When someone asks me, "Who is your favorite preacher?", before the question is over, I tell them, "Sinclair Ferguson." I've been reminded the past few days why he is my favorite, as I've been listening to a series of messages he gave on the Marrow Controversy.
The Marrow Controversy took place in the Presbyterian Church in Scotland back in the early part of the 18th century. At the heart of the controversy was the essence of the grace of God in Christ. Are we saved freely by grace, without any conditions being met on our part first, or must we first repent and then accept the offer of forgiveness and life in the gospel? Or to put the question the other way, do we preach Christ to those who have shown signs of repentance, or do we preach the gospel freely to all sinners, believing that the call to come to Christ itself will effect the saving graces of repentance and faith?
The difference appears subtle at first glance, but it is all the difference between "grace" and "grace plus works". Ferguson explained the controversy and why it matters for ministers of the gospel today.
I am simply amazed at the gifts this man possesses in communicating the gospel. He is eloquent, articulate, passionate, and forceful in his preaching. I rarely listen to his sermons and not felt like I've been ushered into the presence of Christ and shown his glory, and the glory of the gospel of free grace.
What makes him so effective in preaching? His Scottish brogue doesn't hurt. What is it about a British accent that gives instant credibility to the speaker? Part of it is his delivery. He speaks slowly, but with a stately cadence that gives peculiar weight to his words. There are no distracting or annoying utterances like stuttered words or "ums" and "uhs". (A friend who heard him speak once wondered if he was even human the way he could speak on and on with never hesitating or stumbling over a word).
You might think he is reading from a text, but when I have seen him preach he only looks down to read from the Bible. And he does the same thing when he lectures, too! Although I don't read my manuscripts word-for-word, I'd feel absolutely at a loss without my sermon in front of me.
Though flawless to the point of robotic in his delivery, Dr. Ferguson is no dry preacher. He speaks with passion. As he approaches a key point, his tone becomes more intense and his voice becomes louder (but not high-pitched, like with affected emotion) until he is very nearly shouting his words. But, even at his most intense, he is never carried away with emotion so that his speech loses its cadence and rhythm. It is a passion under control, causing each word to pound upon the soul one by one until the hearer forgets the preacher and hears Christ speaking to his heart. That is preaching!
Whenever I am complimented on my own preaching, to avoid head-swelling, I think of Sinclair Ferguson at his best and I realize how far I have to go.
"God is good." There is no better way to express my thoughts as I sit here at midnight in the hospital room next to my wife who earlier today gave birth to our fourth child, Moriah Brook. The delivery went well, the baby is healthy and strong, and Robyn's ordeal of labor and birth is now over and she can can get some much-deserved rest. When there are so many potential problems with pregnancy and childbirth, it is truly a blessing that everything went as smoothly as it did.
Although this is the fourth time I've welcomed a child of ours into the world, it is an experience that can never become ordinary to me. Here is this new human being that God has formed and created in the womb, and she is coming into the world to begin the entire life that lies before her. She is a little person, with all of the dignity and intrinsic worth of a image-bearer of God, yet with all of the helplessness and need of a newborn infant. The mirage of human autonomy and proud self-sufficiency disappears when you see a baby born. Here is irrefutable testimony of our creatureliness, that God alone is the giver and author of life.
And the responsibility I feel as her father! Not just that she is another body to clothe and mouth to feed (though that is very true!). But as her father, I will leave an indelible imprint on her life forever, for good or for ill. The decisions I make, the habits I cultivate, the character I demonstrate (or fail to demonstrate), no longer affect just me, but will profoundly influence the heart and life of this little girl.
But this little baby will also have, and already does have, a tremendous influence on me just because she is my daughter. Because I love her, if she suffers I will hurt. If she is content, I will be glad for her. If she grows into a godly young woman and one who loves Christ, I will rejoice. If she drifts from Christ, and rebels against her parents and God, I will grieve. She, along with her two sisters and brother, have no idea just how much influence they have over my heart and life.
