Thoughts From a New Father (Part 5)

Posted on May 30, 2011 by

This memorial day, as I watched Rosalie sleeping peacefully in my arms, a truth that I had thought and taught about over the weekend was driven home:  Pacifism (opposition to war or violence of any kind) is more than just unrealistic idealism – if it were consistently held it would be immoral.  (This is not to be confused with pacifiers – those are wonderful.)

In an article titled “Did Jesus Teach Pacifism?” John Piper stated “To let someone murder when it is in your power to stop them is completely contrary to our moral sentiments.”  Of course the first time I read this I gave my intellectual acquiescence to that statement.  But as I stared at my little daughter the reality of that statement hit home.  It’s Memorial Day  and I was also remembering the many fallen soldiers who had given their lives to stem the onslaught of evil men like Hitler.  But as much as men fight to stop evil, evil never goes away.  The police seek to stop all manner of evil men, but yet others still rise up.  And as Rosalie lay there sleeping, blissfully unaware of the fallen world that she is now an occupant of, the heavy reality of my responsibility to protect her from evil was impressed upon my mind.  I have the responsibility to protect her from the pedophile, the kidnapper, the person who might seek to do her physical harm, by force if necessary, and only the most insane of pacifists would think otherwise about their own child.  The irony is that to be a true pacifist one would have to watch his little girl be taken away by a kidnapper without raising a hand to forcefully stop the evil deed.  To be truly consistent they couldn’t even call the police, for the police might have to use violence to capture the perpetrator.

But here’s the fun part about being a Christian dad, not only do I have the responsibility to physically protect my daughter from those who would do evil against her – I also have the responsibility to teach and demonstrate to her Jesus instruction to love our enemies.  The Christian pacifist will hang his hat on Matthew 5:38-44, neglecting the times when Jesus forcefully evacuated the temple or acknowledged that earthly kingdoms can be expected to go to war at times (John 18:36).

I hope and pray that I never have to physically and forcefully/violently protect my family.  I pray that God keeps those who would do evil far from us using others to protect my family instead of me.  But if we are confronted with someone who will or does evil to us, I pray that God gives me both the ability to protect my family, and when all is said and done, the ability to show God’s gracious love to the one who would set himself up as my enemy.

Posted in Philosophical Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Udates all Around…

Posted on May 26, 2011 by

I was reminded this week that a few of my online profiles/biographies are now quite out of date.  What fun it is to be able to add “Father” to Husband, Youth Pastor etc.!  So anyway the “About the Author” page has been changed here as well as my profiles on Twitter and Facebook.  I’m not sure why I needed to use a blog-post to say that, but….there it is.

Speaking of Facebook, if for some reason you’d like to get updates on Facebook when this site is updated, be sure to “Like” the Divinesatisfaction.com Facebook page.  You can also peruse the gallery of different pictures that have shown up on this blog throughout its history.

What’s Rosalie’s take on all this shameless self-promotion?

We Are Not Amused

Posted in Blog Stuff | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Thoughts from a New Father – Photo Caption Edition

Posted on May 24, 2011 by

So…one of the first things I noticed as a new dad was that Rosalie has some really fun facial expressions.  Facial expressions that just beg the question – what is going through her mind.  But since Rosalie isn’t talking perhaps you could fill in the blank by captioning the following four pictures.

Posted in Photos | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

A City that is set on the Water(?) Cannot be Hid…

Posted on May 20, 2011 by

Venice.  A city of charm, beauty, history and improbability.  Almost a year ago now God gave me, along with the members of the FOCUS-Italy team and our missionaries, the privilege to do a whirlwind tour the “Floating City”.  The fact that we drove four hours one way to take in the sights of Venice on a day trip is a story in and of itself.  But I remember the feelings of awe and wonder that rushed over the group as we, for the first time, rode through the canals surrounded by architecture that looked both magnificent and slightly out-of-place at the same time as the buildings seemed to rise up out of the water.  Stepping onto one of the many walkways of the city we would note with amazement how the seawater was lapping against the edge of the path, barely inches from our feet.  As we took in the views with wide-eyed excitement thoughts began to cross my mind such as “what possessed people to build a city in what has to be one of the worst locations to build a city?”

