Solomon and Fidelity

Solomon Building the Temple

This past Sunday the sermon was from I Kings 11; how Solomon’s heart was turned by the love of foreign (or strange) women.  The man who built the dwelling place for God, began building places of worship for other gods.  It got me thinking about fidelity and being a one woman man.  As I listened, I also thought of the injunction to love our wives as Christ loved the church. 

I’ve often thought of that mostly as a sacrifical kind of love, but I began to consider something more, Christ’s fidelity.  When he was tempted, Satan was offering him the “nations of the world.”  I have always interpreted that as a political kind of temptation, but I wonder if Satan was really offering him another “bride.”

Instead, Christ submitted to the will of the Father to receive a remenant or bride from Him (John 10:29) which would come through his death and ressurection. 

I recently did a three part series for Moody Radio on fidelity in marriage.  You can listen to it here if you’d like.

From John 10:

My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30 I and My Father are one.”

What shouldn’t you throw when you live in a sod house?

Sod House, courtesy of the Library of Congress

The parkway in the front of our house was torn up last year during the construction of our home.  Since that time, it has been a work in progress.  This summer, I decided that I was going to do my best to put sod down so that it would match the house better.  My neighbor decided at the same time that he would sod the parkway in front of his house and his daughter’s house–the lots on either side of me.

We tried to order sod earlier this summer, but a comedy of errors insued.  The long and short of the story was, my neighbor went ahead an sodded his land, but mine still sat there sporting the latest weeds…until last night.  I arrived home to find my neighbor waiting for me.  He told me of some unwanted sod scraps the next block over.  So I went and picked them up.  There were a few rolls of sod, but all the rest ranged in size from a scarf to a paperback novella.

So I have filled in all but a 4 x 4 foot square with a patchwork of sod pieces.  My mother-in-law would be proud at my quilting prowess…

God sent the grass, not quite how we were looking for it, but we are grateful none the less…

From Deuteronomy 11:

And I will send grass in your fields for your livestock, that you may eat and be filled.

Happy 40th Anniversary

 

Mom and Dad,

I was looking for a photo of your wedding to put into my post, when I remembered they didn’t have photography back then…we love you.

From Numbers:

“The LORD bless you and keep you;

The LORD make His face shine upon you,
      And be gracious to you;

The LORD lift up His countenance upon you,
      And give you peace.”’

Learning the Ropes

And in this corner…

I’m the third week into my “new career” and many people have been asking how its going.  I am mostly enjoying it and getting used to the new demands on my time; its a lot of work to put together 8 minutes a day…so I think the metaphor of a boxing ring is appropriate because I am in a bit of a sparing match between the daily deadline of a feature and the mandate to give my family my best, not just the left overs.

If you are interested in listening to my daily pieces, you can check in on my production blog and keep tabs on how its going.  Pamela and I appreciate your prayers as we get used to life on the “9 to 5″ schedule.

From Proverbs 3

     5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
      And lean not on your own understanding;
       6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
      And He shall direct your paths.
       7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
      Fear the LORD and depart from evil.

The Warren Dunes

Gull’s Delight, 2008

A family outing, A sea gull, Twizzlers, Lake Michigan and 70 degrees…doesn’t get much better than that.

From Psalm 112

 1 Praise the LORD!
         
         Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
         Who delights greatly in His commandments.
         
 2 His descendants will be mighty on earth;
         The generation of the upright will be blessed.
 3 Wealth and riches will be in his house,
         And his righteousness endures forever.

The Video Crew Farming System

Certification Day, 2008

Today was “Technical Crew Certification.”  We are preparing to leave as a family for a video interviewing roadtrip (with some site-seeing along the way) so I trained the kids on the basics of our video and lighting equipment this afternoon. 

These basics include:

1. The difference between a “Key Light” and a “Back Light”
2. The difference between a BNC and a XLR connector
3. The difference between a Lowell ProLite, DP Light and Rifa Light
4. The ability to say “gobo” without laughing

After the training session, they all took an exam and passed with flying colors!  So we held a little ceremony where they recieved their Technical Crew certificate–a business card sized ID with their name and today’s date that allows them to get “grip credits”.  In the weeks and months ahead, they will hopefully receive their Lighting Certification, Camera Certification, Audio Certification and Editing Certification.    

