1.He was home for dinner, every night.
I know my dad worked a lot when I was young. He started two different businesses and I am told he worked 60+ hours a week. He often was awake at 5 in the morning to start his day and would work until late in the evening. Even in all this, my father always prioritized spending time with my sister and me. He was always home for dinner. I have vivid memories of him coming home every night (the highlight of our day!) and eating dinner with us. After dinner, he’d spend time wrestling, playing, getting us ready for bed, read us stories, pray with us…and then the best part—tucked us in at night.
Now that I’m a parent, this time that we had with my dad was probably an hour and a half, maybe two hours. I think he would be home by 6 and we would be in bed between 7:30 and 8:00. Sometimes, he had to go back to work or finish work. Thinking about it, an hour-two hours a day isn’t really a lot of time for a father to spend with his children, especially if you think about how much time children spend with teachers, friends, etc. But even though I may have spent less time with my father then with other influences in my life, my father was able to be the most influential voice in my life because of the consistency and complete attention he gave us daily.
My dad never went "out with the guys", hung out at bars to watch sports, met friends for drinks/cigars during those times that he could be home with us (maybe he occasionally did it after we went to bed). Any men’s ministry activities he was a part of (and he was always involved other men’s lives) took place on Saturday mornings or before work. He took us everywhere he went on the weekends and whatever he was doing, we went along. If it was ministry, we went. If it was spending time with friends, we were there too. If it was a bible study, we could bring a backpack of quiet toys to play with at his feet while he participated or led it. Even times he had to work at his office on weekends, he’d bring sleeping bags, movies, and lunch and we’d get to “camp out” under his desk while he finished things up.
This wasn’t just when I was older, but I know he started this when I was very young. I know he made time with us a priority long before my memories were capable of remembering. I know this time he spent was the basis for which I was able to trust him so much as I got older and which opened the doors for him to shepherd me throughout my childhood.
Next post: 2: He initiated reading scripture, asking spiritual questions, and holding me accountable
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
The Abortion Debate
Check out Vocab's debate/discussion on abortion. He is in the middle of a series of thought provoking posts. Jim Lippard, a very intelligent pro-abortionist, is debating Vocab's points on his blog. The diolouge back and forth is great!
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
Adopted for Life Book Discussion: Adoption, Jesus, and You
“As we become more attuned to the gospel, we’ll have more of a burden for orphans. As we become more adoption-friendly, we’ll be better able to understand the gospel.”
The opening chapter introduces us to some great ideas about the interconnectedness of God’s adoption of us and how that is reflected in our adoption of children. Russel Moore begins to tell us about his own journey of preaching and thinking about the “theology” of adoption without ever thinking about how that relates to earthly adoption of orphans. He does a great job of showing how we cannot appreciate one fully without the other.
Please take a minute to comment on one of the following questions:
“Without the theological aspect, the emphasis on adoption too easily is seen as mere charity. Without the missional aspect, the doctrine of adoption is too easily seen as mere metaphor.” (p.18)
1. What do you think that statement means? How have you seen this to be true in your own life?
2. When thinking about God’s adoption of us, why is it important for us to understand it beyond “mere metaphor”?
3. How does interlinking the two help us see adoption of orphans as more then just charity or a good deed?
The opening chapter introduces us to some great ideas about the interconnectedness of God’s adoption of us and how that is reflected in our adoption of children. Russel Moore begins to tell us about his own journey of preaching and thinking about the “theology” of adoption without ever thinking about how that relates to earthly adoption of orphans. He does a great job of showing how we cannot appreciate one fully without the other.
Please take a minute to comment on one of the following questions:
“Without the theological aspect, the emphasis on adoption too easily is seen as mere charity. Without the missional aspect, the doctrine of adoption is too easily seen as mere metaphor.” (p.18)
1. What do you think that statement means? How have you seen this to be true in your own life?
2. When thinking about God’s adoption of us, why is it important for us to understand it beyond “mere metaphor”?
3. How does interlinking the two help us see adoption of orphans as more then just charity or a good deed?
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
book discussion starting this week!
We are starting the "Adopted for Life" book study this week! I will be posting an overview of each chapter on Friday or Saturdays with questions for us to discuss/think about. This week, lets read chapters 1 and 2...I'll look forward to hearing your thoughts this weekend!
Friday, November 06, 2009
Preaching vs. Worship
Jeff Purswell does a great job of explaining why preaching is essential to worship:
Throughout salvation history, all the way into the new covenant, God’s Word is at the center of worship. The early church devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and every church was nourished on God’s Word, all the way down to the last chapter of the last book that Paul wrote, where he tells Timothy to preach the Word “in season and out of season” (2 Timothy 4:2).
Why? Why so much preaching? Why all this talking? Because the primary way we encounter God in worship is through the preaching of the Word of God.
