Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Parenting [Teens] Class
Quick update...we are currently in the middle of a wonderful 5-week course at our church on parenting. It is taught by an elder named Chris Hamilton who I deeply respect and whose family I greatly admire. I will post summary thoughts next week once the course is complete.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Loving God (& Your Future Wife) by Loving Your Sister
Posted by our first guestblogger Paul Sheldon. Paul is married to Miranda and has two children, Saylor (2) and Ranger (2 months). A former member of our Bible Study at Grace Community Church, he currently resides in Dixon, California where he serves as an associate pastor. Check out the Sheldon family blog!
(Paul) Ranger, many of the elements of a life which honors God are found explicitly in Scripture. For example, vibrant prayer life, faithful Bible study, heartfelt compassion for those in need, personal devotion to the local church – all of these things are clearly prescribed in Scripture. However, there are certain qualities I hope to see in your life which are more derived from Biblical principles than they are directly prescribed by a passage of Scripture. One of those measures of character which is as time honored among God-fearing young men as left handed lay-ups and cooking over open fire is this – brothers protect and defend their sisters.
According to Christ Himself there are two great commandments. First, believers are to love the Lord their God with the whole of their being; heart, soul, and mind. Second, believers are to love their neighbors as they love themselves (Matt. 22:37-39). The second commandment is really the one which pertains to you protecting and defending your sister. You see Scripture makes it clear that true love is demonstrated most clearly by action. Christ says in John 14:15 that if we love Him we will keep His commandments. Just as our love for Christ is proven by our actions, so is our love for others. In 1 John 3:10, John makes an interesting parallel. He compares not practicing righteousness (that means not doing good) with not loving our brother. So according to John the absence of good deeds reveals the absence of love. Loving our neighbors is one of the greatest commandments in the whole Bible, and if we love our neighbors this will be evidenced by our actions towards them. This applies to your sister in that she will be one of the closest ‘neighbors’ you will ever have. You have a duty to love her, and you will show her love by protecting and defending her.
You may be wondering what you are protecting her from, and what you are defending her against. Well here are a few thoughts on these specifics. First, I hope I don’t have to tell you this, but you protect her against physical harm. Second, you defend her reputation and protect her character and integrity when and if malicious people spread lies and gossip about her (sometimes this might require you to convince her to get new friends). Third, you protect her from boys (when the time comes for this you’ll know what I’m talking about). Fourth, you protect her from herself. We are all sinners who wrestle with sinful desires (your sister included). The day may come when you have to intervene in her life to protect her from harmful sin. When you do this remember to do it with gentleness and humility (take heed lest you too should fall). I’m sure there are other things you’ll need to protect her from, but I think you get the picture. You are to love your sister by doing your part to guard her heart, mind and body from harm.
Here’s one more quick thought for you. Peter writes in 1 Peter 3:7, “You husbands likewise, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with a weaker vessel, since she is a woman; and grant her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.” Sometimes I think God prepares little boys to be good husbands by giving them sisters (and mommies) to teach them what loving a woman means.
(Paul) Ranger, many of the elements of a life which honors God are found explicitly in Scripture. For example, vibrant prayer life, faithful Bible study, heartfelt compassion for those in need, personal devotion to the local church – all of these things are clearly prescribed in Scripture. However, there are certain qualities I hope to see in your life which are more derived from Biblical principles than they are directly prescribed by a passage of Scripture. One of those measures of character which is as time honored among God-fearing young men as left handed lay-ups and cooking over open fire is this – brothers protect and defend their sisters.
According to Christ Himself there are two great commandments. First, believers are to love the Lord their God with the whole of their being; heart, soul, and mind. Second, believers are to love their neighbors as they love themselves (Matt. 22:37-39). The second commandment is really the one which pertains to you protecting and defending your sister. You see Scripture makes it clear that true love is demonstrated most clearly by action. Christ says in John 14:15 that if we love Him we will keep His commandments. Just as our love for Christ is proven by our actions, so is our love for others. In 1 John 3:10, John makes an interesting parallel. He compares not practicing righteousness (that means not doing good) with not loving our brother. So according to John the absence of good deeds reveals the absence of love. Loving our neighbors is one of the greatest commandments in the whole Bible, and if we love our neighbors this will be evidenced by our actions towards them. This applies to your sister in that she will be one of the closest ‘neighbors’ you will ever have. You have a duty to love her, and you will show her love by protecting and defending her.
