Couple of quotes

I was looking through my old blog and came across these quotes

"When Abram had gone to Egypt, he had chosen for himself and had gotten into
great difficulty. Now he was content to leave the choices with God and to trust
God for his future provision. He did not need to take care of "number
one." God would do that. Therefore, since he was sure God would
provide, he held the things of this world loosely. If God gave them, that
was alright. Abram would hold them in trust from God and use them for
God's glory. But if God took them away, that was fine too. For Abram
had God and, having Him, had the only thing that mattered." James Montgomery
Boice on Abram in Genesis 13:1-13

and

"The love of God is limitless; it embraces all mankind. No sacrifice
was too great to bring its unmeasured intensity home to men and women: the best
that God had to give, He gave - His only Son, His well-beloved. Nor was it
for one nation or group that He was given: He was given so that all,
without distinction or exception, who repose their faith on Him, might be
rescued from destruction and blessed with the life that is life indeed.
The gospel of salvation and life has its source in the love of God. The
essence of the saving message is made unmistakeably plain, in language which
people of all races, cultures and times can grasp, and so effectively is it set
forth in these words that many more, probably, have found the way of life
through them than through any other Biblical text." F.F. Bruce on John
3:16

Reason # 19 why I am excited to marry Laura:

She has a heart for theology and God's Word.

Thankful

I’ve made a resolve, I will no longer to think of Thanksgiving as a day to give thanks, but instead evaluate how I am doing in terms of giving thanks.

you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist
that appears for a little time and then vanishes. (James 4:14)

I don’t know what tomorrow will bring, therefore I everyday should be a day that I proclaim thankfulness for the blessings that God has given me. Specifically looking ahead to December 16th when I will make the vow to honor and cherish Laura as long as I shall live I should not presume upon the grace of tomorrow, but instead take advantage of the grace of today to show my gratefulness.

There are a lot of earthly blessings I can be thankful for, but I want the one that is perpetually evident is my thankfulness for Laura being a part of my world. Aside from my salvation God has given me no greater gift. She is the helper suitable for me and strong where I am weak. She is compassionate and eager to give of herself to help others. There are so many reasons that I am thankful for Laura that I know I don’t show it and say it enough.

My goal is to never grow famaliar and always find new ways to encourage her. She truly is fearfully and wonderfully amazed and I am amazed that God has given her to sinner like I to lead and serve for the rest of my days.

Reason #24 for why I am excited to marry Laura:
Relating to her, hearing about her day and knowing what excites her is a pleasure.

Wedding Poetry

Two planks of wood come together
Forming a cross where the God of all creation
Gives up His life for His bride
So that all may know life.

A man and a woman come together
At an altar before the God who died on the cross
There they give up their lives for each other
So that all may know Him.

I had this idea for a poem a few days ago. Thinking about the similarity of the cross and marriage. With the cross two pieces form one structure and in marriage two people become one. At both the cross and marriage there is a dying involved, but also in both life may be found. In the cross we are crucified with Christ so that we might have new life. Marriage shows two people dying to self that Christ may be all the more glorified.

In the past when I wrote poetry I would usually write lots in spurts. Who knows, this might be the first of many more to come.

Reason 29 why I am excited to marry Laura:

She is patient loves kids. By the way she interacts with her nieces and nephews I know she will make a great mom!

Couple of quick hits

-We are getting married soon. That is so hard to believe. I remember yesterday I was writing the date on a form and thought "in a month and a day I will be married to the love of my life." Then today I was filling out the date on a form and thought, "Exactly one month from today I will be married to my best friend."

-I couldn’t sleep last night and ended up coming into work early. It was neat because I looked over to the east and saw the sun not that high in the sky and was reminded of the morning when I came to work at sunrise and recorded the video that I used to propose to Laura.

-I read a great Piper quote the other day "God can accomplish more good for those who trust him while they sleep than they can accomplish with anxious labor while awake."

-Reason #30 why I am excited to marry Laura
She will bring order to my world known as "chaos"

Love Laura as Christ loved the Church

1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. 11When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. 12Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

This passage came to mind earlier and in the margins of my Bible I have written, "Description of Christ and His love for the church." Several years back Allred led a Bible study series on the passage above and he stated how this passage is very common for being read at weddings, but the romantic kind of love was not Paul's original intent. Paul's intent in this passage was to show the Corinthians Christ and what they are to seek after in their interaction with one another. Basically, the word "love," is interchangeable with Christ.

