December 26, 2007

My beautiful son was born last Wednesday. Cayden was 20 3/4 inches long, 8 lbs 8 oz., and was born at 9:56pm at St. Joseph East, Lexington, Kentucky. It is both amazing and overwhelming to see myself as a father; I am certain more posts will come, but I am excited about the new direction my life and Tammy's has taken these past nine months and the years that will come. Here is a picture of him:

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How De We Get To Heaven?

As I was listening to a podcast, a person called into the previously recorded program. He asked what the host's interpretation was in how people get into heaven. The host of the radio program and podcast responded first by connecting heaven to the resurrection from the dead and sharing the newly created universe. The host then began by talking about trusting in Jesus, recognizing that we are all created by God, who we owe our obedience and trust. All people have fallen from that as sinners; we are God's enemy. We are to look at the cross, as Jesus on the cross took our sin and bore our punishment that is due to us as sinners. That Jesus was raised from the dead conquering sin. We are to ask God to count Christ's death as our death, Christ's condemnation as our condemnation, Christ's resurrection as our resurrection. We are to be found in Christ, hidden in Christ, so that, when you see each of us, you see Christ. When a pennant sinner turning away from sin, sorrowful from sin, looking and trusting that God will receive you in Jesus Christ, that person will be received as scriptures guarantee it. This person will be able to get into heaven. (If this sounds stilted, it is intentional; I tried to quote the host as much as I could without adding my thoughts into his answer)In Mark Chapter 10 and Luke Chapter 10 and Chapter 18, Jesus is asked, "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" In each of these three stories in the Gospels, Jesus responds by asking a question about following the law. And in Mark 10 and Luke 18, Jesus tells the rich young ruler to sell all of his possessions and give the money to the poor. In Luke 10, Jesus adds the Parable of the Samaritan.

Is there a difference in how the host of the podcast and how Jesus answers the question in the scriptures? Are they saying the same thing in two different ways? It seems that Jesus gets to the point directly – the actions of the person, how one lives his/her life. Some might argue that the host of the radio program would get to how one lives, but he articulated the answer within propositional thinking. His approach to ‘getting into heaven’ was accepting yourself as a sinner separate from God and trusting in a substitutionary view of atonement. Trusting that the punishment you deserve from your sin is placed upon Christ on the cross. It seems that many would articulate salvation in propositional thinking because people want clear directions. Jesus answered through a vague question about how one is to live his/her life from day-to-day. If the rich young ruler sold his possessions, then what was he to do? How many times must we love our neighbor as the Samaritan loved his? Too many people try to put salvation into a pretty box that leads to the life hereafter by propositional thinking, but Jesus connects internal life to the present in righteous living.

In Acts Chapter 16, a prison guard asks Paul and Silas, “What must I do to be saved?” They respond by answering, “Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.” When Paul answered this question he did not respond as Jesus. It seems that Paul put an emphasis on belief, while Jesus put an emphasis on actions, or we could be putting our preconceived notions on what Paul was saying by belief through the lenses of the Enlightenment without letting Paul describe salvation on his own terms. Even if Paul did not answer differently than Jesus, our present day approach to salvation seems to reflect a more Pauline approach through belief than Jesus’ words through the approach that focuses on actions and righteous living. Many times we are so focused on living in heaven we forget to think about how to live on earth.
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3-D Ultrasounds

Tammy and I went to Lexington Fetal Photography to acquire more detailed pictures of our beautiful little boy. Here are some of the pictures:


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Pictures of Our New Vehicles

Here is my 1999 Ford Ranger XLT

Here is Tammy's 2002 Ford Escape XLT

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The Addition to Our Family

Tammy is pregnant! This ultrasound is almost two months old; Tammy is due on Christmas Eve. We go on August 9th for our next ultrasound, which then we will be able to discover the gender of our baby.
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A Story from My Mission Trip

On Sunday morning (11th), we attended the Protestant Congregational Church in Skopje, Macedonia; the service was in the Macedonian language. On Sunday evening (11th), we attended the Gypsy Church in a village outside Skopje; the service was in the Romany language. On Tuesday evening (13th), we attended the Protestant Church in Rahovek, Kosova; the service was in the Albanian language.

Each of these churches welcomed us with open arms; their hospitality was overwhelming. Even though I could not speak the language, I truly worshiped God with them. I do not merely watch them worship, but somehow I was able to join them in praise. I felt like apart of their community the moment I walked in. At each service, Patsy Jacobs preached, Pat Ham told a story, and we all sang some songs and performed a skit in the Macedonian language. When we sang “Great is Thy Faithfulness,” Joanna sang the third stanza, Rick sang the first and I sang the second. On Sunday morning, the congregation sang with me, so it was not really a solo. On Sunday evening, the congregation did not sing with me, so it was a solo.

A quarter way through the verse, I started to cry. I was heartbroken with myself because I was singing off key or badly. Here this church welcomed me gracefully, and I could not return the gesture with a good song. By half way, I could not sing at all as I was crying so much. Then a woman came forward and gave me a tissue (this would have never happened at most American Baptist churches that I have attend). Later, I learned that she was a prostitute. I never though that I would experience the love of God through the gesture of a prostitute in Eastern Europe.
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Country Music 1/2 Marathon

On April 28th, I ran in the Country Music 1/2 Marathon in Nashville, Tennessee. I was one of 33,000 people who ran this exciting race. There were about 15 bands who played at different spots on the 13.1 miles and people lined up on the sidelines along the way. There was great excitement and fun at the race, and I encourage you to consider running it next year.

