I just finished
Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands by Paul David Tripp - an excellent read but it will require some will power as it is 300+ pages and not fluffy though not super dense either. But before I get to that, do you know what the temperature was this morning? 4 degrees! With a windchill of 16 below zero. To all our CA friends, that's not 16 below freezing, that's 48 degrees lower than water turns to ice. And it warmed up to a whopping 13 degrees this afternoon with a windchill of -1.
An ancient and wise philosopher named Conan the Barbarian once said, "What doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger." Here's to hoping I don't die of cold. Of course, then I'd be with Jesus in heaven so maybe Kansas IS the Promised Land...It really isn't that bad. I've just been sick for what seems like the last 3 months and Emery is still on sleep strike with her last 2 molars coming in, crying multiple times at night for the last 3 months too.
But I digress, back to
Instruments, Tripp writes this as almost a summary of the book, "I am hit with the utter simplicity of biblical personal ministry. It is not a secret technology for the intervention of the elite, but a simple call to
every one of God's children to be part of what God is doing in the lives of others, loving as Christ loved, and going beyond the casual to really know people. It is loving others enough to speak the truth to them, helping them to see themselves in the mirror of God's Word. And it is standing with others, helping them to do what God has called them to do. It is basically just a call to biblical friendship! It is almost embarrassingly simple: Love people. Know them. Speak truth into their lives. Help them do what God has called them to do." [emphasis mine]
As an equipping pastor, I desire that every single member of our church could be doing this. Not just the pastors, not just the elders, but I hope that every single Christian would truly love, know, speak and help others love the Lord with all their heart. I really appreciated Tripp's exhortations to really know others. To really know the struggles and yearnings of others is a difficult and scary thing (and to let others know your struggles and successes), but it is so crucial to being a Christian in a properly functioning church.
But how can this happen? I just happened to read a little booklet by John Piper called
Rethinking Retirement (and yes, I have been planning for retirement for many years now though the last thing Sandy and I will be doing during retirement is moving to Florida and playing golf all day) and he had a very related comment. He writes, "This is the key to finishing life [or starting life and living life everywhere in between] to the glory of Christ. If we are going to make Christ look glorious in the last years of our lives, we must be satisfied in him. He must be our Treasure. And the life that we live must flow from this all-satisfying Christ. And the life that flows from the soul that lives on Jesus is a life of love and service. This is what will make Christ look great. When our hearts find their rest in Christ, we stop using other people to meet our needs, and instead we make ourselves servants to meet their needs. This is so contrary to the unregenerate human heart that it stands out as something beautiful to be followed or something convicting to be crucified."
We can love, know, speak truth, and help others once we treasure Christ above all else...even when it's 4 degrees outside.
Matt and Nate loved it.
First, she got her crown and earrings.
Then she got her necklace and slippers.
Last, she got her skirt and fairy wings. She was so excited, she didn't even speak. This year was our first Christmas day with no extended family. We enjoyed starting our own family traditions but definitely missed "Cancun" and grandma and grandpa. So here are some Christmas greetings to both grandparents!
I'm not sure what happened, but somehow during the night, he either got brave or big bro kicked him out because he was back in his bed by morning!
This is the view from our back door. I took the day off to take care of an ailing wife and to build a snowman with the boys.
The boys are all bundled up and ready to go (it was about 15 degrees outside)! Can you tell how excited they are to build a snowman? But before we could play, I put the boys to work to clear the driveway. Matt was a flurry of activity...though I'm not sure how much snow got moved.
But in the end, we managed to build a snowman, sort of. It started out as a snowman, then it became the Lee family mountain, then Mt Rushmore, then a snow volcano, and I think it ended up as Jabba the Hut in the snow. And if you are wondering where the girl was in all this. She did manage to venture outside.
But after a few minutes of feeling the cold (and literally she hardly moved from that position the whole time), she decided that this was not the place for a little girl and quickly went back inside!
Here's the view from our front door.
Andrew was soooooo excited to shovel the driveway when he got home from school. I can only hope he maintains this enthusiasm for the next 10 years, but I won't hold my breath. He's been waiting for snow ever since he found out we were moving to Kansas. The first words out of his mouth when I told him that we're moving were, "Will it snow there?! And can we build a snow man?!"
Matt and the kids look cute all bundled up, but everyone around here gives me some good natured ribbing as they're still wearing their fall gear - a sweatshirt or a light coat. On the other hand, I'm wearing about 4 layers on top, 2 pants, 2 coats, hat, scarf, and gloves. But it's worth it - I'm warm!
First, they cut out the cookies.
Ta-dah! (Don't worry, they tasted better than they looked!)
The boys and girl seem to be happy with the decor.
Christmas in Kansas is fun! And we haven't even gotten the first snow yet!
The day started out a little rough for our girl. She had a fever, was having chills, and was definitely not her usual, peppy, talkative self. It was really quite sad to see. But I guess the meds kicked in for a little bit (though as I write this her fever has hit again hard) so that in the afternoon, we got to decorate our first Christmas tree in Kansas. It was a jolly good time.
Andrew enjoyed the hay.
Emery was the only one brave enough to ride a horse! And if you are wondering where Matt is, he lasted about 2 seconds outside before he bolted back to the safety of the house.
