Tutoring for Restoration

Yesterday morning, I spent three hours tutoring five students in math at Restoration Academy in Fairfield. I cannot tell you how perfect it felt. For too long I have put service on the back burner of my Christian life. I have placed a high price and value on the life of the mind, which is a good thing. But in the midst of learning and admiring the mind, I think I may have left behind the body. I slipped into a dualism that is in no way biblical. I'm not saying that I ceased to live in a Christ-like manner in my relationships or many other areas of my life, but I placed little to no priority in going beyond my already-formed-easy-to-be-comfortable relationships. I had community, but I created an island of my community from those outside of it. Thank God for the transforming power of the Holy Spirit working through the written word, as it changes and challenges to grow into the likeness of the One who called us out of darkness and into his marvelous light.

Tutoring was fantastic. For one thing, I absolutely loved doing it. I left the house a nervous wreck. It has been six years since my last math class and I have never actually tutored a student in math other than the occasional friend who needed homework help. What on earth am I doing?! Why would I put myself in this situation. I thought about staying home, apologizing later for not showing up. I was reminded though of the lessons learned from David and Goliath. Courage and the will to act come not from our own abilities but from the God who we know to be faithful to his promises. I am not going to tutor by myself, but the Holy Spirit of God goes with me. That is good news that cannot be ignored.

The other thing that I have been thinking about throughout this past week is the idea of altruism vs. gospel-centered service. David (our pastor) spoke this weekend on Psalm 10 and specifically spent some time dealing with the idea of adoption, both our spiritual adoption as sons of God and physical adoption as an outpouring of that love towards orphans. I was tracking perfectly until he mentioned that we do not do this simply because we want to do good, that we are not doing this from the motivation of altruism. My initial reaction at first was probably outright rejection of that. What's so wrong with altruism? Can't we support those people who do good out of an inner sense of injustice or who just have a gut feeling that this is a good thing to do? David kept going. Here is my brief paraphrase of what he said that convicted and really changed my thoughts. "Altruism may do the right thing at first, but what happens when things don't go according to plan? What happens when the adopted child that you thought would be a joy turns out to bring about struggle and great strife? In those instances altruism will not carry you through. Altruism will put a child on a plane with a note attached to him saying 'Sorry, but we can't take this anymore.' Only a gospel-centered going and serving and adopting will be able to struggle through those hard times." That is good news and service worthy of the name of Christ! Not simply a living out of my own power and strength and doing good because I think I can make a difference, but going in the name and power of the Godhead. It's a simple choice when you look at it that way. I pray that God centers my thoughts and actions on him as I continue to serve; that he will use math tutoring as an opportunity to show kids not only ways to get out of poverty (which is a great goal too!), but as a way to make Christian disciples; and that through it all, he would get great glory from that school and everything that goes on there. Sola Deo Gloria!

Laura's Summer goals

Ryan formulated his goals a couple weeks ago, so I figured now it is my turn.

1. Continue following the radical experiment: http://www.radicalexperiment.org/

a. reading the word everyday

b. praying for the entire world (I want to become more consistent and intentionally with this)

c. commit our lives to a multiplying community (you know i love my small group)

d. sacrifice our money for a specific purpose (limiting eating out, movies, so on)

e. give our time in another context (Peru June 17-26)

2. Read at least 2 novels and 3 Christian non-fiction works. Most likely reading list includes "Peace like a River" by Leif Enger, "Gilead" by Marilynne Robinson, "When Helping Hurts" by Brian Fikker, and "Serving with Eyes Wide Open" by David Livermore (which i hope to read before our trip to Peru).

3. No soft drinks (stole this one from Ryan.. really good idea. I have done it once before and you really don't miss them!)

4. Do P90X 5 times a week.

5. Hang out with a couples dentists in private practice when I have free day.

6. Go spend time with my Grandmother and sister in Hattiesburg, MS.

7. Go visit my dad while he is working in Palm Beach, FL and hang out with my mom.

8. Spend more time outside! (school keeps me trapped in doors all the time!)

a celebration of small group

Yesterday, I headed to Auburn for a quick trip to speak with pre-health students about my experiences as a biomedical science major at Auburn and as a dental student at UAB. I got to drive down with one of my best friends from dental school which was so much fun and the meeting went great. I always enjoy telling people about how much I love what I do. All of that said, there was one thing that I missed because I was in Auburn on a Tuesday night, small group.

Ryan and I have been a part of a small group of married couples for several months now and we honestly look forward for Tuesday evenings every week. Our time with our small group is so precious to us. It is a time where we eat together, spend time together, discuss the Word, and pray together. Every week I am so ready to see my new friends and hear about what is going on in their lives. My prayer for our small group is that we would be glorifying to God every week when we meet. I pray that we will be true to God's word as we uplift one another to go out and make disciples of Christ.

If you are not in a small group or Sunday school class of some kind, I would encourage you to take a chance and join a group. I think you will be surprised how much you learn about the Lord when you are sharing your life with others.

