A Beautiful (and tasty) Mess

This past week has been so busy and stressful. It seemed like everything was overwhelming. Thursday and Friday were so crazy that Jeff and I did not get to spend hardly any time together, and then he was working all day Saturday. I have been so consumed with school work that I haven't been spending much quality time doing things with the girls. So, today after church I decided that we needed some sort of family activity to bring us together to just spend time with each other.

Baking is one of my favorite things to do when I just want to let the problems of life fade away into the background. The warmth of the oven, the wonderful smells wafting up from mixing bowls, cooking sheets and baking pans, and the delight found in the first taste of a warm treat were exactly what I thought that I needed after the week that I've had. So I took inventory of what was in the pantry and picked out a recipe. I wanted something seasonal. Fall. It sure doesn't feel like fall here in Texas just yet, but it is officially fall, so whatever we were going to bake was required to have cinnamon and nutmeg in the ingredients list. Glazed Sweet Potato Pound Cake. Perfect.

Sometimes I forget that my favorite tiny humans (Sophia and Aaryn) don't always mix well with my favorite hobbies. Baking is involved. Sometimes the tiny humans who are desperate to help and be involved take an enjoyable process and turn it into a time consuming, semi-chaotic, flour filled mess. So, it wasn't the relaxing, blow-off-steam experience I was looking for. Even so, it was full of laughs and giggles, learning and we were all together.

Jeff helped Sophia and Aaryn measure the dry ingredients, while I cooked and mashed the sweet potatoes. With each measuring cup full of flour that they put into the bowl, little white clouds floated up around their sweet faces. Aaryn loved the process of scooping and pouring, scooping and pouring. The sweet potatoes creamed together with the vanilla and eggs so smoothly into a rich subtly-orange paste. We got everything mixed together and then realized that we had completely forgotten to add the butter and the sugar. You'll be happy to know that you can add those last and it'll still turn out great.

Sophia was so excited waiting for the cake to come out of the oven. The spiced scent rising from the oven and filling the kitchen was a tantalizing foretelling of what we would taste later. When we pulled it out oven it was a perfect "baked sweet potato" color, with a crisp crust around the edges. After letting it to cool enough to take it out of the pan, Sophia got to have the first piece of warm cake drizzled with a sweet sugary glaze. Probably not the best choice for right before bedtime, but what oh well. Sometimes it's nice to treat your children to special things.

Baking with the girls is something that I think that I am going to miss when they are grown up and moved away. The awe and curiosity that they display throughout the whole process is so so sweet. Sophia's desire to help any way that she can and Aaryn's quite nature and tendency to always observe everything so intently are traits that I hope that they don't grow out of when they are older. Letting the girls help me in the kitchen can be so stressful because of my habit of setting up high standards for the outcome. When I am able to let go of my standards and perfectionism I am able to really enjoy the amazing people that they are.

Glazed Sweet Potato Pound Cake

(This recipe was taken from Allrecipes.com)

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 eggs
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups confectioner' sugar (for glaze)
• 3 to 4 tablespoons milk (for glaze)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla (for glaze)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-in bunt pan. Sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add mashed sweet potatoes and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time (the batter will look curdled). Add flour mixture to potato mixture. Beat on low until combined.
3. Pour batter into 10-in bunt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. Cool cake for 20 minutes in the pan, then remove from pan and place on serving plate.
4. To make the glaze, place the sugar in a medium bowl and slowly stir in the milk and vanilla, a little at a time, to make a smooth pourable glaze. Immediately drizzle onto warm cake.

I have no idea what I'm doing...

