in Ephesians. We can’t simply nod and murmur agreement with the wonderful message of Ephesians 1-3 and then rebel against God by rejecting the authority structures that He has established in the church, home and society. It all goes together.

It was hard to get through that introduction. It took me back to that afternoon of September 27. I am so thankful, however, that God is sovereign and that He has done all that is necessary to insure salvation for everyone who believes His wonderful Good News in Jesus Christ.

God Sings

We've been studying the Minor Prophets in our Wednesday Bible study. Last night we looked at the first half of Zephaniah. When was the last time you read Zephaniah? I'd encourage you to do so - it's only three chapters.

When I was preparing for this study, it hit me like a ton of bricks that God could have ended this message at the end of chapter 3 verse 8. The book begins with catastrophic descriptions of God's judgment on his rebellious and profane people. One of the indictments of the people was that they were complacent (1:12) and had thought that God was just like them (he will do nothing, either good or bad).

After pronoucing judment on the nations, God's words turn to blessing, not cursing; restoration, not destruction. 3:9-20 are a beautiful picture of God's grace. Where did this come from? It certainly did not come from the nations or from Jersualem itself. This grace comes from God alone - according to His loving character and covenant promises.

3:17 is particularly beautiful:
The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

After personally feeling the weight of God's righteous judment on my sin, I was moved to tears last night - and as I prepared this study. I was reminded that we really can't appreciate grace until we first understand the seriousness of our sin.

I can hardly imagine God rejoicing over me - I am still too full of sin. Is there anything more humbling and wonderful than God exulting over you with singing?

If you have owned your sin and trusted Christ as your Saviour and confessed Him as Risen Lord, then God rejoices over you. It is only as we are in Christ - forgiven and reconciled to the Father - that we are a part of this remnant, this restoration people of God.

God sings over His people. Are you one of them?