Sunday Morning in Newark

A couple of observations from this Sunday...

• I have finally found a time in which the roads are empty here in DE. If you drive down 273 at 6:30 am on a Sunday morning, you are guaranteed to be one of the few people on the road. No school districts, and I only had to make 2 u-turns!
  
  
• If you go to Starbucks (on Main Street) at 6:45 am on a Sunday morning (especially after a UD night game), you could very likely be the only person there, I was. Take a look at the picture. Main Street 6:45 am.
  
  
• If you are missing the Sunday morning sunrises at Ogletown, you are missing something INCREDIBLE. (Easy for me to say...I look at sunrises, while my wife gets 2 kids ready. Something may not be right about that.)

Anyway, I am learning to love this place in just a short time!

Questions to help a new Delawarean understand important issues here

Getting adjusted to a new part of the country is an interesting experience. I thought I would ask for some answers to questions I have, after living here for 2.5 weeks.

Question 1 - Why do I have to make so many U-turns? I think I make more in a day here, than I have made in a couple of months anywhere else.

Question 2 - I am going out on a limb here, but I think there are parts of town in Wilimington that may not be completely safe at night. Is that accurate? I think I was in one of those places last night.

Question 3 - How can there be that many cars on I-95? Furthermore, how many people live around here? Every single road seems packed with traffic, all the time.

Oh well, I am not complaining (I have loved every minute here, except those 30 minutes going 2 miles on 95), just asking!

Sunday Preview

Sunday comes every week! You realize that more when you preach every week. :-) Truthfully, if the ole' sermon is not coming together, Sunday coming is not what you want to be reminded of. But, there are times when you just can't wait for it to come. I think I am in that category this week. In lieu of Sunday coming, here are a few thoughts...

1. If you want to be way ahead of the general population, read Romans 7 and 8 this weekend. It couldn't hurt to read those chapters every weekend, but we are going to look at them this Sunday.
   
   
2. If you know of someone who has struggled with guilt and feeling condemned by others and by God, do everything you can to get them here Sunday. I am not promising a great sermon, only a great attempt through the Bible to show God's heart for the biggest sinner in the world (that surely includes me)!
   
   
3. SPOILER ALERT: If you don't want to know where I am going with Sunday's message do not read The Cross Centered Life by C.J. Mahaney. He articulates my passion for Sunday so well in that book, if you read that you could get an excused absence from Sunday. :-)
   
   
4. I have also been challenged and blessed by reading What's So Amazing about Grace? by Philip Yancey (FYI, I am sure that I don't agree with everything Yancey says, but then again, I am not sure I agree with everything I say). Yancey always does an "amazing" job of making the Bible come alive. He really does a great job of painting grace in a contemporary, powerful way.
   
   
5. I am doing something new Sunday. On the handout you get coming into the church, I have included a section entitled "taking it home." It is my attempt to make Sunday more than just a sermon. I want the message we hear to "have legs" and walk with us throughout the week. I guess we'll see how it goes.

That's enough for now. Can't wait to see you on Sunday.

Bible Reading from this morning.

I just wrote about my Bible reading plan. Today, I was in Psalm 78. A few things jumped out at me...

• This is a great chapter recounting Old Testament history and theology
  
  
• Verse 5 & 7 - God established a testimony to be passed on to children. This was done so that the children "should set their hope in God." What an awesome goal in parenting.
  
  
• Verse 21-22 - God is angered by our lack of belief and trust in his saving power.
  
  
• Verse 38-39 - Even in his righteous anger, he is compassionate, atones for our sin, restrains his anger, and remembers our condition. Wow!

Read Psalm 78 today if you get a chance, but expect to look in the mirror and be convicted. And expect to see the gracious hand of God in our lives!

Devotions, Quiet Time, Personal Bible Study, etc.

Whatever we might desire to call it, I think most Christians recognize that it is important to regularly be before God in prayer, meditation, and in reading Scripture. Just a side note, imagine what people did before they had access to a copy of Scripture. They would have to remember in their mind what they had heard, and meditate on that. Thank God for copies of the Bible in our own language. But, back to the matter of spending regular time with God. I wanted to give some insight into some of what I have done recently in that area. I am sure I will discuss this more later.

My Bible reading is directed from a plan developed by a Scottish preacher years ago. I actually use an adaptation of that plan created by D.A. Carson. You can find it in a couple of books he has written called For the Love of God. It is a devotional book that highlights a thought from the passages I have read. I actually have a hard copy of the book, but I get an email sent daily to me with the reading plan and the devotional sent to me. You can get that by clicking here. Over the last year, the plan (actually it has been the Word, not the plan, but you know what I mean) has been a great source of strength.

One disclaimer...the plan has you reading 4 chapters a day. I know that is aggressive for someone just beginning to read the Bible and understand it. So, if that is too much, scale it down. But spend time in God's Word!

More about prayer and meditation later...