I give thanks to God for this day, and for the arrival of little Moriah. I pray I will be a good and faithful father, not that she will merely obtain some happiness in this world, but that she might come to know and love her Father in heaven.
A week ago I wrote about our baby who was transverse in the womb, and that a C-section looked certain. When Robyn went to the doctor on Tuesday for her last regular exam, she found out that the baby had turned and is now in the correct position! God certainly answered our prayers for this! I was a little awed by that, and I was a little ashamed that I felt so surprised that it happened. I certainly understand that God doesn't always answer prayer exactly as we hope, but my surprise betrayed the fact that the doctor's word that the baby would most likely not turn held more weight with me than the hope that the Lord would answer our prayer that she would.
So, Robyn is going to the hospital on Monday to be induced. Lord willing, we will welcome the newest Johnson baby into the family sometime that day (morning would be nice!).
I had the unique experience today of being the subject of a video project conducted by an OU anthropology major. Her project involves video-taping interviews of representatives of the three Abrahamic faiths, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.
I and Fanning, a man who has been visiting Grace over the last few months, sat down one at a time in front of a small video-camera while she asked us a series of questions about our faith. It was a little strange that in her first question, she asked me to explain my belief in my "higher power". It was just a bit odd because no adherent to any of the three above faiths would refer to God as a "higher power". But, being an anthropology student, I am guessing she is just using the acceptable, generic term for whatever God or gods a particular people might worship. However, when you consider it, that term is definitely an expression of a very narrow culture, our secular and post-Christian Western culture. In that sense it is not very generic at all!
Her questions were all very straightforward: "Do you talk to your God?", "Does God speak to you?", and "Is God directly in control of your life?" I would be very interested to hear what other answers she received from the other faith representatives.
It was a good opportunity to express my faith, and to speak of Christ to this young lady. She herself is not a Christian, and did not grow up in a church-going home. I wished her all the best with her project, and let her know that I hope that someday the answers she would give to those questions will be the same as the answers that Fanning and I gave.
It was something different from the regular routine. I never thought I'd be the subject of an anthropology study! I don't think of myself as that interesting or exotic, just a normal guy who has been given the gift of faith in Christ.
At the Johnson home, we are eagerly waiting the arrival of baby Johnson #4. We have the cradle ready, we have the baby swing freshly cleaned and reassembled after being in storage, we have the baby car seat ready for its little occupant, and we have a moniker picked out - all ready for the arrival of our baby girl. Nothing beats the happy anticipation of meeting your baby and welcoming her into your family.
Our baby does have one problem, though. And that is, she is in a transverse position in the womb. Not only is coming out sideways out of the question (coming out longways is hard enough!), but she is also pressed up against her umbilical in such a way that labor contractions could threaten her life. For this reason, Robyn is going to have a C-section unless the baby decides to flip into the right position beforehand, that is, with her head down. This is scheduled for March 5th.
Our doctor has advised us not to panic, that things will work out fine with the C-section. I wish the baby could come naturally, but am extremely thankful to live in a day and age in which the technology is available for safely delivering a baby in a problem pregnancy such as this. We take so much for granted, living in the 21st century and in a nation with all the latest technology available. So, Lord willing, the baby will come with no complications.
I am also very blessed to be the father of soon-to-be four children. God has been extraordinarily good to me, and to our family, and for that I am so grateful.
As I type this, I'm listening to the new Norah Jones album, "Not Too Late." I don't remember how I first heard of her, but I've come to really enjoy her music. I've got it playing on Napster.com. They only give you three free listenings to each album, and this is my third time to hear it, so it is also my last.
Here are some scattered thoughts of mine:
Godly sorrow.