You see, Venice was built over a chain of small islands in a salt-water marsh.  Not exactly prime real-estate…nor the best place to lay a foundation.  But this is one of the reasons Venice is so amazing.  If the builders had simply laid a stone foundation on top of the marshy islands, the buildings would sink and collapse.  But Venice boasts some amazing structures, not the least of which is St. Marks Basilica, which have been around for centuries!  To accomplish this the Venetians built their city on an upside down forest.  That provides quite a mental picture, but what they would do would drive long wooden poles vertically into the marsh right next to each other.  Then they would lay the foundation of the buildings on top of this upside down forest.  All buildings in Venice sink to some degree, but this ingenious bit of engineering helps the building settle in a more uniform fashion.  Add to this the ways they work at keeping wind and seawater from destroying their foundations and one can’t help but marvel – for Venice is certainly not built in a friendly environment.

Something else that intrigued me was the fact that the canals are not only the primary means of transportation, they are also the city’s sewage system…something I wish I had discovered before dipping my hand in the water just to say I did.  So every time a toilet is flushed the contents ultimately end up in the Canals, which in turn are flushed twice a day by the incoming and outgoing tides. One final note, again regarding water, is that Venice especially in its early years had to rely on rainwater for its drinking water, since there was no way dig a well for fresh water.  And so clever systems to collect and store water were devised throughout the city.

Now, if you’ve read this far you may be wondering if this blog has been loaned out to the Discovery channel or some tourism company.  What does this have to do with the theme of  Divine Satisfaction?

Simply put:  Venice reminds me of the Christian.   The Christian is one of the most amazing, awe-inspiring and quite out-of-place creatures on this planet – and is a testament to the magnificent working of the Creator/Savior.  First of all, the Christian lives in the must unlikely of environments, a world that at every turn seeks his destruction.  Just like the erosive powers of wind and wave continually eat away at the foundations of Venice, so the destructive powers of sin and worldliness seek to chip away at the Biblical foundation of the believer.  Christians do not exist in a Christian friendly environment, and yet their existence points to the creating and sustaining work of the Godhead!

I think of the “sewage” canals of Venice and think of the sewage of worldliness that the Christian lives in.  The Bible teaches us that we are in the world but not to be of the world.  And so the Christian is set amidst a world system that urges us to drink deeply of its sewage – if for no other reason, just to say that we did it!  But as drinking from the canals of Venice would prove unhealthy at best, so a Christian drinking from the canals of the world will find his spiritual life become sickly and impotent.  The Christian therefore must have an outside source for spiritual refreshment and nourishment.  Again we turn to the Engineer of this marvel called the Christian.  As a cool shower on a hot day, God refreshes the Christian through His Word.  A refreshment that we seek to store up in the cistern of our hearts not only so that we can have it for days of drought, but also to share with others who know only the sewage of this world.

Just as Venice is a city that looks out-of-place in the middle of the water, and we marvel at its creators so the Christian should be a person who looks out-of-place in the middle of a wicked world and causes others to marvel at his Savior.  Are people marveling at your Savior today?

Posted in Biblical Principles | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

A Prayer for Happiness…

Posted on May 18, 2011 by

A slightly modified prayer from “The Valley of Vision:  A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions”.

O Lord,

Help me never to expect any happiness from the world, but only in you.  do not allow me to think that I will be more happy to live onto myself, for I can only be happy in the service of my king.

Teach me that if I do not live a life that satisfies you, I will certainly not live a life that will satisfy myself.

Help me not to think of living for you in my own strength, but always to look to and rely on you for assistance.  Yes Lord, teach me that there is no greater truth than this, that I can do nothing of myself.

Ah, Lord, this is the life that no unconverted man can live, yet it is an end that every godly soul presses after; let it be then my concern to devote myself and all to you.

Make me more fruitful and more spiritual, for to be spiritually barren is a burden that afflicts me daily.  How precious is time, and how painful to see it fly with little done for your glory and the edification of others.

I need your help:  O may my soul sensibly depend upon you for all sanctification, and for every accomplishment of your purposes, for me, for the world, and for your kingdom.

