Proverbs 1

As i mentioned in my previous post I am going to work on a serious of post for my son based around my study of Proverbs. God has given us all the "one-liners" we need to instruct and teach our children in His ways if we are just willing to use them. So I started with Proverbs 1. I don't know how long I will spend in this book. Most people do a Proverb a day. Not sure if that is where this is going yet or not, we will just have to see. As for Proverbs 1.....

I have read through the Proverbs many times and one of my favorite verses of Scripture is Proverbs 1:7, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction." I think if you had to put a big bow on the book of proverbs this verse is it. Now just a few notes I wrote as I read.

- Prov 1:5 "A wise man will hear and increase in learning, and a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel"

- To have knowledge is to have understanding of information about something. To have wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge to daily life.

- Major Themes of Proverbs 1

* v. 1-10 A call to knowledge and wisdom

* v. 11-19 Evil seeks possessions and destruction

* v. 20-33 Judgment

- Prov 1:31 "So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way and be satisfied with their own devices"

Lesson's to my Son

I decided some weeks ago I had a lot of little tidbits of knowledge and wisdom I wanted to pass down to my son I started formulating a way and manner in which to do so. My dad taught me so much about what it means to be a man that I feel like I need to pass that blessing own to my son(never mind it is a biblical mandate). So when I started thinking about it I could not wrap my mind around a "method" to get this to my boy. Even doing a blog post did come to mind but the manner I was going to go about it was completely different than where I am now.

I had decided I was just going to put out the "one-liners" on the blog with a little bit of information about each one then in a couple of years I would just go to the blog when I had a lesson to teach. Well as so often is the case God had other plans. Yesterday while assembling my new Grill that I got with my Christmas gift card God started to speak to me. As I was thinking about all these little clip of information I wanted to pass down I kept coming back to thoughts of which I considered those of the evil one. Thoughts like "are you living these out?", "How can YOU teach these", and "Why would the boy listen to you?" Because I had cast them out as not my thoughts or God's voice I kept on pondering until this morning....

I rise most days around 5am. It is a time for me to be by myself. I don't have to think if I don't want to, I don't have to read if I don't want to, I can just sit and meditate if that is what I'm feeling, I can watch TV, I can surf the web. It is "me" time. As I walked away from my sleeping wife and warm bed at 5am this morning I was hit figuratively to the floor. God was talking to me yesterday. He was trying to tell me he has already done this series of post for me in the Bible in the book of Proverbs. Why would I re-invent the wheel when the wheel that has been given is PERFECT. So as I walked away I went in to the office grabbed my bible and started with Proverbs 1 this morning. I will in no means learn or pass on everything these snipets of wisdow contain but it is better than trying to make it up on my own.

Missing Home

11 down 5 to go. If you don't know what I am referring to let me clue you in right quick and in a hurry. I decided back in July'ish this year that the next step in my professional career was to get some certifications. I don't remember who told me this statement but it rings VERY true. If you want to be successful, find someone that is successful and ask them what they did to become successful. So I ask someone whom I have a lot of respect for professionally. I will leave the name out as it doesn't matter but he/her was kind enough to give me a little of their story. After listening I spent sometime researching to try to find what was the best option for me. I came to the understanding that the next step was Microsoft Certifications. The MCSE(Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer) is the industry standard so I started searching for classes around Louisville and found a 2 week boot camp to get these certifications. Well long story short the boot camp in Louisville was canceled and I was moved to take the class in Atlanta Ga. Remember me saying 2 weeks? ok just wanted to make sure.

So after much talk with Crystal we decided it was in our family's best interest for me to go ahead with the classes especially considering my work(THANK YOU!) was willing to give me the time off to take them. So i arrived in Atlanta on Dec 4th and will not be back in Louisville until the 20th. That is along time to be away from your family and I am really feeling it on day 11. Crystal is feeling it too and it is apparent that this was a lot harder than either of us thought it was going to be. For me it is so hard because of my schedule that i have maintained since I got here and let me shared that quickly:

5am - 7am : wake up, coffee, study, coffee, study
7am - 8am : breakfast and commute to training center
8am - 5pm'ish : lecture/study time/simulation, lunch
5pm - 6pm : commute to hotel, eat
6pm - 7pm : break(sometimes)
7pm - 11/12/1 : study

So as you can see I have literally ate, sleep, breathed, studied, and tested. The class requires 8 test in a two week period so as you can imagine I am overloaded and tired which only helps the situation. Crystal on the other hand is doing EVERYTHING at home and is pregnant with our second child. Talk about the double wammy and is still working 20 hours a week. She is tired and it is wearing on her too.