As the title suggests, I have no idea what I'm doing. Right now I should be studying. I am in seminary (for those who may not know, that's theological grad school) and this semester I am taking only six hours, just two classes. But oh those classes! 7 AM Systematic Theology and 8.30 AM Philosophy of Religion, brain-stretchingly brutal classes compounded that they are so early in the morning....so I have homework. I should be reading right now about the Kalam cosmological model, but I am not. Why?
For multiple reasons, thank you for asking.
1. While I like William Lane Craig as a philosopher, he is pretty wordy and (hrmm hrrm) long winded.
2. My wife and I started this blog and I have not really been contributing to it.
3. Ok, so there are really just two.
So I am taking classes (did I already say that? ok, moving on...) and I work full-time. This means that I am busy and rarely home. This makes me sad, but in a way, it is almost bitter sweet. How, you ask? You are full of good questions today! Today when I got home from work my girls were all outside and when they saw me ride up they literally shrieked for joy. That was nice. But because they hardly get to see me, I miss out on some pretty important things.
Proverbs 22:6 says "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." And Ephesians 6:4 says "Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord."
Now regardless of how one interprets the second part of the verse from Proverbs on a child not turning from the way they were brought up, the point is clear from both verses: parents (fathers, more specifically) need to be about the business of training their children.
But training in what? How?
This is the part where the title of the post starts ringing true. I have no idea what I'm doing as a dad. I suspect that nobody else does, or if they do, they are hiding it really well.
We as dads tend to have these lofty ideas about what family discipleship looks like. It probably takes place after dinner or early in the morning. Children are summoned and they come running down the stairs like it's Christmas morning because they know that Dad is about to impart some wicked awesome biblical knowledge and wisdom. The entire family gathers round to hear Dad reading a passage from the Bible (somehow like James Earl Jones) and everyone is alert and attentive, even the 18 month old. The Mom sings a hymn and the Dad breaks down the passage, just like your favorite preacher, wise commentary from the children surprises everyone, then Dad leads in solemn and respectful prayer, and then everyone hugs and someone busts out a game of jacks or a guitar or something.
This is some horrible lie out of the Christian Leave it to Beaver.
I have a four year old and an 18 month old, both girls. They fight and squabble over toys, or personal space, or breathing air. This happens. Constantly. That mixed with what little time I have to give them, it just feels easier sometimes to not have a family Bible study time.
But all that is just excuses isn't it? I still have an obligation, biblically mandated, to lead my family, to train my children to love and serve God.
Psalm 127:3-5 says "Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are the sons born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate."
Obviously I don't have sons. But I think the passage is still pretty powerful as a picture of how children are important, especially for the Gospel, nevermind the so-called "culture-wars". Children, like arrows, need to be made, crafted, carefully and purposefully tuned and turned and made to fly straight so that when loosed, the arrow/child reaches it's desired target. I need to be making my arrows sharp and ready to contend in the gates of life with the Enemy. This is important not just for me, but for them and the future of the Church and the spread of the Gospel.
But how in the world do I go about doing this?
Deuteronomy 6:7 says "Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." This seems pretty straight-forward: talk about the Bible, all. the. time. Whenever you are with your kids, whether going on a trip to the grocery store, hanging out at home, before you go to bed, after you get up in the morning. Colossians 4:6 says "Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." This general admonition is perfect when thinking about how to approach teaching the Bible to children. It needs to be the flavoring of our conversations, so that what we say will not be flat, bland, and worthless. But since the law of the Lord is like honey (Psalm 18:10), it needs to be the sweetener to our speech.
Moreover, we simply need to make the time for this if we deem it to be important. That is probably my biggest hang up right there. Do I really believe all of this? Do I really feel the importance of the Gospel, salvation and training for my girls? Do I really feel the urgency? (honest time) More often than not, no. But we still need to set aside the time, as we read and think and discuss, even for a brief few minutes the Bible with our family, our minds will be transformed and conformed to the mind of Christ, God willing. For this transformation to take place, we need to be in the Word.
So how do we go about having a family devotional time? I don't remember where (or else I would cite the source, it was good!) but I read an article about family devotions and it went something like this: set aside time, which ever works best for your family's schedule, then pray, read a few verses from the Bible, and make some comments, ask some questions, answer questions, pray again. Done! It does not have to be perfect or "churchly". It needs to be done. Yes, your kids will want to be doing something else. Yes, you may not "have the time" to do them daily. Yes, you will miss days. Yes, you will have fighting kids, screaming and possibly crying. That is life. We cannot let those be setbacks to training our children in the ways of righteousness. To make those inevitable events in the course of everyday life an excuse to not do something vitally important to the spiritual health of your family is cowardly and shows that we are weak and do not really want to lead our families.

So I want to issue a challenge to the (few) dads who may read this. If you have the Youversion Bible app on your phone (tablet, computer, smart phone, whatever), pick a devotion that is just reading the Bible, nothing fancy, it can be as long or as short as you want. I don't think devotional content is needed, but whatever, your choice. But pick one that has the readings in short(ish) passages, depending on the ages and attention span of your kids, and simply go through it. It can take five minutes, it can take fifteen. But make a commitment to sit down with your family and try to read the Bible together and talk about it.

