MBC Calendar - Experiment

Christian Worldview Network - Brannon Howse - Is Bernard Madoff Running the Federal Government?

Christian Worldview Network - Brannon Howse - Is Bernard Madoff Running the Federal Government?

This article makes an interesting point - that having congress lecture automakers about poor management, decline into debt, and ridiculous spending practices is a little like having the fox lecture the chickens about their lax security policies.

The Name of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous run to it, and the are safe. Proverbs 18:10

College Without Compromise

I am very thankful to the authors of this fine book. The foreward by RC Sproul Jr. resounded with me - that many homeschoolers have fumbled when asked about the "college" thing - including myself.

I truthfully had not wanted to ... more » think about college for my kids, because I thought we could never afford it and I was not excited about sending my kids off to an environment that I knew would be negative for them.

I read this book and Accelerated Distance Learning at the same time (I bought them both from Global Learning Strategies.)

While the ADL book was very practical, and overwhelming at times, this book helped me see the big picture of a homeschool family using these principles to see their students through college - and it was more specific in it's practicality. While ADL exploded my vision of my kid's education, CWC refined it. Where were these books 20 years ago?

All the years of youth ministry I spent agonizing about the students I loved and cared for (and attempted to teach and disciple for the Lord) as they spritually withered away at college are bitter memories for me. I will be giving this book as a gift to all those I care about.

What a blessing it is that not only homeschool students but anyone can now receive a great education for a reasonable price in the best way possible - at home at your own pace.

I recommend this book to anyone!

What some others have said about the book:

http://servenclan.blogspot.com/2006/01/spotlight-college-without-compromise.html

http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/missouri/135726/

Random posting about this that and the other thing

This is what I have been thinking about/praying about/studying/ and generally being obsessed with lately:

1. College for my children.

Two great books have held my attention lately:

Accelerated Distance Learning & College without Compromise

Click here to see these books at my Google Books library

I suppose it is beyond the scope of this blog to state how amazing these books are - I have written short reviews at the google site.

I had been really struggling with the whole idea of college for the 8 J's - too much money, too many bad influences, too much wasted time, too much opportunity to do all the wrong things.

Since I have read these books, I have learned that there are opportunities to get a degree in and learn the kinds of computery things that Joel is interested in - in an affordable, distance learning system. Everyone needs to get these books and read them.

2. It's the economy, stupid.

Living at and working for a non-profit Christian camp is an interesting adventure. While the government seems to be having a wild spending party right before complete bankruptcy (bailing out this and that and the other thing with money they don't have), it seems like the proverbial light is at the end of the tunnel. The only problem is that the light is a freight train barreling towards us. Here is what I am resolved to do.

• Get out of debt. If anyone has followed my blog at all (Maybe my wife and Janet Stephens - thank you both) in the last few years, you know that I have said this before, but it is getting down to crunch time.

• Be wise in spending and investing. Below is a link to an interesting article. (disclaimer - I certainly do not agree with everything the Christian Worldview Network says) http://www.christianworldviewnetwork.com/article.php/4354/Brannon-Howse/By-Gary-Kah Perhaps if more people would take this guys simple advice (get out of debt, save, invest in hard assets, buy some land and learn how to live/survive without the gov't) -we might all be better off with or without an economic crisis.

• Learn more about how to live and survive independently - After making our "Great Transitions" to the camp over the last several years, we were able to finally reestablish our garden this last summer with some success - we need to do more and learn more.

While I am not scared- because I trust in the Lord - I am greatly concerned how this coming economy is going to cause great harm - with the potential of causing our nation to make even worse decisions than it has.

3. 2 Timothy 3 & 4

I have never read these before in light of family life - I had always thought of them strictly as a church life kind of thing. Read it - thinking about your family, kids, roles of parents, teaching them, etc. "How from infancy you have known the holy Scripture, which is able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus." As I memorize Scripture, it immerses me into the thinking and the process of understanding God's truth. Someone said that you can learn God's words by reading the Bible, but that you can learn God's thoughts by memorizing the Bible. That is so true.

4. Woeful Bible teaching and interpretation

I won't go into it too much on this public blog, but my older sons had an interesting Bible class experience (not at our home church - at a different church) - I am sick to death of churches who use secular psychology as a form of teaching -whenever I get to write one of my rants on the blog I will talk about this more.