On the way to work this morning

Today as I came to work, I had some extended time to pray (Fog had slowed the traffic to a crawl, and traffic was rerouted due to the dreaded fender-benders). I was praying for a friend of mine and I began thinking about some of my high school/college/seminary friends:

• I have a friend who is planting a church in Oklahoma City
• I have another friend doing collegiate ministry in Knoxville, TN
• I have another friend who is a missionary in the Middle East
• Another friend pastors in Pennsylvania
• Another friend has planted a church in Midland, Texas
• Another friend is in Washington state serving a church there
  

I have so many friends (not even named here) who are in ministries around the world. But, those aren't the only friends who are serving Christ.

• I have a friend who is a lawyer in the DC area, and actively involved in serving the students of his church
• I have another friend who is a contractor in Georgia, and is diligently leading his family in a way that honors Christ
• I have a brother-in-law who is a policeman and a sister-in-law who is a stay-at-home mom who are actively serving a church in Michigan

So many of the people who I went to college/seminary with are still serving God faithfully. For some of those people that means being in full-time paid ministry. For many others that means being faithful servants in their church (minus the paycheck).

I am glad for the people at OBC as well who have decided to serve whether noticed or unnoticed, recognized or unrecognized, paid or unpaid. Colossians 3:23-24 reminds us that we work for God anyway. He sees it, He rewards it, and He is honored by it.

Sunday Evening Post

Although Monday was my first "day on the job," I have to admit that being here for Sunday services makes it seem more official. Some thoughts on the first Sunday...

1. The sunrise this morning was incredible. I got to see the church with the sunrise in the background. Thank you God for the blessing of creation.
   
   
2. Baptizing 4 people was such a treat for the first Sunday.
   
   
3. There are a lot of people that come through these doors on Sunday.
   
   
4. There is so much more I wanted to say in this morning's message. I guess it is good that (Lord willing) I am going to be here for a while.
   
   
5. I had to remind myself of the gospel even between services! God is good to sinners!
   
   
6. From the person who unlocked the doors, to the person who helped me out with the details of baptizing, to the people who parked and greeted those who came, to the ones who watched the kids, to the deacon who made sure I was taken care of, OBC is blessed to have so many servants. I am blessed to be here.
   
   
7. I felt once again very grateful to be the pastor here.

Oh well, my favorite team (I will not disclose who that is for fear of a voting recount on my being called as pastor) is playing Sunday night football. I will blog more later.

A month is a long time (or at least it seems like it)

Over a month ago, I remember anticipating preaching at Ogletown for the first time. The feelings I have today are different and similar to that Saturday.

They are different because...

• Obviously, I have gotten to spend more time (even if its only been by blog or email) with many in the church than I had before
• I am not coming off a weekend of several meetings
• I will come to church from a house, not a hotel

But, in many ways it is similar to each time I open God's word and teach because...

• I have great confidence in the Word
• I recognize a great dependence on the Spirit
• I sense my (many) inadequacies, but God's overwhelming sufficiency
• I absolutely cannot wait to share what God has taught me over the last several weeks.

As I said, there are similarities and differences, but I am glad that this Sunday has (almost) arrived. I am praying that God would give us a great day being changed by the Word, encouraged by the fellowship, and sharpened by his Spirit.

Just a thought

Have you ever had a verse that you have read before, but it speaks to you in a fresh way? I read this verse this morning...

My tongue will talk of your righteous help all the day long. Psalm 71:24

So, who is going to hear from me about the righteous help of God today? Who can I share it with? What a challenge!

A PRAYER CELEBRATING GOD'S HELP

Father, you are our help.
Far more than just helping us,
You are our source of help,
You help us by giving us peace, hope, and guidance.
You stay close when others don't or can't.
You reaffirm your grace.
You reassure of your purposes.

God, we need that help!
Our minds are not sharp enough.
Our wisdom is not superior.
We do not exercise sovereignty.
We cannot claim omniscience.
We know nothing of omnipotence.

So we ask for your help,
Rejoicing that it is ours for the asking.
We ask for
Your gracious sovereignty
Your all-wise omniscience, and
Your humbling omnipotence.

We praise you for your help, and do not hesitate to speak of it.

Welcome to I-95

I had a friend arrange for one of our vehicles to be towed up to this area. He arranged (for free, I might add) for it to be dropped off in Laurel, MD. That arrangement saved us a lot of hassle.

The only hassle was navigating I-95 this morning. I think everyone in the Northeast Corridor was heading that direction today. And, a great number of them were driving somewhat recklessly causing the interstate to back up about every 1/8 of a mile. So, I got to "take my time" going through Baltimore this morning.

In addition, I got to pay to sit in this traffic.

• $3 to get out of Delaware
• $2 to go into the Ft McHenry Tunnel (Canaan loved it, by the way)
• $2 (times 2 with my car and Shawna's car) to get out of the Tunnel
• $5 to get out of Maryland (times 2 again)
• $3 to get back into Delaware (times 2 again)

Welcome to the Northeast. I think all my new Yankee friends are smiling.