I decided to make the connection between this passage and Ephesians 5. If I am to love Laura as Christ loved the church then essentially: I will be patient and kind with Laura. I will lead her humbly, never envying her gifts or boasting about mine over her. During conflict I will not let the sun go down on my anger. No score card of wrongs will ever be kept, but grace will define our daily living. By grace, I will rejoice in truth and seek to put to death all sin. As I am faithful to glorify God in my marriage I will protect and trust Laura. Through good times and bad, sickness and health, I will persevere in loving Laura. During the hard times I will maintain hope, not because of who Laura is, but because of our foundation in the cross.

Reason #40 why I am excited to marry Laura:
Despite the fact that I am a goober and in need of lots of help, she is eager to be my helper.

Woe to Disorder

Well this is my (Laura) little mini update...

So, Nursing school has been good, but soooo busy! I moved through 7 (very fast) weeks of Psychiatric nursing. I guess I can say I learned a few things from that course, but the main thing that I learned is that I don't want to be a Psychiatric Nurse . That course went fast ...and I just began the last 7 weeks of my semester with good old medical surgical nursing ;) I am doing my clinicals at Shady Grove Hospital and am loving it so far. It's crazy to think that I am in week 2 out of seven weeks, which means I am getting married in 6 weeks... too weird!

Today I learned about Arterial blood gasses, acid base balance in the blood, fluid electrolyte balance...and IV fluids/meds for each deficiency. I seriously spent 7.5 hours on campus going from workshop to workshop and lab to lab, mandatory of course ;} having to go through one case study after another.... I left feeling like my head was spinning... but hey if anybody wants to know about metabolic acidosis, the effects on the acid base balance from repeated vomiting, and/or the importance of the sodium potassium pump...see me ;) I was so excited about all the info that I had learned that I called Lew and gave him a mini lecture over the phone, just for fun (more for me than him!) I am a nerd... I know

Anyways on another note... I could use some help! Things have seriously gotten soooo busy that I feel like I am constantly behind in things like.... cleaning my room, laundry....well I would just say organization in general!! My room is pretty much a mess. In the midst of packing my stuff, and just being super busy I feel like there is never enough time! Truly I left my house at 6:30 this morning... was home for about 1 1/2 hours and then left for my night class. Then I just got home from my night class.... and it finally hit me.... my room is a disaster zone (my poor mother would sadly agree). I just made my bed (I know it's 9:00 pm) but I can't go to bed in an unmade bed....so I made it anyways. But as I was making my bed I felt sad that things like that are being neglected. So I am determined that tomorrow, somehow, even in the midst of my business I am going to take some tome to organize and clean... starting with my laundry!

I even have included some pictures for you all to enjoy.... Yes this in an act of humility... but I figure you all could get a few laughs out of my messy room! These pictures tell a story ;)

Yes, you can see my boxes for packing, my unmade bed and books...lots of books... scattered everywhere :{

This is my "disaster" corner... I have piled all of my laundry (that I intend on doing of course) in the "perfect" spot next to my closet...? Somehow it made sense at the time.

And finally...my biggest disaster area..my desk, or what I like to call the free for all. I have found this has become a place of piling (piling is one of my worst habits). You can see lots of piling right now, my special monkey from my little sister, my splenda from baking a few days ago, a bag of rice from a few nights ago, some random vitamins, and worst of all my chair has so many clothes piled on it that I can't sit in it. So pretty much I can't use my desk at all until I can get some organization going!

Well I guess it could be worse, but still if anyone has any good organization tips for someone in a super busy season please do share!!


I am getting married in 45 days.... wow ;)

Time for an update

Wow, we haven’t posted in a while. Life is busy and doesn’t appear to slow down until those two ladybugs up top meet. Here are some quick bullet points of events past, present and future.

• Last weekend was the care group leaders retreat and it was a very refreshing time. The first session was on how the gospel is our fuel for change. I am looking forward to reviewing those notes and going over it with the care group. The next two sessions were very helpful about understanding the heart and getting to sin issues in the heart.

• Speaking of care group retreat, we have our first care group retreat with our new care group this Saturday. The theme is “care” and I am anticipating a great time of seeing more fully how God cares for us and how He intends to use us to care for one another.

• We have our first premarital counseling session this Thursday. Just typing that last sentence made me realize how thankful I am for grace. Even though a recently married friend told me I am more ready for marriage then he is, I know that three pre-marital counseling sessions won’t make me be ready to be a husband. I will fail time and time again, but God is gracious to sinners like me.

• On December 1st I am moving and Laura’s and I new place of residence will be the first time that I will live in the same house for more then a year since 2000-2002. (Yay for roommates forever!)

• I’ve been reading through “Heart Aflame,” in my quiet times and I am excited because 20 straight days will be spent meditating through Psalm 119! Oh yeah buddy!

• We are serving tonight at the Harvest Party. It’s definitely no Reformation Celebration, but the costume requirements are a bit easier. Harvest party you only have to wear a particular color versus the Reformation Celebration where you attempt to dress up as John Calvin, Martin Luther, Charles Spurgeon, John Piper or any other reformer throughout history.

