take me home

"Rolling down the road

Going no where

Guitar packed in the trunk

Somewhere round mile marker 112

Papa started hummin the funk

I gotta jones in my bones before we know
We were singing this melody
Stop the car pulled out the guitar
Halfway to New Orleans
Said take me home
Take me home"
-Marc Broussard - Home

"But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about.""
-John 4:32 (esv).

I've been up almost 39 hours now. So excuse this post if it's a little dissociated. (If dissociated is even the right word... further proof of my fatigue.) Here was the moving plan:

March 30 - Atlanta - 0600 to 1800 - Clean the apartment and prep my belongings for packing into a truck. Get the truck at some point.
March 30 - Atlanta - 1900 - 12 people show up to help me move.
March 30 - Atlanta - 2000 - I buy pizza for 12 people.
March 30 - Atlanta - 2200 - I pick up my father from MARTA.
March 30 - Atlanta - 2230 - We get to the hotel and go to sleep.
March 31 - Atlanta - 0630 - We awake to drive to Houston.
March 31 - Houston - 2100 - We arrive in Houston.

Here was the actual result:

March 30 - Atlanta

0600 My alarm goes off. I get up and start packing, moving around everything I own into the final little boxes where they will hopefully be loaded later in the day into a truck.

0800 My father calls from Houston and tells me that I will most likely need his driver's license number if I am going to add him as a driver on the rental truck from Budget. I receive an email with a photo copy of his driver's license attached.

0845 I leave to go get the truck, I have to first get a hard copy of the driver's license picture to bring to the people at the rental place.

0850 I discover the printer at my apartment complex business center is broken. The apartment office is closed, so I can't use their printers. So there's no way I can print at the apartment complex.

0945 After an hour of driving looking for a copy shop, I finally find a location that allows me to print the driver's license.

0950 I head over to pick up the truck and realize I forgot the coupon. I begin to panic about the time.

1015 I get back to the apartment complex to get the coupon. It occurs to me that the office is now open, and all I have accomplished was to get a printout of my father's driver's license. I start to panic a little. I read some Psalm 139. I continue panicking.

1050 I finally make it to the truck rental place. It starts raining.

1130 I finish at the car rental place, my car is mounted on the back of the truck.

1200 I get home. I pack a little.

1245 I go to get lunch.

1300 I eat lunch.

1320 I continue packing.

1430 Adina calls. She's leaving for Sudan. We talk for about 15 minutes. I spend some time after the phone call praying asking God to give me the grace to give the moving process over to Him.

1500 Two (Matt and Brad) of the twelve that planned on helping show up early. We start loading.

1630 Joe D. shows up and helps load.

1800 The apartment is completely clean, and everything is packed.

1815 I feed four people at California Pizza Kitchen. I leave a message for my father to tell him I'll be at the airport and he need not take MARTA.

2030 I pick up Dad at the Airport.

2115 My Dad and I drop off his portion of the papers at Budget.

2200 Dad and I arrive at La Quinta.

2230 Lights out.

2330 Lights on in the bathroom for me. I start reading Psalms. Can't sleep.

2345 I tell God that if I need sleep, I know he'll give me some. If I don't need it, I won't get it. I take some Simply Sleep sleeping pills.

0130 Still awake, I turn on the TV to try to zone, disturbing my father in the process.

0200 I turn on the lamp next to my bed and start reading Psalms and journaling.

0210 My Dad rolls over towards the light, winces and groans as if to say "Why the light?". I pause, think, and then say "Let's go". I explain to him I wasn't going to get any sleep, and at this point, we might as well leave Atlanta. We get up, take showers, and then at...

0230 (AM) We leave La Quinta.

0305 I start the hitching process at my apartment complex to put the car on the back of the truck.

0330 We're on our way.

During the entire drive I am amazed by my alertness and attentiveness to the road. We were also amazed the car was still there at every turn.