I read this verse this morning: My eyes shed streams of tears, because people do not keep your law (Psalm 119:136). Much of the Psalm is a challenge to read as a Christian because the Psalmist not only claims to love the law, but he also seems to appeal to God's favor and blessing on the basis of his love for, and adherence to, the law. I think a close reading reveals that this is not the case; the Psalmist, like all the Old Testament saints, understood that salvation is by grace alone. But, at the same time, he doesn't shy away from fully affirming the place of the law in his life as a member of God's covenant people.
But the verse above is particularly challenging, and for a different reason: it shows how shallow my own love for God's righteousness really is. We are living in a culture in which lawlessness abounds everywhere, yet I am hardly affected by it at all. If I am ever moved by others' lawbreaking, it is the inner Pharisee coming to life, ready to point a condemning finger at those lawless heathen who show no regard for godliness or righteousness. What a hypocrite I am at that point, seeing as how I am no less a sinner, and no less capable of whatever sin I notice in others. But even to conquer a self-righteous spirit is no proof of a true love for God's law. Rather, a heart in love with the law is one that sincerely grieves at the sight of its being flaunted. Show me a man who is genuinely heart-broken at the sin of another (not smugly satisfied!), and I'll show you a man after this Psalmist's, and Christ's own, heart.
More Shackleton!
In an earlier post, I wondered about the spiritual life of the men on Shackleton's ill-fated Antarctic expedition. I got ahold of another book that included this wonderful quote by Shackleton himself. He is speaking of the journey that he and two others took from one side of South Georgia to the other, which they miraculously survived:
When I look back at those days I have no doubt that Providence guided us, not only across those snowfields, but across the storm-white sea that separated Elephant Island from our landing-place on South Georgia. I know that during that long and racking march of thirty-six hours over the unnamed mountains and glaciers of South Georgia it seemed to me often that we were four, not three. I said nothing to my companions on the point, but afterwards Worsley said to me, "Boss I had a curious feeling on the march that there was another person with us." Crean confessed to the same idea.
I don't know a thing about Shackleton's heart or whether he had faith in Christ, but it is hard to imagine a more powerful testimony to God's gracious presence in the midst of trouble. It is also hard to imagine someone living through this and not giving thanks to God's mercy and deliverance.
Our daughters home at last!
The last couple of weeks were unusual for us, in that we were separated from our two daughters all but a couple days. First there was a trip to Alaska, for which we left the girls here in Norman with friends of ours for several days (and they are still our friends!). Then, the girls went down to Galveston, Texas, to stay with Robyn's mom and her husband Duane for another few days. As hectic and stressful as things get with their energy and the non-stop outflow of words from their mouths, I missed them a ton. It is great to to have them back home.
If you let me know you are reading this blog, or even just ask me if I have a blog, you might just become the subjects of effusive praise and commendation in one of my blog entries, like Zach and Katrina Meadows in this blog. Since this blog is read regularly by at least 2 or 3 people, including myself and my wife, we are talking serious positive exposure here. You could become the next cyber-stars.
I should probably qualify this a bit. Granted, the Meadows' are certainly worthy of highest praise. Zach, a professional handyman, once told me how to fix my bathtub that was stopped up without charging me a cent (pour bleach down the drain). Besides that, they and their children both endured one year's worth of my intern sermons at Bethel OPC. They even sat in the front row! Indeed, the path to glory is one of suffering.
But it is mainly their food that I am praising. They had us over for dinner on New Year's Eve after the evening service, and, man, was the chow good! Two kinds of soup, bread, and dessert galore. The Cernys, another great Bethel family, provided the imported beer and cookie tray. All in all, a wonderful feast to cap off 2006.
Thanks, Meadows'! Now just sit back and enjoy your cyber-fame. Who wants to be next?
What have the Johnsons' been up to lately? For one, we're getting ready for Christmas. For the fourth year in a row, we bought a Christmas tree at the same tree farm in Purcell, OK. It's a nice tree, but not our best ever. It leans a little so we've secured it to a curtain rod with some fishing line.