You may be wondering what you are protecting her from, and what you are defending her against. Well here are a few thoughts on these specifics. First, I hope I don’t have to tell you this, but you protect her against physical harm. Second, you defend her reputation and protect her character and integrity when and if malicious people spread lies and gossip about her (sometimes this might require you to convince her to get new friends). Third, you protect her from boys (when the time comes for this you’ll know what I’m talking about). Fourth, you protect her from herself. We are all sinners who wrestle with sinful desires (your sister included). The day may come when you have to intervene in her life to protect her from harmful sin. When you do this remember to do it with gentleness and humility (take heed lest you too should fall). I’m sure there are other things you’ll need to protect her from, but I think you get the picture. You are to love your sister by doing your part to guard her heart, mind and body from harm.
Here’s one more quick thought for you. Peter writes in 1 Peter 3:7, “You husbands likewise, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with a weaker vessel, since she is a woman; and grant her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.” Sometimes I think God prepares little boys to be good husbands by giving them sisters (and mommies) to teach them what loving a woman means.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Seize the Day by Seizing Your Mornings, Part 3
(Cont'd) As I mentioned in the last post, I think the best "method" for personal time with the Lord is to model it after our corporate time with the Lord (church), which entails worship, Scripture reading, prayer, and in-depth biblical exposition.
Worship
Practically speaking, you probably won't sit at your desk and sing (however, I did have a youth pastor in Arrowhead who did this and thought it was amazing!). As Pastor John says, what comes out (worship) is a result of what goes in (truth). The deeper you go in truth the higher you go in praise. Worship can come out in silent prayer, but in a practical sense, also try to sing during your morning commute or with an iPod while you run/exercise, immediately after, in response to what you've just read.
Scripture Reading
JC Ryle, in a great book called, "How Readest Thou?" acknowledges there are different "systems" of Bible reading.
Pastor John has a book (MacArthur Daily Bible) which is formatted in this exact way. It takes about 20-30 minutes for each day's reading. This is what I use and I recommend it to you.
Prayer
During your Scripture reading, keep a journal nearby to jot verse references that stick out while you read, and which you can later pray through (btw, hopefully you'll be different, but I can't pray without a pen; I lose focus too fast). Avoid doing any in-depth study here; just let the Lord speak to you through what you read then you speak back to Him.
In-Depth Biblical Exposition
During our corporate worship service, this gets the bulk of the time, and I think it should during your personal time too. Try to leave yourself at least 45 minutes for this each morning, which, if your heart is right and if you have access to the right resources, will seldom be enough! Write down your verse/phrase, read the Study Bible notes, review the context (Book Intros, Bible Background Commentary, Archaelogical Study Bible) follow the cross-references (Treasury of Scripture Knowledge), study the key words (Word Study NT, Vine's, Strongs, Robertson's Word Pictures), then make sure you got it right by reading a good commentary (MacArthur, Calvin, Hughes; just one good commentary is fine for devotions).
If you can get through all that every morning, your heart should be left pounding, and quite hungry for tomorrow morning! This 3 part lesson is pretty foundational to anything else I could say, so I'm gonna take a short break. Next week, Andrew, we will have our first guest blogger, so we can see what other Dads are telling their sons to help them excel still more!
For further reading, Psalm 19, Psalm 119, How to Study the Bible (MacArthur Study Bible, p.xix); How Readest Thou? (JC Ryle)
Worship
Practically speaking, you probably won't sit at your desk and sing (however, I did have a youth pastor in Arrowhead who did this and thought it was amazing!). As Pastor John says, what comes out (worship) is a result of what goes in (truth). The deeper you go in truth the higher you go in praise. Worship can come out in silent prayer, but in a practical sense, also try to sing during your morning commute or with an iPod while you run/exercise, immediately after, in response to what you've just read.
