Please note our new service time: 10:00AM
We will resume two services on Aug 26 (maybe sooner).
Join us Sundays at 10 am
Please note our new service time: 10:00AM
We will resume two services on Aug 26 (maybe sooner).
Hear from Redemption Hill Kids Coordinator Deneen Costic about how you can help serve our kids on Sunday morning.
If you are interested in serving, please fill out our volunteer form by clicking here, or email Deneen directly by clicking here.
Me, my wife Heather, and our 3 children
I don’t always speak in a way that demonstrates what I truly believe. For instance, sometimes I say, “Good luck,” but I don’t really believe in luck. Do you know what I mean? And I do the same thing with more important things…like my children.
If you were to ask me, “Raymond, how many children do you have?” my first inclination would be to say, “Two…Heather and I have a 3-1/2 year old daughter and a 21-month-old daughter.” However, we actually have three children. Yes, that’s right…Heather is pregnant with our third child, and if everything goes according to schedule, that child will be born in March 2011.
My third child may be small, but he/she is still every bit a part of our family as my bigger children. My third child may be invisible to me, but he/she is still known and loved by the God who created him/her.
God said to Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you…” (Jer.1:5). So, don’t think I’ve gone crazy when you see me before March 2011 and I tell you that I have three children. I’ve actually gone un-crazy and I’m beginning to speak what I truly believe.
DOWNLOAD: Reflection guide Ecc 9.1-18
Our culture frowns upon contemplating our upcoming death. But all the expert means we employ to ignore this fact do not delay or minimize the reality that our physical lives will end.
But honestly I too want to avoid reality. I really am 38 years old. I am no longer 21. A torn ACL in my right knee and multiple recent visits to the doctor have really brought this home. (I don’t bring this up to complain, relative to others, I have nothing to complain about and I have NO problems.) I have realized through this process how much I have idolized my youth and oftentimes feel like my life is slipping away from me. And my natural reaction is to get very somber and severe.
But listening to the sermon this Sunday I was really encouraged by contemplating the sovereignty and mercy of God. My short vain life is in God’s hands and because of his mercy I can live life boldly coram deo without shame. So instead of turning inward and downward to contemplate the depressing nature of death, because of the gospel we can learn to smile outward and upward!
As you reflect on this week’s message my you find renewed courage to in light of redemption and death to do with all your might whatever you hand finds to do! (Ecc 9:10)
This month’s Little Globetrotters had a special surprise…a live visit with missionaries who are currently on the field! Through the wonders of technology and thanks to a British company that has made wireless access possible in Uganda, our missionary speakers came direct from Uganda. A cool slide presentation narrated by Tamara and Jeremy Boone made it possible for the kids to both see and hear what life is like in Uganda. The presentation ended with some shots of Uganda kids singing “Pray for Me” and our kids asking questions.
These missionaries are working in a poverty-stricken area and help with basic life needs and skills as they preach the gospel. One interesting project Tamara does is helping women make necklaces to sell using extra buttons. So feel free to collect- and then help us send- your extra buttons to Uganda. An odd way to share the gospel, certainly, but it helps meet their basic needs. Enjoy some pictures from our morning:
Welcoming Jeremy and Tamara.
Friendly, gospel-preaching talking heads.
What a great surprise!
The images from Uganda were captivating.
Construction unimaginable to our western mindsets.
It was an interesting presentation for adults too.
Beaded bracelets will remind us to pray for Uganda.
A Virginia dad of 14- whose youngest is a teenager now- recently wrote an article on appreciating the seasons of parenting. The sermon Sunday challenged all of us to rest in God’s sovereignty and to respond to our present life circumstances with joy and worship. In the midst of our problem solving as parents, we need to be reminded to pause and breathe deeply the life God has given us…however difficult or joyful it may be.
