Our foyer tile is being laid today.  It is looking great! 

Yesterday, I spoke on the mistakes and successes of parenting.  Our model as a Father is our Heavenly Father and the most fortunate thing about Him is His grace in the midst of our mistakes.  I am thankful that God is forgiving as well as our kids.

Parenting is not easy, many mistakes to make
Things we do wrong, often make the heart ache

A cross word, an impatient growl
Hurt feelings, an angry scowl

I do not teach them enough, nor do I pray
Yet they look for guidance, what do I say?

At times I seem such a miserable fool
To do this right, I really need a tool

God’s Word, instructions for the making of a treasure
Guides us to success a child for our pleasure

When we look back we often fret over our failures
But with forgiveness and love, those children are still yours

Greater success you had than you will ever say
You cannot go wrong when you train them God’s Way

Bury the hurts and the mistakes of the past
It is your successes, that forever will last.

I need some help for my sermon Sunday.  Please rate how you feel as a parent.  I need honest answers.  Don’t worry, it is completely anonymous.  If your kids are already raised, rate yourself on how you felt raising your kids.

I read this article on Justin Taylor’s blog today.  Brings back boyhood memories and it brings home a great truth.  Enjoy!

Here is the article:

“Here is a summer science project. Do this one at your own risk.

Choose an afternoon when the summer sun is burning down, get a magnifying glass and a pile of some dry combustible material. Dried leaves will work just fine. Gun powder will be more exciting.

Put the burning material down on the sidewalk and then use the magnifying glass to focus a beam of sunlight onto the material. You will be amazed at how quickly smoke begins to curl away. My boys and I do this and we think it great. Jamie rolls her eyes.

You know: the magnifying glass does not provide any power of its own. It serves only to direct the power of the sun. But, when it does, it brings light to a burning focus and things ignite.

That is what the local church is supposed to do. By itself, the church, God’s people, do not offer any power. But, a church is like a magnifying glass that God uses to focus and direct His power. Paul says in Ephesians 3:10 that God is pleased to make declaration of Himself both to people and the Heavenly realms by means of the church.

Maybe in your life, the presence of Christ does not seem powerful. You keep waiting for change and power to ignite in your life but it’s just not happening. If that is the case, then try another experiment this summer. Look for a church that centers on the Lord Jesus and His Word. Put yourself right underneath the magnifying glass on a warm Sunday and wait for Spirit and Truth to ignite in your heart.”

Today Josh got his driver’s permit.  I cannot believe that he is actually able to drive.  It seems like yesterday that he learned to ride a bike.  This afternoon, I allowed him to drive me to Lowe’s.  It was a little tense, but he did a fine job of driving.  We are proud of you, Son!

Last night, Hannah and I were on the back patio watching the lightning bugs light up the dark night.  There were dozens of them glowing in the back yard and after a lucky grab, we caught one.  Hannah likes bugs.  She says she likes to pet spiders and even though she is timid, she will let bugs (not spiders) crawl on her hands.  She caught a doodle bug the other night and named him Muscles.

After our catch of the lightning bug, she decided to name him Muscles after her lost doodle bug, but finally settled on the name Lightning.  We got a jar, punched a couple air holes in the lid, put some grass in it and made the new home for Lightning.  Lightning made it through the night and Hannah still has her pet.  She woke up and said she was going to feed it little pieces of cheese and crackers.  What do Lightning  Bugs eat?

All of this ordeal has me puzzled, though.  Why is it that when they are little girls they like bugs and let them crawl over them, and then when they grow up they are all of a sudden afraid of bugs?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have you ever had a light bulb experience?

This is one of those experiences that the Lord shows you something, and it is like a light comes on.  It is nothing profound but rather simple, and you wonder why you couldn’t see that a long time ago.  A couple of years ago, I had light bulb experience #176.  In the midst of a discouraging, frustrating time in my life, I began to cry out to God.  All of my inadequacies, struggles, failures, and responsibility were weighing heavy on me.  I had vented my frustration and discouragement to others but not to God.  At the end of the day, the weight was more than I could bear.  I cried out to God.  As I was praying and seeking the Lord for answers and help, I cried out "Lord, I am losing my grip!"  There went the light bulb and the Holy Spirit in his gentle manner spoke and said, "It is about time, I will take over from here."  WOW! Can I say that again? WOW!  As long as I had a grip on the situations and on the ministry God had given me, I lacked dependence on Him.  Venting my frustrations was my way of keeping in control.  God has been waiting for me to let go of it and let Him handle it.  That night, I received a breakthrough.  The Light came on, and the weight was lifted off my shoulders. 

The battle is the Lord’s, not mine.  The ministry is the Lord’s not mine.  I am a steward over what He has given me, but the dependence has to remain on God. 

I Peter 5:7 says, "Casting all of your care on Him for He cares for you."

The problem is we attach strings to our cares.  We cast them on God, but we hang on to that string.  You see, as long as we are hanging on to something, we feel more confident that God will work.  The fact is that God works better without you hanging on to the string.  I challenge you, LET GO AND LET GOD!  Lose your grip and get in His grip. 

I am sorry for the sporadic posting lately.  We started our building project and it has consumed much of our time.  Although the building  seems torn apart, we already see signs of progress.  Tomorrow, we have another workday to frame the new drum cage and also paint the foyer and other various projects.  Looking forward to the finished product.