Scripture Reading
JC Ryle, in a great book called, "How Readest Thou?" acknowledges there are different "systems" of Bible reading.
"Some people's Bible-reading is a system of perpetual dipping and picking. They
do not seem to have an idea of regularly going through the whole book. This also
is a great mistake...I believe it is by far the best plan to begin the Old and
New Testaments at the same time, read each straight through to the end, and then
begin again...I can only say it has been my own plan for forty years."
Pastor John has a book (MacArthur Daily Bible) which is formatted in this exact way. It takes about 20-30 minutes for each day's reading. This is what I use and I recommend it to you.
Prayer
During your Scripture reading, keep a journal nearby to jot verse references that stick out while you read, and which you can later pray through (btw, hopefully you'll be different, but I can't pray without a pen; I lose focus too fast). Avoid doing any in-depth study here; just let the Lord speak to you through what you read then you speak back to Him.
In-Depth Biblical Exposition
During our corporate worship service, this gets the bulk of the time, and I think it should during your personal time too. Try to leave yourself at least 45 minutes for this each morning, which, if your heart is right and if you have access to the right resources, will seldom be enough! Write down your verse/phrase, read the Study Bible notes, review the context (Book Intros, Bible Background Commentary, Archaelogical Study Bible) follow the cross-references (Treasury of Scripture Knowledge), study the key words (Word Study NT, Vine's, Strongs, Robertson's Word Pictures), then make sure you got it right by reading a good commentary (MacArthur, Calvin, Hughes; just one good commentary is fine for devotions).
If you can get through all that every morning, your heart should be left pounding, and quite hungry for tomorrow morning! This 3 part lesson is pretty foundational to anything else I could say, so I'm gonna take a short break. Next week, Andrew, we will have our first guest blogger, so we can see what other Dads are telling their sons to help them excel still more!
For further reading, Psalm 19, Psalm 119, How to Study the Bible (MacArthur Study Bible, p.xix); How Readest Thou? (JC Ryle)
Seize the Day by Seizing Your Mornings, Part 2
Andrew, as we discussed last week, if you want to make the most of your day, start by making the most of your mornings. But what exactly should our mornings look like?
For my first several years as a Christian (17-20), I deeply enjoyed my morning times with the Lord. But in my last year of college and first two years of marriage, my mornings waned. I became undisciplined and inconsistent. Part of this was due to sheer busy-ness, with studies, ministry, work, my new marriage, and -yes- YOU. Busy-ness, among other issues, can quickly become an awful enemy to your mornings. At one point, I thought of Mary and Martha (Lk 10:42), where Jesus made it clear that "one thing is needed." Another passage that awoke me from my slum was Rev 2:5, "repent and do the deeds you did at first."
The "method" I used at first was simple, in-depth verse-by-verse study of a NT book. However, I've often gone back and forth on this...if you move slowly through a NT book, that leaves out so much other Scripture. And if you survey through Scripture quickly, you miss out on so much depth!
Only recently have I felt like I've got a good "system" down, and it's been right in front of my face the whole time. Model your personal time with the Lord after your corporate time with the Lord. In other words, and in regard to my dilmma above...just do both (and more)!
What do we do on Sunday mornings? Worship, Scripture reading, prayer, and in-depth biblical exposition. Your personal time with the Lord ought to incorporate each of these elements. And yes, that means it does take about an hour and a half, which is about half the time most great men of the faith, including Christ, spend in direct communion with the Lord each morning.
Andrew, I think we should do one more post on this so we can get a little more practical.
Love, Dad
For my first several years as a Christian (17-20), I deeply enjoyed my morning times with the Lord. But in my last year of college and first two years of marriage, my mornings waned. I became undisciplined and inconsistent. Part of this was due to sheer busy-ness, with studies, ministry, work, my new marriage, and -yes- YOU. Busy-ness, among other issues, can quickly become an awful enemy to your mornings. At one point, I thought of Mary and Martha (Lk 10:42), where Jesus made it clear that "one thing is needed." Another passage that awoke me from my slum was Rev 2:5, "repent and do the deeds you did at first."