• I feel like over the past month Laura and I have done all types of traveling and seen exotic Maryland locale such as Towson, Westminster, Annapolis and crossing the stateline into Alexandria, Va. Amazingly enough, the one trip we got lost on was the trip that I’ve made the most. It’s nice to know that I haven’t lost my touch making the amazingly simple so much harder then it should be.

• Lastly, I heard a song on the radio this weekend called, “I Loved her first.” It’s typically a song that would have meant nothing to me, but in this particular season I found myself listening to all the words thinking about the gift that Laura is to me and if God would bless us with a daughter. The lyrics are below for you to enjoy.

Look at the two of you dancing that way
Lost in the moment and each others face
So much in love your alone in this place
Like there's nobody else in the world
I was enough for her not long ago
I was her number one
She told me so
And she still means the world to me
Just so you know
So be careful when you hold my girl
Time changes everything
Life must go on
And I'm not gonna stand in your way

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But it still hard to give her away
I loved her first

How could that beautiful women with you
Be the same freckle face kid that I knew
The one that I read all those fairy tales to
And tucked into bed all those nights
And I knew the first time I saw you with her
It was only a matter of time

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But its still hard to give her away
I loved her first

From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
Someday you might know what I'm going through
When a miracle smiles up at you
I loved her first

Reason #45 why I am exited to marry Laura

She has been tested by God and has come out like pure gold.

Enraptured Admiration

I've recently find myself amazed with the relationship that the saints of old had with God. Laura and I have been enjoying the new Chris Tomlin CD lately and one of the songs on it is the original version of Amazing Grace. The last verse is different then how it is typically sung now.

"The earth shall soon dissolve like snow
The sun forbear to shine
But God, Who called me here below
Will be forever mine
Will be forever mine" Newton

In Heaven, God will be forever mine. This isn’t just a business relationship or a mere acquaintance, but this is an “enrapture admiration (John Calvin).” Newton understood that our earthly marriages are only a reflection of our relationship with God. There should be nothing that we are more passionately in love with then God and His glory.

What defines my life isn’t my marriage, my job or anything temporal in this life. What drives me in this life is what I look forward to in the next life. My life needs to be characterized now by making the most of having Christ as “mine.”

As I think about being a care group leader and asking how guys are doing in terms of spending with God I need to convey to them that it isn’t an issue of regularity in quiet times, but instead it is a matter pursuing intimacy with God through communing with Him by the means of prayer and His Word because. Having a quiet time isn’t about just reading the Word and praying, but instead it is admiring the beauty of the One whose blood purchased me. I want to whet my appetite now for Heaven’s delight because there is truly no other satisfaction here on earth then growing in the one that I was made for.

"Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee." Augustine

Reason #57 why I am excited to marry Laura:
her heart to meet with God and be made more like Him!

Yay for engagement pictures ;)

Yeah, I know...you don't see or hear from me very often anymore. Life is so busy that, sorry folks, but blogging has been at the bottom of my priority list....but I have a fun update ;)

We finally got our engagement pics, courtesy of Janelle Bradshaw ;) Here are a few of our personal favorites. Enjoy...and check out our wedding website for more.

Marrying my best friend

Earlier tonight I had a chance to talk to an old friend from high school. It's interesting, I remember my senior year of high school my old Young Life leader discipled myself and two other guys. We called ourselves, "The Fishermen's club," because we were called to be Fishers of Men. We all went to different high schools, but we were all really close and best friends. We ended up going to different colleges, but made a pact to stay in touch.

Staying in touch has proved harder then we thought. One of the guys is still back home in South Bend, I'm out here on the east coast and another guy is in Hawaii. With our busy lives it's very rare that three of us get to see each other, although we do talk on the phone once every few months. I remember a conversation a few years back where we talked about being in each others wedding. The first guy got married this past summer and none of the fishermen were there. For my wedding in December none of the fishermen will be able to make it either.

With college, my internship and moving out here, I have always felt like a bit of a nomad. I have had some friendships and relationships that have come and gone, even ones that I would last the test of time. Two months from today I will be marrying my best friend and having someone who will always be there. There won't be any moving away from each other, but actually getting to live life together and sharing every moment as we grow in Christ. What a blessing this is for me that I sometimes struggle to comprehend. Every other friendship has been for a season, but this will be a joining of two lives. For better or for worse, till death do us part.

