Pictures from Vacation Days 1 and 2

These are just a few, but we will post more later. We have spent all morning and afternoon at Downtown Disney and are off to Epcot now to World Showcase and to watch Illumination.

Experiencing The Magic and the Wonder

Allyssa and I arrived in our resort on Friday evening. We had a great flight, especially since we got to fly with a cool group of guys from the band, By The Tree. They were very friendly and I knew people that some of them knew. So that was a great and memorable experience.
We have spent the last couple of days at Magic Kingdom, and we have been loving it. We are now awaiting the parade and fireworks show, which I have heard are great.

I will be posting more about our vacation, as well as some of the great photos that my wonderful photographer wife Allyssa has taken. Well off to continue experiencing the magic and the wonder. More to come soon.

Off To Disney

Allyssa and I are packed and ready. My mother-in-law and father-in-law are picking us up at 10:00 in the morning to take us to Nashille International to fly to Orlando.

We are so excited to finally get to take a vacation together. Disney World is Allyssa's favorite place in the world. This will be my first time to visit, but I am excited to go and see Allyssa's beautiful smile. As you husbands know, there is nothing more gratifying than seeing your wife extremely happy.

Please pray for our safety and that the weather will alow us to enjoy our tripp.

Stay tuned for updates and pictures.

Quote of the Day: Clothed In Christ's Obedience

"I must not only wash in Christ's blood, but clothe me in His obedience. For every sin of omission in self, I may find a divinely perfect obedience ready for me in Christ. For every sin of commission in self, I may find not only a stripe or a wound in Christ, but also a perfect rendering of the opposite obedience in my place, so that the law is magnified, its curse more than carried, its demand more than answered."
-Robert Murray

Creating Caged Christians

Mark Batterson has posted an excerpt from his new book Wild Goose Chase, at his blog. He poses an interesting question, 'Are churches in today's society creating caged Christians?' The following is the excerpt in which he describes his thoughts on this issue:

I wonder if churches do to people what zoos do the animals. We try to tame them in the name of Christ. We remove the risk. We remove the danger. We remove the struggle. And what we end up with is a caged Christian.

Jesus didn't die on the cross to keep us safe. He died to make us dangerous. I would like to think that when I pronounce the benediction at th end of our church services, I am sending dangerous people back into their natural habitat to wreak havoc on the Enemy.

His observation really resonates with me, because I have experienced this first hand. It seems as though many churches want to create an environment that is safe for Christians. I do not believe this is Biblical at all. I believe that the church needs to create an environment that is safe for those who are not following Christ, but not for Christians. Jesus said that He did not come to save the healthy but the sick. I feel as though this should be the approach that we take in our weekly worship services at our churches.

Many churches are doing their members a terrible disservice by teaching that the life of following Christ is safe and comfortable. In my experience it is the total opposite. What we have in our churches are Christians who look at our God as a big teddy bear in the sky, who is willing and able to meet our every demand. What happens when people start thinking this way is they no longer approach a Holy God with fear and reverence. However, they begin to approach him with their laundry lists of things they want Him to accomplish, and if He doesn't they are discouraged and confused.

This is a terrible place to find yourself. When I look at Jesus' life, it doesn't appear as though he lived a very safe and comfortable life. It appears to be the total opposite. So it would be worth our while when someone receives Jesus as their Savior, that we teach them the 'costs' involved with following Jesus. Many of my experiences in church are the opposite. The pastor guilts people to come forward and pray a prayer and then we leave them hanging. When we are talking with someone about their need for Jesus, we also need to explain to them what it means and what it costs to follow Christ.

What do you think? Do you find that you are living a comfortable and safe life as a Christian? Pastors, are you trying to create an environment that is safe and comfortable for your members, or for those who are not currently following Christ?

Consider Your Calling

As I was preparing for our mid week service, I was reading through 1 Corinthians 1 and came across some interesting and challenging verses. The following verses really popped out and caused me to pause and consider not only my calling into ministry but also as a follower of Christ.

"For consider you calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption. Therefore, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord"."
-1 Corinthians 1:26-31 (ESV)

Know Jesus

Great Spurgeon quote:

"Know Jesus. Sit at His feet. Consider His nature, His works, His sufferings, His glory. Rejoice in His presence; commune with Him day to day. To know Christ, is to understand the most excellent of all sciences. You cannot fail to be wise if you commune with Incarnate wisdom; you cannot lack strength if you have constant fellowship with God."