Train Wreck

My title is exactly what I feel, unfortunately this train is not the Hogwarts Express. I feel like I am rushing 100mph (is that how fast trains go?) just to get somewhere, anywhere, then to find at the end of the tracks is a brick wall. BAM! The good news? There may be a brick wall, but it will break me.

How is this the good news? Let's say that obstacles are a part of life, would you agree with that? My brick wall is no different. It was strategically placed there, at a specific location, at a specific time, and a specific day for me to run into. The Lord is amazing like that. He knows when I will crash, and when I will break. My sin is the depraved part of me that wants to run away and go anywhere but where I am supposed to be. Our sin needs to be broken by that wall. We need that sin to be broken so we can get more of Jesus.

Here is some encouragement for the weekend ahead, don't stop believing in the power of the Holy Spirit. Last night, a sweet friend reminded me that the world is not about me, it is about Him, the almighty King. This weekend, ask him to break your sin. Ask him to show you the truth of grace and of His love. Even if you don't feel it, grace and love are there.

Lindsey

Not a cup of coffee

I think it fitting in light of Good Friday to write some thoughts on Christ's sacrifice for our atonement and salvation.

I was thinking last night as I laid in bed that roughly 2011 years ago in those same moments my king was praying in a garden, maybe in the exact same moments that I was. It humbled me to think that maybe even at 10:30 pm 2011 years ago blood dripped down my king's brow from the agonizing anticipation of what would be happening right now at 4:33 pm the next day. It was in those moments I began to think about how blessed I am to be predestined to know the love of such a savior.

I also began thinking of the cup of which Christ asked God the Father to let pass from Him. What was the cup? Was it pain? Was it death? Was it salvation? I would not dare to say that I would be the one to give any definitive answer but this is what I thought of.

The cup was the wrath of God the Father....it was not a cup of coffee. Christ came to save us from the wrath of God upon our lawlessness and rebellion. It was, as Christ knew it would be, on the cross that the cup of the wrath of God the father would be poured out on the son for the sake of the children of promise, the church. I do believe that pain, betrayal, salvation of the world etc...were all on His mind and warranted the agony and prayer in the garden. However, truly it was the wrath of God and the separation from God the Father and Holy Spirit that was most agonizing. God the son, part of the ever flowing, joy filled Trinity would be separated and condemned on our behalf.

The cup of wrath that was ours to partake of was, willingly and joyfully, taken by Jesus Christ. His sacrifice purchased our pardon. "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God."

As a husband when I am told to love my wife in this manner.....it is a staggering command. To love and serve my wife just as Christ has done for us. This truly is an impossible task without the aid of the one Jesus Christ, the God man, who came before me and is an ever present help in time of need when I have nothing to give my bride. It is in these moments where the power of Christ for us his Church, through His life, death, and resurrection is the hope I have to love my wife.

And what happened right now roughly 2011 years is why every moment I fail and I do not represent His love rightly, and I lie about His love for us and His character, what happened in these moments was the atonement and pardon for my sin. For my failure. Both as a husband and a man.

"My sin oh the bliss of this glorious thought. My sin, not in part, BUT THE WHOLE. It is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord oh my soul!"

May you feel the love and power of the cross of Jesus Christ and all that God is for you in Christ on the TRULY Good Friday.

Glory to God Alone,
Nathanial

Covenant and a sunrise....both create awe inspiring worship

As a first post it seemed fitting to write about a couple of the most awe inspiring events that have led to worship in my heart and mind.

1. Covenant

Surely the covenant of marriage creates worship in the hearts of all parties involved. Seeing Lindsey walk down the aisle in a dress of white in and of itself would take the breath of any person away. Yet it was not the dress nor the body filling it that created this worship. The dress is material that looks pretty and my bride is a person who is flawed and broken just like the rest of humanity. So, as that does seem very strange to say, what is the point in making a statement like that? It is this...

My bride and her dress find their meaning in THE story that they both represent.

Seeing my wife walk down the aisle to me in a dress of white stirs my soul because in that moment I see the Gospel (Good News) of Jesus Christ our Savior being played out in front of me and inside of me in a way that I will never see again so clearly until the return of Christ to consummate the covenant He has made with us. And of course because she is beautiful beyond comparison and there is great worth in both the dress and her body that filled it.

So the point is that in that moment she does not become the end for which I am living but she reminds me that, as I walk into this covenant, I am living for the one that gifted me with her love and her beauty. She reflects the love of my creator who truly "gives good gifts to His children."

As my bride's beauty and her representation of the church in our wedding stirred my affections for worship so did the truth that in those moments I, with a very sober mind and humble spirit, represented my Christ and my Lord. It was in those moments at the beginning of our covenant that I was given the gift to share in a deeper understanding of the love of Christ for His church and how He yearns for us. Oh how He loves us! As a groom yearns for his bride and longs to love and protect and pursue her so does Christ yearn for, and desires to love, protect and purse us.

Truly this inspires and creates worship.

2. A Sunrise

One morning in Mexico I awoke to the sun beginning to rise over the Caribbean Ocean. Desiring to see it on the beach I grabbed my bible and sun glasses and made my way to the beach. When I arrived I noticed that there were many people who had come to witness the same event. How interesting it was to me that regardless of what a person believes about God Almighty we are all drawn to beauty, religious and non religious alike. Now I do not know the state of the hearts that were attending this even but this event proved the longing of the human heart for beauty and for something that creates awe and worship. Truly God has "put eternity in the heart of man" and it is truly understood in moments that take our breath away in beauty and inspiration.

Both of these examples serve this purpose for this post:

We were created to worship. We were created to glory in, and revel in the works of God Almighty through both creation and, most importantly , the giving of His son Jesus Christ for the redemption of man.

So today may you worship. When the sun sets in just a few short hours (CST) I pray that it will remind you of the love and power of God. May it remind you of the new covenant He made with us in Christ and may you rejoice in and find your joy in all He is for us in Christ Jesus.

Glory to God Alone,

Nathanial