What I Should Be Doing

This post is a reaction to the above picture that has been floating around Facebook.

While I agree that abortion is wrong, and while I agree that "morality is deeply lacking if all you want is a child born but not a child fed, not a child educated, not a child housed," this post is not about being Pro-Life. This is not a political post. This has absolutely nothing to do with laws or what values the guy I will vote for in the next election should have. This is about a bigger issue than what laws a government is or is not passing.

A big part of the issue is expecting high morality from a low morality world and government. It isn't necessarily the job of the government to be putting tax-money towards "Pro-Life" objectives like taking care of the single moms who feel that there is no way out other than abortion. Biblically that is the job of the Church. But ever since the establishment of our "Christian Nation", the Church in America has been taking more and more of their responsibilities and shirking them off on the government.

Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked. Psalm 82:3-4

Taking care of widows: Our job. Taking care of orphans: Our job. Giving to the poor and making sure that people have what they need: Our job. 

The devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily. Acts 2:42-47

The New Testament church was modeled after the 1st century Jewish Synagogue. The Synagogue wasn't just a place for Jews to go worship. It was the center of their life. Life happened there. Educating children happened there. Giving to the poor happened there. Supporting each other happened there. 

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27 

But we in the present day are too consumed with our own lives to be the church the way that the church was meant to be. We are too consumed with individualism and a what-can-I-gain mentality to come along side people and say that their needs are greater than our own. 

Be devoted to one another is brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Romans 12:10

If we really want "PRO LIFE" we don't need to be looking to the government. We don't even need to be looking to our church leaders asking what THEY are going to do about it. WE, all of us who proclaim Christ need to make a conscious decision to BE THE CHURCH and do what the Church is meant to do. Obviously there is a handful of people out there doing that, but a few is not enough. 

The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body - whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free - and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Now a body is not made up of one part but many. 1 Corinthians 12:12-14

It says in 1 Corinthians that each member of the Body is important and is supposed to be serving a purpose. If one part of the Body is not serving it's purpose then the whole Body will suffer. It's about time for the WHOLE BODY to step up and do it's part. 

 But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 1 Corinthians 12: 24-27

Christianity isn't about feeling good. The Church isn't about feeling good. If that is our goal, then we aren't doing "Church" right. So many churches and individuals in churches throw up "Love God, Love People" as a motto but don't really LOVE. The Church is about glorifying God through service and giving and loving and sacrificing the things we want for the good of others. You won't find that in the government. 

We need to love like Christ. . I need to love like Christ. Christ fed people, comforted people, poured everything He was into people and ultimately sacrificed Himself for people. I get so wrapped up in what I am doing and how I am feeling and what I want or think that I need that I neglect to be an active member of the Church. I neglect to love like Christ.

I'm not saying that it is an easy fix. I'm not saying I've got this down. I'm as much to blame as the next person. I'm as selfish as the next person. I guess I'm just saying that this isn't something that the government or tax dollars can fix. I guess I'm just saying that it is time for us, all of us who proclaim Christ to be the Church. Plant Truth. Serve. Truly love our God. Truly love His people.

Bloggers Block

I've been so busy reading and writing for school that I haven't taken any time to think of what to write blog posts about. Of course Jeff and I would decide to keep a blog right at the beginning of another busy semester. By the time that I have a free minute to dedicate to writing, my brain is backed up against a brick wall. So I looked up a list of blog writing prompts. Sorry if that's cheating but I really needed the help.

One of the ideas was to write a review about something that you use on a daily basis. I was like, what? What do I use on a daily basis? Coffee pot, the car, the bathroom... I'm pretty certain that our coffee pot is the most generic one on the market, so there's nothing really special to say there. Our car, though a good car that does it's job, is also not really anything special. And no...I won't be writing a review on the bathroom. ;) Maybe one day when I'm overseas and using a squatty potty I'll let the world know how it goes.

Another one of the ideas was to get a free makeover, describe the day and post before and after pictures...Well, anyone who knows me knows that I don't wear make-up...ever. I think that I can count on one hand the number of times that I have worn make-up in the past 5 years. Once was when Jeff and I got married, once at my brother-in-laws wedding, once at a friend's wedding and maybe one or two of the last 5 Easters. It's just that my face + make-up= break out. Every. Single. Time. So sorry, but that won't be the topic of this blog post either.

So, what to write about? I honestly have no idea. Maybe sometime in the near future my kid will do something completely hilarious and I can write about that. Until then I guess I will just keep brainstorming.

