Let 4th Year Begin

Although it is still July, my 4th year of dental school began today.  So I figured it is time to get back to reality, and to blogging!  So to start of year, here is my summer in one blog post...

1. Time with my sister. My precious big sister is 7 months pregnant.  I was able to go to Mississippi and visit her and help work on the beautiful nursery she is preparing for her precious baby girl. Here is a picture of her nursery in progress...

I tried to be creative and use her baby's initials and the colors from her pillow sham to make some decor for over the crib.  We'll see how it looks once they are hanging over the crib... haha.

2. Peru! Ryan and I had the great privilege to lead a short term mission team to Peru this June. Our team was made up of incredible individuals ready to serve the Lord.  Like last year, we worked in an orphanage, preached in churches, and visited a Compassion International project.  It was a wonderful experience.  We were truly able to see God work through our weakness to bring himself great glory in Peru!

3. B Wise's wedding.  One of my most precious friends Brittney married the love of her life last week.  I had the privilege to be a part of that day with her.  She was beautiful, the wedding was beautiful, and all around it was just so much fun! 

and 4. Harry Potter.  I know how ridiculous it seems that Harry Potter makes my top 4 list for my whole summer, but I am afraid I absolutely, unabashedly, love Harry Potter.  Ryan and I started reading the books years ago.  We loved them so much that we went to the midnight book release of the final installment of the series because we could not wait to hear the end of the story.  8 months ago we went to see The Deathly Hallows, Part I with some good friends of ours who share our love for the story.  At that time we planned to see Part II together once it was released this July.  In anticipation for the July release, Ryan and I challenged one another to read all 7 books this summer before the release.  So after reading all 7 books in about 5 weeks and watching all 7 previously released movies, we went to see the final movie on the day of its release.  While the books will remain king in my mind, the movie was fantastic.  I think they were true to the story told in the books and they succeeded in bringing what I imagined to the screen beautifully.  So I guess we have to say goodbye to Harry Potter (or at least goodbye for now, until I revisit Hogwarts through blu-ray and by rereading the epic tale again.)

Scripture and Jesus As We Like Them

Photo from German History in Documents and Images
 

 

     This morning I read a passage from Eric Metaxes's book Bonhoeffer that was a reminder of how much we want God to look like us, even to the point that we will twist Scripture to fit our own needs. Let me set the stage: It is 1933 and Germany has just pulled out from the League of Nations under the leadership of Adolf Hitler. Most of the German people saw this as a great victory for their country. They were humiliated after World War I and the continued sanctions on the size of their military was obviously problematic for a man like Hitler who desired domination by any means necessary. A day after the German people voted in agreement with Hitler (though most historians would agree this was likely a rigged poll) to pull out from the League of Nations, the German Christians (the official state-endorsed church) held a rally in the great Sportpalast of Berlin (the photo above is actually taken from this very rally on November 13, 1933). There, a high-school teacher by the name of Reinhold Krause, the leader of the Berlin German Christians, gave a speech that revealed the true agenda of this church sponsored "church".

In coarse, crude language, Krause demanded that the German church must once and for all divest itself of every hint of Jewishness. The Old Testament would be first, "with its Jewish money morality and its tales of cattle merchants and pimps!" The stenographical record notes that "sustained applause" ensued. The New Testament must be revised, too, and must present a Jesus "corresponding entirely with the demands of National Socialism." And it must not longer present an "exaggerated emphasis on the crucified Christ." This tenet was defeatist and depressing, which was to say Jewish. Germany needed hope and victory! Krause also mocked "the theology of the Rabbi Paul with its scapegoats and inferiority complex," and then he mocked the symbol of the cross, "a ridiculous, debilitating remnant of Judaism, unacceptable to National Socialists!" Furthermore, he demanded that every German pastor must take an oath of personal allegiance to Hitler! And the Aryan Paragraph that demanded the expulsion of every church member of Jewish descent must be heartily accepted by every German church! (Bonhoeffer, p. 193)

     Oh how desperately we want our Jesus and our Scripture to look like us! Don't we see the ease with which we can follow him if only he would conform to our liking, to our prejudices, to our desires?

     "Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." (1 Corinthians 1:20-25)

     Be encouraged, brothers and sisters! This facade put up by the German Christians was the beginning of their downfall. Many Germans saw through this and realized that this was in error. Though the night may seem dark and the foolishness of man great, God is greater still. He chose in his goodness to save men and women by the cross. It is he who preserves his word, the Living Christ, the Word himself who still speaks today.