The "method" I used at first was simple, in-depth verse-by-verse study of a NT book. However, I've often gone back and forth on this...if you move slowly through a NT book, that leaves out so much other Scripture. And if you survey through Scripture quickly, you miss out on so much depth!
Only recently have I felt like I've got a good "system" down, and it's been right in front of my face the whole time. Model your personal time with the Lord after your corporate time with the Lord. In other words, and in regard to my dilmma above...just do both (and more)!
What do we do on Sunday mornings? Worship, Scripture reading, prayer, and in-depth biblical exposition. Your personal time with the Lord ought to incorporate each of these elements. And yes, that means it does take about an hour and a half, which is about half the time most great men of the faith, including Christ, spend in direct communion with the Lord each morning.
Andrew, I think we should do one more post on this so we can get a little more practical.
Love, Dad
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Seize the Day by Seizing Your Mornings
Ps 119:147 "I rise before the dawning of the morning, and cry for help; I hope in Your word."Ps 5:3 "My voice You shall hear in the morning,
o Lord; In the morning I will direct it to you, and I will look
up."
Mornings were an important part of the day for Jews, not only devotionally, but theologically (Ex 29:39), socially (Ex 16:21, Jer 21:12), and economically as well (Gen 26:31, Ecc 11:6, Mt 20:1). Mary Magdalene, Mary, and Salome rose up "very early in the morning" to visit the tomb and seek Jesus of Nazareth (Mark 16:1-5). It was during this hour that the angel announced "He is risen!" That was certainly more than they were expecting on that great morning!
While mornings were important to most Jews, Jesus' morning devotional discipline is remarkable.
Mark 1:35 "Now in the morning, having risen a
long while before daylight, He [Jesus] went out and departed to a solitary place, and there He prayed" (cf Lk 21:38, John 8:2).
It was well before 6 am, but not before 3 am (Robertson). The towns and villages he stayed in were very crowded; it would be nearly impossible to find a place to be alone in such ancient towns, with their narrow streets and sometimes ten or twenty people living in the common one-room houses. Most town blocks consisted of four homes all facing a common courtyard. But one could find a place alone in the hills outside one's village if one arose early enough (Keener).
Sometimes it takes extra effort to find privacy with God. Morning time with the Lord was important to Jesus, and if we are to be like Jesus, I think mornings ought to be important for us as well. Our heart should be that of the hymnwriter:
Mine is the sunlight, mine is the morningBorn of the one light, Eden saw play!Praise with elation, Praise every morning,God's recreation Of the new day!
There is a great album, entitled In the Morning (by Steve Green) that your mother and I probably listen to 3-4 mornings per week, and that I would recommend to you.
Andrew, I advise you to seize the day by seizing your mornings. This will help you excel still more. Next week we will get into the details of what you should do specifically with your morning devotional time.
Love, Dad
Monday, April 14, 2008
What’s in a Name?
Let’s just start at the very beginning. We named you John Andrew for a couple reasons.
“John” is after Pastor John, my favorite alive guy, and John Charles (JC) Ryle, my favorite dead guy. These are the two men (apart from Christ and biblical authors of course) that I hope will influence and shape your faith and character the most. There are some other good John’s out there as well, including the Apostle John, author of my favorite Bible book (John), the Baptist, Calvin, Milton, Owen, Bunyan, Wesley, Knox, Huss, and Edwards. There’s other John’s I like as well, such as John Wooden and John Muir, who have influenced me and might influence your character and personality as well I was partly named after John Wooden, Bompa’s basketball coach, although I probably took more to John Muir! After all, Bompa and I actually spent a lot more time together in the High Sierra than we did on the basketball court, and I look forward to spending time up there with you as well.
Having said that, we call you by your middle name, Andrew, because I didn’t want to give you or anyone the wrong impression that you were named John after your father! As much as I love you and hope to set an example for you, it's certainly these other John's who represent your namesake. If my name was Mitch, Ryan, Tom, or Steve you’d still be John Andrew.
