What I am Asking For This Year

As most of you know, I was privileged to spend time ministering in Haiti this past summer. My journey took me to a place unfamiliar to me in the midst of the most intense devastation I have ever witnessed. Some 6 months after the earthquake that claimed the lives of so many, our team was sent to help be part of the rebuilding effort. Our training told us that while everyone may not have lost a family member in the earthquake, everyone knew someone who was effected by the severity of this earthquake. We were there to do some rebuilding working alongside Haitians which was wonderful. What we quickly learned is in the midst of such earthly devastation, God was awakening the hearts of His people to Himself for His glory even through the tragedies of the loss of home, property, loved ones, and stability. We met Haitian after Haitian proclaiming the goodness of God to spare them their life and praying that God would use the earthquake to turn the hearts of the people of Haiti to himself. This is what I continue to pray as often as God brings it to mind.

So, how is this relevant today? While we were there, I was again reminded of the excess in which we live, of which I live. I have been richly blessed in virtually every aspect of my life and not only that, I have been blessed for a reason; for a purpose. Psalm 67 remind me that we are blessed to be a blessing as the Psalmist says, "May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, that your way may be known on earth, your saving power among all nations." Catch the significance of this passage, the Psalmist prays the blessing of God upon himself that he might make God's ways known on earth to all the nations. I am blessed and in being blessed I am to be a blessing. In recognizing the excess of my life, I have decided this year and by God's grace for years to come, to use occasions where people have the desire to give me gifts to encourage family and friends to partner with me in being a blessing to the nations for the cause of Christ in the lives of those around the world. Below are several ideas of a few things that are on my heart right now as opportunities to invest in the Kingdom of God, and I hope by making them known to you they too will become things you care about at different seasons of your life. I hope to add to this list as time permits more research and as God leads.

One Verse (http://www.oneverse.org/) is seeking to translate the Bible into languages where there are no known copies of God's Word available. How many bibles sit unused and unopened in your house? I know I have plenty that are unopened and unused while I have several that I use with regularity. Imagine not even having access to God's Word in a language you can understand? Best part, you can give a donation to help this cause as a gift and that would be a wonderful gift for me.

We are in the process of adopting children internationally and there are great costs involved in that as well. Sometimes people give money as a gift. Please know this year any money you give to me as a gift will be helping to bring home a child or children from Ethiopia and in that you will play a part in the process for which I am grateful. God's heart beats for orphans and widows in a unique way and for all those redeemed by the blood of Christ, you too were once orphaned but God has adopted you as a son or a daughter and given you the right to be a child of His.

99 Balloons (http://www.99balloons.org/index.php), a great organization started by dear friends of ours (Matt & Ginny) after the loss of their son Eliot who lived 99 days on this earth before being united with his Creator in heaven for all eternity. They are doing some wonderful work with and to families who have children with special needs both here and internationally. This would be a wonder way to give a gift knowing the invest you make has eyes that are not fixed on the temporal world but on the world that is to come in Christ.

I have been blessed and I want my life to be a blessing but for a purpose--spreading the fame and the glory of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ here and to the ends of the earth. This is one small way, but it's a start and a continuation of some of what God is teaching me as I broach my 34th year of life.

Humbled,
Stephen

Gladney Approved!!!

Well friends and fam - We have received our official Gladney (stateside agency) approval for our adoption. Now, this does not mean we are on the waitlist yet. We still have to get our dossier (docs that go to Ethiopian embassy) finalized. We sent off another packet of those documents on Friday. We are waiting on the results of our FBI fingerprints and we have to call CIS (customs and immigration) and get our appointment to get that set of fingerprints done. We heard from CIS (via text, no less) that they had received our application on Friday. Wait list times are ranging from 7 months to 8 or 9 months and right now there seems to be several families wanting twins or other sibling groups, so we are going to need some patience and more patience as we wait. But, we certainly trust God's timing in all of it and we are excited to see where the Lord has us this time next year :) We are getting ready to start applying for several adoption grants, so please be in prayer for us with that -

love, tamara

Slow Movement is STILL movement

This summer has been one of constant movement and many activities for our family. I had the privilege of going to Haiti to serve on a mission team in July. It was a blessing for sure and I pray the Lord allows me to take a team there in the near future. I am still processing some of the implications for me personally as a result of going to Haiti where the destruction is immense, the poverty is ravaging, and the hope in Christ for those that are His is high. I plan to blog soon about some of the personal reflections and applications for me and our family. Our kids did swim lessons and and the boys played football. We won the championship (1st & 2nd grade) last Saturday night and both boys played really well. It was a lot of fun to coach them and other boys their age in a game that I love and was very helpful in my formative years in the areas of team work, authority, and doing things you weren't sure you could do.