Posted in Prayers, Valley of Vision | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Let Me Sum Up…

Posted on May 16, 2011 by

Of of my many favorite lines from “The Princess Bride” comes as the intrepid trio are preparing to storm the castle.  Time is running out and Wesley needs to be brought up to speed.  One of his compatriots prepares to do this and says:  “Let me explain….no, there isn’t time, let me sum up.”  So here goes my attempt at “summing up”…

Last week I posted an article that stemmed from a tweet of a friend of mine, Bryant, a pastor at Centerpoint Church in Valrico, FL.  The tweet itself was intended to take on religious arrogance and self-centered idolatry that surrounds legalism/moral-ism.  (a.k.a. focusing on external morality apart from an inward regeneration).  And I would highly recommend checking out this post for a convicting look at that much needed topic.

But as I read the tweet my post went in a somewhat different direction – focusing instead on the religious arrogance and self-centered idolatry that surrounds those who claim faith in Christ with no external change and/or desire for personal holiness.

The following discussion in the comment thread sought to balance out each approach and the topic is worth meditating on from Scripture.  I think that the money quote in bringing perspective to both perspectives (hmmm….) comes from Bryant’s recent article:

As a pastor, I believe we have been called to expose and aggressively confront religious idolatry – Jesus did. Otherwise, people will not understand the Gospel. Rather, safety will replace the dangerous grace of Christ, control will replace real, transformed hearts, and external morality will replace the un-manipulated outflow of understanding Christ’s love.

Have a thought?  Jump into the discussion!

Related articles
Posted in Blog Stuff, Doctrinal Issues, Gospel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Fighting Arrogance…

Posted on May 13, 2011 by

Taking a bit of a break from the “Thoughts of a New Father” theme to dive into another thought that’s been on my mind this week.  Plus, after almost two weeks I’m going to have to change the title to “Thoughts of a Novice Father” or something like that…I wonder what the cut-off point is for being a “new father”.  Anyway, that’s not the thought.  This is actually not a new thought to me, just one that re-emerged as I read the status update of one of my ministry friends.

Check your hysteria over the fact that you haven’t committed your self-imposed “big sins” (sexual sin, divorce, drinking beer, rated R movies not called the Passion of Christ, etc…) which cause you to look down on others. Prov. 8:13, “I hate pride and arrogance”…oh dang, that’s YOU!

(For detailed explanation of this comment, the author expands this thought in the comment section…check it out!  The following paragraphs deal with a different line of thought)

Right off the bat let me note for the nit-pickers (of whom I am chief) that in the list of “self-imposed sins” at least one (possibly a half of another one) isn’t actually self-imposed.  Scripture is clear that sexual sins are just that!  But the spirit of the comment is the attitude toward those involved in actual sin or imagined sin.

Now, with the nit-picking over, that’s a pretty good tweet or status, one I heartily agree with.  But as I read it I found myself thinking something to the effect of:

“Oh yeah…good stuff!  I can think of this person or that person who is so condescending toward others…they definitely need to read that tweet!  Oh…wait…is it possible that my desire to call out the potential sin of the legalist is similar to the legalists desire to call out the potential sin of _______?”

I was reminded of a warning that my Dad gave at my ordination service from the scene of a parable Christ uses, recorded in Luke 18.

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
(Luk 18:9-14 ESV)

I wonder if perhaps, in my desire to expose the pride of the legalist, I might have created a third character – one who hears the appalling prayer of the Pharisee, and then goes up to the front of the temple to pray:

Oh God in Heaven, I thank you that I am not as this Pharisee who judges this tax collector!  I thank you that I do not have to worry about all the outward signs of righteousness that this Pharisee hypocritically concerns himself with.  I am thankful that my inward sanctification/justification (through Christ’s help of course) trumps any outward ritual I need to perform, and that I can freely practice my liberty even to the detriment of those who may be struggling with sin issues because after all, you may use me to help that poor soul to become free from the shackles of abstaining from _________.”

Ok…that last sentence might seem like a bit of a stretch, but here’s the question – what do I do if Nicodemus – a Pharisee, or Paul – a Pharisee of the Pharisees, comes to my door?  Do I flaunt my liberty over their hypocritical law-keeping?  It might be very easy for me to close down any communication with the pharisee-like legalist,  because my pride is looking down on him as his (from my perspective) looks down on others.