A Thought on Marriage

This semester in school I am taking Pre-Marital and Marital Counseling. So far it is a pretty good class. One thing that I am really enjoying about it is that all of the material is stuff that is not just for future counseling. It is stuff that I can apply right now in my own life.

One of the books that we are reading in class is called Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas. Jeff and I were actually supposed to read this book in counseling before we got married. I don't think that we read it. I think that there was a different book that we read instead. But now that I am actually reading it, I really wish that we would have read it before getting married. Now, we have to write a review critiquing the book for class, so I'm not going to say too much about it here, but there are a couple of things that I want to say.

The overall message of the book is printed right on the front cover. What if God designed marriage to make us HOLY more than to make us HAPPY? Yeah. I really wish that Jeff and I would have asked ourselves that question, and really searched out the answer to it before getting married! If we would have gone through the first year of our marriage focusing on God making us holy, using our marriage to sanctify us and make us more like Him, we would have bypassed so much unnecessary frustration and discontent.

Jeff and I don't have the perfect marriage. There will always be things that we need to work on. And we have only been married for 5 years, so I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on marriage. But even in 5 short years, we have learned a lot that we didn't know in the beginning of our relationship. There is no way that I could detail all of the things that Jeff and I have learned about marriage. There are a couple things though, that have been on my mind recently, especially as I have been in the Pre-Marital and Marital Counseling class.

2013 - Easter lunch at my Grandmother's house

Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Ephesians 5:22-24

Learning to submit in marriage goes further than just listening to your husband and doing what he says. In our relationship with God, we are to submit to Christ's authority. 2 John verse 5-6 says, "...I ask that we love one another. And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love." So obeying the command of God is to love, and truly loving is to obey God. If the husband is the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the church, then wouldn't what John says in his second letter also apply in our marriages? For me to yield to the authority of my husband is for me to love him. Can I truly say that I love my husband if I am not submitting to him?

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife love himself. Ephesians 25-28

2014 - Valentine's Banquet while 8 months pregnant
Picture courtesy of Allie Lamb 

Something that hinders a lot of wives from submitting to their husbands is that they do not trust that their husbands have their best interest at heart. I have struggled with this. Just as I have struggled to trust that Jeff has my best interest in mind, I have also at times struggled with trusting that what God has planned for me is His best. Ultimately, as our pastor at church has mentioned frequently in the last couple of months, when we decide to 'go our own way' and do what we want, instead of what God wants us to do, it is because we are not trusting that God's way is going to lead to the best possible outcome. But it's right there in the Bible. Christ loved us so deeply, so immensely, so passionately that He gave himself up for us. God calls us His dearly loved children, and speaks to us in His Word about how valuable we are to Him. His ultimate desire is that through the redemption found in Christ's work on the cross all would be saved and that all would live in eternity with Him (1 Timothy 2:3-4). According to Revelation 21:4, His plan is that He will wipe away every tear from our eyes and that there would be no death or crying or pain. Likewise, if a husband is loving his wife as the Lord commands, then he will be pursuing what is good and right for her even before pursuing what is good for himself. He will be seeking to lead her in a life that is pure and righteous.

It's so easy to spout off a couple of verses from the Bible though about submitting to your husband and loving your wife. The real task is actually achieving that. It is easy to get confused and think that the goal of marriage is simply love and submission with a couple of babies thrown in for good measure. Just like Gary Thomas is trying to get across in his book, marriage is more about our relationship with God than it is about our relationship with each other. Me being Jeff's wife has less to do with my relationship with Jeff than it does with Jesus Christ and my relationship with Him. Because even if Jeff is a horrible husband (which he's not), if Jeff is having a really bad day and taking it out on me, or if Jeff does or says something to me that is incredibly hurtful, I am still obligated to obey Christ. Something that I am learning everyday is that the Bible never says, 'Submit to your husband unless he does not treat you well.' The Bible doesn't teach us to REACT to the behavior of others out of frustration, anger, fear or anxiety. We are, instead, to ACT on the commands of Christ, out of love. To quote my professor, Dr. Catanzaro, "our love for each other should not be informed on how we feel or what we think of each other in the moment. Our love for each other should be informed by our love for Christ." Remember that verse from 2 John?