We were told at the beginning of the adoption process there would be times that were slower than others, and it feels like we are in one of those seasons right now. We know we are making progress but it seems like slow progress with our Foreign Dossiers. It is really something to pray at night with the kids and to be praying for a son or daughters or both or two of each that I have never met and yet love already. We are excited and trusting God with all the details! Pray for us, for our children (all of them...even those we have never met), and pray that we will continue to trust God with all the details. It is amazing to know that my God knows the plan for my family and He has or will soon breath life into the child/children that will be a part of our families and your lives at His appointed time. Hopeful and Grateful for He is my Provider!

A lot can change in a year...

Imagine this, we are late in updating a blog! I mean I did post last September. What has really changed in a year? I mean if you count the kids getting older, doing more stuff, and making life changing decisions, sure I suppose you could say that an almost year long absence from posting is a lot.

For over 10 years, Tamara and I have been discussing the possibility of adoption for our family. Before we said I do, but after we were engaged we began talking about what our "ideal" family would be, and shortly after we made it known that we wanted children that never disobeyed we discussed number of children. Ok ok, we didn't really say that we thought our kids would not disobey but we really did discuss the number of children we would like to have if God would allow us and we had always said 4 or 5 and adoption was part of that equation at least in thought. Periodically over the last 10 years God has not allowed us to stop bringing the possibility of adoption back up in our hearts and minds. This year we have really enjoyed the stage of life we are in with our kids (7,6, and 3) and the freedom that has come with not having to be tied to a schedule as much or just the ability of the kids to handle some of the variables of life. God also brought back up the thought of adoption in our hearts and we spent time talking about it. This past fall we talked about adoption off and on some and covenanted to pray about it, and then the earthquake in Haiti hit in January and God shook us again at the staggering needs of orphans around the world. We went to an information meeting about foster care and adoption where we heard testimony of those who were in the process of adoption or were thinking about what adoption might look like for their families, and God was awakening our hearts for adoption and orphan care. In February we had a conference here at the church were Dr. Russell Moore was our speaker, and he took one of his sessions to talk about his experience with adoption and again God was awakening our hearts. March was extremely busy with life and adoption was still on our radar but we had not taken time to sit down and talk intentionally about it until about mid April. We had had a late night conversation about adoption and talked through some more of the logistics of the adoption and still God was awakening our hearts. At the end of that conversation we agreed to take a week to pray about where we were in the midst of what we believed the Lord wanted us to do in obedience to a glaring need He had made know to us. That night we decided that we felt the Lord was calling us to adopt children just as we are spiritually adopted by God through the blood of Christ in salvation.

Our hearts were with the children of the nations as we thought about where we would pursue adoption. We are now a good ways into the process of international adoption through Gladney Center for Adoption based out of Ft. Worth. Due to several circumstances and some leading, we felt as though Ethiopia was the country we wanted to adopt from, and by God grace by this time next year we will be adding children to our family. Yes, you read that correctly, we have been approved for 2 children and we are requesting twins (1 boy, 1 girl) but are open to non-twin siblings as well.

As this post is published (July 20, 2010) we have finished our home study and all necessary paperwork for Gladney and now are beginning the Foreign Dossier paperwork. We are hopeful that within 4-6 weeks we will be officially on the wait list to be matched with the children God has in mind for our family.

In addition to our adoption, God has continued to put orphan care on our hearts and minds and we are seeking opportunities and praying for opportunities to care for the children of the world as we are reminded they all have names and worth and there is One who knows them all. God created them, he knows them, and he loves them and so too will we purpose to love the children of the world by our actions, our words, and our opportunity to raise awareness about the staggering numbers of orphaned children in the world right now. We felt it was time for us to do something and soon will be asking you to join us in making a difference too.