(Times change to CDT from EDT at this point)

1800 We arrive in Houston and Mom, Dad and I go to a Mexican restaurant.

2000 Now back at the house, I say goodnight and start writing this blog.

Moral of the story: God gives you what you need. I thought I needed sleep. I didn't. What I needed, was to be on the road. Christ refused food because he wasn't hungry. He knew what the will of God was, and that was food enough for Him. To do the will of God then was his food. To do the will of God now was my sleep. I knew what I needed to do in getting to Houston, and that was good enough for me. Even though Friday started a bit rough, God still pulled me through. Further proof that God is all sufficient, and that nothing, including Simply Sleep sleeping pills, will interfere with his plan.

Praise Him for His faithfulness! Praise Him for His sovreignty, for God alone is our rest and our salvation!

Now I sleep.

goodbyes, hellos, and abiding

"Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.
If I say, "Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,"
even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you. "

- Psalm 139:7-12

I'm moving to Houston in 2 days. I'm leaving behind people I love, and a life I've grown into. I can't help in thinking as I go how God has so sovreignly adjusted everything in my life over the last couple of years.

In 2002, I left behind College Station, TX, a town so full of people, but contained fewer friends each year. I suppose that's how it is when you live in a college town. I packed everything I owned in my Sky Blue Plymouth Acclaim with the busted drivers side door that I had to replace, and I drove from College Station to Nashville, TN in two days. My brother and my sister-in-law let me stay at their apartment in Dallas for the night, and then the next day I picked up and drove to Nashville. I remember thinking, on my way there, how I was going to have to stop and find a nice place to stop, set up a tent, and camp. My plan was to stay in a state park until I found an apartment to move into. My father called me on my way to Nashville and told me about a friend of his, and gave me his friend's phone number. I suddenly had a place to stay. In an act of grace towards a complete stranger unlike anything I've ever seen, my father's friend, John, loaded me up with food before I left his apartment the next morning. I was set for a while. God is good.

While I was looking for a church in Nashville, I remember having three specific qualifications for a church to stay at. First, they had to be theologically sound. Read the rest of my posts, and you'll know what I mean by this. Second, they had to be missions minded. And lastly, I wanted someone to ask me to lunch afterwards. At Community Bible Church in Nashville, this happened. I found my church home, and with it, an incredible group of believers that God has used to shape me greatly. I owe much of my theology to one particular person, Smedly Yates, who works there. His marriage and family are to be modeled. God is good.

I left Nashville to move to Atlanta. Four or five months before I moved, I met two people, Steve and Nick, who are still good friends to this day. They both lived in Atlanta. God provided me friends in Atlanta before I even moved down there. Through Steve, I learned (and continue to learn) alot about my weaknesses. Through my encouragement regarding eHarmony, Nick met Maria, and they're getting married soon. Through Maria, I met Adina, and fell in love. God is good.

In Atlanta, I joined a church called Perimeter Church. I made several close friends here that I am going to miss. They've encouraged me, rebuked me, and helped hold me to the highest standard of glorifying God. God is good.

God placed Adina in Houston. My best friend Ramy lives there, and my parents live there. I have other friends that live there, and there's great Mexican food there. I have a place to stay for a short while until I find a good apartment to move into there. I have been provided for time and time again. God is good.

There are goodbyes to say, but hellos I will say. There are a few see-you-laters thrown in there, and there are a few I-pray-I'll-see-you-laters in there. In all of it, there is God. He is here. Right now as I type this, and right now as you read this. He is here. He hears us, and he knows us. He knows every little bit of my being, and everything that I'm going to say in this blog, he knew it before it was even on my tongue. God is so close to me. He loves me, and I love Him. He has always been here, is always here, and always will be here. He has always watched out for me. He watches out for me now. He will always watch out for me. There is nowhere I can go to hide from him. There is nothing I do that will not be seen, but there is no more comforting thought than that the God of the universe who created us, hasn't only let us live, when we certainly deserve sudden death, but he's actually sent his only Son to die for us. That we should be so blessed, that through his Son, we know God is with us. So I must abide in Him.

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us."
- Matthew 1:22-23

Oh yes... We missions-minded people always focus on certain parts of the great commission. I think it's just as important to focus on the other parts. Meditate on what these two sections in bold mean. It's quite amazing!

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
-Matthew 28:16-20

Now knowing this... how can we lose?

Immanuel, be with us. Amen.

5 rejections

Don't believe me. Please don't.

Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
- Acts 17:11

Read the Bible. It's the only written fountain of perfect and flawless truth. I'm finding as I'm reading Scripture more and more, and am spending time in prayer more and more, I'm simultaneously disagreeing with other good Christian people more and more. Perhaps I'm a little paranoid, but I believe that there are tares among the wheat. This is a very Biblical concept. We will all be harvested. Some will be gathered into the barn, and some will be burned in bundles. I implore God that I will not be burned, but will rather find myself worshipping at the throne in God's presence when I am taken from Earth.

For the reader, in the interest of clarity, I'm going to outline 5 rejections.

1. I reject any sanctification path that suggests that man, in his own effort, can do anything at all. I know I can't (do anything) and I don't really want to. If I do anything "good" out of my own self-will, I'm not glorifying God, but I'm rather living by the letter of the law. That will make me unpleasant, boring and burdened beyond my ability to carry. Any author that suggests that you can make yourself better through some "thing" that you have or do is wrong. There is no lasting and God-glorifying agent of change save for Christ Himself. Any other attempt at sanctification is pointless in God's eyes, and our righteousness is like filthy rags to him. We are at God's mercy. Praise him for his grace!

2. I reject any gospel that omits Christ. This includes any of the various forms of self-help, even if professed or published by Christians. I love my brothers and sisters in Christ, but even we can be deceived. If any gospel leaves out Christ, it is not the gospel anymore, but is rather a lie, and as such, it lacks the power to save. Christ holds the weight of glory on his shoulders, and under Him we are free! Praise God for freedom!

3. I reject any gospel that requires anything in addition to the blood of Christ. Requiring Christ's sacrifice plus anything else makes Christ's sacrifice cheap. There is no more glorious act that has ever been revealed in the history of mankind than the plan of free salvation by the blood of Christ for wicked men like you and me. Any man who adds extra pieces to God's plan of salvation adds extra burden upon himself and insults the One who would give all for him. As Paul says "let him be accursed."

4. I reject any good works done for any other purpose than to glorify God. God has grace, and is sovreign. He will redeem and use for his glory works that were not designed to give him glory. He has also used Pharoah's hard heart and disobedience to bring glory to Him, and he has used Joseph's brother's evil acts for His glory. Everything will ultimately result in God's glory, but only those acts that are done for the purpose of glorifying God will be recognized by Him as good. May every good work be done in the Spirit to the glory of God's name and His renown. Lord, have grace on the weakness of our attempts at good. Even in our best moments, we fall miserably short of glory.

5. I reject open-mindedness where the evaluated idea contradicts Scripture. Though I'm called to and will love others who disagree with me, I will nonetheless reject the beliefs they offer, if the belief in any way contradicts the Bible or leads to actions that would result in any act that is less than completely glorifying to God. God has revealed himself clearly in Scripture, and we would do well to heed it. I believe there is only one true God, and he is revealed in the Bible.

We become like what we love. What (or who) do you love?

if i were a rich man

"If I were a rich man,
Ya ha deedle deedle, bubba bubba deedle deedle dum.
All day long I'd biddy biddy bum.
If I were a wealthy man.
I wouldn't have to work hard.
Ya ha deedle deedle, bubba bubba deedle deedle dum.
If I were a biddy biddy rich,
Yidle-diddle-didle-didle man."
-Fiddler on the Roof

WARNING: PARANORMAL AND COMEDIC OVERTONES AHEAD

The other day, I was at work and a developer friend of mine in my office mentioned to me how it's now official. I was thinking, perhaps he is engaged. But no. Apparently, when he dies, he is going to be put in a casket, and shot into space. He was telling me this, somewhat tongue in cheek, expressing the hope that perhaps, some alien civilization may find him, and bring him back to life. One of my other co-workers, who happened to be standing nearby mentioned that he probably wouldn't like that, because he'd probably get prodded and poked, and perhaps turned into a pet. It was at that point, that for some reason, I chimed in and mentioned how it would be cool if this alien civilization lived forever, and never had any shortage of time or resources. It occurred to me after I said that, that in such a society, there would be no need for money, and no need for any economy. There would also be no need for selfishness either, as each person would have an infinite amount of time to live, and no pressure of death.

