Conclusions, by Will

I'm coming to loath the word "busy" more and more each year. The past five years of my life seem to be dominated by it, but I'm starting to have a little hope that it's reign will soon be coming to an end. School has dominated so much of my life since August 2014, wow that feels so long ago, but the end is in sight as I'm now in my final class. Six weeks from today, my career as a graduate student will officially be completed when I walk at commencement. It's been a long road, and I'm hoping it will all have been worth it.

The legal battle I've been in since 2016 had the final pre-trial hearing this month. There are still a couple of steps to take before the final hearing, but the end of this is (hopefully) quickly approaching.

Last July, I reached out to a couple pastors about seeking intentional discipleship with them for one year. The time I've spent with them has been good. I've been able to learn about leadership from an experienced and successful leader, and I've been able to talk about discovering a deeper relationship with God with a man who has endured suffering and remained faithful and obedient. It's now almost April, and the year I asked for is starting to wrap up.

My life has a lot of conclusions right now. I felt last June that I was given a one year time frame on this season of life, and everything seems to be sticking to that time frame. The issue is, I don't know what's next.

This has frustrated me for a while, and it feels like everyday I get more anxious and frustrated. I've always been a planner, it's just who I am, and the inability to really plan anything has been really irritating, especially since I have absolutely no idea what may be coming. I've looked at a couple opportunities, but nothing has worked out so far.

I've found myself being nervous about pursuing opportunities because I'm getting tired of rejection. And in this, I'm trying to trust. Trusting has been hard. Each day when nothing happens and I move a day closer to the end of the time frame God gave me I find myself doubting a little bit.

I don't want to live with doubt. I've heard so many stories of God providing for people in I know. I've watched Him come through for several of my brothers in the past two years, I've prayed with boldness and confidence for them and with them about these things, and I've watched God answer our prayers specifically. I want to trust that God is going to come through for me as well.

Every conclusion leads to a new beginning, waiting for that can be difficult.


Fight the lion, 1 Peter 5.1-11

TO GOD ALONE BE THE GLORY!

The waiting game! Getting ready for child #3, by Aaron

So my wife and I are about 3 days away from the due date of our third child. We currently have two boys and our third child will be a girl. God has definitely blessed us in life, and we are excited to meet our little girl hopefully within the next couple of days. As we are about to close a chapter in our lives with having only the two boys, I have been reflecting on this current season with my family. It is very exciting to bring a baby home, but I am also feeling very sad to close this last chapter of our life. I will say it has been a somewhat difficult season with the boys, as they are getting older they know how to test you as a parent. They know how to push your buttons and they push those limits everyday. Some days can be very rough, but I don't know what I would do without those boys. They are constantly on my mind when I work, and they always put a smile on my face when I get home. Even in those difficult times, I feel like God is constantly telling me "quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger (James 1:19-20). This latest chapter in life has brought my wife and I closer together. As I stated earlier, it has been difficult parenting the boys, but we have held each others hands the whole way. We ask forgiveness multiple times a week and have to apologize to the boys for our faults. But these boys are full of life, full of love and I'm so proud to be a part of their lives.

Now we are in the wake of starting our next chapter and as Father I am terrified to try to parent a little girl. I have the changing diaper thing down and holding a newborn baby I finally have down pretty well. I give our boys a bath the majority of the time and have gotten better at picking out clothes that actually match, so I have the little stuff down, kinda! Here are some things I have been been reflecting on as a Father and husband. Am I gentle enough? Am I slow to anger? It's pretty easy for me to get angry and yell at the boys without them even flinching. I've just been praying for gentleness and patience with our little girl (and the boys). I also am praying my youngest does not feel neglected. Sometimes I feel like I am not giving my oldest enough of my time, mostly because the youngest just gets into everything and we have to keep an eye on him at all times. I want all my children and especially my wife to know that they are all important to me.

So as we are awaiting the arrival of our daughter, I just wanted to say that God is good and we are so excited for her to join our family. As her father, I am already praying for her each day that she would grow up to know the Lord. I have been praying for kindness, hospitality, and joy to be a part of her. I am praying that she would be an encouragement to all those she meets. I pray that her older brothers would love on her and would protect her. I pray that her mother and I would be gentle with her and help create an environment in our home that points her straight to Jesus.

To all those reading that have children or are trying to have children, I hope that you are praying for your children. I pray that you are preparing an environment in your home that will point them to the Father. I pray that if you are having a difficult time in your life, that you would allow the God to minister to your heart. If you are trying to have children and cannot, the Father knows your heart. Tell Him that you are frustrated, and just put it in His hands. I can't tell you why, but I do know someone that will listen to your heart. If your kids are driving you crazy, ask the Father to help you. I mean He created all of creation, I have to believe He knows how to do this parenting thing way better than us. If you are reading this, please pray for my family as we move into this next transition. After our little girl comes, I will try to write another post soon about how we are transitioning and how the Father has been working in our lives as we parent our growing family.