From Sour to the sweetness of Christ

We have been having our weekly staff meetings on campus this semester to increase our opportunities to meet with college students and it has been great. Every week so far we have friends stop by and say hi. However, I have been mulling over some of the conversations that took place yesterday about nothing in particular as we sat in a little coffee shop on the U of A campus. I will try my best to explain what I am talking about so this will make more sense. As we sat talking about the weekend and the short week of classes I was taken back by the tone of the conversations out of the mouth of those at the table. It was not specific to this group of people, it is more specific to a general outlook on life. Somewhere we (even Christians) have bought into what we would consider to be our rights to a worry free, ease laden, don't inconvenience me lives as followers of Jesus. I am not angry about the direction these conversations went, I am heart broken. I am heart broken that the love we profess for our Lord and Savior does not flow out of everything we do as followers of Christ. I do it too by the way! I was on my way to my son's soccer practice yesterday when I was rear ended by a car that had drifted into my lane previously and then got behind me and was not paying attention when she rear ended my new truck. I struggled with emotions of anger, unbelief, and all the ways she was a bad driver and I was so wonderful. The realities were many in that moment...the perspective came later; 1. I got rear ended...so what? I wasn't hurt and neither was she. 2. It is my new truck. "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein..." (Psalm 24:1). This includes my truck, my person, and the lady who made a little mistake. 3. I did not respond in a way that honors God in my heart. Outwardly I was annoyed, frustrated, and put out and inwardly as I drove away I was rebuked, and given perspective only He can give. (2 Tim 3:16-17). 4. Who do I think I am and what do I think I deserve in this world? Satan will attack anything and everything I love and care about including my family, my temptations, and yes even my nice truck that I enjoy, and God will allow it to happen...why? God knows that there are more times than not that I love lesser things more than I love Him and if it takes my truck being wrecked, my roof falling in, my kids getting sick, an argument with my wife, or my scorning and wickedness being exposed HE is willing to do that to help me remember that He alone is God and He alone is worthy to praised and worshiped. So, as I sat in the coffee house yesterday and listened to a group of people who profess love for Jesus and I believe genuinely love the Lord, how could I sit by and be silent about what we think we deserve in this life? So your Razorback game didn't come on until the 2nd quarter? So what? I am confident that no matter where you were it wasn't user error that caused the outage...it was a satellite problem from the cable provider. Instead of being ugly to whoever was offering the game that you were going to get to watch for free, what if we saw them as someone who needed to hear the gospel as one created in the image of God just as you and I have been created. So the insurance people were doing their job and serving you breakfast this morning trying to get you to sign up for renter's insurance and you were NOT buying, but were happy to take their hand out. Why not instead of making jokes about how the joke is on them b/c you aren't buying anything from them anyway, what if we chose to see that person handing out breakfast as someone who needs to hear the gospel? What if we forged ahead and were actually grateful even for the provision of God through secondary means to provide you with breakfast. What if we decided to care enough about that person to ask how their day is going and wish them a great day? Here is the point, if you are still reading, it may seem as if I am picking on a select group of people that came to hang out at the coffee house on campus yesterday, I'm not just picking on them...I am picking on anyone who takes an attitude like I did yesterday that thinks I deserve something from this world. Consider what Jesus told the disciples they should expect from the world in John 15:18-19, ""If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." You know what you deserve from this world? HATRED. But this certainly is not to be our response back, we are called to proclaim the love of Christ to the ends of the earth and grow believers up in the understanding and love for Christ until we die or until Christ returns. The hatred of the world can come in various shapes, sizes, and varieties but it is all rooted in the schemes of the devil that are very real and seek to rob you or your joy and steal from you that which you have in Christ.

How will you respond to them? I pray you will respond more positively than I did yesterday at least initially, and you will take a breath and choose to see what God may be doing in you through the hatred of the world or even the inconveniences of you schedule. What trial or inconveniences will you choose to see today through your understanding of who God is and what He desires from your life? Maybe the application for you is that you need to understand more about who God is and what He wants for your life. Maybe the application is that you need to die to some idols in your life big or small. Maybe the application is that you need to be training yourself to identify other people that you have never met as an image bearer of the Creator God and someone who needs the gospel extended to them.

What wondrous Love is this???

Sunday at church we sang an old hymn that to my knowledge I had never heard, What Wondrous Love is This?, and the words of this old hymn have been on my heart every since Sunday. This song was written in the 19th century, and I pray it will be a rich blessing to you today. The version of the song I am listening to right now is by Koine and I found it on iTunes. I am going to post the lyrics and encourage whoever may read this to go and find a version of this song that fits your liking. The lyrics are so rich and I pray they drive you to your knees in adoration of the great God who loves you. If you have strayed this should be an encouragement for you to return to the God who gave His Son to pay the penalty for the wrath of God because of sin that you may not longer be slave to sin but free in Christ. If you are walking faithful in this life then this song will be an encouragement for you to continue walking faithfully to the very end of this life and into the life that is to come. If you are living a mediocre life as it pertains to your faith then this song should encourage you to get off the fence and choose today who you will serve. The passage we studied Sunday was 1 John 2:28-3:10 and it too has been working me over on how important it is to live my life daily for Him.

To God and to the the Lamb, I will sing....I will sing!

What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul.

When I was sinking down, sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down beneath God’s righteous frown,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul, for my soul,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul.

To God and to the Lamb, I will sing, I will sing;
To God and to the Lamb, I will sing.
To God and to the Lamb Who is the great “I Am”;
While millions join the theme, I will sing, I will sing;
While millions join the theme, I will sing.

And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on.
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing and joyful be;
And through eternity, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
And through eternity, I’ll sing on.

All Good Things....

I am within 24 hours of being home with my sweet wife and precious children, and I am beyond ready. This trip has been amazing and I pray that I will treasure the things I have seen, the people I have met and then things I have learned for the rest of my life. I am praying the impact of this trip for me and for the others here will not be known for years to come, at least not in full. I pray the Lord continues to breath life into this experience, and I trust that He will as I am faithful to dwell on all that I have done over the past 20 days. Of course it seems like an eternity since we all met and left for London, but it was only 3 weeks ago. However, 3 weeks away from your family makes you realize what a blessing they truly are. Of course I am used to recognizing that my family is a blessing when I am with them, but this is quite different. I find myself walking, seeing things, and even eating foods that I wish I could share with my wife. All that to say, I am a blessed man! I am blessed to be married to my wife. I am blessed to be a father to my children. I am blessed to have had the opportunity to come on this trip. I am blessed beyond all I could ever hope or imagine, and if this trip helps me more fully recognize that then it was worth it a hundred times over.