Andrew is after the Apostle Andrew. I was studying that part of John’s gospel during the time you were born, and was struck by his faithful, humble character. He was Peter’s brother, and more often found in the limelight than the spotlight. Of the few glimpses we have of him in the NT, he always seems to be bringing people to Jesus. If not, he was the one bringing fish and bread to Jesus. Whatever relationships or resources he had he faithfully brought to Jesus. I admire that! He was not the “sons of thunder” type that James and John were. He was not the outspoken or aggressive Peter type. He was never a doubter like Thomas, nor was he fickle like Philip. He was faithful, humble, soft-spoken, and consistent. How I would love to see you characterized by those same words! For a long time, I probably would have wanted you to be a Peter. A strong, outgoing, fearless leader; passionate, and unafraid to fail. A man who would carry Christ’s torch of truth through the book of Acts to found the Christian church. There’s a lot to be admired in a man like Peter. But there’s a lot to be said about Andrew as well. After all, Andrew's the one that brought Peter to Jesus!
I pray that your name is a source of encouragement and accountability as you seek to EXCEL STILL MORE!
Dad
Lord willing, there will be future posts on John MacArthur, JC Ryle, the High Sierra, and humility…
“John” is after Pastor John, my favorite alive guy, and John Charles (JC) Ryle, my favorite dead guy. These are the two men (apart from Christ and biblical authors of course) that I hope will influence and shape your faith and character the most. There are some other good John’s out there as well, including the Apostle John, author of my favorite Bible book (John), the Baptist, Calvin, Milton, Owen, Bunyan, Wesley, Knox, Huss, and Edwards. There’s other John’s I like as well, such as John Wooden and John Muir, who have influenced me and might influence your character and personality as well I was partly named after John Wooden, Bompa’s basketball coach, although I probably took more to John Muir! After all, Bompa and I actually spent a lot more time together in the High Sierra than we did on the basketball court, and I look forward to spending time up there with you as well.
Having said that, we call you by your middle name, Andrew, because I didn’t want to give you or anyone the wrong impression that you were named John after your father! As much as I love you and hope to set an example for you, it's certainly these other John's who represent your namesake. If my name was Mitch, Ryan, Tom, or Steve you’d still be John Andrew.
Andrew is after the Apostle Andrew. I was studying that part of John’s gospel during the time you were born, and was struck by his faithful, humble character. He was Peter’s brother, and more often found in the limelight than the spotlight. Of the few glimpses we have of him in the NT, he always seems to be bringing people to Jesus. If not, he was the one bringing fish and bread to Jesus. Whatever relationships or resources he had he faithfully brought to Jesus. I admire that! He was not the “sons of thunder” type that James and John were. He was not the outspoken or aggressive Peter type. He was never a doubter like Thomas, nor was he fickle like Philip. He was faithful, humble, soft-spoken, and consistent. How I would love to see you characterized by those same words! For a long time, I probably would have wanted you to be a Peter. A strong, outgoing, fearless leader; passionate, and unafraid to fail. A man who would carry Christ’s torch of truth through the book of Acts to found the Christian church. There’s a lot to be admired in a man like Peter. But there’s a lot to be said about Andrew as well. After all, Andrew's the one that brought Peter to Jesus!
I pray that your name is a source of encouragement and accountability as you seek to EXCEL STILL MORE!
Dad
Lord willing, there will be future posts on John MacArthur, JC Ryle, the High Sierra, and humility…
Monday, April 7, 2008
So if it’s intended just for you, why make it a blog?
1. Personal Accountability
Getting my thoughts out in writing really helps me to better articulate them for myself, and sharpens my own thinking about the key lessons I want to teach you. As you will be well-aware by the time you can read this, your Dad cannot multitask, nor can he pray or think clearly without a pen. I am majorly into journaling. I lose focus too fast otherwise. If I don’t write it down it probably isn’t going to happen. Even if you never actually read these posts I think they will have still accomplished their purpose based on just this first point.