God bless you all!

-Aaron

21 Again, by T.Y.

This month, I turned 32.  As I get older, I realize I have somewhat of a wealth of knowledge, or just a rolodex of trial-and-error experiences.  Lately, I have been binge listening to the podcast, "Ask Pastor John (Piper)," in which people email questions to John Piper, and he answers them with sound, biblical wisdom.  Questions vary from bible interpretation to practical living, dating to marriage, just a whole gambit of ideas.  He dishes out his wisdom in lists, which are really easy to track and remember.

So in honor of my 32nd birthday and John Piper (more so John Piper), I would like to turn back the clocks to the top 5 things I would tell Christians in their early 20s, in order of importance.

1) Resolve to make your relationship with God the most important thing to you.

God is the epi-center of life, so everything starts and ends with Him.  The most important thing you can do with your life is to rightfully place God on the throne of your heart, and prioritize everything else around Him.  He has made us relational beings, to reflect His relational traits, so He does not desire mindless compliance, but rather a relationship and our affections.  Though we may see God at times through the imperfect examples of parents, government, and other authorities in our life, the reality is God loves us more than we can even fathom or comprehend.  I mean, He sees every thought, action, word uttered, and the very depths of your heart, yet He passionately loves you.  [insert mind-blown emoji]

A couple practical ways to resolve to do this are 1) Bible reading and 2) prayer.  To invest in a relationship, it takes time and intimacy; therefore, carve out the time and protect it to the glory of God.  Also, try to read books like "Pursuit of God", "Knowledge of the Holy", "Desiring God", or any other book that really points your gaze to the Lord.  If you carve out that time and prioritize it, you will see the fruit of your devotion.

2) Find a biblical, gospel-preaching church and serve faithfully in the area of ministry God has discernibly placed on your heart.

This is #2 because it is the best way to properly undergird #1, your relationship with the Lord.  If you find yourself like me when I was 21, living in a city far from home, you will need the local church to serve as your family away from family.  I have been at my current church for six years, and they have become the unexpected family I have come to depend on heavily, and vice versa.  When I need godly counsel, someone to hang with, a babysitter, or virtually anything, I go no further than my church.

Take time to find the church the Lord leads you to, but make sure to land on one as soon as you feel the prompting of the Spirit.  There is nothing wrong with preferences of style, such as preaching, music, and events, but look for churches that are doctrinally-sound and promotes the truth of the gospel every week.  Preferences are good, but not the most important thing.

Please note that I am not just saying attend church, but in addition to attending, become a member (or whatever terminology they use) and serve faithfully.  When looking for where to serve, shoot for a ministry or opportunity that falls in line with your passions and top spiritual gifts.  If you are not sure what those are, you can try some out, serve where there is a need, or just find one of the most basic opportunities to get your feet wet.  If the church has a small group/home church ministry, find a group that works for you and your schedule, and attend it.

Depending on the season, serving may be difficult, but if at all possible, serve in at least one ministry, but for the most part, just try to serve in one ministry.  DO NOT SPREAD YOURSELF THIN SERVING ANY MULTIPLE MINISTRIES.  NO BURN OUT!

3) Prayerfully consider how you will invest in the relationships around you ... then invest.

This point is super broad.  When I say relationship, I mean all relationships: family, friends, colleagues, and dating/romantic relationships. 

You may not have the best relationship with your family, but if at all possible, prayerfully consider what it would be like to invest in that relationship.  Parents may want to talk to you, so what would it look like develop a rhythm or frequency to phone calls or video chat.  You may want to do the same with a sibling or close friend from far away.

In your proximity, look for people who can be good, even close, friends.  The church is a great place to find community like that, but it is not the only place.  In fact, for the sake of evangelism, it is often good to have friendships outside of the church.

By way of romance and dating, my encouragement would be to prayerfully discern how the Lord would have you approach that area of your life in the current season.  For instance, if you feel you "need" a mate, you should DEFINITELY take time to find your sufficiency in Christ because it may be unhealthy for you and someone else to pursue romance.  If you recently broke up with someone, you should DEFINITELY take time to heal, process, and grieve from that past relationship before you pursue romance again.  Ultimately, it's going to be hard to have a healthy relationship if you yourself are not healthy.

If God has put the desire of marriage on your heart as a single person or if you are married, I would strongly encourage you to pick up the "Meaning of Marriage" or "You and Me Forever" to begin to cultivate the framework and foundation of a vision for marriage.  I am not against dating, but dating should be done through prayer, above reproach, with intentionality, and with godly counsel from community for the good of others and the glory of God.

4) Dream and think BIG about what you want to be and do for vocation and make plans to get there.

