Reflections on Blog Fasting

Well, Kathi and I have committed the next few days to prayer in preparation for our trip to Cologne. We've decided to eliminate everything that distracts us, and blogging definitely falls into that category for me. So, I'm going to sign off for a few days. Please keep us in your prayers. Especially pray that God would give us wisdom and that our hearts would be moved towards His will. See you in a few.

Reflections on Kölle am Ring

One more week, and Kathi and I will be leaving for Cologne, Germany! For the past few months, we have been exploring the possibility of becoming missionaries to Germany. We eventually came across Greater Europe Mission, which plants churches all across Europe. They then hooked us up with the ministry they have going on in Cologne! This was particularily exciting for me because I lived in Cologne for a while after I graduated from OU. Anyway, next week we are flying over there to spend time with the team and to learn about the work they're doing.

So, please be praying for us. We've especially been asking that God would give us clarity and discernment as to whether this is where He wants us. Pray that we would be attentative to His voice.

Reflections on Our Holy Spirit Chat

A few weeks ago, I started discipling a couple of college guys at Trinity. Here they are. The one of the left is Eric Beem, and the goofy lookin' one on the right is Aaron Leggett. They are two awesome men of God. I've been so blessed to get to know them.

Last night I met with Aaron, and we spent time studying what Scripture says about the Holy Spirit. What a great topic! Both of us were perplexed at how the majority of the church today neglects talking about the Holy Spirit. Apparently, if you start talking about the Holy Spirit, you just may turn into some crazy Pentecostal or something. Oh, no!

In particular, we talked about receiving power from the Holy Spirit. Most people are familiar with Acts 1:8 -

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

While the phenomenon of speaking in tongues is only mentioned a few times, the Holy Spirit's empowerment for testifying about Christ is one of the central themes of Acts. So, why don't we hear that preached in our churches? Our intimate fellowship with the Holy Spirit should result in more boldness in sharing our faith. And yet, isn't this one area where the church in the West has become impotent?

We came to the conclusion that this is the result simply of unbelief. Essentially, the church (myself included) do not trust that God has equipped us the very same power the early church possessed in our mission to the world. Instead we rely on tracts and response cards, evangelistic "methods" and being relevant, and the "wisdom of this world." All this is why 1 Corinthians 2:1-4 blew us away -

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling [this is Paul talking!!!]. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

Lord, have mercy on me. Help us in our unbelief.

Reflections on the Fünften Jahreszeit

A big shout out to the citizens of Cologne, Germany who begin their Karneval celebration today. For more info on Karneval, read the Wikipedia article on this world-wide phenomenon.

Reflections on Christian Jingoism

Is that or is that not ridiculous?...

Check out Purgatorio for more Evangelical bloopers.

Reflections on My Wife

Today I thought I'd use cyberspace to brag about my wife. Her name is Kathi. There she is...isn't she beautiful? That's a great word to describe her too. Of course, she's beautiful looking...I mean, look at her! But, she's also beautiful in just about every way a person can be beautiful. Beautiful heart, beautiful mind, beautiful character. She also has a great smile that goes from one ear to the other.

She brings so much strength to our relationship. Her constancy in the Lord is the remedy to my frequently unstable spiritual walk. Ever since the day we started dating, her self-worth, meaning, and ultimate joy have been rooted in Christ's love alone. I can't tell you how much pressure that takes off of me knowing that my wife doesn't lean on me for her worth and value. It gives me the freedom to love her in the ways a man is supposed to love a woman (which I do quite imperfectly). Just the other day, I came across Proverbs 18:22 which says:

He who finds a wife finds what is good,
and receives favor from the Lord.

Amen, brother.

Reflections on Women's Deodorant

I was watching TV the other night and a commercial came on advertising the women’s deodorant Secret. Most of you would recognize the well-known tag line from those commercials: “Strong enough for a man, but pH balanced for a woman.” Well, for the first time I noticed that they changed this slogan. Now it’s simply “Strong enough for a woman.”

I know that this change was probably motivated by a desire to present women as strong and independent (and more than likely was concocted by a bunch of middle-aged men). But, I’m not so sure they knew what they were doing. Aren’t they now just saying that women’s BO is so bad that you need a really strong deodorant? Women, you can correct me if I’m wrong, but I figure you wouldn’t want a deodorant that referenced how nasty your BO is. Ladies, you need a deodorant that’s strong enough to handle your obscene stank. Am I wrong? Just a thought.

Check out Secret's website here for more puzzling quandaries from the world of women's BO.

Reflections on A Long Obedience

For legal purposes, I suppose I should let everyone know that the title of this blog was not my idea. I unashamedly ripped it off of a book written by Eugene Peterson called A Long Obedience in the Same Direction who himself ripped it off of Friedrich Nietzsche. I latched on to this idea of a long obedience because there is something romantic about the arduous pilgrimage that costs you everything. It's hard not to be struck by the long path of Christian faith that is fixed on the day when the beloved will be with the Great Lover.

This sounds great, but the reality is that I'm a weak man prone to wandering, disobedience, and doubt. My faith resembles more the "shifting sands" than the immoveable mountain. I'm the product of a culture that says you should at all costs gratify whatever emotion or desire you're experiencing at the time and then move on to the next. Peterson writes:

There is a great market for religious experience in our world; there is little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition of virtue, little inclination to sign up for a long apprenticeship in what earlier generations of Christians called holiness.

The more I live, the more I know that I do not have what it takes to sustain this "long apprenticeship". Man, I love God's grace. I have cast my lot with Him, and he'll give me what I need to bring me to the end. He is good. I hope that this blog of mine will be a testimony to that grace, which make this pilgrimage possible. It will also be a place to share some thoughts, serious and quirky. I hope that you are blessed.

Reflections on Blogging

For the longest time, I thought that personal blogs were meaningless attempts at vanity and self-glorification. It seemed just another way that people can feel important because they've thrown their thoughts and opinions out into the hysteria of cyberspace. Yeah, it's great that you spent three hours blogging about the rash on your back shaped like Richard Nixon. No thanks, not for me.

So, the inevitable question is: "Kevin, why are you even bothering creating this blog?" Well, knowing that no more than 3 people will probably ever read this site, it at least seemed like a fruitful way to process and put into writing the confusing mess called my life. Plus, it's a good way to keep in touch with those 3 people that do care. And, let's not forget the most pressing reason: boredom...sheer boredom.