Happy Labor Day!

Miles (our eight year old) made this Lego scene of the two of us on a vet call together.

Married 15 Years Today!

Marries 15 years today! (best friends for 22 years)

Misunderstanding Our Father

I was so encouraged by last Sunday's message at Covenant Grace. Sabo taught on the love of God the Father in adopting us through the Gospel. There is a vast father hunger in our culture and Christians are not immune to it. I think that is because there is a real lack of teaching about the heart of our Father.

Several years ago when I read John Owen's Communion with God for the first time I was blown away by how generous and loving the Father is toward us in Christ. I had serious misunderstandings about the heart of my Father. See if you do too. Does this describe the way you see your Father?:

Let us then see the Father as full of love to us. Do not see the Father as one who is angry, but as one who is most kind and gentle. Let us see the Father as one who from eternity has always had kind thoughts towards us. It is a complete misunderstanding of the Father that makes us want to run away and hide from him. The Psalmist said, 'They that know you will put their trust in you.' How sad that we cannot stay long with God in spiritual meditations! The Father loses the company of his people because they are so ignorant of his love to them. His saints keep thinking only of his terrible majesty, severity and greatness, and so their hearts are not drawn to him in love. We must learn to think of his everlasting gentleness and compassion. We must remember his kind thoughts towards us which have been from eternity. Let us remember how eager and willing he is to accept us. If we did this, then we would not be able to bear one hour's absence from him. Instead, we find it difficult to spend even one hour with him. Let then this be the first thought that we have of the Father, that he is full of eternal love to us. Let our hearts and thoughts be filled with his love to us, even though many discouragements may lie in our way.

This is what our Father is like toward us in Christ. To see the Scriptural backing for what Owen says here read Ephesians 1:3-14, keeping in mind that this whole section is praising what (specifically) the Father has done.

(By the way Communion with God is one of the top 5 most helpful books I have ever read.)

You Never Stop Being a Parent

If you are struggling to know how to be a parent your grown children, You Never Stop Being a Parent is the book for you. I think you'll be surprised to see how the Scriptures come alive as they a brought to bear on this later stage of parenting.

Dr. Newheiser has also filled the book with great stories (from his years of counseling experience) which serve to illustrate biblical wisdom. This is an encouraging, hopeful book that will help you see the Gospel in a fresh way, apply it to the challenges of parenting, and call you to put your hope in God.

As a father of young kids, it was also helpful for me to read this book and consider how I might better prepare them for adulthood.

Photo of the Week

My missional wife :-)
(her apprentice is in the background)

Photo of the Week

 
 a little something Miles whipped up in the Lego armory

When Sinners Say 'I Do'

Are you married or getting married? Dave Harvey's When Sinners Say 'I Do' (Kindle, Audiobook) is a great book on how the Gospel can transform your marriage (a PDF of the first chapter).

Limited on reading time? Check out these free audio messages by Dave Harvey that follow the content of his book:

1. When Sinners Say 'I Do' Part 1: Sin, (Notes)  
2. When Sinners Say 'I Do' Part 2: Mercy, (Notes)  
3. When Sinners Say 'I Do' Part 3: Grace, (Notes) 
4. Parenting in Weakness, (Notes)

When sinners say 'I do' the Gospel changes everything!

Photo of the Week

 
What my kids think I do. Not unlike Yoshimi, I suppose.