Things I love about Sunday!

-Connecting with God’s Family!

-Fellowship breakfast! (Doughnuts)!

-Teaching about the importance of God’s Word!

-Hearing the ridiculously funny things little kids say!

-Good conversations!

-Watching kids be excited about learning and connecting with God!

-Trying to come up with words for James to fit into his sermon! (My favorite so far has been fantubulous)!

-Afternoon nap!

-Playing games with the youth group!

-Sharing in the Lord’s Supper together!

-Laughter!

-Awesome awards!

-Being used by God to help shape and change lives for his glory! Awesome…and humbling!

tim

I wrote this post specifically for my youth ministry blog. But I thought it would be a good one to post on here as well.

I have been neglecting this blog lately for two reasons:

1. Crazy busy! I had an intensive week class recently, and I also have a ton of homework to work on for that class.

2. New Blog! I have also been working on a blog strictly for ministry as a resource for teens and parents.

I will still post on this blog since this is my personal blog…but if you were wondering what happened to me lately…that’s why! (And I will probably put some of the more general posts from the youth ministry blog onto this site as well).

If you want to check it out the new youth ministry website you can click here.

tim

Colbert Vs. Dawkins

I love watching the Colbert Report. I just love Stephen Colbert’s over-exaggerated and hyperbolic satirical humor. Funny stuff!

If you watch the show often enough, you’ll realize that he is actually pretty smart. Last week Colbert had Richard Dawkins on his show (a well-know author and atheist). In the interview, Colbert makes a lot of jokes and has fun, but he also holds his own against Dawkins.

I tried to embed this video, but for some reason it’s not working. Oh well…enjoy!

Colbert Vs. Dawkins

I am going to have to remember to use that “Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups” line sometime! Good stuff!

tim

An update on my life

This semester is certainly moving in high gear! Here is a little update on how things are going.

Hebrew
People always have funny reactions when I tell them I am taking Hebrew. Usually they say something like, “Ooh, that sounds hard. Do you like it?” It has had its share of challenges so far. The vowel/pointing system and syllabification is very different than what I am used to. But we have now starting to get into some of the grammatical aspects of the language, and that has started to click a little bit more. It is exciting to have continue learning to study God’s Word on a deeper level.

Ministry!
The new ministry has been great! It has been exciting to see the potential for Spiritual growth in these students! We have had a lot of great opportunities for fellowship in the last few weeks, and that has been awesome for getting to know people as well. I am super excited for Sunday!

Preaching the Parables
My class for intensive week on the Parables has over 1,300 pages of reading due by next month! I basically have to read a book a week if I want to get it all done in time. The reading has been fantastic so far. I read for two hours the other night, and my eyes felt tired the next day. I have loved it—but hopefully I’ll have time to it all!

Prayer!
I am preaching this Sunday on intercessory prayer…awesome! The text is simply incredible! It has been wonderful being able to study it this week. And it is such a blessing to have such a huge theological library at your finger tips. I am excited to preach tomorrow morning.

Apartment
My apartment is starting to feel more comfortable. I am starting to feel at home. I think everyone in my neighborhood has a dog though. The barking is in surround sound every morning. The neighbor next to me has an angry pit bull that is constantly growling at something. Amy and I have nicknamed him “Cleaver” (short for Meat Cleaver). He’s more than just a little intimidating while he is pulling on violently on his chain.

Well that’s it for now…stay tuned!

tim

A quote to consider

I came across this statement today, and I thought it was worth sharing.

“Prayer is not merely a means of presenting our requests, it is a means of pursuing a relationship with our heavenly Father.” – Hank Hanegraaff

Rather than typing some reflections on prayer, I thought I’d let this quote speak for itself. This statement does, however, cause me to stop and consider this question: Do I pray so I can grow closer to God, or do I pray so I can get something from God?

tim

Seminary!

That’s right…I have come back for more!

I will be pursuing a MA in New Testament. (I may end up going for the M-Div, but we will just have to wait and see). I have my first class tomorrow! This semester I am taking Hebrew, and Preaching Parables. I am excited!

tim

Random thoughts

I have so many thoughts coursing through my brain right now. I could easily blog about any number of things, but I thought I would give you the highlights instead. Enjoy!

-I love my girlfriend! And I absolutely love living close to her.

-I still have a few boxes to unpack.

-I have been feeling anxious a lot lately.

-The bathroom in my new apartment is disgusting! The apartment still needs a lot of cleaning, but I am glad to finally be getting settled.

-I got my textbooks for class this week—lots of reading ahead.

-I am very excited about taking an entire graduate course strictly on the Parables of Jesus.