Today we went to Hampton Court, a royal residence, though not used any longer by the Queen. It was something to see! Then we had the option to go to the Tower of London, or to go do some last minute sight seeing/shopping. I originally chose the Tower of London but upon arriving decided I wanted to just walk around a bit. I did take some pictures of the Tower of London as well as the Tower Bridge that spans the River Thames.

Tomorrow is a travel day, and I am at a loss for words tonight! I would like to try to update the blog even after I get back as I continue to process all that I have seen and experienced, but I can make no promises. May the Lord bless you richly as you draw near to Him and may you experience His power and glory all the days of your life. To God be the glory FOREVER!

Bunhill Fields

Today we had a packed day full of lots of wonderful things to see and do as we close out our time here in the U.K. We left this morning and set out for Bunhill Fields Burial Grounds, essentially a place where many nonconformist to the Church of England in the 19th century are buried. The likes of which are John Owen who recently has had a great influence on my life through one of his books, The Mortification of Sin. John Bunyan the great Puritan author of Pilgrim's Progress as well as other works is buried in Bunhill. Issac Watts the great hymn writer, Susanna Wesley the mother of Charles and John Wesley, Daniel Dafoe author of Robinson Crusoe, and one you probably have not heard of John Rippon, believed to be the first Baptist preacher. When you look at a cemetery you have a couple of different options: you can say look at all these headstones of lives gone or you can thank God for the lives represented by those headstones. Today as I thought about the influence that several of these have had on my life, I am grateful to God for His ministry through these faithful men and women at Bunhill Fields.

Next we were on to Wesley's house and Chapel. It was a very nice tour that took us through Wesley's home where he spent the last 11 years of his life before died well into his 80's. Wesley covered an enormous amount of ground on horseback preaching from town to town. One such story has it that Wesley caught up to a man riding a horse and began to talk to the man about God. The man said to Wesley, you sound like one of those fanatical followers of John Wesley, to which Wesley replied, I'm not one of those followers I am John Wesley. The man spurred his horse and rode away from Wesley, but Wesley being an experience rider caught up with the man and continued to talk to him about Christ. On Wesley's monument the epitaph reads, "the world is my parish," this was in response to his being criticized by the bishop for preaching outside his parish for it was uncouth to do in those days. Wesley told the bishop, I don't think on the day of judgment when I stand before God and he asked me why i didn't tell so and so about Christ it will be a sufficient answer to say to the Lord, "Lord, they weren't in my parish." Praise God for the life and ministry of John Wesley. Next, we went to see the site where it is believed that John Wesley's conversion began on Aldersgate Street.

Then in the afternoon we went to St. Paul's Cathedral and it was breath taking. It is the 4th largest cathedral and the life's work of Christopher Wren. We climbed the 526 stairs to the top of St. Paul's Cathedral where the views of London were amazing. From St. Paul's we went on to a training session at All Souls where John Stott was the pastor for some 50 years. Rico Tice, an evangelist at the church talked about a curriculum he has developed called Christianity Explored. I It was quite fascinating and a real delight to be with a man so passionate about evangelism and the local church and how they are to co-exist. One of the things that stuck with me the most today from Rico Tice when talking about evangelism he said we must love people enough to cross the pain line with them and explain to them that they are enemies of God and in danger of His wrath because of their sin and desperately in need of rescue. Powerful! He then said after you have passed the pain line and you are awaiting whatever response may come we are to 1. be for whoever we have just shared with and 2. truly believe in the power of the Holy Spirit. Our job in evangelism is to preach Christ and God's work is to open the eyes of the blind towards Him. http://www.christianityexplored.org/ Rather than endorse his own material, Rico said we should look at the gospel of Mark and see if we see it the way he does when he uses Christianity Explored.

Today was a day packed full of wonderful places and things, and I am again grateful for the opportunity to be here and learn what I have and what I will continue to learn as a result of this trip. I end today with lyrics from Isaac Watt's, When I Survey the Wonderful Cross. Google Watts and see the list of songs he wrote for the glory of God. May our worship be filled with the Glory of God, not just the sounds and styles we prefer!

1. When I survey the wondrous cross
   On which the Prince of glory died,
   My richest gain I count but loss,
   And pour contempt on all my pride.
2. Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
   Save in the death of Christ my God!
   All the vain things that charm me most,
   I sacrifice them to His blood.
3. See from His head, His hands, His feet,
   Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
   Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
   Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
4. Were the whole realm of nature mine,
   That were a present far too small;
   Love so amazing, so divine,
   Demands my soul, my life, my all.