Here are my results:

Time: 2:01:18
Overall Ranking: 4,303/33,000
SexPl: 2735
DivPl: 530
Pace: 9:16

Here are my splits:

5K: 28:01:00
6 Mile: 52:28:00
10 Mile: 1:30:22
1/2 Marathon: 2:01:18

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My Trip to the Balkans

More pictures from my trip to the Balkans in Eastern Europe:

Marketplace in Skopje, Macedonia
Congregational Church in Skopje, Macedonia
Host Family in Rahovec, Kosova

Papa John's 10 Miler

On March 31st, I ran the Papa John's 10 Miler in Louisville to prepare myself for the Country Music Half-Marathon on April 28th in Nashville. Here are my results:

Time: 1:33:06
Overall Ranking: 1757
Ranking for Male Age Group 25-29: 150/279
Time at 5 Mile Marker: 46:48
Pace: 9:19

I had a wonderful time, and I look forward to my race in Nashville.
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Pictures from My Trip

Here are some pictures from my trip to the Balkans in Greece:

Thessaloniki, Greece

Aegean Sea, Greece

Philipi, Greece

Traveling to Eastern Europe

Tomorrow afternoon, I will be traveling to Macedonia, Kosovo and Greece for a 10-day mission trip. I am very excited about my first experience outside the country (except for a short drive through Canada). I will tell you more about my trip than you want to know when I get back
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To Live Like You Were Dying

In Sunday School, we were asked how we would live if we knew that we would die soon (6 months, 1 year, etc). Each of us answered something to the effect of spending time with our family and friend and traveling to really exotic places. The answers were the typical answers that people would want to do one last time. Tim McGraw has a song that addresses this same issue. "Live Like You Were Dying" is an inspiring song to live your life to the fullest each day like it is your last.

But, Jesus did something different. During Jesus' last week before the crucifixion, he was not concerned about traveling to Egypt to see the beautiful Egyptian pyramids, nor was he concerned about traveling back to Galilee to visit with his family. Jesus continued his ministry until his very moment on the cross; he even reached out to the thief on the cross beside him during his death! If asked what we would do with our last moments on earth, we all answered very selfish answers as we only looked towards our own self. But Jesus always looked outward to the needs around him, even up to the time of his death. When Jesus knew he was going to die soon, he did not change what he was doing to live life to its fullest. Jesus realized that he was already living his life to the fullest by doing the will of the Father.

Maybe we can realize that living our life to the fullest has nothing to do with where we are or who we are with, but it is about doing the will of God each day with those around us. It is amazing how our ideas and answers that seem so innocent can be so contrary to the teachings and life of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
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A Christendom Mindset

In The Shaping of Things to Come, Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch are challenging Christians "to step out of the box of Christendom in order to take on the problems raised by Christendom," and in two paragraphs above, they say, "The issue of cultural context is essential because the missional church shapes itself to fit that context in order to transform it for the sake of the kingdom of God." [Frost and Hirsch, The Shaping of Things to Come (Peadbody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2003), 7.] In Rethinking Christ and Culture, Craig Carter recognizes the problems raised by Christendom, but he says, "Asking the question of how the church can have influence on the culture is the wrong question to ask if one's goal is to be faithful to the gospel of Jesus Christ." [Carter, Rethink Christ and Culture (Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press, 2006), 23.]

I am not surprised to see two authors in disagreement, but I am asking which approach to take in understanding if the church should be culturally relevant. Both authors recognize the development of the relationship between the church and the state in the Western context that has be characterized as Christendom, which has brought negative consequences on the church. Within a Christendom mindset, the church has lost its voice because she has given it to the state. But it seems that the church must become culturally relevant to regain her voice, but Carter sees that thinking only fueling the Christendom mindset.

The church can go to one extreme and try to be so culturally relevant that she only reflects what the culture is dictating, but she can also go to the other extreme by separating herself from culture that no one hears her voice.

Hopefully, I can continue reading these books as well as others in addition to scriptural reflection and prayer to understand my role as a Christian within the Western culture in which I live; I enjoy reading different perspectives to challenge me in articulating my ideas and beliefs.
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"Present Tense" by Jason Lehman

It was Spring.
But it was Summer I wanted,
The warm days,
And the great outdoors.

It was summer.
But it was fall I wanted,
The colorful leaves,
And the cool, dry air.

It was Fall.
But it was Winter I wanted,
The beautiful snow,
And the joy of the holiday season.

It was Winter.
But it was Spring I wanted,
The warmth,
And the blossoming of nature.

I was a child.
But it was adulthood I wanted,
The freedom,
And the respect.

I was twenty.
But it was thirty I wanted,
To be mature,
And sophisticated.

I was middle-aged.
But it was twenty I wanted,
The youth,
And the free spirit.

I was retired.
But it was middle-age I wanted,
The presence of mind,
Without limitations.

My life was over.

But I never got what I wanted.

Bible-based Explorations of Issues Facing Youth: How Do You Know?
Faith & Life Press and Brethren Press, 1996

(We need to learn how to live in the moment instead of for the moment; God has something great and special for each of us today, but we are too busy looking at tomorrow to recognize it.)
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An Amazing Quote

"I was hungry...and you discussed the problem of hunger. Thank you. I was in prison...and you quietly worshipped in your sanctuary and only prayed for me. I was dirty and ragged...you criticized me. I was homeless...and you only preached about the heavenly home. You appear so holy...very close to God. But I'm still hungry...homeless...and so lonely..."

--author unknown, translated by missionary Dora Harbin of Brazil--
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It is Official

On December 31, 2006, I officially registered for the Country Music Half-Marathon on April 28, 2007 in Nashville, Tennessee. I also officially start training for the run this week as I will begin running each day. Let me know if you would like to join me in Nashvillle.
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