In the early days of our parenthood, it sometimes seemed that life would go on forever as it was going then. We’d never have any money, we’d never have a child old enough to babysit the siblings, and we’d never have air conditioning in the house or own a dependable car. I was so tense as a young man that I made life harder for myself and for those I loved. I let the stresses of life rob me of a lot. Ben Franklin was right when he said that there’s “no putting an old man’s head on a young man’s shoulders.” Still, I’m irritated with myself for letting seasons go by without fully tasting the days.
I’ve heard Marilyn say that life was tougher when she had three children than it was with eight, because when she had only three, there were no big helpers. Two were in diapers, and firstborn Rickey was a little fireball. Now, our youngest is almost a teenager and we have young adults in the house who pretty much run the home operation for us. We are also blessed with some wonderful children-in-law and grandchildren, but the extra needs of the family are felt, too. It takes a tremendous expenditure of time, finances, and effort to do what we do.
But by now we know it won’t always be this way. We’ve had better times and worse times and probably both kinds will visit us again. All we know for sure is that everything that comes to pass, passes….
If you’re a young parent with young children, your life isn’t easy. That’s why God gives you those responsibilities while you have the energy of youth with which to handle it all. If you don’t mind a friendly word of advice from a guy who has spent the last few decades trading energy for experience, I’d ask you to stop and smell the roses. They’re right there in front of you–in your preschooler’s cheeks. Beware of the tendency to get wrapped up in getting everything done; it will never be all done. This season of your life, like every season of life, will pass before you know it. Savor it while it’s here.
Turn off the vacuum cleaner for a minute and go hug your kids.
You can read the entire article here.
I am running the Ukrops 10K in a couple of weeks. Lest you think I have gone New-Year’s-Resolution-crazy this year in between my now-complete sugar fast and running a 6.2 mile race, I’ll have to plead a lack of planning on both accounts. The sugar fast was a last minute thing for me, and I’ve been longing to run this festival-like race since I ran it 5 years ago. Pregnancies and new babies haven’t made it possible till now.
But running it has made me think about how people change. Typical Lenten fasts, new year’s resolutions, and gym memberships all seem to carry a common theme: you can change if you just behave differently. Consider this marriage illustration from the Gospel Transformations book:
A contemptuous husband has received some advice to change his ways toward his wife. Instead of criticizing her, he is to give his wife flowers every day for a week. The implication is that as he does this, his heart will change. He will become a better person and his marriage will improve.
Do you resist the conclusion you suspect this book will make? I feel resistance in my own heart. I want this husband to be nicer to his wife. Sticking to a race-training plan is good for me. Accomplishing my resolutions ought to make me feel good. What’s wrong with changing behavior? What could possibly be wrong with bringing roses?
…this husband (might) only become worse. He would just incorporate his “doing” into his life of disobedience and would become more proud. This husband is still in “god-mode:” You must serve me; I must control my circumstances; I have the right to judge. When challenged about his life, he now replies to his wife, “Look what I have been doing for you.” If this wife had a choice, what do you think she would prefer: flowers or a repentant heart; roses or humility?
Permanent change only happens when repentance is the foundation of the change. Otherwise it is a shifting of allegiances to newer idols- from the idolatry of consuming food to the idolatry of controlling food; from idolizing one’s time through slothfulness to idolizing one’s time through gym memberships; from controlling one’s wife by harshness to controlling her by gifts.
So today I’m trying to repent for letting sugar become an addiction and for my laziness that keeps me from exercising with any amount of passion. I’ve proven to myself I can temporarily change my behavior, but I want God in this spring season to permanently change me.
After taking a month off of our voyages, the Little Globetrotters traveled to Burkina Faso in western Africa to learn about the traditional people who live there. Miss Julie brought in a giant photo album from her time living there and showed the children the types of houses that are typical. A native snack that comes from western Africa was fresh bananas, and the children made a monkey mask in their craft. We hope the children will use their prayer calendars to remind them to pray every day for Burkina Faso- for fresh water, enough mud bricks for their houses, and- most importantly- that the children of Burkina Faso will know and love Jesus.
Miss Julie shows traditional woven baskets.
Can Kate find Burkina Faso in Africa?
Rapt attention
Hiding behind a monkey mask.