Bye Bye Cambridge

Today we left Cambridge and headed back to London for the final leg of our trip. It has been an amazing experience, but the consensus in our group is we are ready to see our families. There is still some exciting things ahead of us in the next couple of days, and we aim to finish well this amazing opportunity we have had.

Before we left Cambridge today we toured the Tyndale House and met with a couple of different men in Tyndale House. We met first with Dr. Jonathan Chaplin, the director of the Kirby Lang Institute for Christian Ethics. His primary concern is the unique relationship between Christian ethics and our culture. Our second meeting with Dr. Peter Williams, who serves as the Warden for Tyndale House (master, dean, head of college), was a wonderful time with a brilliant man. Tyndale house has a rich history and essentially is seeking to equip the people of God to understand the Bible. It is not uncommon for the likes of some very influential evangelicals to be found on sabbatical at Tyndale House like John Piper and D.A. Carson. Were I to try to describe more fully right all that they do I would not do it justice so I have included a link to their website. http://www.tyndalehouse.com/Intro.htm

Peter Williams told us more about Tyndale House and all the right and wrong reasons one should or should not pursue a doctoral degree from Cambridge or otherwise. It was an honest and welcomed assessment to a group of seminary students. One of the things I most appreciated about what he said with regards to the church and the PhD program was simply this, (not direct quote) a PhD is not designed to prepare you for the pastorate. He was saying we need both pastors and scholars in the sense that one is focused on caring for the flock of God's people and the other is focused on the academic, archeological, historical, and other pursuits that essentially aid the pastors in doing what they do through the verification of higher critical study. I feel that the MDiv is designed in part to prepare you for the pastorate and that is why I have enjoyed my pursuit, and not that God wouldn't or couldn't lead me in the way of a PhD, but that is not my heart currently. I hope what I have explained here makes sense, but if it does not then please allow me the opportunity to further explain with whatever questions you may have. To give you an idea of the caliber of man Peter Williams was upon first impression to many of us in the room, he is like a younger Albert Mohler, and though we were only there one day it would seem that all those who have the privilege of studying at Cambridge in connection with Tyndale House are in great hands for as long as the Lord keeps Peter Williams there. They have a big vision, but with that comes big needs and you can learn more about that too on the website.

One final note about the Tyndale house though I am quite sure there is much more to say; the room where we met with these two men of Tyndale House was the room were the ESV (English Standard Version) was translated. This is of particular significance to me as it is the primary source I use for teaching and studying God's Word. http://www.esvstudybible.org/
I have included also a picture of the Cambridge Divinity School building.

My Hope is Built on Nothing Less

A hymn written in the 19th century per my quick web research has been a favorite of mine for some time, but it was all the more sweet this morning as I was singing these precious words of worship and adoration to my God and King with a couple hundred people who look, talk, and to some degree act different than I do. The beauty of the body of Christ is they all to one degree or another look like Him, we are all image bearers of the King.

This morning we visited Charles Simeon's church, whom I wrote about several days ago, and it was a privilege to worship there. The biggest pastoral exhortation for me this morning was regarding how we judge a sermon. A good sermon should not be judged by whether or not it was entertaining, rather whether it moved you to action. The pastor told another story of a person who had visited a bible study at his home but failed to show up for 6 weeks straight only to return on the 7th week. When the pastor asked him how he had been for 6 weeks, the man responded, "I've been great, I decided I wouldn't come back until I was obedient to everything I learned last time. I am back and ready to learn more.!" Then the pastor asked, "what if preached on the same text until everyone in the church was obedient to act on it?" The reality check is that God's word is meant to be acted upon, not just read or heard but to be acted on in obedience and adoration for who He is and what He has done. (James 1:22).

This evening we went to Eden Baptist Church in Cambridge, where Mark Dever served as Associate Rector (pastor) after graduating from Cambridge. From 1 John 2 the teacher tonight encouraged us to find our treasure in Christ and Him crucified not in temporal things that don't matter. We have an exaltation to not love the world because we have known Him who was from the beginning. It was sweet fellowship with the body of Christ. The teacher tonight is a New Testament Scholar from Cambridge, Simon Gathercole, and he quoted another Puritan tonight that was a breath of fresh air. I intend sometime to purchase and read Jeremiah Burroughs, Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment, he truly was satisfied in plenty and in want because he was content in His Lord and Savior. http://www.amazon.com/Jewel-Christian-Contentment-Jeremiah-Burroughs/dp/1878442287/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247432115&sr=8-1

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

His oath, His covenant, His blood
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found;
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

Refrain:
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.

Free Day--Punting

Today we had a free day in Cambridge, and it was a nice day to try to catch up on a little rest, laundry, and do a little site seeing and shopping. In the city square there is a wonderful open air market and i took a picture of this wonderful strawberry display because my kids are part strawberry and the smell made me happy. Yesterday afternoon we walked out to a bed & breakfast run by a sweet but blunt English lady named Judith. Dr. Magnuson has known her for some time and said many people at Tyndale House are praying that Judith would come to embrace a relationship with the Lord. We had a real English afternoon tea and the picture you see is a wonderful English scone with jam and heavy English cream. It was a beautiful walk and very nice to meet Judith. Pray for her, that she would indeed come to know Christ as her Savior.