We've continued other Christmas traditions as well: making Swedish wafer cookies, opening presents in the Advent calendar my mom made for us a few years ago, watching "It's a Wonderful Life," and putting up various decorations. Robyn boldly went where she had never gone before: making a candy-decorated "choo-choo" train cake. The bold part was decorating the cake with the two girls.
I've started teaching Meredith a Bible lesson once a week as part of her homeschooling curriculum. The first lesson was based on Psalm 139:14: "I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made."
Speaking of which, our baby is progressing nicely. She's 28 weeks along, well past the half-way mark.
I preached Sunday morning on John 3:16. I can still remember the time when, before I had become a believer in Christ, seeing "John 3:16" signs at sporting events and wondering what in the world they meant (and did it have something to do with rainbow hairdo of the man holding the sign?). Now the verse is familiar, but almost too familiar. I enjoyed preaching on it, but as always, left feeling that I did not begin to do justice to wonderful truth of which it speaks.
We said goodbye today to Anne-Marije, a delightful young lady from the Netherlands who worshiped with us the last four months during her time as an exchange student at OU. She gave us a Dutch phrase book so we can be well-prepared for our visit there sometime! Lord willing, someday, we will be able to do that.
I just finished reading a novel, "Gilead", by Marilynne Robinson. It's a series of fictional journal entries written by an elderly Congregational minister that he intends to be read by his son when he's grown up. It was worth reading for the quality of the writing, if for nothing else. I have to be honest though, and say that the book didn't "do much" for me. It had the same spirit about it as the oft-heard expression, "I'm not religious, but very spiritual." It contained some theological language and references to Christian faith and life, but in the end I'm not really sure what lessons the minister is supposed to have left his son except for some vague notions of the goodness of God and the sacredness of life.
We've hosted soup night a couple of times recently. And, we are planning for our trip to the Chicago area soon. We'll leave on Christmas day and return New Year's Day.
Finally, we decided it was time to enter the 21st century and buy a digital camera with some money we've received for Christmas.
Sometimes I can't believe that I am a preacher, and there are a couple of reasons why.
First, although by now I've gotten to know alot of other preachers, and have stood in the pulpit on Sunday mornings enough times to become somewhat accustomed to the role, part of me still finds the idea of a "preacher" somewhat foreign. Growing up, I virtually never heard preaching, let alone knew any preachers personally. So, my idea of a preacher was a caricature: a man who waves a Bible around and shouts "Praise the Lord!" alot. Even now I feel a little odd when someone refers to me as "the preacher".
But I'm getting used to it. Who knows, maybe someday in the pulpit I'll even wave the Bible around and say "Praise the Lord!" more often. It is really the second reason that is the big one for me. And that is, when I think about it, I just can't believe that God has chosen ME to be a steward and a herald of the message of the good news of Jesus Christ.
What has prompted this reflection is the text I have chosen to preach on this Sunday: John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." Who I am to speak of something as indescribably glorious as the message of God's love for the world in Christ Jesus? I am just a man, one who has been redeemed by God's grace, but a finite and weak man nonetheless. I am a sinner - I have been made acceptable to God, and adopted by him, in Christ - yet, I am still a sinner. And I am a messenger of the Lord of glory?
When Jesus was born, God sent a multitude of angels to proclaim the good news to humanity. How much greater, I think, would be the preaching of the gospel if God would send angels again in effluent brilliance and heavenly splendor to preach to this lost world the death and resurrection of Christ. But God hasn't chosen this way. Rather, he has called men such as myself, mostly unremarkable, to preach the Word. It is like serving the world's most exquisite wine in Dixie cups. But in this way, God receives all the glory - God chooses what is foolish in the world to shame the wise and what is weak in the world to shame the strong.
Preaching is hard work. It is almost an exercise in the impossible - to proclaim the riches of the grace of God in Christ in a way that is clear, cogent, engaging, persuasive, and powerful. My aim is not so much to impart information, but, by God's help and Spirit, to impress Christ upon the hearts of my hearers. That is a daunting task. As Paul says, "Who is sufficient for these things?"