-I am thinking that Hebrew is going to be a crazy language to learn.

-I went grocery shopping for the new apartment earlier this week, and I got the essentials: bread, peanut butter, jelly, milk, cereal, potatoes, pasta, potatoes, two peaches, frozen veggies, and most importantly, Oreos.

-I love watching Wheel of Fortune with Amy—that’s right, I’m old. (I do have a birthday coming up).

-I have met most of my immediate neighbors. I do have one neighbor that has a pit bull that is always outside on a thick chain…awesome. I steer clear of him (I think he could easily gnaw my legs off or something).

-It’s amazing to live so close to campus.

-I am drinking Red Cream Soda right now…mmm.

-What happened to summer?

-I am excited to have access to such a large theological library again.

-It feels good to re-connect with people from Lincoln.

-Life has been a whirlwind of transitions over the past few weeks. I have thought about updating this blog on several occasions, but life has been moving at such a crazy speed. I hope to have more updates soon though!

tim

New Music!

Living Sacrifice has a new song to download! You can also download the entire tooth and nail sampler online for free! Just click here.

I am super excited for their new album…it’s been WAY too long! They finished recording a while ago, and now they are mixing the album. It shouldn’t be too much longer!

The sampler also has some good new stuff from Becoming the Archetype and August Burns Red as well. Thirty one songs total on the sampler! I also read online that The Crucified has a DVD coming out with live footage…that should be awesome!

tim

Chess Puzzles!

I have always loved the game of chess. I love the complexity, the simplicity, and the strategy of the game of chess. Most people are not that interested in playing chess, so I really have not practiced that much. So I don’t think I am really all that good at playing…I just love it! But a few days ago I discovered this website, and I have really enjoyed solving the puzzles.

Chess Puzzles

I have already solved all of the “Checkmate in One” puzzles. I can’t imagine figuring out the “Checkmate in Six” puzzles! Crazy!

Can you solve any? Or do you have your own website for killing time?

tim

Some intriguing thoughts

The book of Revelation intrigues me because it seems to be so often misunderstood. Many teachers, preachers, and churches shy away from this book because of how volatile and dogmatic people are concerning this subject. The book of Revelation is also seen as a weird, confusing, and even scary book to many people. I personally cannot think of a single sermon growing up that came out of the book of Revelation. Many churches shy away from this book, and as a result, people get their theological views from pop-culture rather than biblical scholarship and church tradition.

I believe it is vital that we read and understand this book. The book of Revelation is just as inspired as the book of Romans or any other book in the biblical canon, and therefore it should be read and obeyed. We cannot steer clear of a book because it is more “difficult” to understand. This book contains wonderful words of comfort as well as words of challenge and exhortation. It is necessary that we learn to read this book.

Interpreting the book of Revelation has a lot of baggage though. For whatever reason, this book seems to be fair game for whacky hermeneutics and wild predictions of the future. This book is often studied with a different set of interpretive lenses than other books in the Bible. There are some basic tools of interpretation that just get neglected or abused when it comes to studying Revelation. For example, many read this book side-by-side with a newspaper rather than with the Old Testament. As a result of this hermeneutical mess, many people fear this book rather than feeling its comfort.

I could write a lot more about how we should understand apocalyptic imagery, prophecy, and literary genre when we study God’s Word, but I think it would be helpful for us to take a step back and see the big picture. What does God’s Word say about Christ’s coming? Look at what 2 Peter 3:10-12a says,

10 But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.
11 Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live, 12 looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along.

Eschatology exists to help produce change and growth in our lives. This verse states that Christ will come like an unexpected thief—I don’t pretend to know the future. Even Jesus himself said that he does not know the day or the hour of his return—only the Father knows. God wants us to live holy lives. He wants us to have a relationship with him—to be ready. Look at this quote from Dr. Robert Lowery of Lincoln Christian Seminary,

“The bottom line is this: Whenever and wherever the Bible speaks about Christ’s final coming, its purpose is always to challenge Christians with regard to belief and behavior. Christians are to live lives which reflect that Christ has come and is coming.”

God is far more concerned with our relationship with him than he is about us knowing every detail of the future. Saint Augustine put it like this,

“He who loves the coming of the Lord is not he who affirms it is far off, nor is it he who says it is near. It is he who, whether it be far or near, awaits it with sincere faith, steadfast hope, and fervent love.”

I believe that a deeper understanding of Scripture will lead to deeper application and love for God. I hope as Christians we don’t shy away from portions of Scripture because it may make us feel uncomfortable. The book of Revelation is a message of hope, comfort, challenge, and victory—it should not be ignored.

tim