This afternoon a group of us met to go punting. A punt is a flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow, designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water. Punting refers to boating in a punt. The punter generally propels the punt by pushing against the river bed with a pole. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punt_(boat) It was great fun to be out on the River Cam and try something new. There are some pictures of me punting but they were not taken with my camera.

The last picture I have included is the famous mathematical bridge, built in 1749. The rumor has it that this bridge built originally only with the principles of mathematics and not using traditional nails or other rivets or fasteners only wood was dismantled by students one night but they were unable to reassemble the bridge. It has since been rebuilt and now has more modern support but was built back as it was originally designed. http://www.quns.cam.ac.uk/Queens/Images/WinBridg.html

Finally, two corrections for some misinformation on earlier posts regarding some of the history here at Cambridge. First, Cambridge University is celebrating 800 years not simply the college we are staying at, Sydney Sussex College. Second, Trinity College is home to 32 noble prize winners, not Kings College.

Humbled and Honored

Cambridge American Cemetery

Today we did a bus tour of the city of Cambridge and some of the surrounding area to get a better appreciation for what all was in the city, but mostly because it took us to the Cambridge American Cemetery. On the way out to the cemetery, the tour told us of a couple of notable soldiers that were buried in the cemetery, and I found myself somewhat irritated by that comment. As I see it, there are at least 3810 notable men and women buried in this cemetery that gave their lives for the freedoms that I enjoy today. US men and women probably much younger than I, who fought in WWII for freedom. This 30.5 acres was donated to the United States by Cambridge in 1944.

I still get goose bumps when there is a fly over at any ball game, when the national anthem is sung, when I see stories of soldiers who have returned or those that are being deployed. I was raised with a great appreciation for our service men and women and a respect for what our flag stands for, and for that I am grateful. Many members of my family (grandfather, dad, at least 2 uncles and others) served in the armed forces, and I am grateful for their service. I still have friends and friends of friends that tonight will go to sleep somewhere in this world uncertain if they will see their family again, and for that they deserve our prayers and admiration. I owe my understanding of a grateful heart towards our service men and women primarily to my mom, who is proud to be an American. I know I sound like I am running a campaign, but there is something about seeing the American flag flying in a cemetery full of young men and women who gave their lives that was incredibly moving today, especially on British soil today. It was a little slice of home and I am grateful for that. I will let the pictures speak for themselves below.

Blessings

Cambridge

Today we spent our day in Cambridge where we are staying for the next few days; Dr. Magnuson is an alum of the Cambridge system so he is well versed in many things here in Cambridge. We visited many historical sites today, but there were a few of extreme interest and importance to me. The Church of St. Edward King & Martyr is believed to be the site of the first English reformation sermon delivered in December of 1525 by Robert Barnes. I have included a piece of literature (or a picture of it) that you can read to get the full story. The original pulpit that the sermon by Robert Barnes was delivered from is still in use today. Charles Lattimer and others that I have written about also preached from this pulpit in The Church of St. Edward King & Martyr. Without being too touchy feely, in a way I was stand on some pretty sacred ground because of what God did through the obedience of men like Robert Barnes, whom most of us until today have never heard. Whether he did or did not deliver the first pre-reformation sermon or not he did deliver one of the first explicitly gospel centered messages in England and for that we should be grateful.






















Just outside the gates of King College, which if I remember correctly has produced 32 noble prize winners over the years, is a tiny blue plaque on the wall marking the former location of The White Horse Inn. King College is the most prestigious college in all of the Cambridge University system. The White Horse Inn has great significance because it is at this pub that "Little Germany" would meet to discuss the writings of Martin Luther and implications of these kinds of teachings. The members of "Little Germany were most likely Thomas Cranmer, Hugh Lattimer, Robert Barnes, Thomas Bilney, and others over the years. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Horse_Tavern,_Cambridge





Finally, I find great irony in the fact that this year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Darwin, the father of evolutionary thinking. Darwin though not a particularly good student from what I have heard was indeed a student in Cambridge. 661 miles miles away thousands are gathered in Geneva Switzerland to commemorate the 500th birth of John Calvin, a man who has had more than a tremendous impact on the church and that statement is far understated. God used and uses Calvin greatly in the life of the church and in Christianity across the world.