WARNING: INTROSPECTIVE OVERTONES AHEAD

Then I got to thinking. The only reason that I charge my employer for the work I do is because one day I will die. I only have a limited time on this earth to enjoy the things that I want to enjoy. I want to enjoy my relationships, my friendships, my family, and just being outside in nature, but in order for me to enjoy these things, and still go home and enjoy being at home, it is necessary that I have money with which to purchase food and clothing and shelter, and the basic necessities of life. The only real proper way to get money in my opinion is to work. I exchange a large portion of my life for the purpose of enjoying the rest of my time as best as I know how. In other words, as far as work and play is concerned, there is a delicate balancing act that each of us must be engaged in, in order to use our time to the fullest we know how. It seems, though, that for some reason, some people decide that there is a value to working too much, as that will give them more money and more money. It seems that when people earn more money, they tend to spend less time learning how to truly live an exciting life outside of work, and they spend more time trying to find a way to console themselves, de-stress themselves, and otherwise decompress from the effects that their work is having on them. Demand is great. Supply is short. So we go for the gusto and get as much as we can.

We do this with time too. We only have a set amount of time to do things, so when there are outreach activities or prayer meetings or volunteer opportunities, we tend to run away from those, because of the fact that our time is valuable, because it is limited. But is it really?

WARNING: POLITICAL OVERTONES AHEAD

I am a capitalist economically. This is because I believe it's the best option I've seen. However, capitalism is based on the fact that we have a limited amount of time in which to gather for ourselves. Communism's fatal flaw, on the other hand, is the request of all people to act according to a belief that they cannot hold, namely that resources are unlimited. Socialism's problem is that the state places itself on an equal footing with God. In the U.S., I believe we live in a partially socialist, partially capitalist society. Why are things like this though?

WARNING: SPIRITUAL OVERTONES AHEAD

So here's my theory. In the garden of Eden, Adam had to work (Genesis 2:15). This wasn't a bad thing, and it wasn't a hard thing. After all, Adam walked in the cool of the day with God, and God would provide everything Adam needed. Adam had no fear of death, as at that point, for humans, there was no death. No death means eternal life. Eternal life means unlimited resources. Unlimited resources means no selfishness.

Fast forward a few years to 2007. The western world is the most properous part of civilization. We have more money than we know what to do with. We have cars and big houses and lots and lots of fun. We have shopping malls and TV shows and movies and we even have Jack Bauer. Can life get any better? We have everything we possibly need. So why are we so selfish?

After the fall, death became a reality. It is going to hit us all one day. It's a statistic. 100% of all human beings die. That's pretty grim odds. So we work, and we put alot of ourselves into our work, as we should, but we fail to realize that the entire reason we can even work to begin with is because God, who has created us, has given us the ability to work. Because we start to view our possessions as things that we have earned for ourselves, we begin to get selfish. What this really comes down to is a pretty pathetic view of God.

Here's reality. God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Don't start looking for hill #1001 thinking that you may take all the cattle you want. This simply means that God owns the universe. It is his creation, and it belongs to him. Scripture also tells us that God will give us everything we need. Christ tells us not to worry about what we will eat or wear, for God knows we need these things and will provide them. This extends far beyond these things though. God's provision goes into all parts of our life. His bounty is far beyond our comprehension. He gives "according to his riches." If I said I would give to you according to my riches, you may not be impressed, but what if Warren Buffett or Bill Gates offered the same thing. You might think things a little different. Since everything that Bill Gates owns ultimately belongs to God, don't you think God's bounty is a bit bigger?

God is eternal. He has no sense of urgency. He has no need for urgency. He is God, and he does not live inside of time. Urgency is a construct that only exists in time, and only in a situation where resources are limited. God owns everything and is not bound by time, therefore he has no urgency, and does not glory in efficiency. The fruit of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. That doesn't include efficiency. Be efficient in your work. Don't try to force God to be efficient. That would be prideful and controlling, and I don't think God will appreciates pride (see Psalm 138:6).

So is there any room for selfishness in the life of a believer? Not in one who believes. For God's love overflows with blessings, and will give us everything we need. We have grace for today, and a hope of more grace for tomorrow. God, being the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow, will never change, and will never take his grace away from those on whom he has chosen to show favor. We give because God gives. We love because God loves. To the only true wise God be all the glory, dominion, power and majesty.