And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love. 2 John 6

Love must be sincere. Romans 12:9

I think that it is amazing. Jeff and I have been married for 5 years. We have such a long way to go. Hopefully one day we will be able to say that we've been married 65 for even 70 years, if we live that long. In just 5 years, we have learned so much about each other, so much about marriage and so much about God. But even as I took a break writing this to run outside and talk to a friend for a few minutes, God was still teaching me, through that conversation, new things about marriage and His good and perfect will for marriage. Think about all the things that Jeff and I will be able to say that we have learned 65 years from now!!!

On Being a Mother

4 years ago, when Sophia was just 3 months old, I wrote a bit about my experience being a new mother.  I re-read that today and have to laugh at some of the things that I said.

"Taking care of a baby is kind of like being in a constant war zone...All's quiet on the western front and then all of a sudden the 'sirens' start going off.  Once you realize whats going it's too late. There's either an air raid of flying spit-up aimed right at your freshly changed shirt, or poo is being torpedoed out of who-knows-where!!  You have to always be at the ready!  And don't be fooled when it appears that you've been able to calm the beast living within this tiny creature...all it takes is one slip-up and it all starts over!"

Now I am 41/2 years into this parenting thing and I still feel like it all applies!

"There definitely needs to be a support group for new moms...At the Mommy Anonymous meetings we'd discuss all of our parenting problems.  "Hi, my name is Hollie.  I've been a mom for almost 3 months now."  Then we'd be able to get advice from the veterans of motherhood.  They're the strong ones; the ones who have raised their kids all the way to adulthood without going completely nuts!  They're the ones that we newbies look at and think, 'Someday I'll be there...'"

I mean, who am I kidding? These feelings haven't faded one bit! I still feel the frustration, the lack of patience and the overwhelming desire to just run away.

"As much as you want to cast 'blame' on the little one for all of your frustration, stress and exhaustion you just can't. I mean, she's just a baby...she can't help that she is hungry or has a dirty diaper... But let's be honest, every once in a while, after testing your patience in every way imaginable, her sweet, adorable little face looks up at you, and her expression says, "You better watch it, Mom...there's more where that came from!" I don't know about you other mom's out there...but this happens to me on a regular basis.  Not to bash on my little princess or anything, but sometimes I am a little afraid (for my sake, not hers) to be left alone with her.  Our dog, Dug has taken up hiding under the couch when she starts one of her fits, and I must say that there are days when I wish that I could join him!"

 And then there are all the "good feelings" that still apply.

"And my heart melts all over again, just like the first time I held her, just like the first time that she ever looked me in the eyes, just like the first time that I ever saw her smile.  It makes me so happy that it is almost a little painful, so happy that I want to cry...but of-course I hold back the tears to keep Jeff from thinking that I've gone crazy.  That's another thing that they don't teach in Mommyology...they don't teach you that there is so much love for this little person packed inside of you, that sometimes you have to cry a little to keep from bursting..."

All of these excerpts still apply. Even at 4 1/2 years old Sophia still frustrates me and still melts my heart. Aaryn is not different. When I was pregnant with her I was worried that I loved Sophia so much that I wouldn't have any love left for a second child. I was worried that I wouldn't know how to love two kids at that much at the same time. But when she came along my heart got bigger and all that love balanced right out. Now it seems like each day we are navigating new territory with our kids.

I really do love being a mom. And I really do love my kids. But recently I've been thinking a lot about how I mother my kids and looking back at all the things that I wrote down, thought about and worried about at the beginning of my parenting journey just reinforces these thought...

It isn't enough for me to just love my kids more than my own life. It isn't enough for Jeff and I to provide for their physical and emotional needs. Making sure they have 3 meals a day, clothes to wear and hugging them when they fall down isn't enough. What affect should my "mothering" have on my kids? Do I just want them to survive to their adulthood? Do I want them to just be good citizens of the world they live in?

I want my kids to have a passion for Christ and His Gospel. I want my kids to be servants of the Most High God. I want that for them because I love them. Recently in church our pastor talked about how to really love our kids, we have to love Christ more. We have to love Jesus more than our children to really love our children. To be the type of mother that God wants me to be, I have to love Christ more than I love being a mother.

This is so true and I can see evidence of it in my daily life. I am so so so human and fallible. Apart from Jesus, I am the worst mother ever. No matter how much I love my kids, as long as I am living in my own strength and mothering them in my own strength, I will always lose my temper. I will always find myself making choices for my kids that are less than Biblical. I will always, at some time or another be setting a bad example for my children. It is only when I die to self and allow myself to be further transformed into the image of Christ that I can be a good mother. It is only when I am actively involved in my relationship with Jesus that I can be a good mother. 