See my latest sermon posted below for my humble attempt to address this. There has to be some solid answers - people should not be allowed to teach Church classes (especially JH & SH) who simply don't know their way around the Bible. Maybe there is a way to train people better. I guess the problem is that they don't know they need to be trained. I learned so well at Bible College, and I am thankful for that ministry, but Bible college is so expensive now that it is out of reach. I need to look into their distance learning options on interpretation!

5. Chain saw chains don't mix well with rocks.

I should have taken a before and after picture (well, after has still not occured), but I have been working through the "Roman Barricade" (as Jenette called it) behind our house. When the house was built, all the trees were just pushed up in a 60 yard long pile. I have been dismantling that pile, log by log, so that a friend can come and level it out for us. I have already done in several brain new chains by getting them into the rocks mixed up with the rootwads and piles.

In case you didn't know it about me - I am one of those "chainsaw guys" that loves cutting up trees. I even made a little bench for the girls with my chainsaw. Maybe I'll start doing chainsaw art.

6. Poop and pee are common daily central themes of life at our house.

Jenette is working on potty training both Jenna and Josie - it has been, well interesting. She bought them both potty chairs - they're pretty cute sitting together. Jenna has been doing pretty well. Josie, not so much. But hey, she's only one.

7. Thankfulness

I am so thankful to God, for my wife and children, for being able to work here at the camp, for the camp directors being so faithful and flexible, for the wonderful house they decided to build for us, for being able to see my family (especially my grandparents) again, for being able to learn about new educational options for the 8J's and for this, that, and the other thing.

jc

Another Sermon at Oakwood Christian

I guess that is maybe the third sermon I have done at Oakwood this year. This one is "The Sufficiency of Scripture" - and although delivered most imperfectly, is truly one of the dear passions of my heart.

Click on the title link above - then go down to Sunday, Nov. 30, 2008. There is even an outline there.

I am working on reestablishing the wireless internet at the camp so that we can better access it at our house - then maybe more blogging will occur!

jc

My Job Description I created in XMind

Why the Election Results Don't Bother Me

1. God is ultimately in charge.
2. This is not my home. Heaven is.
3. I think it will help conservatives re-assess their message and messengers.
4. It gives us more reason to not put our trust in politicians to save us.
5. See #1.

Online Sermon

Here's a link to a sermon I preached at Oakwood Christian Church back in September. It was quite a reunion for us to be there, and it was such a blessing to hang out with Eric Keller as he has become the preaching minister there.

This sermon was my take on the legacy of Oakwood Christian Church, but it also is hopefully a good discussion of the purpose and legacy of any Bible teaching and believing Church.

Click on the title link above and go down to 9-23-08.

Vlog 5-16-08

2008 Promo Video

Self Portrait Holding the camera at arm's length

Silly Baby and Dad

Good looking woman in front of a NC waterfall!

More NC Pictures

Critters that greeted us at the Billy Graham Training Center

Hiking in Great Smoky Mountains Nat'l Park

Happy but Heavy Baby!

What an incredible frozen waterfall! This picture does not nearly do it justice! You can just barely see the top of Josie's head - she was asleep!

Sermon Online

Here is a link to a sermon online I preached at Oakwood Christian Church in December. It is a Christmas sermon, but I think it is a message that should be heard anytime. Check it out if you want. Click on the above link, (the above posting title)then go down to December 23, 2007.

Dad and sons

More art!

Bathroom sign

Jason's fork art!

Joel eating

Joel and Jason

Jason on the slopes!

Jason asleep on the bus

Jewel

Jewel at Grandma's for Christmas

Jewel at Lowe's

I've been experimenting with posting pictures from my phone to blogger.

Here's one!

Joy Daisy

More phone pictures!

Fear Not the Compass | Christianity Today Movies

Fear Not the Compass | Christianity Today Movies

I like this article a lot. Click on the link above or on the title. The main thing that troubled me about the Golden Compass movie was how many emails that I received that sounded like the Antichrist had arisen and was jumping out of movie screens everywhere.

I love the first line of this article: "Should Christians be afraid of The Golden Compass? Mercy, no. Let's not be afraid. Discerning, yes. But not afraid."