Praise God with every breath. Give him thanks for all you have! (If you haven't done this today, stop and do it now.) Walk outside and see the trees and the leaves and the trees shedding the blossoms. See the bees so simply fed by God's provision. See the sun shining down so brightly. See the stars so perfectly placed in the sky. See the rain falling and blessing the ground with what it needs to bring forth goodness. See the color green everywhere, and the color blue above. If July 4th fireworks excite you more than God's creation, perhaps you just haven't been looking. Look around, and be thankful. You are going to live forever. Your resources are truly unlimited. Live by faith, and begin to see.

Praise God, for all blessings come from him.

stewardship ex nihilo

Two days ago, when I was at the bookstore, I found a book on the shelf entitled Sex and the Supremacy of Christ, which is edited by John Piper and Justin Taylor (Director of Theology and Executive Editor at Desiring God Ministries). I had heard part of John Piper's talk at Passion 2007 entitled "How to Deal With the Guilt of Sexual Failure for the Glory of Christ and His Global Cause". To those of you familiar with Piper, this comes as no surprise, but his talk was refreshing in its candid honesty and its basis in Biblical thought. So, when I saw the book on the bookshelf, I thought I should buy it. Sexuality is a much discussed topic outside the church it seems like, and when it is discussed inside the church, most of the discussions center around practical methods to deal with the issue (don't be alone in private with someone you are not married to, watch where your eyes go, get rid of the Internet at home, find accountability, etc.). I'm not bashing these ideas, because they're all great thoughts, though by themselves, they miss the point. The reason I've always enjoyed reading Piper is his central focus, which is the central point of Scripture: the enjoyment of God. To set the struggles of sexual purity (of which I am no stranger) and maintaining a proper view of sex in the midst of the enjoyment of God thus seems to just "fit." In any society, it's hard not to be affected by the world's agenda, and I believe a major part of the world's agenda in the west is a distorted and greatly exaggerated focus on the importance of sexuality, which misses the point, and ironically devalues it greatly. The only remedy for this is Christ, and the enjoyment of Him. To desire Christ strongly is to put all other desires into a proper perspective, subjecting them to his supremacy. I could go on for pages regarding the value of enjoying God and becoming, as Piper puts it, a "Christian Hedonist", but Piper says it far better than I ever will. I advise you to buy either Desiring God or When I Don't Desire God, both by Piper (another really good book is the Bible, by God). Applying the principles in these books will change your walk significantly for the better. Now, let's move on.

In the book, Piper speaks of creation as being created ex nihilo, or, out of nothing. Ben Patterson speaks of the task of stewardship endowed on human beings by the Creator. I suppose I just found these two points interesting together. The former relates more to the goodness of the creation, as the creation was made by God, and the latter relates more to the God-given role we have in helping to maintain the goodness of creation. Ben Patterson says that "[He] must give [his] wife back better than [he] received her." Scripture puts it this way in Matthew 24:44-46: "Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. 'Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed [ecstatically happy] is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.'" (ESV). This verse, incidentally, also relates strongly to the idea that Christ will be returning one day, at the sound of the trumpet, which is another theme I've been obsessed with as of late. Notice it is the master who has set the servant over the household, and the purpose for which he has done this. The servant is given what is called a stewardship over the household. That is, he is responsible to care for the things of the master, fully knowing that he will have to return those things to the master one day. Those things which are given to us by Christ are not our own, they are from God, and are made ex nihilo for the purpose of glorifying Him.

Contrast this with the world's view of enjoying God. In the world's view, the statement of sexuality is "I must keep this girl as long as possible and use her as much as possible primarily for my own enjoyment." It's not a conscious decision, but nonetheless, it is what is being preached to us on all the television networks and cable shows. The goal of the world is to distract us from the primary goal of glorifying and enjoying God through Christ, and bringing all things in submission to Him (just as Christ must reign until all things come). The world wages the war through distorting the truth, and making into primary importance things that are only to be subject to Christ. Sex (and everything else) is thus seen as primarily in existence in order to glorify us. The goal of the Christian, on the other hand, is to pursue glorifying God and enjoying Him as his or her chief pursuit in life. It is true that God has given us many things to enjoy (far more than we are even aware of), but these things are only to be enjoyed at the right time, and only in the way God prescribed.