Tonight at dinner we had a great conversation, one that I am always interested in having. It went something like this; we have seen a lot and heard a lot...not what are we going to do about it? Certainly this is not a question that can be answered in one dinner setting but it was these types of questions that made the White Horse Inn what it was. What are we going to do to champion the Word of God in our churches today? What are going to do to anthem the name of Jesus Christ in our culture today? What are we going to do to prepare laborers for the harvest? What are we going to do to reach the lost and disciple the eager? What are we going to do in this ministry God has called each of us to? I know for me it was a good reminder that change, transformational change takes time and perseverance as well as fortitude to stay in the place where God has you. There are many implications of which this blog would not be readable were I to expound too much, but these are the types of questions that got the Reformation started and I believe that only by these types of questions and obedience to the answers will our churches be reformed today. To God be the Glory forever!

I beleive...part 2

We had a quite a train ride from Edinburgh with a couple of really wild train exchanges, but we made it safely to Sydney Sussex College in Cambridge where we are staying for the next few days and nights. All the colleges here are part of the Cambridge University system, so I suppose I can say that I lived at Cambridge when I return. This college is 800 years old...that is quite a history. The picture below is part of the building near where we are staying inside Sydney Sussex College.

Probably the greatest treat today upon arriving to Cambridge was knowing we were going to a lecture of a man I deeply respect, Wayne Grudem. The venue held only about 100-150 people and the topic for tonight was The Perspicuity of Scripture, that is to say the clarity of Scripture. Dr. Grudem is a professor at Phoenix Seminary in Arizona. The greatest impact, to date, he has had on my life is his single volume Systematic Theology text titled Systematic Theology (fitting). I highly recommend it, as even tonight he talked about why he wrote it which was quite simply to provide a text that could provide complex doctrines of the nature and character of God and other essentials of the Christian faith in a way everyday people could understand. I also recommend it because he litters his doctrinal discussions with Scripture.


I will not do justice to what was spoken on tongiht but I will hit a couple of really great high points. (these are my notes based on what I heard him say so not direct quotes) The clarity of Scripture means that complex doctrines can be taught in a way that can be understood. Scripture affirms that it is able to be understood but not all at once, and not without effort, and not without ordinary means, and not without the help of the Holy Spirit, and not without human misunderstanding, and never completely.

Clarity is a property of Scripture, NOT of its reader who varies greatly!

Grudem called us all to the life long pursuit of the clarity of Scripture because the subject matters, because of the value of the relationship with God whereby we gain understanding through prayer, study, meditation, and teaching, and because there is value in the life long process of it as well as our obedience to it. The clarity of Scripture is no minor doctrine; it is the basis of so much of our pursuit of Him and teaching about Him. Our infinite and Holy God loves us so much He spoke to us in words we can understand.

When was the last time you stopped to thank God for the clarity of His Word, not that it comes quickly or easily but that over time that which is supposed to be understood can be by the student of the Word?

(One quick word about the photo below, this is obviously me with Dr. Grudem and I look like I have had a hat on all day because I have, but what a treat to meet him tonight.

I believe...Part 1

I am sitting on a train to Cambridge right now meandering through the beautiful countryside from town to town. I just finished reading a little booklet on the life and ministry of Charles Simeon titled, Simeon, by Max Warren. Simeon was a faithful pastor in Cambridge for 54 years where he died in 1836. This book has some amazing insights into the pastor and believer that Charles Simeon was; one of which I will share with you that has had an impact on me this morning as I sit on the train bound for the very streets that Simeon walked in faith for the Gospel.



Writing to a distressed believer he says, "....There is another thing that I would suggest...namely, that you are too much occupied in looking at yourself, and too little in beholding the Lord Jesus Christ. It is by the former you are to be humbled; but it is by the latter that you are to be "changed into the divine image" (2 Cor 3:18). You want a greater measure of holiness to warrant your confidence in the divine promises; when it is only by apprehending those promises that you can attain the holiness you are seeking after (2 Cor 7:1). You must learn to "glory in your infirmities (so to speak), that the power of Christ may rest upon you". You are nothing, and it discourages you; but you must be content to be nothing, that Christ may be "all in all."



What a profound statement about how we are to view ourselves in light of the mercy and grace of our holy God. I have my headphones on listening to some music while working on some of seminary classwork, and the song that seems to compliment so well the profession of gratitude I wish my life more readily reflected is a song by Andrew Peterson called, The Good Confession (I believe). I have listened to this song at least 5 times as my heart wants to jump out of my chest proclaiming the very anthem of this song, I BELIEVE...HE IS THE CHRIST...SON OF THE LIVING GOD...MY LORD...MY SAVIOR! I am more and more convinced that I could spend the rest of eternity proclaiming this truth and never adequately speak the gratitude of my heart to my God who saw fit to wash clean the filth that is and was my life apart from Him. I am including the lyrics that are speaking so powerfully to me today and hope you find time today to google, itunes, or myspace this song and take it in for what it is, a anthem of the majesty of the glory, grace, and love of God the Father. What is your life dying to cry out? Is it true gueniue gratitude to a God who loves you so much He sent his Son to die on your behalf paying the penalty for sin forever that you might be made right in the eyes of God? Is it your status? Is it your pride? What is your heart dying to cry out and what is stopping it? I beleive, He is the Christ...Son of the Living God!