So while I agree with the tweeters emphasis against arrogant legalism it’s important for me to remember that some “self-imposed” sins can very easily become actual sins and thus some discernment, though definitely not hysteria, is necessary.  Ask anyone in ministry, and I’m sure the author of the comment above would agree, and they would be able to share examples where a person, in avoiding the cliffs of legalism went too far and ended up in the mire of licentiousness…and was proud of it!  As a youth pastor the responsibility is tremendous, for not only do I get to learn how to walk the narrow road without veering left or right, but I get to train young people to think through these questions as well.

So with that, I thank my friend for reminding me of the arrogance of looking down on other people stuck in their sin, and for prompting a time of meditation that, Lord willing, will provide balance in my life.  Something tells me that I’ll need this prompting again.

Related articles
Posted in Biblical Principles, Culture, Desiring God, Philosophical Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Thoughts from a New Father (Part 4)…

Posted on May 11, 2011 by

A subtitle for this post could be “Placing the certain joys of today over the hypothetical “what ifs” of tomorrow”.

Paul, as he was encouraging Timothy in his final letter, reminded Timothy that “…God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim. 1:7 ESV) .  Now while Paul was instructing Timothy regarding the ministry that God had called him to, I do believe that this truth stretches beyond the circumstances of possible religious persecution and/or ministry trials to our day-to-day lives.  And so, it’s been fun just enjoying the moments with Rosalie Grace.  Here’s what I mean.

Watching her sleep, so peaceful, so content. Watching her facial expressions change from moment to moment – I can feel a photo project coming on entitled “the many expressions of Rosalie Grace”.  Watching her stretch all four of her little limbs to the maximum possible distance it’s hard not to “stretch vicariously” through her.  Staring into her alert little eyes as she takes in as much as she can see of her surroundings, and then when she looks right back into my eyes…wow…wouldn’t trade that for the world!  Feeling her little fingers wrap around my thumb.  And possibly one of my favorite moments of all is to watch the special bond and interaction between Rosalie and Emily.

These are gifts that have been given me today and I must enjoy them to the fullest and in doing so glorify the God who gave them to me.  To fear the hypothetical dilemmas of tomorrow belies a distrust in God and will cause me to miss the joys of today.  So pray with me that I will not fear but rather display the spirit of power, love and self-control that have been given me through Christ.  And while you’re at it, are there joys you might be missing today because of a fearful distrust of our Sovereign God?  You might not call it that, but if your fears overwhelm your joy – run to God! (James 1 is a good place to start)

edit:  My dad in commenting on the last post provided a good thought with which to end both this and the last post.  ” Alas, God has no hypothetical grace for such things. But he does have grace for today and for each trial which comes our way.”

Related articles
Posted in Desiring God, God's Sovereignty, Life Events | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Thoughts from a New Father (Part 3)…

Posted on May 9, 2011 by

Helplessness.

Now, that word isn’t exactly the type of word that fills the soul with warm and fuzzy feelings.  And one might ask “you’re writing a post about your brand new baby girl….and you’re gonna bring us down by talking about helplessness?”  That thought did cross my mind as I was pondering this post – but there is a wonderfully bright side to the subject.  Allow me to dive in.

Following Rosalie’s birth I began to notice several types of helplessness…and each discovery was not exactly a welcome one to begin with.  First there is the obvious recognition that my little girl, on her own, is helpless.  She needed the attention and support of the doctors and nurses.  She needed someone else to feed her, someone else to clothe her, someone else to change her diaper.  There was practically nothing that she could do for herself.  Now, she’s a baby and is blissfully unaware of her helplessness, simply sleeping and crying when she gets hungry or uncomfortable.  But as a dad, I saw that helplessness and immediately the desire to care for her and do everything I possibly could to meet her needs flooded my entire being.

I want to pause there and direct your attention to the beauty of that scene.  Not of me specifically (heavens no!), but of the scene of a baby totally content because her parents are lovingly protecting her and meeting each of her needs.  One of the most beautiful scenes in the world is that of a baby content in the love of her parents.  Consider now that any person who has been brought from death to life through the finished work of Christ Jesus begins their spiritual journey in exactly the same way!  We were totally dependent on the Father supply the spiritual protection and nourishment that we could not provide for ourselves.  That loving protection and nourishment continues as we grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  It changes from milk to meat, but ultimately it is God who is providing for us.

