Unmerited Favor on 30 October

Apart from my salvation, nothing rivals being married to Dana Sue. It is normal for a husband to extol the virtues of his wife (or should be). When I step back and examine her life, I am amazed. She loves purely. She sees the best in others, and is always seeking their good. The only challenge for my wife is she doesn't have enough time. Many of her friends (dozens and dozens) need time with her and she wants to give it but the time runs out. Several times per week she sets aside her plans and attempts to minister to them. My mom asked the question that many in my family wondered at the time we were getting engaged, "Is she for real? No one can be like that all the time." Yes mom, she is for real. As we celebrae our 16th anniversary tomorrow I realize she is even better than our imagination could conceive. So what can I say about what makes Dana Sue so special? It is because Christ has transformed her and she has been faithful to seek his face and obey.

And as if that wasn't enough, she is the most beautiful woman ever. May the Lord, according to His abundant Grace give us many more years of marriage. And may we see all of our children's children!

My niece CE is 15 today

Happy Birthday! You are a sweet young lady.

I am writing the Reformation Day Quiz for Saturday. Knowledge of all things Calvin and the Reformation will be required for victory. If you would like to come please let me know by tomorrow at the latest.

Studying the dying grace of Stephen at the end of Acts 7. Stephen's faith is extraordinary.

Worship Him in the Spirit of Truth!

• Pray


• Read and study His Word


• Obey Him


• Share His Truth with others

Wednesday 28 October

Reformation Day planning and execution is in high gear. We will have at least 120 people attending. "Calvin's Caper" and the Quiz should be great fun. The food and fellowship won't be bad either.

Our children learned so much working on their Calvin essays, a noble pursuit indeed. I was very impressed with all of the submissions. I read them all carefully and learned a great deal about Calvin in the process.

Sermon prep in Acts 7 and 8. Starting 2 John in tomorrow's Thursday morning Bible study.

Thinking about writing a series on idolatry and its remedy in the coming weeks.

I am not sure about the blogging. Does it have any real value for our people or for those we are trying to reach?

Tuesday, October 27

I enjoyed our elder's meeting this morning. I love my brothers Kevin and Mark.

Reformation Day is rapidly approaching. If you would like to attend our celebration please let me know soon. The essays and art for our contest have been turned in. The young people have done a great job, very encouraging.

Tonight for family worship we will be looking at 'Telling The Truth" chapter for Sunday, talking a little Reformation and reading in Proverbs.

Men's Bible study downtown on Wednesday a.m. this week.

I also had an encouraging converstaion with another reformed pastor this afternoon. It is good to lock arms with the brethren.

Divestiture of self

What would our lives be like if we sought only the glory of Christ and not our own agendas? Though not possible entirely (because of our sinful condition), what if we made our interests subordinate to Kingdom ends more consistently?

As a preacher, I want to be about Kingdom business. Lord will you put my "self interest" to death? Will you replace it with a desire to labor in Kingdom business?

Enjoyed lunch with a new friend today. He is zealous for good theology and practice.

I am looking forward to spend time with brother/sister inlaw and family later this evening.

Read and meditate on the Word today. Reformation Day is coming (31 October). Let me know if you want to come to our celebration and learn more about Calvin and the Reformation. No pagan party will be as fun!

Friday 23 October

I went to Wal-Mart with my wife this morning. That is an act of love.

Today, is the day I have to be real clear where the sermon is going. The sermon should ONLY reflect the content of the text and corresponding themes. Stephen's Apologia in Acts 7 will culminate in his death. Are we willing to give our lives to proclaim the truth of Christ's Gospel (plug in a John Piper sermon on missions here)?

Sweet Abigail will be having a birthday tomorrow. She is the only child born during our time of ministry in the Kansas City area. It is hard to imagine we went to KC more than 9 years ago. My wife and I have said recently that these last 5 years are a blur. The Lord has blessed us with 4 children, the work of planting a church and the conversion and maturation of our 3 oldest have made it seem like we have lived a lifetime in mere moments. It is amazing to consider. What will the next 5 years hold? Hopefully, faithfulness to Christ and fruitful labor for His church will mark our lives. If you could write the story of your next 5 years what would it say?

What do you need to do to live your dreams? I hope your plans reflect a holy acknowledgment Christ's Preeminence.

Thursday 22 October

Enjoyed Thursday morning Bible study at Perkins. Had one of the biggest crowds ever. I also enjoyed spending time with Paul afterward. He got the tour of our new house, Windermere and we talked theology.

Sermon prep in Acts 7 today. Proverbs and practical wisdom for family worship.

I feel better, no symptoms but am completely drained. I have a big run scheduled before supper but my bride advises against it. Will wisdom or stubborness reign?

An infusion of stamina for studying is needed. Reading is making me sleepy. Maybe a mid-afternoon coffee is in order. I really like Community Coffee 'Between Roast.' Tip of the cap to the Bailey's for introducing it to us.

When I think of my life, Lou Gehrig's famous farewell speech comes to mind with a twist of Christian worldview; "I consider myself the (Gehrig said "luckiest")most blessed man on the face of the earth."

Wednesday

I am feeling a little better today. Starting to get deeper into the text for Sunday, the end of Stephen's sermon against the Sanhedrin in Acts 7.

Studied Proverbs 12:1 in family worship last night. It was very compelling that the text used the term "stupid" in talking about those who hate correction. It was a timely message for any person, adult or child.

We feel so blessed to be in our new home. It is good to be closer to the battle in familiar surroundings. Now if the Lord will just give us a place to meet.

Looking forward to Thursday a.m. Bible study at Perkins in Ocoee. The start time is 8:30. It has been great to see some new faces at church. May the Lord be pleased to continue the increase.

Under the weather

I started feeling bad yesterday afternoon and had a rough night. Today, I am not 100%. I continue to pray for our church meeting location. I want the church to exist until the Lord comes. I think from a stewardship perspective we need to acquire our permanent space sooner rather than later (of course we acknowledge Christ's sovereignty over the timing).

There is an unlimited Gospel ministry opportunity in Orlando. Lord make us faithful ambassadors.

Bible reading in Romans, in family worship Proverbs and hopefully, Telling The Truth, ed. Carson. I am also reading Rediscovering Expository Preaching, ed. MacArthur.

If you are reading the blog regularly please consider being a "follower." Follow the link on the bar on the right side of this page. If I know you are out there I may be able to provide content that interests you.

Cool Air

Invigorating, energizing and fading this is the plight of our hometown weather. The warm up begins tomorrow, savor the breezes and clear blue skies. In John 3, Jesus likens the Spirit to "wind" whereby, we can see its effects and feel it on our faces but we cannot see from where it comes or where it goes. In many churches revivalism reigns. Is the Holy Spirit a cosmic butler? Does he run like a hired hand to cater to our whims? We had better take extra care in order to maintain appropriate reverence for the HOLY Spirit.

I hoping to read a large quantity of Scripture today for personal devotion. I will not take up the last section of Acts 7 until tomorrow.

We are planning the best Reformation Day celebration ever.

Sweet Abigail is having a birthday Saturday and wants a kitty. There are 2 kinds of people in the world those who like Neil Diamond and those who don't. Some are cat people, others prefer dogs and others don't like pets at all. I am a dog (no jokes for those of you who like to pick on my physical appearence, especially DWB) man. I love my baby girl more than life so if she wants a kitty she gets it! You should hear her pray that the Lord would somehow allow her to get one. If any of you have an orange, tiger looking kitten, I am in the market.

I like Neil Diamond...cool wardrobe and hair. 'Play it now, play it now!'

On another note, I always thought mobsters on TV dressed cool. I remember watching a stakeout of John Gotti or one of those mob bosses and there was a large henchman wearing one of those sweet terry cloth sweat suits and bright white tennis shoes. This guy hasn't exercised since the 60's. He has it zipped down with a GIANT gold necklace and medallion. I'd love to get one of those just for fun. How do you think my wife would feel about me sporting one of those in public?

16 October

Sermon prep is heavy on my mind. To what degree is Stephen advancing the "living stones" idea of God's spritual house being made up of believers not a 'temple' structure? The theme is certainly there but my biblical theology side wonders how far Stephen is going in Acts 7:44-50. I would like to think he is developing it in the way Peter does later but it is early in the revelatory development of the Church's standing in Christ. God's dwelling place, Stephen argues, is in the hearts of men (the Kingdom too). The Sanhedrin would certainly bristle at that. Particularly, when you consider the 'earthiness' of the Sadducees. He is by default defending himself against the charge of blaspheming the Temple (Acts 6) but his main argument is to proclaim judgment against the Sanhedrin because they have failed to esteem the promised Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Reading again in 2 Samuel, Romans and Famine In The Land (Lawson).

Feeling a bit melancholy today. I know the Truth but don't feeeeel the blessing. I had better go preach to myself, pray and repent!

Thursday

The prayer of my heart is that I would be a man of God, wholly given to the preaching of Christ and Him Crucified.

Reading:

Acts
2 Samuel in connection with Stephen's Sanhedrin sermon in Acts 7.
"Famine In The Land" Steve Lawson

Looking forward to spending time with the family this evening. The children are very excited about our church's Reformation Day celebration. I took the Calvin quiz on our website and my daughter, son and wife all scored higher than me.
Tonight in family worship I plan to discuss the chapter we are studying in the Carson book, Telling The Truth. This section relies heavily on Phil Jensen's Two Ways To Live.

I hope your Thursday is blessed.

Power Connected?

Yesterday we had a 3 repairmen come to the house to work. There were 2 plumbing issues, and an electrical fire hazard. Those were repairs we knew about ahead of time. Within 12 hours of scheduling the repairmen the front A/C, the dishwasher and the dryer stopped working. DS was losing her mind. During the afternoon and evening hours it got really hot up front so we ate dinner in our master bedroom (the A/C still works back there). I was about to retrieve our old dryer which was buried in the garage when I thought I would "play" with the circuit breakers. I noticed several were tripped. I went and turned those on and the dishwasher and dryer began working again. What was most baffling is the plumber and electrician were at the circuit breaker yesterday while we were having problems. These appliances stopped working before they arrived. They may have turned other breakers off or maybe the electrical issue caused it, who knows?

This made me think of a spiritual application. We often wonder why our lives are less effective than we want them to be. Could it be that we have disconnected from our power source? The spiritual disciplines of prayer and Bible study/meditation connect us to Christ. Maybe some of your frustration is related to running on your own power (like a mouse on a treadmill). Go check your circuit breakers and make sure everything is connected. The front A/C still isn't working right so the obvious solution isn't always a cure all. In our spiritual lives we will have to dig deep to find the cause. We live in a fallen world. Sometimes A/C units break, sometimes our trouble is because of our transgressions, the transgressions committed against us by others and sometimes it is because of Adam's Fall in Genesis.

Isn't it good to know we have a Savior who can conquer all?


Hope you enjoyed my Tuesday blog sabbatical.

Blessed

After running this morning I was again reminded that my youthful athleticism is fleeting. Last week, my oldest son (soon to be 13) asked if he could join me on a 3 mile run. I warned him that though he is extremely fit, the kind of running he had been doing (sports, sprinting) wouldn't necessarily translate well to a longer distance endurance run. He started at a quicker pace than I thought wise and remained about 25-50 yards ahead of me. He was able to maintain a blistering pace, sprinting over the canal bridge both ways, running ahead then back to me to check and see if I was okay (he enjoyed that). My boy is a stud! He sprinted the last 1/4 mile home. I came in a couple of moments later, he was drinking a glass of water and had already returned to a normal breathing pattern. In my twenties, this would have bothered me. Now I just feel blessed. I don't want to be a teenager again. In fact, as a Christian and pastor the idea of being an old man is exciting to me. More years of knowing and loving Christ and the wisdom that can only be acquired through years of living is very appealing. It is good to be here. Take some time to appreciate what Christ has done for you. Don't look back with longing, enjoy today's blessings and apply what you have learned to an expectant future. We are blessed if we know Him. Grey hair and failing body come, we fear you not!

Prayers and Provision

Thank you so much for praying. The Lord was so gracious to provide for our needs yesterday. It was a great learning opportunity for us and our children. We were clinging to Him and He supplied our need.

Sermon Prep in Acts 7 (and related texts) will dominate my thinking today. I like to have all the biblical information "simmering" as I pray and meditate about delivering the Lord's message. I so want to be God's man and deliver His message.

Dana has a big discipleship/fellowship day today with two/three different ladies.

We want to attempt great things for God at Covenant. Come and join us!

41st post

This is a picture I took with my phone of my baby girl Abigail.
She asked me to pull her tooth out. I asked my son to get some really big pliers to tease her. He came back with a giant pair of grips. I had her open wide...She was afraid but trusting. They never touched her mouth. It was so funny! I promise no children were hurt in this production.



This is my 41st post. Why is that significant? I don't know. Today has been a good day thus far. Enjoyed Men's Bible study on prayer early this morning followed by Sr. Bible study on 1 John 5@ 8:30.





I need to have a great study day.





Acts 7 for sermon prep


Proverbs for family worship

Wednesday

We are earnestly praying for our new church home. There are new developments, please pray.

Two Bible studies tomorrow morning. The first is downtown with Orlando businessmen on Prayer. The second is our Sr. Bible study on 1 John. So today I am studying 3 Bible subjects if you include sermon preparation.

Prayer is our great comfort. We have pressing needs.

There is nothing like knowing Christ and walking by faith!

Preaching and Hearing

We often lament the condition of our churches and the trend away from biblical preaching. Contrary to popular belief, preaching is a decidedly Christian endeavor and is a hallmark distinctive that separates us from the religions of the world. Preaching is not novel or original. It is the "heralding" of God's Truth from God's Book. We critique churches that are deviating from the biblical pattern. How quick are we to find fault with our own lack of desire and attentiveness for biblical preaching? Theologically, we know a church should have biblical preaching but practically it doesn't captivate our interest. You say we should be upholding biblical orthodoxy, how is your orthopraxy? Do you love hearing the proclamation of God's Word? Or is it something to be endured until the clock strives 12 so you can get on with the things that provide you greater pleasure? Is missing the corporate gathering of the church no big deal?

If a new Reformation is to come, it will only be possible when the Holy Spirit gives the saints the desire to hear more of the Glory of Christ. If the saints loved the Word and the heralding of the Word more the preachers who labor in group therapy, pragmatism, easy-believism and worldliness would be put out of business. If your pastor labors in movie clips and cultural relevancy respectfully ask him to repent. If he won't repent you need to get your family in a church that believes God is Holy, that loves to glorify Christ and is willing to conform to His character and commands, "...Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?" (James 4:4b)NKJV

The preaching might not be dynamic enough for your tastes but a more pressing question is, How is your hearing?

Jameson Thomas Jackson Brenyo turns 5 today

Happy Birthday General Jameson! We are blessed to be your parents. Your siblings, family and friends adore you.

We went to Fire Station #1 in downtown Orlando for a tour. Dana, Savannah and Charissa made a phenomenal Fire truck birthday cake. He is having a great day, Star Wars legos abound with more fun and frivolity to come...

Studying in Acts, praying God will make me a preacher.

Saturday

I would like to invite you to join us for church tomorrow. We currently meet at the Geneva School Early Education campus located at:

7540 Grand Ave
Winter Park, FL 32792

It is located one block off of Howell Branch Rd. It is between Aloma and 436 but closer to Aloma. There is a Seminole County Fire Station near the intersection of Howell Branch and Grand.

9:30 Study Hour (currently studying the book Telling the Truth ed. Carson)
coffee/fellowship break
10:30 Worship
12- Fellowship meal

If you need any help or have any questions email me: reformedbaptistpastor@yahoo.com

Provision

We are praying for provision on many fronts. The first, is our own needs. The second, is for our church location and finances. The others, dozens of people we know are struggling financially. Let us lift up the needs of our brethren and look for ways to be the means of their relief.

Studying for sermon in Acts 7 "Stephen's Apologia-Moses"

Reading excerpts from two books on preaching.

Proverbs for family worship tonight. Fellowship with friends over lunch today.

Tell your friends and family about our church. We seek to be faithful and fruitful.

Reading, Writing and Praying

Continuing to read the Eastman book on prayer. Plan to do some sermon preparation into the late hours of the evening. Working on 2 church related writing projects.

We are hoping to invite some of our new neighbors/town residents to church. Homegroups will probably be their first stop. At least one of the new families from last week plans to come back this week. Looking forward to seeing our members who have been gone for much of the summer.

We really need your prayers. The church location search has become a huge drain on me personally. The Lord has been so gracious in providing our current home in Winter Park. I really want the Windermere church but trust in God's plan.

We are scheduled for more Proverbs study tonight in family worship. Also, I am hoping to spend some spiritual time with my wife.