For all those who think that the movie should be boycotted, that is fine, but please don't tell anyone. Have Christians not learned anything in the past 25 years of media "badness?" When was the last time that a Christian "boycott" ever resulted in anything but more hype and interest in the thing being boycotted? Let's not be afraid. Discerning, yes. But not afraid.

Of course Christians should not be a part of worldly things - that is the command of Scripture. You can't be a friend of the world and a friend of God, according to the book of James. So that means that you will have to "boycott" certain things or movies or music or places or words or thoughts or actions. But the minute 3 million emails go out advertising the "boycott," or the minute that the Facebook friends list gets 30 invites to the "boycott The Golden Compass Group," it changes from the personal choice (Maybe shared by friends and family) to advertising.

I have to admit, I was out of the loop on this one, and I hadn't heard about it before. As soon as I heard about it, I wanted to find out more. I would like to think that I have some wisdom and Christian discernment, but I know that many people who received those messages don't have much discernment. They may want to go see the movie even more because of the negative publicity about it.

Besides all that - it sounds like The Golden Compass has been a dud at the box office. They are talking about not making the sequels, which is a good thing. They are now talking about making The Hobbit, which is also a good thing. Check out this link about The Hobbit Movie.

Now don't get me wrong - from what I know about the Golden Compass, I won't go see it, and I wouldn't let my kids see it, nor would I let them see 98% if the movies that are available to see.

So rest easy, The Golden Compass is yet another minor pathetic hiccup in the constant attempts to erode the Christian message and the Word of God. It has already failed, just like all the others. So, smile, praise God for His almighty power, and go forth, sharing boldly the Word of life. Some will listen, some will scoff, some may want to kill you, but hey, with God on your side, it's all good.

My prayer for anyone who reads this, my friends, family, and Christian brothers and sisters all over the world is this...

"...I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil" Romans 16:19

I am now getting off the soapbox.

jc

Duck Tape brand Duct Tape and More! Duck Products Home

Duck Tape brand Duct Tape and More! Duck Products Home

The picture of the couple who made duct tape outfits for the prom is priceless. They even won a scholarship!

jc

Girls Birthday Special Time

These happy little girls are dressed up for the Dixie Stampede. This was a special birthday thing that we did for Joy and Jewel's Birthday with Jordan coming along. This was a blast - everything that little girls like. Horses, pretty girls in pretty dresses, lots of animals, singing, dancing, and even more horses. You can't see it in the background of this picture, but there is a horse there that the girls are standing in front of. They liked the food, but they didn't care about eating with just their fingers. We had a great time!

jc

The Word "Maranatha"

I was doing a little research into the word "Maranatha," and I found out I was partly right about what I thought about it and partly wrong. Many people ask me what "Maranatha" means, and I have always told them that it was a Greek word found at the end of Revelation that means "Lord, Come." Well, I guess having one thing right out of three is not that great, so I am setting the record straight. "Maranatha" is Aramaic, not Greek. It is found only at the end of 1 Corinthians, not Revelation (See 1 Corinthians 16:22). (To my credit, the Greek equivalent of "Maranatha" is found at the end of Revelation, so I guess that part of my answer was at least good enough to pass a small amount of scrutiny.) The part I was correct about was that it means "Come, O Lord."


1 Cor. 16:22 is translated in the NIV as "If anyone does not love the Lord-a curse be on him. Come, O Lord!" However the KJV doesn't translate the last two words - "If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha."

To quote from the Wiki (see Link above):

The phrase seems to have been used as a greeting between Early Christians, and it is probably in this way that it was used by the Apostle Paul. However, the preceding word is the curse "anathema", and because the original texts of the Greek New Testament contained no punctuation at all, or indeed any word or sentence separation, early readers took the two words together and construed the passage as, "If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha". It was therefore believed that "anathema maranatha" must be some exceptionally severe kind of curse. The phrase was in use in this sense at least by the 7th Century, when Pope Silverius pronounced anyone who deceives a bishop as "anathema maranatha" (see the Catholic Encyclopedia article referenced below). One possible understanding of this is that the offender would be excluded from communion with the Church until the return of Christ, tying the punishment to the term Maranatha. John Wesley in his Notes on the Bible comments that, "It seems to have been customary with the Jews of that age, when they had pronounced any man an Anathema, to add the Syriac expression, Maran - atha, that is, "The Lord cometh;" namely, to execute vengeance upon him." The negative understanding of maranatha began to die out by the late 19th Century; Jamiesen, Fausset and Brown's commentary of 1871 separates Maranatha from anathema in the same way as modern scholars.

