Marching Forth!

I consider it a great privilege to serve God in Australia.  There is no place in the world I would rather be.  Australia was never in my plans growing up or even well into adulthood, but God had other plans!  He has knit my heart so closely to the people here that I cannot imagine living anywhere else.  Watching God unfold His plan for me and my family has been instrumental in strengthening my faith in His provision, timing, and grace.  The love and support of friends and family from "up above" and "down under" has been such a blessing. Visas are part of the deal when serving in a foreign field.  We are about a year and a half gone of a two-year visa.  When we obtained the 428 Religious Workers visa through the nomination of Calvary Chapel Sydney, it was a once-renewable path to permanent residency.  When Laura called a couple weeks ago to see when we could begin to submit paperwork for the renewal, I knew something was up.  I could hear fr...

Consecration is a theme I have been meditating upon lately.  Webster's 1828 dictionary defines it this way:  " The act or ceremony of separating from a common to a sacred use, or of devoting and dedicating a person or thing to the service and worship of God, by certain rites or solemnities.  Consecration does not make a person or thing really holy, but declares it to be sacred, that is, devoted to God or to divine service; as the consecration of the priests among the Israelites; the consecration of the vessels used in the temple ."  The priests, articles of the temple, and even the temple itself were all consecrated for the worship and service of God.  But just because something has been consecrated to God does not mean it was always used for its intended purpose. When we think of the temple, it's likely we do so with a sense of awe and reverence.  Think of that magnificent temple Solomon built with the doors covered in gold, awesome brass pillars, the so...

No matter how harshly we judges ourselves, I am confident we human beings are worse than our lowest estimation.  The best men may see themselves in the worst light, but we are not always at our best.  I am actually grateful for the amazing way the challenges of life draw out negative qualities and bring to the surface my obvious dearth of character.  When all is going according to plan, we might convince ourselves of our own goodness.  But what about when we are running late?  It is when I am running late all the slowest, most clueless drivers seems to abound.  Hmmm.  How about when you lose something?  Or when you pick the wrong queue again at the shops?  I can't even count the many times I had several queues to choose from and I chose the one with the sluggish trainee who has to call for price checks or assistance.  Because all the other lines seems to evaporate before they form, I would decide to change to another line, only to have t...

"Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little."   Luke 7:47 It is no surprise to us that when judged according to God's perfect standard all are proved sinners.  God does not judge using a curve:  we are either righteous or unrighteous, holy or polluted, pass or fail.  There are two ways to gain entrance to heaven.  The first is to be born without a sin nature and remain perfect in thought, word, attitude, and deed without a single stumble, obeying the Law given to Moses in every tiny detail.  This means avoidance of all sin, offering the appropriate sacrifices at the right times, eating foods deemed clean under the Law, keeping the Passover, and on and on.  This is certainly impossible for everyone since we all have a human dad, the Temple is no longer standing, and we have all made countless mistakes!  The other way (and only way!) to be declared in...