Despite all this, I do feel his hand upon me, constraining me to continue in the work of making the gospel known. My prayer is that God will use my preaching, as unremarkable as it is, for his glory.
Rev. Tim Keller is a PCA minister in New York City. I downloaded a lecture of his earlier this week to listen to on my mp3 player while I ran. He gave this lecture in 2004 at Covenant Seminary in St. Louis, and it is called, "Preaching to Believers and Unbelievers."
In his talk, he summarized the results of a survey he had taken of young twenty-something New Yorkers about their views on Christianity. He boiled down the responses to six basic objections, which he calls "defeater beliefs." That is, objections that are really culturally-conditioned beliefs that make Christianity seem implausible and therefore unacceptable.
Here are the six:
1. There can't be just one true religion in the world.
This, Keller says, is the intellectually weakest of the six, though it is almost taken for granted as being true in the culture at large. Keller points out that this expression of western inclusivism is really "covert exclusivism." In order for it to be true that all religions are equally valid, then either God must not exist, or if he does exist, he must not care about what people believe. This is a very definite view of God that this "inclusivism" demands of others without giving any warrant or justification for it. So, it is an objection to Christianity that is "absolutely inconsistent."
2. The existence of evil and suffering.
Keller says this objection is a result of our consumer culture, in which we demand designer lives free from all trouble. The answer to this objection, he says, is to point out that if God is great and transcendent enough to get mad at because he has not stopped evil and suffering, then he must also be a God that is great and transcendent enough to have good reasons, which he hasn't given us, for allowing it to exist and continue. This is one to ponder over a bit!
3. The sacredness of choice.
Keller found in his survey the common notion that for a person to yield any submission to another authority than personal choice is to be less authentically human. Choice is elevated to the level supreme authority (Although Keller didn't say this, it does explain why extreme pro-abortion advocates will accept absolutely no limits on abortions, even those that are partial-birth and late-term. Personal choice - of the mother - must remain completely sovereign). Keller's response to this objection is to essentially point out that a person cannot be totally consistent with this view. If he is, then he must allow the sincere mass-murderer (i.e., he believes in what he is doing) the right to do evil. The sacredness of choice is fine when it comes to me, but not to what the other guy is choosing to do!!
4. The record of Christianity.
This is the objection based on the fact that people have done horrible things in the name of Christ. Here, Keller says he just goes for a tie! For every historical instance one may cite of Christians doing good, someone can think of a time Christians did something bad. Keller says he points out to people that the proper Christian response to injustices or wrongs done in the name of Christ is not a call to abandon Christianity, but to live it out more faithfully. He gives Martin Luther King, Jr., as an example of someone who did this.
5. God is an angry God.
This objection says, "Why can't God just forgive me without all the blood? If God is the God who has to have a bloody sacrifice on the cross, then I don't want to serve that God." Keller points out that nobody who has been seriously wronged by another can "just forgive." There are only two options: revenge, or a forgiveness that is costly. It is costly because it means surrendering the demand for justice to be served. He cites Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "Forgiveness is always a form of suffering." In the same way, God could not simply forgive our sins. In order for him to surrender the demand for justice his own nature requires, someone has to pay the debt that sin has incurred. According to the gospel, it was God himself, in Christ, who bore justice's demands so that God could forgive.
6. The Bible is socially regressive.
Interestingly, Keller found that the problem people had with the Bible was not that it is (supposedly) unscientific or unhistorical, as was the case a generation or two ago, but that the Bible (supposedly) fosters the sort of oppression and exploitation that we as a society are trying to overcome (the suppression of women, gays, etc.). Keller says, in his own words, that this is a very arrogant view of the superiority of our own time. Our children and grandchildren are going to be embarrassed by what we thought was wrong with the Bible in our day. Furthermore, Keller asks, what kind of God is it that conforms to our likes and preferences at every single point? It is a God of our own making.