     Be warned, brothers and sisters! Fashioning Jesus to our liking and twisting Scripture to suit our needs ultimately produces a god in our own image. Worshiping this god of our making is idolatry, plain and simple. And this temptation is not localized to a specific point in history, nor to a specific political ideology. It is the temptation to which all our fleshly hearts bend. May God in his mercy and grace keep our hearts steadfast. Soli Deo Gloria!

ATL and the Indy Grand Prix

Ryan and my weekends usually consist of some activities, church, seeing friends, so on, but it almost always includes some rest and relaxation.  This weekend was a little different.  Saturday we headed to Clarkston, GA with a group from our church's college ministry.  Clarkston is right outside of Atlanta and since the 1996 Olympics over one million refugees have immigrated from countries all around the world from Atlanta.  Most of these individuals come from places where you likely have never heard the gospel, like Iraq, Bhutan, Thailand, Sudan and many others.  Most of the refugees are in Clarkston for around 2 years so there are about 40 missionaries living among these people trying to share the gospel with them.  We were able to hangout with 2 of these workers from Global Frontier Missions.  We came for a one day exposure into what Clarkston is like and how we can possible lead short term teams to serve there.  Here is there website: http://www.globalfrontiermissions.org/atlanta.html.  It was a very interesting experience.  These people are so close to Christians and churches but most have them still have never heard a clear gospel presentation.  Praise God that I have heard and responded to his gospel.  It was so clear to me on Saturday that his grace alone has saved me!

So we got home Saturday and were pretty exhausted, but we had free tickets to the Indy Grand Prix for Sunday that we just could not pass up!  So Sunday morning we got up and headed to Leeds and the Barber Motorsports Park to watch the main races, Star Mazda, Indy Lights, and the Indy Grand Prix.

 

Here was our view of the track.

The green "Go Daddy" car, AKA Danika Patrick.

A shot of the cars on the final turn during a "double-file" restart

We are not about to go buy t-shirts and put numbers on our cars, but Ryan and I both really enjoyed the race.  It was quite an experience!

It's Friday

I almost posted this earlier because I couldn't wait, but I figured it would be most appropriate to post today seeing as how "it's friday" and I "gotta get down on Friday".

Ryan's Lucky Day

I think I mentioned in a previous post how much Ryan and I love 97.7 the Peach.

Well now we love them even more because last Friday he won free tickets to 2011 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park next weekend.  Ryan and I have been wanting to go to an event there for years, and now we have free tickets to see one of the biggest events it has ever hosted.  We are so excited! 

Small Group Retreat

Coming back to school after the weekend is never fun.  Coming back after an awesome weekend away... even harder!  Friday, Ryan and I and 6 of our wonderful friends from small group headed to my family's farm in Mississippi.  It was a weekend full of fun and relaxation.

Top Moments:
1. Worship and s'mores around the bonfire.
2. Shooting skeet in the orchard.
3. Trying to be ninjas with Josh and Rebecca's throwing knives.
4. A delicious breakfast with delicious pancakes, made by Katie! And discovering that wheat rocks, thanks to Penny.
5. The girls beating the boys at "Capitalism."
6. Singing to each other via walkie-talkies in the car. There was some Beyonce, Journey, and a whole lot of Disney.
7. Watching the boys go wild on the four-wheelers.
8. Laying in the hammock in the sun.


Thanks friends for such a wonderful weekend!

Spring Break Getaway

Life has been pretty crazy the last couple of months.  Since I last blogged, Ryan and I celebrated Christmas with our families, we moved to an apartment, Ryan started working full time, and I started the second semester of my clinical education which is insane.
But since several people have asked me about why our blogging has ended, which by the way shocked me (I did not think we were very interesting), I have decided to try and start blogging again.  Try and control your excitement.
Today, I will give you guys a spring break update.  2 weeks ago was my spring break and Ryan took Thursday and Friday off work.  We had a fun filled Thursday in Birmingham which included breakfast at Demetri's BBQ, a walk at Railroad park, and a dinner out at Flip Burger.  Then Friday morning we headed to Mississippi to my family's "farm" where Ryan and I enjoyed the beautiful weather and the peace and quiet.  We rode the 4-wheelers, cleared some trails, went fishing, read, laid in the hammock.  It was wonderful!  We are actually heading back there on Friday and taking our wonderful small group with us, pictures to come.  I think I have posted this picture before but, below is a picture of me, my sister, and my dad at the farm years ago...

The farm is such a precious place to my family, and I am so glad Ryan can now enjoy it, and I look forward to sharing it with friends in the years to come.