The Good Confession (I believe)
was a boy, just nine years old, I heard the call and came. They buried me beneath the water, then I rose again. Well, you know my dad was a preacher man. I walked the aisle and I took his hand. He said, “Son, just do the best you can, and say the words, ‘I believe he is the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Through the years I barely fell; I mostly dove right in. I drank so deep from the shallow well only to thirst again. Well, I sang the hymns at the summer camp, then I rocked and rolled with a lousy band till I heard a song that took my hand and led me home. And I believe he is the Christ, Son of the living God.
All I know is that I was blind but now I see that though I kick and scream, Love is leading me. And every step of the way his grace is making me; with every breath I breathe, he is saving me. And I believe.
So when my body’s weak and the day is long, when I feel my faith is all but gone, I’ll remember when I sing this song that I believe. I believe he is the Christ, Son of the living God, my Lord, my Savior. Oh, hosanna, I believe.



All Glory forever belongs to the One who sits on the Throne FOREVER! Amen and amen

The Old Course

Today was a great touristy day! We got the choice between going to St. Andrews, where many consider to be the birthplace of golf. The setting was breath taking even if you were not a golf fanatic. I thought much about my family today who love golf so much (Dave and Tommy) as well as two friends particularly (KWas and Damon). It was very cool to walk the course and to see the Old Course up close. Two of our professors got on and played the Old Course, quite expensive, and Dr. Magnuson shot an 82....WOW! Enjoy the pictures and know that the sights and sounds of the North Sea crashing in the shore just to the right of the 1st tee box will not fully appreciated by looking at these photos. Tomorrow we set off for Cambridge!



St. Andrew's, The Old Course: Bridge on 18th Fairway

#1 Tee Box Sign (left) and #18 Green (right)

This is the pro tee box at #4 on The Old Course

The view looking from 18 fairway to 18 green

Samuel Rutherford's tombstone, a Scottish theologian and author, of whom Spurgeon said, "When we are dead and gone let the world know that Spurgeon held Rutherford’s Letters to be the nearest thing to inspiration which can be found in all the writings of mere men".

An old Abbey in St. Andrews torn down after the Reformation (center) and the beach where the running scene from Chariots of Fire was filmed (right).

Edinburgh

This unassuming marker in space 23 of a public parking lot is the place were John Knox, one of the leaders of the Protestant Reformation; some consider him to be the founder of the Presbyterian denomination. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Knox Knox's hero was John Calvin. Rumor has it that Knox did not really want anyone to know where he was buried because he didn't want a shrine or a big deal made of him personally, rather a big deal made of the great God that he believed in.
Just a cool set of phone booths!

This is Edinburgh Castle, it was quite and amazing site, and even to this day in part of the castle grounds there are working military operations. There is A National War Memorial on the grounds where the names of all the Scottish men and women who have given their lives for their country are listed in book after book in this Memorial. Obviously out of respect no photos were allowed in the Memorial, but it was still quite humbling to set foot in those halls.

Scotland is (insert scottish accent)...waaaaaay kewwwl

Today marked the end of our longest stay in any one place, we departed London and headed for Edinburgh, Scotland. The train ride was awesome and beautiful as we passed the wonderful English countryside and headed for Scotland. However before we left London, we had the privilege of worshiping at East London Tabernacle Baptist Church. There wasn't anything spectacular about the church, though it was one of the intentional church plants of Spurgeon. The thing I have most enjoyed about worshiping at two different churches here in England so far is they don't look exactly like our churches in a couple of really great ways. First, they more closely resemble what I picture the universal church looking like as men and women from every tongue tribe and nation are in the very presence of God worshiping Him forever. These churches are very culturally diverse and every thing about that feels right to me. We are so white middle class in our church in a community that radically not! What a joy it was to anthem the name of Jesus with my brothers and sisters in the Lord, to whom there is neither slave nor free, Jew nor Gentile. Second, when the worship service is over no one is eager to leave. There literally were very few that left immediately after the service as this time was devoted to fellowship and meeting guests. We are so quick to slip out the doors of the church and talk about where we will go eat it seems that all too often we rob the Lord of the message He is stirring in our hearts. We don't give proper time to let the message sit and linger having it's full effect on us at that moment. It was a joy to watch the body of Christ reach out to visitors and members alike after the service.
After we got to Scotland, the view out my window is what I am standing on in the picture below. Me and two friends, Drew and Matt, summitted the top of Arthur's Seat and took in the views of Edinbourgh and an awesome thunderstrom that literally blew right around us. Pictures never do justice for the experience of climbing this ancient volcano. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur%27s_Seat,_Edinburgh




Please continue to pray for Randy and Ana as they should now be in Alabama with family preparing for the funeral and burial of Randy's father who passed away 2 days ago. Randy and I are in the same extension center and he and his daughter flew out this morning to be with his family after the passing of his father who was ill.

Blessings
Stephen