What is to be done?

What is to be done? What is to be done about the state of affairs that this world has found itself in? What is to be done about the sickeness, pain and suffering of refugees, war torn communities, broken families? What are we to do about the women who feel that they have no where to turn when faced with an unwanted pregnancy, so they go to someone who will "fix" their little "problem"? What in the world are we to do about poverty, drugs, gun violence, racism, homosexuality, biogotry, persecution, famine, scandal and heartbreak? If. If we look at the state of the world and bemoan the sucking mire that we ourselves have put our fellow human beings in, if we see that there is bleakness and darkness all around us, if we can see that there needs to be a way out, what do we do? We try to find a program, a candidate, a policy, a slogan.  Occupy this, take down that, catch phrases and empty political posturing that mean what? We try to find a person to pour all of our hopes in (only so much as they conform to what the "majority" thinks of their solutions for the problems) only for four years on down the road they are seen as a dissapointment, a compromiser, a hardliner incapable of compromise, a weakling, a warmongerer.  It is true. The system we have created is broken, and always has been. There is a very Pelagian taste to the democratic process. We try to find a way to pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps. Futility, vanity, smoke and vapor.
So what is to be done? What can we do?
Nothing.
Nothing at all.
There is nothing we can do to fix our problem. No program can be conjured up, no perfect candidate that will magically fix all the world's ills. 
So what is to be done?
Look to the Cross.  Look to Christ.  The problem of this world can only be fixed by the One who overcame the World.  We gather together in His hospital for the sick and broken and the Great Physician binds us up and heals all our wounds before sending us out into the world to bring in those who see that they are in need of something More than this world can offer. 
Believe in Him and follow what He has revealed to us in His Word, glorify the God and Creator of the Universe who through His sacrificial life in obedience to His Father has wrought salvation with His own wounded hands for those who would believe in His Name.  We must live in a life of obedience to Him.  Not a lip service of false repentence and emptily percieved moral superiority.  We need to be obedient to His Word, not just the "Do Not". But the radical parts of the whole of Christ's message.  Love of one's enemies, praying for those who we are being persecuted by, reaching out to the poor, orphans, widows.  Taking care of and showing love to everyone, whether we feel they deserve it or not.  That means, the homeless person panhandling by the side of the road that we ignore at the red light.  That means our frenemies at the office. That means ISIS. That means the Republicans and the Democrats.
This world and it's system is broken and failed.  Always has been. Instead of investing so much time and energy into the political process and a personality, we need to look to the Person of Christ as the ONLY remedy for this fallen world.  This means unwavering devotion to Him and what He has commanded us, no matter the consequences. 

Jeff created this blog at the beginning of the year (2015) in an attempt to record our life, I guess. Obviously he didn't make it very far. 2 posts in a month, and then nothing... Anyways, we were talking about everything that we have going on and all the things that we are passionate about. I was like, "We need to blog about all that!" Then he informed me that we did in fact have a family blog.

So here I am, sitting in front of the computer, attempting to blog. What I really should be doing is reading one of my many textbooks for this semester. I am currently working towards a Master's degree in Biblical Counseling. This semester I am taking Baptist Heritage, New Testament I and Pre-Marital and Marital Counseling. 

Baptist Heritage and New Testament I are required classes, regardless of what your degree program is. I began this semester thinking that Baptist Heritage was going to be the most boring class ever. I mean, it's history. But let me tell you, it isn't just history. It's heritage! It's the story of how Baptists became Baptists and everything that they went through to get there. It's the story of people reading the Bible, standing up for what the Bible actually says and being slaughtered specifically for trying to live out Scripture. It's the story of what our lives should be today! I'm not saying that the Baptist way is the only "right" denomination or the that Baptists are the only ones who understand scripture or that Baptists are the only ones with salvation. I'm not saying that at all. But I am saying that we should live with the same zeal and fervor of the early Anabaptists and Baptists. We should live that faithfully to Christ and His Word. We should read the Bible and be ready to sacrifice all that we have and all that we are simply to uphold the Truth found there. I should be doing that. I want faith like that!

Anyways, I'm going to be learning a lot this semester. I hope that I will be able to come here and share what I'll be learning and how we as a family intend to apply it to our lives.