2. Corporate Accountabilty
I don’t want to parent you in a vacuum. Letting others know the lessons I plan to teach you gives me the opportunity to have them evaluated and critiqued by others, to make sure they are truly helpful and biblically sound (2 Tim 2:15). Also, if I commit to posting one lesson per week, hopefully this will prevent me from being overly lazy or sporadic about it, because friends and family will be reading it and expecting it.
3. Encouragment
Posting these lessons might be a good opportunity to not only receive accountability, but to encourage others as well as we all strive to love and obey Christ. Perhaps it will stimulate other Christians or even unbelievers who visit our site to deepen or evaluate their walk with Christ (Heb 10:24). When friends and family visit our site, Mom and I want them to know that we are all about having fun as a family, which they’ll see in the pics and stories, but more importantly, that we are all about the Word, Written and Incarnate, and glorifying God in our family.
4. I Just Want To.
Writing is something I enjoy, and if it’s a gift or desire God has given me then it is my responsibility to share that with others, and perhaps this is a good medium for that. It will be your responsibility to do the same with your desires and gifts (Eph 4:16).
So those are my reasons for doing this blog, Andrew. You’ll notice that most of the posts are me just passing along someone else’s thoughts or insights that I think will help you excel still more, and passing along things that have been especially encouraging and beneficial to me as a young Christian.
Disclaimer: I have every right to go back and edit these posts anytime! The general tone will be to exhort you to “excel still more” as a young believer. However, our goal at first as parents will be to clearly explain and demonstrate the gospel (as outlined here and here) and place you in environments, such as our church, where it is clearly preached. Until you personally decide to repent of your sin and believe in Christ, these lessons probably would not make sense, and, God forbid, could have an adverse affect (as noted here).
I love you Andrew! “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth” (3 Jn 4).
Getting my thoughts out in writing really helps me to better articulate them for myself, and sharpens my own thinking about the key lessons I want to teach you. As you will be well-aware by the time you can read this, your Dad cannot multitask, nor can he pray or think clearly without a pen. I am majorly into journaling. I lose focus too fast otherwise. If I don’t write it down it probably isn’t going to happen. Even if you never actually read these posts I think they will have still accomplished their purpose based on just this first point.
2. Corporate Accountabilty
I don’t want to parent you in a vacuum. Letting others know the lessons I plan to teach you gives me the opportunity to have them evaluated and critiqued by others, to make sure they are truly helpful and biblically sound (2 Tim 2:15). Also, if I commit to posting one lesson per week, hopefully this will prevent me from being overly lazy or sporadic about it, because friends and family will be reading it and expecting it.
3. Encouragment
Posting these lessons might be a good opportunity to not only receive accountability, but to encourage others as well as we all strive to love and obey Christ. Perhaps it will stimulate other Christians or even unbelievers who visit our site to deepen or evaluate their walk with Christ (Heb 10:24). When friends and family visit our site, Mom and I want them to know that we are all about having fun as a family, which they’ll see in the pics and stories, but more importantly, that we are all about the Word, Written and Incarnate, and glorifying God in our family.
4. I Just Want To.
Writing is something I enjoy, and if it’s a gift or desire God has given me then it is my responsibility to share that with others, and perhaps this is a good medium for that. It will be your responsibility to do the same with your desires and gifts (Eph 4:16).
So those are my reasons for doing this blog, Andrew. You’ll notice that most of the posts are me just passing along someone else’s thoughts or insights that I think will help you excel still more, and passing along things that have been especially encouraging and beneficial to me as a young Christian.
Disclaimer: I have every right to go back and edit these posts anytime! The general tone will be to exhort you to “excel still more” as a young believer. However, our goal at first as parents will be to clearly explain and demonstrate the gospel (as outlined here and here) and place you in environments, such as our church, where it is clearly preached. Until you personally decide to repent of your sin and believe in Christ, these lessons probably would not make sense, and, God forbid, could have an adverse affect (as noted here).
I love you Andrew! “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth” (3 Jn 4).
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