One of my seminary professors, Dr. Carl Trueman, offers some excellent insights into the recent Ted Haggard affair. It's a somewhat lengthy commentary, but worth the time to read it. A church historian, Trueman applies some lessons from ancient church history (that's right!) to help us understand not just the dynamics of this particular man's fall into scandal, but the dangerous nature of church leadership itself.
Trueman's thoughts on what makes popular Christian leaders both so powerful and vulnerable at the same time are especially incisive. I recommend this article to you.
Here it is:
http://www.reformation21.org/Counterpoints/Counterpoints/278/vobId__4684/.
And, while you're at it, take a minute to look at the main website: www.reformation21.org. An excellent source to have on the web!
We had a very relaxing and enjoyable Thanksgiving Day today. My parents, "Gran" and "Papa Paul" to their grandkids, joined us this year for the holiday.
For the past several years, we have prepared two turkeys for Thanksgiving. Robyn roasts one in the oven and I cook one on the grill. We did the same this year.
As for the meal itself, everything was delicious as it should be. We had grilled turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, cranberry chutney, brown rice stuffing, asparagas casserole, green beans, banana bread, and pumpkin cheesecake and pecan pie for dessert. A true feast!
This morning before I put the bird on the grill, I roasted the last of some green coffee beans Robyn had given me a while ago as a present. I over-roasted the beans a tad, which made the coffee a little bitter. But, there is nothing like coffee made from fresh-roasted beans. Also before the main feast, we had a brunch with waffles and apple sauce.
We also watched some T.V. today. This morning we caught the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Then after the big meal, it was "Pollyanna" on DVD.
That was Thanksgiving Day at the Johnsons'. The best part of the day, except of course for the food, was just to have the time off from our usual responsibilities and work (although Robyn didn't get much of a break from cooking!).
Yesterday, Robyn's mom e-mailed me and asked me to compose a Thanksgiving Day prayer that she could read before their family meal in Wisconsin. Here is what I wrote:
Almighty God and Father in Heaven,
On this day of thanksgiving, we bow our hearts before you to bless and praise your holy name.
You alone, O Lord, are the source of all good and the giver of every good and perfect gift.
We thank you for the blessing of family and friends, both for those here today, and for those who are gathered elsewhere.
We thank you for the health and strength you have given to us. When you have withheld these blessings from us, we thank you that you are the God of all comfort who is able to bear us up and encourage our hearts in times of suffering.
We thank you for your faithful provision of our daily bread. We thank you for this Thanksgiving Day meal before us, and for the hands that have prepared it.
We thank you for the freedom you have given us in this land to serve and worship you without fear of persecution, and we thank you for the sacrifices of those men and women who have been called to protect this freedom.
Most of all, we thank you for every spiritual blessing you give to your people in Jesus Christ your Son. As we enjoy the countless blessings you give to us during this earthly life, may we never fail to seek that greater blessing of eternal life that is found only in Him.
We lift up to you this prayer of thanksgiving in name of the One and Only Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
Robyn and I, like all parents of young children, face the challenge of trying to channel, suppress, or somehow control the enormous amount of energy that our kids possess. Recently I've tried a new tactic: jogging with Meredith, our 5-year old. We've gone jogging three times so far, each time for 15 minutes. I've been impressed with how well she does, but then again, it shouldn't be surprising that this girl who can talk and fidget non-stop for hours should be able to jog for 15 minutes. The results have been good, so far. Last night she actually went to sleep at bedtime. Of course, she complains about the running, but I think deep down she really enjoys it! At least I know I do.
The big news with the Johnson family these days is the impending arrival of baby Johnson number 4. The due date is March 13th. And, just a few weeks ago, we found out that "it" is a "she". Much to our surprise, actually. Because of how this pregnancy felt (lots of morning sickness, just like with Sander), we thought for sure it was a boy. But, thanks to the wonder of ultrasound technology, we now know she is a girl.
The funny thing is that we spent hours trying to decide on a boy's name that we both liked. We settled on a girl's name in a matter of minutes but figured since it was going to be a boy, it was a moot point. That just goes to show the danger of assuming.
Anyway, we are both delighted God has given us another girl and can't wait to meet her in March. I'd love to tell you her name but it is our policy to keep the name a secret until the baby is born.
I usually take my books to Border's on Friday afternoon to work on Sunday's sermon. There's something about the environment there that helps me concentrate. Maybe it is the background noise, or the absence of small children. The caffeine rush doesn't hurt, either.
I overheard some small-talk between a college-aged girl and the cafe clerk while I was there earlier today. She mentioned to him that she had stayed a couple of months in a redwood tree (I assume to protest logging). Apparently, some people will nest in a redwood for months and months at a time without ever coming down. But she had to come down every so often (she didn't say why). When asked if she saved any trees, she said they did save one.
The clerk asked what else she had done. She mentioned going to Rainbow Gatherings. This is a group of people that get together in the woods periodically and hang out (that's about all I know! I believe they are far on the left politically and socially).
Anyway, the more she talked about them, the more she spoke with feeling. It was obvious she treasured these gatherings. I don't know much about these events, but apparently they met once near Missoula, MT, where my parents live. At the same time the Hell's Angels were convening in Missoula. My understanding is the real trouble makers were the Rainbow people, not the motorcycle gang!
Be that as it may, this girl said something that struck me. She went on about how great these Rainbow get-togethers were, how there were thousands of people that congregate and set up their camps, and how you never have to pay for anything the whole time. Then she said, "There's a lot of love there."
I wonder, do people say the same thing about our Christian churches?
My hopes for Christmas this year were pretty simple: don't get sick. After spending last Christmas day in bed with a stomach virus (with Meredith next door in her bed with the same virus!), I just wanted to be healthy for the day. I'm glad to say this year's Christmas met and exceeded my hopes!
My parents drove all the way from Big Sky country (Montana) to be with us for the week. On Christmas Eve, we had a special service at the Doerfels' house with lots of hymn singing and Scripture reading. I gave a brief devotional message on the sacrifice God made in giving up his Son for our salvation. Part of the message was telling the story of the "Gift of the Magi", by O. Henry. If you've never read this story, read it sometime. You'll enjoy it.
We had a "normal" Sunday morning (as normal as it gets on Sunday mornings!), getting ready for church. We had a good time of worship and fellowship at church. (I'm glad to say that nobody suggested we shut the doors for Christmas day!)
After the service, we came home to eat and open presents. My mom made Swedish Tea Ring, a Johnson family tradition. After lunch, the fun began. My favorite gift was from my wife (with some help from her parents) - promised airfare, lodging, and tickets to a St. Louis Cardinals game. Since they are playing in a brand-new stadium next year, I can't wait to go and check it out. My second favorite gift was an mp3 player from Robyn's dad. I felt like a little kid again playing with my new toy as I tried to figure out how to use it. I'm still working on it. The highlight of the gift opening was the unveiling of a home-made dollhouse that my parents made for the girls. My mom spent hours creating this cute little two-bedroom home, complete with furniture, decorations, a five-member family, and even a little golden retriever. The girls loved it, of course!
The next day, Monday, this being an Oklahoma "winter", my dad and I played 18 holes of golf in Chickasha. Then, for the next few days, we did some fun things with my parents: going to dowtown OKC, watching a video ("Bambi"), and playing two games, Cranium and Settlers of Cataan.
All in all, a great Christmas! Only 360 more days until Christmas next year!
Yesterday I tackled a small project that had been hanging over my head for some time - cleaning out our garage. While I was looking for places to put things, I remembered something a great uncle had told me several years ago. That is, much a man's life is spent organizing all his stuff. A simple, common sense observation but one that has proven true again and again in my own experience. When he told me this, I had just returned from living two years in Japan and was getting ready to go to seminary. As a young, single man with no permanent home I hadn't accumulated many things. In fact, I was able to pack virtually all my worldly possessions into the back of a Chevy Blazer, which I did as I took off from Montana and drove across the country to seminary in Philadelphia. Three years, and a wife, and one child later, the stuff had increased exponentially. When we moved, we needed a small U-Haul truck. A year and a half later, plus one more child, it took the biggest truck U-Haul offers to move all of our things to Oklahoma.
Since then, much time and mental energy has been spent figuring out how to fit all our stuff into our 3-bedroom home. It's not that we have alot of things. On the contrary, we probably have fewer possessions than a typical family of our size. But here in Oklahama, they don't build basements for houses (although here we are in the heart of tornado country!!). So, unless we rent some kind of storage facility, we have to jam every possible nook and cranny with stuff. Thankfully, I've inherited some good genes in this regard - my father has been gifted with the ability to pack alot in a small place. I think if he tried he could move a entire department store with just a minivan.
We are loaded with things (loaded down?); they're mainly not expensive, and very few are luxury items. For us, taking on a spartan lifestyle is neither the practical nor wise thing to do. It seems we need most of it to maintain a "normal" lifestyle. My uncle was right - much of a man's life is spent in packing, moving, storing, organizing, unpacking, paring down, and generally overseeing all his stuff.
"One's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions" (Luke 12:15). Jesus is of course warning us from seeking our lives in our stuff. But maybe there is a promise here, as well?
I've been inspired by Doug Serven's (RUF minister at OU) blog to try my hand again at blogging. Don't be surprised if this posting is followed by a flurry of others for a week or two, and then all of a sudden it stops. That is very likely to be the outcome. But, at least it's worth a try.
Since I haven't written anything on my blog for quite some time (though, Eric Pyle has been super faithful in posting the e-mail bulletins. Thanks, Eric!), it seems unlikely anybody will actually read this. For that reason, I'll keep this short.
Here we go....I'll start with something Maggie said today that was just hilarious. This morning we had the Men's prayer breakfast at the church. On my way out, Maggie said something to Robyn that prompted her to bring God into the conversation. Maggie, just hearing the word "God", said matter of factly, "No, God isn't here. He's at the church eating breakfast." Pretty funny. Maggie comes up with a lot of "doozies".
The other day I did something rather unusual for me. I came up with a somewhat creative idea. For the past few months, I've been working with Meredith, our 3-year old, to memorize the answers to the "First Catechism" (see www.gcp.org for buying this resource). For Meredith, it's about as much fun as having her hair washed. But, our ten-minute sessions usually go well and I've been impressed with her progress so far.
Because she dreaded the time of catechism so much, I decided to give her some motivation she could understand. And so my idea. I bought some stickers that Meredith had picked out, and made up a chart with 1-19 on it. Each time we go over the catechism, Meredith gets to put a sticker on a number. Instead of the number 20, I put in its place a picture of an ice-cream cone. When we have completed 20 times, hopefully in about a month, Meredith and I will go out for ice cream. After that we'll start another chart. Meredith has already said that she would also like a donut as her "special treat" sometime.
I can't say that the new system has totally transformed the way she looks at catechism. But, at least she knows she has some reward coming and will endure the time more readily because of it. Obviously the real goal is that the time spent in learning the catechism will be a means for her spiritual edification and growth in Christ. But, it doesn't hurt to throw in a little ice cream along the way!
I relate this as an idea in case any of you may be thinking of teaching your young children the First Catechism. It's a discipline that isn't always enjoyable while you are doing it. Memorization is mostly "grunt work". However, I believe that it will prove to be very fruitful in your child's spiritual development. One encouragement I've had is that already Meredith asks many questions about the content of the Catechism. My prayer is that the truths it conveys will take root in her heart as she grows older.