Finally I really miss my little boy. I get to see him on skype just about everynight we can but still isn't the same. he even looked at the babysitters computer the other day and said "Da-Da". That about crushed my heart cause I miss him and Crystal so much. It is amazing that sometimes it takes being pulled away from something to realize how much you need it/love it.

I have discovered a lot of things about myself I knew but didn't really "know" through this expedience. A#1 - I love my family! It is far to easy in the normal daily life to take it for granted but being away for 11 days(so far) has made me appreciate Crystal SO much more, respect her for how she loves, cares, and cherishes our family, and LOVE her more. I would die for that woman right now and would kill anyone that hurt her in any way. Same for my son. He is such a joy and it is far to easy to lose sight of that on days where all i want to do is rest and not chase him around telling him no and yes. But I will follow him and cherish every moment of it. Finally I have learned I'm not as bad at this learning thing as I thought. So far I have passed every test and with 4 more to go I don't see anything stopping me. so 11 days down 5 more to go. Can Sunday at 1pm'ish get here soon enough?

Authentic

..and I don't mean "authentic" Mexican food you get a taco bell. I mean being authentic as a person, as a man or woman, as a Christian, etc. I had a very interesting conversation with a man at my work today that I highly admire. I will leave his name out as it isn't relevant to this post but the topic is relevant.

He came to my office this morning as ask me what I like so much about my church. As any of my readers have found I reference Sojourn quite a bit. It is hard not to when the place has had such a dramatic impact on my life in the past 2 years. I think I can sum it up with two things.

Number 1 - The first Sunday I went to Sojourn Daniel got up and made a statement to this affect, "We are a church for the over-churched and the under-churched". This statement spoke volumes to me. Sojourn was fresh and new and they didn't just stick to the old models and traditions of church because it was the way it has always been. That isn't to say they don't like tradition but they do want to make sure the tradition isn't just a "tradition" that there is a good relevant reason for it.

Number 2 - Sojourns focus is the gospel. They believe it doesn't just changes non-Christians but it changes Christians too. They believe it an authentic Christian life which includes the reality of hell, the ugliness of sin, our completely fallen selves, and our ever need for a Savior as we couldn't do it ourselves. The people are encouraged to be themselves in community and be AUTHENTIC.

Some people from the older generations want to know how to connect with my generation and the generations younger than me. It is really simply answer(doesn't mean simple in practice) Be authentic! Young people don't believe in the suit and tie Sunday morning where we all come in a sing as robots(that isn't to say that all churches like that aren't relevant as I am using generalizations)and everyone's lives on Sunday morning are all put together nice and tidy. We are pessimist and don't believe that your lives are truly put together but we believe you are simply living a lie(not being authentic). We believe in the Christian faith is something to be rejoiced but it is also messy, ugly, and hard. No single sinners prayer will save someone if they don't truly understand the implications of that prayer. You want to reach a younger generation....Be Authentic!

Football Time 2009

Ok so I looked over my picks from last year(champions and what not) for NCAA and Pro and discovered Im not real good a predictions but they are fun so I am going for them again. Since I'm an unabashed SEC homer I will only predict the SEC and the overall NCAA Champion. This year I think there are probably 5 teams that could end up in the NCAA Championship game(not necessarly the best 5 teams mind you).

SEC East - Florida
SEC West - Ole Miss
SEC Champion - Ole Miss

NCAA Championship - Texas vs USC

My Vols will be improved on the field but still lose 5 going 7-5 this year but being very competitive in every game.