Think about it this way. Normally, in what we call “worship,” we spend significant time—perhaps the whole time—addressing God, singing to him, praising him, extolling him, praying to him. Wonderful! But in preaching we are no longer addressing God; he is addressing us. Nothing is more important than this moment. And this is why the most important worship leader in your church is your pastor.
That really gets to the heart of preaching. The Bible is not simply a book that we talk about. When God’s Word is faithfully preached, God is addressing us. God is speaking. We hear not merely a man’s voice. We hear the voice of God.
Read the entire post here.
HT: Pure Church
Throughout salvation history, all the way into the new covenant, God’s Word is at the center of worship. The early church devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and every church was nourished on God’s Word, all the way down to the last chapter of the last book that Paul wrote, where he tells Timothy to preach the Word “in season and out of season” (2 Timothy 4:2).
Why? Why so much preaching? Why all this talking? Because the primary way we encounter God in worship is through the preaching of the Word of God.
Think about it this way. Normally, in what we call “worship,” we spend significant time—perhaps the whole time—addressing God, singing to him, praising him, extolling him, praying to him. Wonderful! But in preaching we are no longer addressing God; he is addressing us. Nothing is more important than this moment. And this is why the most important worship leader in your church is your pastor.
That really gets to the heart of preaching. The Bible is not simply a book that we talk about. When God’s Word is faithfully preached, God is addressing us. God is speaking. We hear not merely a man’s voice. We hear the voice of God.
Read the entire post here.
HT: Pure Church
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Orphan Sunday this week at Roosevelt!
November 8th is Orphan Sunday and I am VERY excited about some things that will be happening at Roosevelt this weekend!
1) We will be having a ministry spotlight talking about foster parenting/adoption with resources available for families who would like to further consider/pray about becoming foster or adoptive parents.
2) Vocab & Nicole will be teaching a RU class called, "A Biblical View on Adoption" after service (lunch will be provided). You don't want to miss it!
3) We will be launching a new Roosevelt book study. We have 6 copies of "Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families & Churches" by Russel Moore. I will be commenting/ opening up for discussing a chapter each week on my blog. I hope to have at least 6 people join me on Sunday in reading/discussing this book. (If you don't attend Roosevelt and would like to join the study, order the book now--we will be starting next week.)
**even if you think you will never foster or adopt, this book is well worth reading. 1) to support our families in the church who do and 2) to have a deeper appreciation of God's adoption of you!
Friday, October 16, 2009
Things you should never say to a family who has adopted children #7 & #8
7.Racial Stereotypes
Please avoid stating any racial stereotypes you may have about my children or any other child. I have friends who have fostered or adopted children from many other races (Hispanic, Caucasian, etc) and all of them have stories of things people have said that would (hopefully) make your mouth drop open. Just apply the “if-you-wouldn’t-say-it-to-an-adult” rule…if you wouldn’t say something to my husband about black people, don’t say it to me about my kids.
The one I hear most often has to do with the assumption that black or Hispanic families are more likely to have their children in foster care (under that statement lies an assumption that black/Hispanic families are worse parents then Caucasian families). The fact is a majority of the children who enter the system in Arizona are Caucasian; however, most foster and adoptive families will only take white kids/won’t take minorities—that is why there are so many minority children waiting for adoption.
8.“Is it because of the drugs?”
I haven’t had this said to me, but several of my friends have. When their toddler is running all over the place or doing something that seems a little different then the “average” child, sometimes well meaning people ask if it is because the child was exposed to drugs in the womb. It would be the same as me walking up to you during your 2-year old's screaming tantrum and saying, “your child is so abnormal, what on earth happened to them that made them so difficult?” Any parent would be taken aback to that statement.
Please avoid stating any racial stereotypes you may have about my children or any other child. I have friends who have fostered or adopted children from many other races (Hispanic, Caucasian, etc) and all of them have stories of things people have said that would (hopefully) make your mouth drop open. Just apply the “if-you-wouldn’t-say-it-to-an-adult” rule…if you wouldn’t say something to my husband about black people, don’t say it to me about my kids.
The one I hear most often has to do with the assumption that black or Hispanic families are more likely to have their children in foster care (under that statement lies an assumption that black/Hispanic families are worse parents then Caucasian families). The fact is a majority of the children who enter the system in Arizona are Caucasian; however, most foster and adoptive families will only take white kids/won’t take minorities—that is why there are so many minority children waiting for adoption.
8.“Is it because of the drugs?”
I haven’t had this said to me, but several of my friends have. When their toddler is running all over the place or doing something that seems a little different then the “average” child, sometimes well meaning people ask if it is because the child was exposed to drugs in the womb. It would be the same as me walking up to you during your 2-year old's screaming tantrum and saying, “your child is so abnormal, what on earth happened to them that made them so difficult?” Any parent would be taken aback to that statement.
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