But there was another type of helplessness that I experienced came shortly after Mommy, baby and I arrived home.  As I sat there watching my baby girl contently sleeping in her bassinet the realization of all the responsibilities that I wanted to lovingly fulfill for my little girl was suddenly combined with a series of dreadful “what ifs”.  A series of hypothetical situations presented themselves to my mind each one either beyond my capability or control…and all of the sudden I was feeling quite helpless.

But here is the beauty in the helplessness – God provides.  God provides the means to gain the knowledge to confront anything where I felt I lacked capability.  For example…I’ve changed my first diaper!  But God also provides comfort in the situations that are beyond my control.  Don’t get me wrong, I still wake up quite often listening to make sure Rosalie is breathing, but in the end, after I’ve made sure that no clothes or blankets are anywhere near her mouth, I have to trust in God who is not only the Giver of life, but also the One who sustains it, and I can trust in Him to always do the right thing for my good and His glory!

So helplessness – it’s not always a bad thing!  In fact it’s something remind us of our actual condition and God’s sovereign love!  Let us trust in Him no less than little Rosalie trusts in me!

Posted in Desiring God, God's Sovereignty, Life Events | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Thoughts from a New Father (Part 2)…

Posted on May 6, 2011 by

The struggle was over.  The tears of pain that had been filling the mothers eyes have been replaced with tears of joy (thought there might have been a bit of overlap).  Everything seems to be happening in a blur.  A baby has emerged, scissors are pushed into the Dad’s hand, the umbilical cord is cut, the baby is wrapped in a blanket and brought to the mothers arms.  Now the dad, who hasn’t undergone any physical pain (a tightly squeezed hand doesn’t count), looks down on his wife and child with eyes filled with tears, with quivering lips he somehow manages to sob words to the effect of “look at our little Rosalie!”

Never, and I do mean never, have I felt such emotional joy!  Is it possible to dissect such powerful feelings to discover why they exist?  I highly doubt it, but a few contributing factors come to mind.

Anticipation – For some people the anticipation of a new baby begins approximately 8-9 months before the baby is born.  The anticipation builds as baby names are considered, baby rooms are prepared, baby showers are given, not to mention doctors appointments and ultrasounds!  But for others the anticipation begins long before conception.  Some husbands and wives dream for years of having a child only to be providentially hindered in one way or the other.  In this case, not only does the anticipation build, but also the frustration and emotional pain.  For those who have undergone such painful life circumstances the anticipation of the last several months is extremely heightened and only dampened by thoughts of “what if” which are routinely shoved to the remotest corners of the mind.

All this anticipation inevitably contributes to the flood of joy that occurs as those beautiful infant eyes look into yours for the first time.

Pain – True joy is not the absence of pain, rather, true joy is the result of one who has endured much pain to a greater end.  How is it that throughout months of pregnancy systems Emily rarely complained  (even those complaints where registered with a “I wouldn’t change this for the world” proviso)?  Why is it that Emily would willingly submit herself to over 2 hours of painful labor, never once saying “I wish this had never happened”?  There is a simple answer:  Rosalie Grace.  The outcome far outweighed any pain involved.  I would add this, had we opened the front door one day and found Rosalie lying there as the stork flew off into the distance the emotions would have been incredibly different.

Those two factors of such emotional joy are seen in Scripture as well.  For example, can you imagine the joy that took place amongst the angels in Heaven when after 3 days of anticipation Christ rose from the dead?  Or what about the joy of the Father as he anticipated the return of His prodigal son?  I’m not sure how much God, being above time, can anticipate something, but He created us and the angels firmly within the bounds of time – and within that framework we experience the joy that comes from a longing anticipation to be completely, and divinely satisfied in God.

And complete, divine satisfaction could never happen apart from pain.  I’m not talking about the pain we suffer here on earth, though that definitely does inform our ultimate joy.  I’m talking about the pain that Christ had to suffer on our behalf.  The ultimate and infinite pain that each of us deserves because we have rebelled against our Creator.  And for what reason did Christ suffer?  Why did he endure that pain?  In one of my favorite passages (and I think I have about as many as the chairman of our deacon board…note to self…never put inside jokes in blog posts) we see the vivid answer:   ” looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2 ESV)

So the emotions that I, and especially my wife, experienced last Saturday were just a sampling of the emotions that Christ experienced as He endured pain so that He might have the joy of glorifying his Father by saving a wretch like me!

Posted in Gospel, Life Events, Passion for God | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments