Don't Faint or Anything

Ok, so I have decided to post again. I'm not promising anything but hopefully this will be th first of many to come. (ha) I have decided to broaden the scope this blog to include more than just churchy type of issues. So we shall see what happens.

Today my daughter Brittany graduates from high school. This is definitely one of those events which falls under the category of bittersweet. While I am very proud and am l0oking forward to seeing what the future will bring into her life, I can't help but wonder where the years have gone. With today also comes the realization that in less than three months she will be packing her bags and heading off to Western Kentucky University to start a brand new phase of life, one that will bring a new level of independence and require a greater level of responsibility. I hope we have prepared her and I'm thankful for the privilege that God gave me when He brought her into our lives and allowed me to be her dad.

Below I have added a video that we had made for this occasion. Special thanks to Andy for putting it together. (I think he did a pretty good job)

I Bet I Get a Lot of Comments for This

Ok,ok, I am back. This is going to short. I hope to (no promises) have something a bit longer and more substantive later this week. Here Goes

How many Fundamentalists does it take to screw in a lightbulb?


None, the church split over whether to use 60 or 100 watt bulbs.

Feel free to add your own twists.

Flock of Fundies

I leave tomorrow morning for the annual IFCA International Convention in Lousivlle KY. I will have a report when I return.

Lazy Post

So is what follows below a long overdue call to biblical unity or is it an example of self righteous naivette. I find myself vasilating. If only it were so simple.

Amalgamate

(From Five Iron Frenzy's Upbeats and Beatdowns)

You've got a cause now I heard you braggin'

Always the fastest one on the bandwagon

So sit down and I'll tell you What I'm feeling, What I'm feeling

For lack of better words you are stealing, you are stealing

all of my joy away from me. Whatever happened to our unity

We cut ourselves our own limbs we severed

It's time for us to pull together and stand, as one

all eyes are pointing towrds the Son

Drop your fists now, what you resent

Let's not forget who we represent

and fall to our knees in unity.

Another day now, another doctrine Another monkey wrench in the system

Some folks kneelin', some just listen Some fallin' out of the pews from twistin'

I don't care kids, how you do it,

united we stand and we'll pull through it

All were dead once, all enslaved,

now pull together 'cause we've all been saved

We cut ourselves our own limbs we severed
It's time for us to pull together and stand, as one
all eyes are pointing towrds the Son
Drop your fists now, what you resent
Let's not forget who we represent
and fall to our knees in unity.

The only Jesus the world's gonna see, is the Jesus in you and me

So pick up your cross and stop your swiningin'

stop and look at the stink you're bringin, 'to this body with you fightin'

You bust more knuckles than the wrong's your rightin'

What's important is where we relate, it's the meaning of the word Amalgamate

We cut ourselves our own limbs we severed
It's time for us to pull together and stand, as one
all eyes are pointing towrds the Son
Drop your fists now, what you resent
Let's not forget who we represent
and fall to our knees in unity.

Reflections on Father's Day

About a month ago (Mother's Day actually) my wife was talking to her mother on the phone. She had visited us a couple of weeks earlier and when she returned to California my wife had her take our Mother's Day present for my mom with her (thus saving on costly postage). Well she had forgotten to give it to her and so my wife was teasing her and reminded her to not forget the Father's Day gift we had sent for her dad. As I was listening to this, for a brief second I thought, "I wonder what we should get my dad for Father's Day?" Then I remembered, you don't get people in heaven Father's Day gifts.

The fact is that since my dad passed away a year ago January I miss him more than I thought I would. He was a unique man and a unique father. I used to think that he and I were polar opposites. There were times I didn't always appreciate his quirky sense of humor (his seeming inability to be embarrassed) and frequent opinions(which irritatingly almost always turned out to be right) yet I always had this great desire to please him. I wasn't always sure how well he and I related to each other but I was always proud of him.

The older I get the more I find myself emmulating him. I have discovered the joy that comes from doing some oddball thing in a semi-public place and watching your kids wish they could seap into the floor. As I followed his footsteps into ministry I began to find his insights far less irritating and much more insightful. I remember him introducing me to John MacArthur and how pleased he was to tell him that I was a pastor too. I know how much I enjoy meeting people that knew him and telling them that I am his son.

One of my favorite memories of my dad took place the last summer we lived in Santa Rosa. The thing is, we didn't have any idea at the time that we would be moving in about 9 months. We were staying at a lake with my parents and my sister's family. Every morning my dad and I got up early and went fishing out on the lake in a neighbor's small boat. During the entire week we caught a sum total of about three fish (he caught them all) and I think I had maybe one bite the entire time. So basically it was my dad and me on a quiet lake talking our way though the cool mornings. I don't remember one single thing we talked about but I do remember how cool it was to be there with him. The thing is, that week was the first time I really started to notice that he was getting older. He got tired on the walk to and from the boat and he needed my help getting in and out. It was really the first time that I began to realize that he might not always be here. When we moved here I really wanted him to come out and help me. I thought it would be good for both of us because I realized how much we had come to understand each other. I still feel bad that he and I never got that chance.

So this Father's Day I have found myself a bit meloncholy but I am thankful that I have had a dad that I miss so much. My prayer is that in emmulating him my own sons will one day want to do the same.

That Hymn Thing

This is a post that has been brewing for some time now. If you look over at my sidebar you will notice that one of my links leads to the official web site of IFCA International. This is a fellowship of churches and believers to which I and the church I pastor are members. My father was also a member and for three years served as its president. His father was one of its early members and both of the churches that they pastored for years were members. It has a rich heritage of standing for the truth and a zeal for the Word of God.

Since accepting the call to be the Pastor Teacher of a local church my appreciation for the fellowship and accountability a body such as this provides has grown immensely. I have found myself encouraging some of my friends who are involved in ministry to join and have waxed eloquent as to its virtues. One of the hesitations that some of these friends have mentioned to me is their perception that the IFCA is a movement of mostly grumpy old men who spend the majority of their time criticizing other Christians and when approached with any idea or concept that was formed after, oh say 1955, makes them think that they have caught a whiff of the burning tire of error. (I stole that line from Garison Keillor). I have assured them that such is not the case, that these stereotypes are unfair and are not based on objective truth.

Imagine my chagrin then as I opened the March/April edition of the Voice Magazine (the official publication of IFCA International) and read an article entitled The Value of the Hymnal. Now, I was not in the least bothered by the title of the article. As you will note from my last post, I have a deep appreciation for hymns. I think if and when churches choose to totally disregard these songs from our past they do so at a great disservice to themselves. As I started reading I was hoping to find an articulate defense of gems such as And Can it Be and How Great Thou Art along with a call for balance in utilizing the best of both the old and the new in our worship. Instead I was met with the same tire arguments waged in the past in a battle that never needed to be fought in the first place.

Here are some of the points made by the author:
The rejection of the hymnal has all but eliminated the singing of parts in church music. Ok, and that is a problem because? First of all I sing parts to most contemporary songs and I didn?t realize that four part harmony was a sign of spiritual health.

Abandonment of the hymnal makes it more, not less, difficult to clarify the message of Evangelicalism. Huh? In the article he never really goes on to say why or how.

Removing the hymnal increases the profanation and deterioration of beauty and order in the church. I personally can't think of anything more profane than I Stand in Awe of You.

Because the constant use of contemporary music may (italics mine) well arise from questionable motives. Um, couldn?t the same be said for the constant use of traditional music?

Here is my point. As Fundamentalists we need to argue for that which is truely fundamental otherwise we end up looking silly. I realize that my tone here might seem a bit sarcastic but this stuff really gets to me. I find it very interesting that in the Psalms God encourages us to use a variety of modes and instruments in our musical worship. In the book of I Timothy when Paul instructed a young pastor as to how the church ought to conduct itself he did not have much of anything to say about styles and forms. Evidently there is freedom when it comes to that. I can remember at a conference that I attended a number of years ago that the leader asked us how most people would judge whether or not they have been in an affective worship service. He then asked how we thought God would judge whether or not a worship service had been effective. When it comes to this issue we all have to remember what is truly fundamental. I haven?t come to be pleased or even moved but rather I have come to exalt Him.

As Promised Earlier ...

Things about me which confirm my membership in the Fundamenalist for Life Club:

I have a Scofield Reference Bible on a prominent place on my desk.

I generally keep my hair cut over my ears.

I wear a suit and tie when I preach on Sunday mornings.

If they want my hymnbook they will have to pry it from my cold dead hand.

I always sing "Amen" at the end of the Doxology.

I have never preached a sermom through dance or in costume.

I don't clap after someone sings a solo in church (little kids excepted).

Demon alcohol has never crossed these lips.

Or his equally evil cousin tobbaco

Things about me that could get me kicked out of the Fundamentalist for Life Club:

I don't actually use the Scofield Reference Bible (it was my grandfathers).

My church has drums and I have even been known to play them from time to time.

I think the KJV only folks are a bit off their collective rockers.

I generally lose the coat and tie for Sunday evening services.

I occasionally visit the cinema.

As I post this I am listening to Barenaked Ladies ("If I had a million dollars we wouldn't have to eat Kraft Dinner....)

From time to time I will engage in civil conversation with the local United Methodist Pastor.

I am not totally convinced that the universe is less than 10,000 years old (that one is bound to ruffle some feathers assuming of course that anyone reads this)

And most shocking of all; I sometimes pray with my eyes open.