If you’re a Bridger, be ready for this series. We’re pumped about starting it.
Just came home to finish some video for tomorrow’s worship gathering and saw this…
For the record, I have always opposed clothing on dogs.
These are purposefully un-revealing, but here are some pics we took today at the very-soon-to-be home of The Bridge…
It’s unbelievable how good the place is starting to look 
I got this email from someone that visited The Bridge for the first time three weeks ago during a sermon on humility. She asks a question that at least five people have asked me in the last month since the humility sermon so I wanted to share my answer:
I know without a doubt that every time I’m able to accomplish something it’s only through Jesus I’m able to do it… but is it wrong to take pride in doing things well?”
Here’s my response to this…
That depends on what you mean by “take pride in”. When the Bible uses the word “pride”, it’s talking about thinking more highly of ourselves than we should in light of our sinfulness and God’s holiness. Any thought that causes us to think of ourselves as worthy or good because of something other than the cross is sinful because it attributes to us credit or “glory” that should be attributed to God. That’s why Paul says in Galatians 6:14, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus” – because he realizes that nothing makes him “good” or “worthy” other than the cross.
If by “take pride in doing things well” you mean that doing things well gives you a sense of self-worth and makes you feel good about yourself, then yes. It’s wrong because God deserves that glory – and I think you were hinting at understanding this when you said you realize that you are only able to accomplish anything through Jesus. Getting your sense of self-worth or self-goodness from anything besides Jesus is not only sinful pride, but always leads to despair because you’re bound to fail someday.
But if, on the other hand, you mean that you take joy in doing things well (which is what a lot of people mean by saying they’re “proud of” something) knowing that God should get the honor for everything you accomplish then that’s not only not wrong, but can be worship.
This was a long answer to a short question, but it’s the right question. It may seem like splitting hairs in an email but God loves us and cares so much about our hearts that examining our feelings like this is… well, He absolutely loves it. Again, thanks for the note. It means more to me than you know. Looking forward to getting to know you better!
Be warned: there is not an open house today. This was shown Sunday… although you’re free to come help finish painting anytime today
This post doesn’t go up until midnight because today I’m taking my first day of vacation since last Christmas and Jana and I are celebrating our 4th anniversary. Every anniversary I get a little reflective and nostalgic. Four years isn’t much time but Jana and I have had a whirlwind four years.
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- engagement picture… 4 months after we met
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- before we were engaged
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- 4 years ago today
Everything’s been fast for us. We met on a blind date, got engaged 4 months later, and were married 4 months after that.
Then we got married, moved in together, moved to Louisville, and started Youth Ministry at First Baptist Church, Mt Washington (in that order within a span of 6 days… and the rest has been about the same pace. The incredible thing about Jana is that she’s one of those incredibly rare people that the more you know them, the more you respect and appreciate them.
There’s about a million to one shot that Jana will read this since we’re taking a day together today, but I love you Jana. This year has been so much fun – looking forward to the next few decades together.
If you’re reading this on facebook, it would be a huge help if you’d head over here (the blog) for this so I can get all the info in one place. I’ve seen some really strong opposing opinions on this lately and I’d like to hear what you think. Here’s the question:
Should the church talk about sex? If not, why not? If so, why and in what formats?
Whenever I tell people that I’m in seminary studying theology and that part of The Bridge’s vision for the future is to offer theological training for members, most of them are really excited about it but there’s another group of people that either change the subject or roll their eyes. For some people “theology” means…
- Annoying people who disagree with everything
- Even more annoying people who aren’t loving
- STILL MORE annoying people who are spiritually arrogant
- Boring
- Big, meaningless words like “infralapsarianism”
- Emphasis on just knowing instead of actually doing anything to change the world
- Putting God in neat little boxes and equations
Now I’ll be the FIRST to say that the dangers of gaining any knowledge are there with theological knowledge too – 1 Corinthians says “knowledge puffs up”. But I’ll also be the first to tell you that growing theologically can be the most spiritually fulfilling adventure of your life. CS Lewis encapsulated the value of studying theology in this quote…
For my own part I tend to find the doctrinal books often more helpful in devotion than the devotional books, and I rather suspect that the same experience may await many others. I believe that many who find that “nothing happens” when they sit down, or kneel down, to a book of devotion, would find that the heart sings unbidden while they are working their way through a tough bit of theology with a pipe in their teeth and a pencil in their hand.
- CS Lewis
I’m not much of a pipe-guy, but that is so true.
When I’ve struggled – sometimes painfully – through issues like God’s sovereignty, predestination, the attributes of God, the inspiration of The Bible, eschatology (end times stuff), and the Covenants of Scripture what I’ve found is the deeper I go, the bigger God gets and the more my heart for him grows. Ves Chancellor, one of the most humble and evangelistic Christians I’ve ever known, wrote me this last week about why he disciples young men to study theology: “Theology leads to worship.”
That’s why I think it’s worth it to take the hard step, buy the big boring-looking book, and start wrestling with some hard words, questions, or passages of Scripture.
Those are my two-cents. Any thoughts?
I’m reading through a book called “Indwelling Sin” by John Owen before my morning devotions right now. It’s hard for me to read, but so incredibly humbling and challenging to me in my walk with Christ. There’s been a bunch of “wow” moments through the first few chapters, but this part of the first chapter especially stuck out to me as true…
Many men… know their outward estates, how wealthy they are and the condition of their bodies… but to their inward person and to God and eternity, they know little or nothing. Indeed, few labor to grow wise in this matter, few study themselves as they ought and are acquainted with the evils of their heart as they ought – on which the whole course of their eternal condition depends.
I probably spend less time than the average bear examining my “outward estates”, but if you asked me the top three problems with my body I can rattle off some outward imperfections without thinking (the wart on my right hand and my growing unibrow, for instance). But if you ask me about the health of my soul the answers come a little slower.
Here are some questions I use that you might print off and answer during your next quiet time to help you evaluate the health of your soul…
- What am I filling my time with that crowds out activity of eternal value?
- Husbands: What am I doing to lead and pastor my family?
- Wives: What am I doing to “look well the ways of my household” – spiritually, physically, and emotionally?
- How is my commitment level to using the spiritual gifts God has given me to build up the church?
- What things stir up my emotions more than knowing Christ?
- Am I loving and serving the people around me?
- How’s my prayer life?
- Are my relationships with Christians around me deepening or shallowing?
From Nathan Wandell:
Good news, or really BAD news?
Mark 1:15 says, “Repent, and believe the GOOD news.”
Why would we be commanded to believe good news? Don’t we love receiving good news about a promotion at work or a good report from the doctor? Of course we do, but in many cases the news that we think is good is actually very bad news.
- When I treasure comfort, ease, and pleasure and make it the center of my life, that is really bad news.
- Or when I only allow “happy” circumstances to fill me with joy when pain and difficulty lead me into despair, that is bad news.
- Or, when I decide that I can do life better on my own and push God out, that is very bad news.
This means that we must repent of believing bad news. This horrible news is destructive to our souls and eternities. It’s the kind of news that deceives us into thinking that what we see is all there is, and that God is neither powerful nor good.
Scripture encourages us to believe the good news:
“the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace”
“Set your mind on things above…not on things below.”
“we fix our eyes on what is unseen, for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
“we walk by faith, not by sight.”
Dallas Willard tells the story of a jet pilot performing high speed maneuvers. She turned the controls for what she thought was a steep ascent – and flew straight into the ground. She was trusting her own perception instead of relying on her instruments.
Let us look to Scripture and:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6