It’s fun to grow a crew, but it makes me wish for about 3 more kids…

 

Happy Father’s Day

Contemplating another, 2006

Dad,

The older I get, the more I enjoy hearing people say: “You’re so much like your father.”  May God have his way in our hearts, making it more and more true… 

From Deuteronomy 10

15 The LORD delighted only in your fathers, to love them; and He chose their descendants after them, you above all peoples, as it is this day. 16 Therefore circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and be stiff-necked no longer. 17 For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe. 18 He administers justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing. 19 Therefore love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. 20 You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve Him, and to Him you shall hold fast, and take oaths in His name. 21 He is your praise, and He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your eyes have seen. 22 Your fathers went down to Egypt with seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as the stars of heaven in multitude.

Te Amo

Keen Say on Yoce

From Proverbs 18

22 He who finds a wife finds a good thing,
And obtains favor from the LORD.

Stretched

WPA Calendar, Library of Congress

With the change in careers that is scheduled for July 1st, there are many things I was going to try and accomplish this summer that I am now going to try and do during the month of June; including trying to conduct nearly 20 interviews for a video project I have been working on for the last few years.  This is going to mean a lot of days on the road or in the air.

So, if I don’t update this site very often the next few weeks, you’ll know why.

From Exodus 15:

The LORD is my strength and song,And He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him; My father’s God, and I will exalt Him.

Prince Caspian

Baccus, Greek god of wine

In light of the Narnia fever surrounding the release of Prince Caspian last weekend, I decided to pick up the book last night and read it again.  Before yesterday, if anyone would have asked me what Prince Caspian was about, I don’t think I could have told them anything about it beyond: “its has something to do with a Lion…and a prince.”  I believe the last time I read the book was more than 20 years ago–though I’m sure I only skimmed it then so I could get on to the Voyage of the Dawn Treader (easily my favorite of the series). 

We have many friends who are avid fans of the Narnia series (the books) who have often spoken very fondly of the times spent as a family reading the books aloud, or listening to the Focus on the Family Radio Theatre production.  When asked how our kids like Narnia, there is usually a suprised response when we confess that we don’t read the books to our kids.  We are not often asked for our reasons why. 

After reading Prince Caspian last night I have to admit that I am even less enthusiastic about Narnia than I was before.  I know that C.S. Lewis is highly revered and loved in most evangelical circles and is the poster child for many who want to see more serious Christian thinkers in positions of influence in our culture.  However, in the case of Narnia, I have to take exception.

My problem with the Narnia stories is Lewis’ seeming facination with Greek and Roman gods and the magical creatures of the Norseman, Celtic and Britons.  For example, in Prince Caspian, Baccus (the Greek god of wine, agriculture and pleasure) is seen dancing with and serving Aslan.  River gods, tree gods, nymphs, dryads and many other mythical creatures have a part to play in the Narnia stories–mostly positive parts.  I don’t have a problem with talking animals, trees that come to life and even a God-like lion, but the attempt at redeeming the pantheon, magic and pagan mythology troubles me. 

So I find myself conflicted as I read these stories.  There are so many times that Lewis frames spritual truths in such meaningful ways as to move me deeply–he makes me see some important truths in fresh ways.  On the other hand, he includes elements and characters that come right out of pagan worship systems (like the licentious Baccus) as well as Islamic and Jewish mythology (the White Witch is supposedly the offspring of Adam and “his first wife” Lilith–who was cast out of the garden and turned into a demon-like creature). 

I think that we need to much more seriously consider the value of these stories.  Like the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Narnia is full of beautiful symbolism and deep theological truths, but there is a danger of accepting everything in these stories as worthwhile, merely because a Christian man wrote it.  Taken on their own, the merits of these characters and elements would be almost universally rejected by most Christians, and I think that this should be pointed out more often when speaking about Lewis–instead of blindly praising him and the Chronicles of Narnia.  

From Deuteronomy 18

   
9 “When you come into the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations. 10 There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, 11 or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. 12 For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you. 13 You shall be blameless before the LORD your God. 14 For these nations which you will dispossess listened to soothsayers and diviners; but as for you, the LORD your God has not appointed such for you.