Happy 4th Birthday Elijah!!!

My youngest son, Elijah, turned 4 years old! What a day he had! He invited his friends Kira, Kien, Daniel, and Olivia for a great birthday party! I asked him what his favorite gift was and he said, "Everything!"

Elijah is my live wire--always hopping and ready to go! He is so fun at this age and is very smart for his age. Sarah and I are so blessed to be his parents!

Father/Son Camping Trip

Here are some pictures of our Father/Son Camping trip that Noah and I went on with a couple of other Fathers and Sons. We hiked about 8 miles--yes I said right--8 miles!!!!! Our boys did so well!

Our focus was Proverbs 3:5,6 and it came in handy many times as we applied to our situation as we hiked!

Should not our Love for Christ be Enough?

We hear a lot today about the 18-30 crowd vanishing from the churches. It is a staggering statistic that 75%-85% of college students leave the faith or vanish from the church after their freshman year in college. It is somewhat frightening especially when people lodge bombs at the church saying it is not doing enough to entice this crowd.
Now, as I write this, note that these are thoughts going in my head and so I would appreciate your confirmation or disagreement with these thoughts. I am trying to seek out the problem at hand:

1. Is the church really to blame or is the individual to blame?
I've seen countless students leave after youth ministry. I am perplexed by this. I struggle with this. I'm sure the church is to blame to a degree because in most cases entertainment is the focus in order to keep students in church, but it seems this method is not working.
But what about ministries who really challenge students in their faith and raise the standard--students still leave. I'm not talking about legalistic student ministries, but student ministries that strive and teach students to truly be a disciple for Christ.
My question is, "Is their faith really real?" Have they allowed the glamor of emotion to supersede their relationship with Christ? Have we as a church conditioned them to this as we go from event to event and it seems that God only moves only when there is emotion involved. Can God move outside of emotion?

2. Should our love for Christ be enough to finish the race?
I tell our students that I do not serve because I have to or to get something, but I do it--I go to church and serve because of the great love that Christ lavished on me.
Are students in love with Christ or just in love with the institution of church? Have we taught students and modeled to students what it means to really love Jesus and taught them to be? Above all, our love for Christ should compel us to finish the race--not events, not music, not preaching, not _______________(you fill in the blank)

3. Many abandon the church because they see the flaws and hypocrisy of those inside.
My question to those who abandon because of these reasons is, "Why not try to help the situation? Why give up?"

I struggle with these questions because we are challenged in the church culture to do more, plan more, do more events, etc. etc., but when will people be responsible and stand for Jesus even if they do not get anything? When will our selfishness be thrown to the side and we lay ourselves on the altar for His glory?

I am reminded of Scripture in which there were many who even after following Jesus for a time, left because I guess he wasn't hip enough or didn't want their toes to be stepped on.

I really don't know who reads this blog, but if you are reading it pardon my rambling-these are just thoughts that are challenging me. It's late and I don't know if this makes much sense. If it makes sense to you, let me know what you think.

*Our reward is not here on this earth, but in eternity with our Savior.

Are you a "Peculiar" Person?

A thought provoking blog by my friend, Brent Higgins. Check it out at: http://www.prayforbj.com/ on the Monday, April 14th. Just a glimpse:

Are we "peculiar?"
Have we come out from the world and been separated by our choices? Do the things we do really reflect well on our Savior? Have we become so comfortable with the world that we allow pictures of ourselves doing that which can only be construed in some sense to be "self-gratifying" because they don't point to Jesus, to represent who and what we stand for to the extent that we post them for others to see?

If who we are cannot be seen in brief glimpses into our lives, there is nothing peculiar about us. If we are truly following Him, if we have really come out from the world and been separated, then our peculiarity will be revealed in ways other than how we choose to eat our cereal.

Hannah Turns 10 Years Old!

I cannot believe, Hannah-my oldest, turned ten! Tonight, she had five friends over and they had pizza, birthday cake, and then went to the movies.

She is becoming a young woman of God--something that I have prayed for a long time. Hannah is very simple--much like her mother. She is okay with who she is. She's a great friend and loves people. She thinks of others before she thinks of herself. She loves to laugh. She does a great job at setting an example for her brothers and sisters for the most part. She spends time in the Word. She loves reading--for her birthday, she wanted a library card(can you believe that--how awesome is that?) to the Tulsa Library.

As I write this and as I said at the beginning of this particular blog, I realize how much she is like her mom. What a testimony of Sarah's faithfulness. It is true that our children watch us--I'm thankful for the great example Hannah has in Sarah.
I must say that for me as I reflect on these past ten years, I am blessed by my daughter Hannah. I pray that God continues to guide and direct her for the mission field.

Mad TV Bob Newhart Skit - Mo Collins - Stop it

Life would be easier if we could just tell people to "Stop It"...great stuff