Disclaimer: "Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand." (Prov. 19:21)

There is a disclaimer to this one and you need to take this with a grain of salt.  Who you are can only be found in Christ, and what you do or want to do is also found in Christ.  Strongly consider what you wish to do for a vocation, but remember to hold that vocation in its proper place, which is why it is #4 on a list of 5.  Your vocation may take up a large amount of your time in life, but it is not your identity.  Note that what you want to do will change over time, and you will try different things that you may fail at, but my encouragement is to dream with open palms for the direction God has for you.

I say dream BIG because God has uniquely made you with passions and desires that He intends for you to use to His glory, your good, and the good of others.  So dream BIG!  Consider the things you enjoy, the things you are passionate about, and the kind of work to which you can say, "I can't believe someone pays me to do this".  If you find yourself with a couple different ideas, research them to grasp a deeper understanding of them.  

Once you have gotten that idea(s), start making plans on how you may accomplish it.  What education do you need?  What are the financial obligations?  What experiences or skills do you need to develop?  Create milestones to break up the journey so you can see the progression.  Remember that you are an ever-evolving being, and you may find yourself wanting to change gears to a different vocation or line of work in the middle.  That's okay (and relatively common)!

Ultimately, a plan is better than no plan.  Your future spouse and children, if God wills, will appreciate it.  But please keep God and relationships at a higher priority over your aspirations. 

5) Have fun.

Yes!  Seriously!  I put this last, not as an after-thought, but to continually beat the drum on how to properly prioritize life and to ensure that thrills, desires, and comforts do not usurp your focus from the first 4.  Seriously, you need to have fun.  As you get older, your time, capacity, and energy will decrease, and responsibility will increase.  So while you still have time and energy, with low responsibility, please go have fun.

If you have the time and finances to do so, travel and experience new cultures and food.  If you enjoy working out, sports, or running, go for it.  Go on walks, read a book or two.  Write.  What you like to do for fun varies, but seriously, whatever it is go out and do those things to the glory of God, just remember not to neglect any of the prior 4.

Why?  Rest and enjoyment is biblical.  You will hear many messages from culture (and occasionally from the Church) about working yourself to death or making your comfort into a god.  The reality is we need a balance of work and rest, both to the glory of God.  Work is important and was there before the Fall of Man in Genesis 3, but do not neglect resting.  "It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep." (Psalm 127:2)

As I mentioned above, I learned these lessons from trial and error.  I spent most of my life, subconsciously, making my ambitions the center of my universe.  As a result, God did not have the prominent place in my heart until everything else failed me, when it all fell down.  I put ambition over faithfully being part of a church.  Ambition drove me to neglect my family and close relationships.  I have missed substantial parts of my sister's kids' lives, and I am haunted by that truth.  I even let the pursuit of ambition rob me of joy and relaxation only to burn myself out in the end.

This wisdom I give is wisdom I give out of folly, not prudence, but I hope that the hard lessons I learned may ensure fruitfulness for someone else.  The truth is you reading this may fail at one of the five, maybe most of the five, but remember that Jesus died for your failure, idolatry, and folly.  He paid it all so that you did not have to receive the just penalty for your shortcomings.  He gives an unbelievable grace that the world could never offer.  So live, and fail, and repeat, but once you have endured your 20s or 30s, look for how you can glorify God in this life and how others can benefit.

Hungry, by Ryan

With Ash Wednesday being celebrated a few weeks ago (March 6 this year) kicking off the season of Lent (40 days before Easter excluding the Sabbath each week) reminds me of when Jesus went to the wilderness for 40 days to be tempted by Satan after His baptism and before beginning His ministry (Matthew 4:1-11). The passage records three ways that Satan tempts Christ and I would like to focus on the first one recorded in the Bible in this post.

Picture yourself on a rocky mountainside (see below) and you've gone days without food. The Evil One uses that still, small voice to whisper in your ear something like: "It's not a big deal, you have the ability and power to turn the stones you are walking on to a fresh, warm loaf of bread because I know you're hungry." I think the longest I've gone without eating is a little over 30 hours - I can't imagine going 40 days. Jesus spent 40 days of prayer and fasting before starting his ministry. Praise God that Jesus doesn't have the same response that most of us would have and give in to temptation and His physical desires.

Jesus responds to the Tempter by reciting the verse from Deuteronomy 8:3 (...man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord) because He knew that Satan was tempting Him by appealing to His physical need of eating. Jesus knew that if He gave in to Satan, He would not fulfill His purpose on Earth. If Christ didn't fulfill His purpose on Earth, none of us would be saved.

As we get closer to Easter, I want to encourage us to be mindful of what Christ did for us - saving us by suffering a brutal death and rising after three days. Keep in mind though that for Him to get there, he was tempted just as we are, sometimes by basic needs but also in the stillest and smallest voices. May we be hungry to grow closer to Jesus!

From dust we came and to dust we will return.