God and Man both have their own wills. One heals, the other harms. One gives joy, the other despair. One brings life, the other death. One is right, the other wrong. Rejoicing in stewardship of God's creation is our joy in the recognition that God has made us more than conquerors, for the purpose of pursuing Him and His kingdom. Christ Himself is a steward, and to learn to steward, we learn to be like Him. Christ will reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet (I Corinthians 15:25). We reign with Him (Ephesians 2:4-6). Our goal is the same as Christs, and we are to begin with ourselves as our first enemy. We must master our sin (Genesis 4:6-7). When Christ has succeeded in placing all His enemies under His feet, Christ Himself will be subject to Him who placed all things under Christ's feet (I Corinthians 15:28). When we have succeeded in placing all our enemies under our feet, we will then be subject to Christ, and will rejoice in Him!

It is only in Christ that true enjoyment will come. As a close friend of mine once said "Only a Christian can truly enjoy life." All things were created by God out of nothing. He did this to demonstrate His glory, through the splendor and beauty of his creation. C.S. Lewis says, relating creation to a sunbeam, that "Looking along the beam, and looking at the beam are very different experiences." Creation is made to point to Christ. Christ came to give us life more abundant. May we place our pursuit of happiness in the frame of our pursuit of God. May our highest joy be found only in Him who created joy ex nihilo.

the quiet glory of monotony

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 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 12:1-2

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

- Hebrews 4:16

What does the worker gain from his toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.

- Ecclesiastes 3:9-14

In a conversation I was having earlier this morning at work, someone asked me: "What do you do for variety?" I had never really thought of that question before. I started to answer:

"Well, I vary my activities. I like to bike, run, swim sometimes. Occasionally I like to blog. I guess I think about different things. I like my job." On and on, I went. Stammering for a response that would answer the question, and convince my friend that I had a varied enough life to be interesting. But then it occurred to me. I'm not a person who desires a huge amount of variety.

The way I see it, there are only two real reasons not to desire a great deal of variety. The first is because you're "playing it safe", and the second is because you're truly satisfied with very few things. I thought about the four creatures before the throne, calling out "holy, holy holy" day in and day out. They have monotony, but it's not because they're playing it safe, but because they're so taken by the glory of God, that they know nothing greater and more exciting than to exclaim praises to His name day in and day out.

I'm afraid that in my life, the majority of the time, when I go for something familiar, it is because I'm playing it safe. This isn't good. It's really difficult to screw up enchiladas. The Silver Comet trail is going to be the same in good weather when I ride it, and I know I can ride it for 80 miles at a time. Treadmills always go at the same speed, and my morning routine gives me comfort. The question I'm asking myself now is: why do I pursue Christ? Really. Why do I really pursue Christ?

I think I pursue Him because I am completely in love with Him, but there's always that little part of me that says I pursue Him because He's familiar. How can that be? Christ is so far removed from me. He's so different, and is so holy. How could he be familiar? I think it's probably sin that I feel this way, and yet, this is often how I feel. How could I possibly think of Him as familiar to me? When I begin to think of Him as familiar, I think it's because I'm not thinking of Him as being truly alive. My friend Matt often asks me "how real is God to you." Honestly, there are times when God is more real than the anything, but sometimes God seems like an old cracking canvas painting, or the cieling of the Sistine Chapel. He's two dimensional, and although he's reaching out so close, I can't quite bring myself to embrace Him. I'm not saying this is right, I'm just saying this is the way it is from time to time. Sometimes, I follow God out of duty and not out of love. There's a difference, though, between familiarity and comfortability. I hope we can be familiar without being comfortable.

There's somewhat of a natural tension here between the familiar and the removed. Christ has come to Earth, as a man. He's immanent, but transcendant. He's removed from us, but so close at the same time. He loves us, and condescended to be with us, even to the point of washing His friends' feet, and yet, He is the Conqueror in Revelation. The Horseman on the white horse. He is so loving to those who love Him, and yet so violent to those who don't. He is our Lover, and He is God. He is Emmanuel. God with us. He's a Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace, the Holy One. He is the Lion of Judah, and the Lamb that was slain. He is the Creator. God, and He died for us, calling us His friends.