Water of the Word

I highly encourage any man who has a deep passion for his wife and desires to pray for her in a more consistent and biblical way to pick up Water of the Word by Andrew Case. It is a book filled with prayers that are based on Scripture that you can pray for you wife. They are both biblically solid and beautifully written. Here is one that I just read:

O Lord,
Grant my wife help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man! With You she shall do valiantly. O God my Lord, deal on her behalf for Your Name's sake; because Your steadfast love is good, deliver her! With her mouth let her give great thanks to You, praising You in the midst of sorrow. For You stand at the right hand of the needy, to save her from those who condemn her soul to death.
Praise be to You, Lord! I will give thanks to You with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. Great are Your works, studied by all who delight in them. Therefore help me to study my wife diligently, for she is Your wonderful handiwork. Her beauty exalts You and proves true Your word, for she is full of splendor and majesty.
Show her the power of Your works - that they are faithful and just; all Your precepts are trustworthy; they are established forever and ever, to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.
O beloved, fear the Lord, for it is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice this fear have a good understanding. His praise endures forever! (Psalm 108, 109, 111).

Summer Goals

Most people make New Year's Resolutions, looking forward to a blank slate in which they can essentially start over. I for one am actually a fan of New Year's Resolutions. I've heard all the arguments against them, from arguing that they encourage poor behavior in the days and weeks leading up to New Years, to arguing that they are almost never actually carried out, to an argument that they are unbiblical (though that was a big stretch!). For us in school, New Years does not really seem like the new year. Sure you move on to new classes and all, but it's not the big shift that some see it as. Ah, but summer, that glorious time when the weather gets sweltering hot, grilling out becomes more than an occasional celebration, and school is out, that is the beginning of my new year! So, I give you my Summer Resolutions for 2010:
1. Continue spending time daily in Bible reading and prayer.
2. Do an in-depth study of one New Testament book and one Old Testament book.
3. Work out at least three times a week (preferably five).
4. No softdrinks
5. Find all the information I need to become licensed to teach Bible and math.
6. Read all of the ACSI required books for their philosophy of education requirement (found here).
7. Read at least a chapter a day in a book (as you can see, I love and value reading).
8. Serve in Fairfield at Restoration Academy however I can.
9. Spend as much time with Laura as possible, especially during her break from school.

Well, that is all that I have for now. I'm sure I will add to and amend those as we draw closer, but that looks like a healthy start.

Blessings,
Ryan

20 Books to Read in your 20s

Great List from Justin Buzzard... this was published a while back but I pulled it up today and thought I would share it!

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20 Books to Read in Your 20s

1. Living the Cross-Centered Life, C.J. Mahaney

2. Discipline of Grace, Jerry Bridges

3. Step By Step: Divine Guidance for Ordinary Christians, James Petty

4. The Fight, John White

5. Relationships: A Mess Worth Making, Tim S. Lane and Paul D. Tripp

6. Finding A Job You Can Love, Ralph T. Mattson and Arthur F. Miller

7. God’s Big Picture: Tracing the Storyline of the Bible, Vaughan Roberts

8. Disciplines of a Godly Man/Disciplines of a Godly Woman, Kent and Barbara Hughes

9. The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith, Tim Keller

10. Desiring God, John Piper

11. Stop Dating the Church, Josh Harris

12. Feel, Matthew Elliott

13. The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis

14. Engaging God’s World: A Christian Vision of Faith, Learning, and Living, Cornelius Plantinga

15. Don’t Waste Your Life, John Piper

16. Bible Doctrine, Wayne Grudem

17. Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, J.I. Packer

18. How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, Gordon Fee & Douglas Stuart

19. The Reason for God, Tim Keller

20. Biography (various authors). Nothing can replace reading biographies of great men and women of the faith. Find a godly personality from church history who intrigues you and begin reading about him or her. Consider starting with Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God by Noel Piper, or Hudson Taylor’s spiritual Secret by Howard and Geraldine Taylor.

Dental Students in D.C.

To my loving husband, you uplift me through your beautiful words, I miss you.

As Ryan said I am in D.C. (well technically at National Harbor, Maryland) for the American Dental Education Association conference with one of my friends from my class Lila. We are here for the student council meetings where we discuss current issues for dental students. I know, it sounds wildly exciting.

Unfortunately the issue that has impressed me the most is with all the interaction I have had with students the last 3 days I have not had one conversation about Christ or the gospel. It reminds me how easy it is for us in the South to mention Christ because it is the norm. There are students here from all over the states, and even Canada and Puerto Rico, (not many from the South) and I am beginning to realize that most of them have either never heard the gospel or don't understand its true meaning for their lives. I am praying that God will some how, in my sometimes bumbling self, allow me to effectively talk about Christ to these students.

Lila and I did get to go to downtown D.C. yesterday with our newfound friends from Puerto Rico. We walked into a couple of the museums, Air and Space, American History, and Natural History. We then walked by the Washington Monument and then through the WWII memorial (which is my favorite but unfortunately not as beautiful when all the fountains are cut off) and on to the Lincoln Memorial. I separated from the group to go see one of my other favorite memorials, Vietnam. Everyone else was freezing at this point, it was about 35 degrees and windy, but Birmingham's cold weather had me pretty primed for the cold. When then met one of the Puerto Rican's friends who lives in D.C. She is originally from Mexico, so needless to say there was a lot of Spanish speaking going on and I realized how little I remember from my small Spanish education. Lila and I were so glad we got to get away from the resort for a little while, especially since Lila had never seen D.C.