So, there is some debate about whether the early use of this word was used only as a greeting or whether it was used in the process of Church discipline. Either way, it is little wonder that this Word is "Greek" to our culture today. First of all, the culture, including many people in our churches are Biblically illiterate. They don't know how to study the Bible and apply it to their own lives. Even Church leaders think the only way to "study" the Bible is to get the class in a circle, read a verse, and then ask everyone, "What does this mean to you?" Is it any wonder that our Churches are so messed up and have such a lack of discernment? Is it any wonder that the Spiritual growth and maturity of adults in Churches (not to mention youth) is so woeful? If any verse could mean anything to anyone, then by that logic, "Maranatha" could mean magnetic monkeys driving BMW's.

Second, the idea that there might be an "Anathema" attached to the "Maranatha" is almost considered a hate crime. Maranatha is certainly a word filled with hope in the coming of the Lord, but like so many Biblical truths, it is hope with an edge. The phrase "Come, O Lord" is wonderful if you are looking forward to His return, but if you live for yourself and choose to reject God's plan for your life, then you are not going to be praying "Maranatha." In fact, "Anathema" would be a better word for you.

Now, I am not suggesting that we rename the camp "Anathema Maranatha Bible Camp" - that would indeed be a mouthful. (I can imagine the telemarketers just trying to say that name.) But we, and all of God's Churches that truly want to follow Him, need to give the full message - there are blesssings for those who love and obey the Lord, and curses for those who don't. That's the hard truth. I choose blessings!

jc

MBC Critters and the Sovereignty of God

So Jonathan has been into photography lately. He has been taking pictures at Church for the Christmas program and he has really enjoyed it. He took this picture of a squirrel in our front yard - its a pretty good picture considering the subject and the photographer. We have been feeding a tremendous amount of squirrels and birds lately - I guess it's the weather. There were nine of them out there this morning with twice as many birds there at once. They come in, eat all day, then leave. They fight and quarrel and fuss with each other. They push to get ahead of all the others and they don't want to share. I watched a squirrel eating sunflower seeds from our bird feeder chase a nuthatch away from one side of the feeder while another nuthatch or chickadee came to the other side. The squirrel must have chased 5 or 6 birds away before he gave up. We have really enjoyed watching the birds and the squirrels. It's funny how they are kind of like people - they are extremely selfish, they eat like hogs, and they don't want to share, They run when they shouldn't be afraid and they stay right there when danger comes along. Most importantly, they don't realize that there is someone watching them. They don't know or care that I am trying to feed them. They are impatient, indecisive, and always hovering on the brink of disaster. I am amazed to think that God knows even when a sparrow dies (Matt. 10:29). How many tiny birds die every single hour? How can God have that much awareness and wisdom? We had a bird crash into our window and die with a loud "clunk" a few weeks ago. Was that God's plan? Matthew 10:29 says it was clearly. I don't understand that, but in many ways. Maybe His glory is magnified by our considering that we aren't that different from them, and we are desperately in need of God to take care of us. Just like birds. And squirrels.

Did I mention that people are also "squirrelly?"

"Consider the birds of the air...." Matthew 6:26. (Squirrels too.)

jc

Here's Hoping

So much to write about - so little time. I really do like to blog - and I like to see the occassional comment that a blog produces, and it is interesting to see who responds. I have worked all day today trying to finish a hundred things so we can leave tomorrow. We are going to visit Jenette's brother in Indy and we are going to visit 4 different camps on the way and while we are up there.

I'm hoping that the kids have a great time in the van (I have put at least 30 hours of books on the MP3 player to listen to). I hope that I learn a lot from our visits to the camps. And I hope that our family has the opportunity to experience some new and fun things together.

It is hard to leave this camp - with so much to do, and so much undone, yet I am trying to look at the bigger picture. I suppose that is a good thing.

I will try to blog when I have internet access - to log my learning and our experiences.

Two Very Happy People that the OU Sooners won 79 - 10