How can we ever be so comfortable in our familiarity? Thank God for His Son! For the death He died, that we might be able to approach God with confidence! May we be so enthralled with Him, that we can glory in the single-mindedness of our lives, keeping our eyes constantly fixed on Him. It's only in the glory of God, that we can truly seek and relish monotony. If there is one thing I do all of my days, I will praise God. Sing a new song to the King who never changes. May you rejoice all of your days in one God, one Savior, one Truth. There is only One! May you truly be satisfied in Him, and rejoice in the quiet glory of monotony!

is he really holy to you?

Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come."

-Revelation 4:8

Over the past week or so, I've been thinking alot about the book of Revelation. I was recently introduced to a teaching on the book that I haven't heard before, namely, that the book of Revelation is really seven loosely separated sections that all refer to the same thing. This idea is called progressive parallelism. There's more information at http://www.apocalipsis.org/rev-stru.htm section 6.1, but that's not my primary point. Regardless of what you believe about the book, all who believe it will no doubt be struck by the verse above. Let's look at this for a second.

The text says that these creatures, who are freakish by our standards, seeing as how they're covered with eyes everywhere, are constantly bowing down before the throne giving homage to God. Think about this. These creatures, of which we know no true parallel for on Earth, and are so different than anything else we've ever seen, are bowing down crying how holy our God is. Hebrew scholars will tell you that the triple-repetition of the word indicates the superlative importance of the text. To say something is holy is to say it is set apart, different and unique. If the word was only used once, then we would know that God is all of these things. Even if the word was used twice, we would know that he is holier than all other things. The fact that the word is used three times in succession indicates to us how different, set apart and unique God is.

To this, add the fact that these creatures do this day in and day out. They never stop saying it. They never sleep. They never take a few minutes to relax. They never go check their email or get coffee or ask each other how things are going. ("Hey, bug-eye eagle! How's life? How'd your date go the other night?") No. They are saying this day and night with no respect to the monotony of their actions. I don't know about you, but there is nothing I know of on earth that I don't occasionally get bored with. Nothing. No thing, no idea and no person. I can get bored of anything. (Please don't take this to mean that I quit loving people. I believe love is a decision, and where there is true love, once bored, you will not stay bored. That's another blog for another day.) The point is, that these creatures are never stopping. And they will never stop! Never! Day in and day out. Years upon decades upon centuries upon milleniums, they will always be saying this. Over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. Wow. I honestly think I would get bored. Hopefully you may begin to see my point here.

Now, let me ask you a question. Seeing as how there are these freakish creatures, pretty unique in their own right, saying this one statement forever and always and every moment of every minute of every hour of every day of every year. Don't you think that means something? I don't know about you, but I often get bored in my pursuit of God. I often start to view spending time with Him as my "obligation" or my "duty". This, again, is sin. In our modern Laodicean culture, we so often will say to one another, "your time with the Lord will go through dry times." Sure. I know, but does that mean it's right? Are we spending too much time accepting our lukewarmness, or do we actually try to fight it? Is it possible that those people viewed by us as spiritual giants are still dwarfs, and we're just a little smaller? Let's say we're 3'10" and we view someone who is 3'11" as being massive. Where are the "regular sized people"?

Back to God's holiness. Can you honestly say that you view God as being truly set apart? Do you view Him as a hobby, on the level of biking or running? Do you view your relationship with Him as having primary importance, or do you view Him on a level with our significant others, children, and parents? I know we always speak of God as being the most important thing in our lives, but is He really? Do others get a little nervous about your zeal? Are you warned to "keep an even keel" about things spiritually, and not to "overspiritualize"? Do you think you should? I know I'm guilty of listening too often to those who seek to calm my zeal for Christ. We do this even in the church. I think it may be a guilt-complex thing, but I'm not sure. When someone else is so on fire for God, we get scared. "I'm not that on fire, what does that make me?"

Lord, have mercy on us! We are lukewarm sinners, afraid of being zealous for You. Bring us into a true relationship with You. We repent of our fear of man, and ask you to become our all in all. We don't know how. Please show us, and change our hearts!