I haven’t had sugar since January 1. Really just a random New’s Year resolution that came to mind when a friend asked everyone to say their resolutions at our New Year’s Eve party. But I went home that night, ate 8 pieces of chocolate, and haven’t had any sugar since. Not in desserts, not in bread, not in salad dressing, not in restaurant food to my knowledge (boy, that’s the toughest one. Makes eating in restaurants really boring.)
I’m not doing this for Lent. If I were, it would need to be much more intentional and worshipful than it has been. But I feel like I’ve learned some things about myself that have made it a worthwhile experience.
And where’s the gospel application here? Honestly, it gets mixed up in my head. Having a sugar fast save me is kind of like letting religion save me. I wish eating were such an act of worship for me that I didn’t use it as a crutch for my boredom, depression, or lack of planning. But at the same time, a temporary discipline can be useful for resetting the tastes and refreshing the palate in more ways than one. I feel like my head is on straighter- like I can think clearer, look outside myself more, and listen for the whisper of God.
Lent can be like this too (and even better) when it’s celebrated in a spirit of worship. Restrictions shouldn’t be rules to gain God’s approval; restrictions can clear our heads to think about and worship Jesus. If you are following this path for the weeks leading up to Easter, let your temporary fasts make space in your soul for worship. And be thankful- as I have been- for the fellowship of multitudes of believers who are also denying something right now while seeking to know Christ more.
Most men are not satisfied with the permanent output of their lives. Nothing can wholly satisfy the life of Christ within his followers except the adoption of Christ’s purpose toward the world he came to redeem.
J. Campbell White
Since the weather has made it necessary for us to take a month off of Little Globetrotters, perhaps these meditations on missions from the Advance ’09 conference sponsored by Acts 29 will help focus you as you continue to teach your children to care for the whole world.
Little Globetrotters pray for the world
Everyone of you who confesses Jesus as Lord of the Universe signs up for a significance beyond anything that you ever dreamed…. To belong to Jesus is to embrace the nations with Him-that He will one day rule entirely.
Your heart was made for this! Your heart was made to embrace the global dimension of missional living. if you don’t have a global heart–if you’re not getting your arms around the nations and unreached peoples of the world–there will be a mild or serious sickness in your soul because your soul was made to do this.
Many people don’t know what’s wrong with their souls. What’s wrong is that their souls have shrunk to the level of their concerns.
When you pray: “Hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come” that’s meant to take your heart and make it as big as history and as large as the globe.
Last week, while Chris was traversing our continent visiting Anchorage and Tacoma, I took our kids to Atlanta to visit family. This is going to sound strange to some of you, but it’s actually fun for homeschooled kids to go to school on their vacation. Not their regular school, but “real school.” In Atlanta, our children put on uniforms and sit in on their age-level classes at the private school my grandparents started in 1948. They get to carry lunch bags, go to P.E. and art class, and have recess with their classes. I get to check and see how their learning matches other children their ages and try to catch any gaps I’ve overlooked. I’ve done this once a year since our oldest was in preschool.
Poppy and Tess
I also get to hang out with my grandparents (and whatever baby is not old enough to go to school- this time it was Tess.) It makes me catch my breath a little to see Tess sitting with my grandfather. He was born just before World War I, lived through the Depression, and put himself through college- though he was the youngest in a large family- by alternating semesters that he worked and went to school. He taught me how to ask good questions to get to know people and, by example, how to see any conversation as an opportunity to both teach and learn. He has always been one of the most special people in my life.
Still playing the piano
And my grandmother…I still can’t keep up with her. I took her to the mall and was worn out after four hours of shopping. I kept asking her if she needed to go home and rest- then finally had to throw up the white flag myself. She can entertain for hours with stories of the creative ways she paid the bills while my grandfather was at the war. And if you have a question about parenting or teaching toddlers, she’s still the one you want to talk to.
“For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” (Psalm 100:5) Spending the week with four generations- and ages spread over 90 years- has reminded me to be thankful for the faithfulness of the Lord from generation to generation.
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