Pros
AFC East - Patriots
West - Chargers
South - Colts
North - Steelers
Wild Card - Titans
Wild Card - Ravens
Champion - Colts

NFC East - Eagles
West - Cardinals
South - Falcons
North - Bears
Wild Card - Vikings
Wild Card - Seahawks
Champion - Bears

Super Bowl - Colts in the rematch!

Ever lost an arguement...

....? A number of months back I was hit with a statement by Daniel Montgomery. I don't recall the context but I know it was in regards to the Old Testament(probably in the first 5 books) as that is what we as a church are walking through this year.

"If you have never lost an argument, Your aren't teachable"

I am still chewing on all the implications of this statement but it has been kicking my butt for sometime as I am not one to lose an argument. I will argue a point to the death to not be wrong. I don't know why i do that but it is obviously something I need to change and I have been working on. Have you ever lost an argument?

Legalism and Christian Liberty

...This post should probably be titled "Legalism vs Christian Liberty" but you can decide for yourself what you think. I have spent a great deal of time in the recent years "re-programming" my heart and mind from my early days in the church. I have spent a lot of my years in the church(I don't use "C"hurch because this is a building not the group of people though some crossover does occur) with the understanding that if I didn't hold steadfast to the "Spiritual Disciplines" and the "Rules" that I wasn't a good Christian. I lived with guilt, fear, and disappointment that I couldn't seem to be good enough.

Context
I became a Christian in 10th grade. After becoming a Christian I was mentored by many people at my local church. One of them basically handed me a list of scriptures and said, "Read and Study". I did read and study and the more I did the more legalistic and judgmental I became. I began to see scripture as a black and white book of rules instead of a living document. Before you jump out of your chair I'm not saying that the meaning of scripture changes but merely that it is not a list of hard fast rules. I became about the rules, they gave me clarity, they gave me power, they gave me control, and they boxed in God to something I could wrap my mind around.

The Change
A couple of years ago I was in a class with a group of men the the church Crystal and I attended at the time. As we discussed the divinity of God a man by the name of Todd, as he so often had the ability to do, laid me out with this statement, "God is God, I am Todd." Now this simple, yet to the point, statement set into motion something in me that has led me to where I am today. No matter how many rules I put in place, no matter how much time I spend in studying theology, no matter how big a box I put God in I am NEVER going to understand everything in this world and the box I place around God will never be big enough. If I did understand everything then I would be God and well we know that to be false.

The Deliverance
Through a series of events God led Crystal and I to Sojourn. We are so thankful for the family of believers that God has placed us with. I have grown more in the past 2 and a half years than in a long time. When the teaching is brought forward I learn, when the community gathers I grow, when conviction is placed at my feet I seem to see it more and I am more repentant than I have been in a long LONG time. Why one might ask? Liberty is the answer! One Sunday Daniel(our teaching pastor) was preaching about Israel wandering in the desert for 40 years because of their unfaithfulness. I had heard this story before but something brought it to new light. Israel wandered because they didn't believe God is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do. Instead they boxed him in and suffered for it.

Liberty vs Legalism
I spent a long time chewing on this and discovered this concept applies across the board. Legalism is a box! Legalism is our way of Not believing God is who He says He is. We made him in a list of easy to understand rules and we suffer because of it. Legalism is our way of not believing He will do what He says He will do. We made the things He can do in to a list that we pray asking him to do. Legalism is our way of believing he has not done what He said he has done. We have said the bible doesn't understand our modern culture so these rules have to be in place to help us in this day and time and we suffer for it. Where does liberty come in you might ask. Liberty is the opposite of Legalism. Liberty frees you to see that it isn't about the rule but it is about God. Take the use of "foul" language. In a Legalistic sense swearing is considered something a believer doesn't do. You don't ask questions you just don't do it. Ask why! The journey of the Christian faith is partially filled with asking why. God is big enough for you to ask why but also ask why about the "rules". I'm not saying I walk around cussing like a sailor BUT if I do say a cuss word it isn't something that I feel guilty about or worry that God will look down on me unfavorably because I did. Christ came to free us from our own guilt. We took something as glorious as the 10 commandments which were to help lead to God and made them the 10 commandments of guilt. Christ helped us to see it isn't about the "rules" but about the relationship.