Reason #61 why I am excited to marry Laura...
I will be marrying my best friend

Baseball, Grace and Marriage

The Mets are playing the Cardinals in game 1 of the NLCS. I can't help but to wonder what Freddy's thoughts are right now. I worked with Freddy during my internship at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Freddy was a lifelong Mets fan. (Freddy was also a bit out there, when asked who you would play him in a movie about his life his response was "batman"). In the summer of 2004 the Mets made a particular trade that was too much for Freddy. Freddy exclaimed to us that he was fed up and could take it no longer. It was officially over and Freddy divorced the Mets. This was serious business, Freddy sold all of his Mets baseball cards, jerseys, souvenirs and memorabilia. He even e-mailed every Major League Baseball team (except for the Yankees and Braves) letting them know that he was an ex-Mets fan and he was looking for a new team. By the end of my summer at Cooperstown Freddy had not picked a new team and said it could be two year process.

The Mets have obviously been recipients of God's grace and are four victories away from being NL champions. Thinking about Freddy's divorce of the Mets it is just further evidence of why the Bible doesn't support divorce. One of the things that we can count on in marriage is God's faithfulness. He will always be faithful to us in our time of need and gives us the grace that we need. We never need to despair or consider anyone a lost cause because God is on our side. If we are properly trusting in God then we can be patient and know that when marriage is built on grace then God will sustain any marriage.

Reason #65 why I am excited to marry Laura:
She likes going to baseball games with me!

More photo fun

Jonah and I were joking around the other weekend about starting our own comedy routine where we told funny stories about all the crazy things that we've done and we'd always says, "hey, remember that time when?"

For example, "hey, remember that time when we tried to start a new tradition of the groomsmen kissing the groom before the wedding?"



Actually, if that happened at my wedding I would probably react the same way Alex does here, but it does make for a funny photo.

Reason #68 why I am excited to marry Laura:

Starting new traditions as we share life together!

Don't Waste Your Life

Something that really struck me earlier this week is how I will glorify God as Laura's husband. Jonah and I were talking about this last weekend and it puts it in perspective when I realize that everything I do for Laura is done for the purpose of God. Piper states in "Don't Waste Your Life," that nothing is merely an idea, but all ideas and actions bear on my wife. Where I work, how I spend my money, what I do in my free time, all of these decisions affect Laura. The only way can I make these decisions to best serve and care for Laura is by primarily viewing everything through the lens of "How can God be most glorified?"

Reason #71 why I am excited to marry Laura:

She is compassionate and has a heart to care for others


Here is Jonah and I at a wedding together this past weekend in Indiana.

Thoughts on engagement

The wedding day is quickly approaching and I came to a neat realization the other day. Since April we have been putting a lot of worthy time and effort into the ceremony. The ceremony will point to God and magnify His glory and it will truly be a wonderful day. This wedding was planned long before we were born, from before the foundation of the world, God had a plan to redeem us to through the death of His Son on the cross and bring us together on Memorial Day 2005 so that we can grow in Christ and in friendship leading us to December 16th, 2006 when we will become one.

The ceremony will be great, but our focus and our desire isn't that one day. Instead, the craving and yearning of our hearts is for every moment of our life together that God wil be glorified. What we are living for right now isn't to be married, but a life that points to the cross.

Ever since we became believers the work of the Spirit in our hearts isn't pushing us towards a great wedding, but a marriage that honors God daily. That excites me to think that December 16, 2006 isn't an end, but a beginning of a new season and knowing the love of my life more as well as my Savior who has made all things possible.

O LORD, we have waited for You;
The desire of our soul is for Your name
And for the remembrance of You. (Isaiah 26:8)

Reason #72 why I am excited to marry Laura...

She has a desire and a passion to see God glorified in all areas of her life.

Day 73

I will do new blog post sometime in the future. Not sure when, but it will come. This wedding season is a hectic one, but God is good and teaching me about priorities.

Reason #75 why I am excited to marry Laura:

She is responsible when it comes to finances realizes the role they play in glorifying God.

A few photos to make you smile

One of my simple pleasures was spending time with my nephew and niece....even though right now is so insanely busy for me with school...I was able to spend a little bit of time with my nephew Isaiah last week. He is getting so big its unbelievable! He will be 1 year this month. The funniest thing was whenever I would snap the camera to take his picture the flash would go off for a few seconds before and he would open his mouth and stick out his tongue! In fact in almost every single picture his mouth is open and his tongue is out!! Here are some cute pictures to make you smile:






And to see some very cute pictures of my new niece Giana (who I hope to spend some time with very soon) go here.

Day 74

Reason #74 why I am excited to marry Laura:

She is gorgeous and will look like a radiant princess on our wedding day!

Day 75

I've been without the internet for the past few days so I haven't been able to update. I was in Indiana at a wedding and I will probably fill in the details about that trip later. For now, time to pick up where I left off...

Reason #75 why I am excited to become Laura's husband:

She helps me to eat healthy and be a good steward of the body that God has given me.

Day 80

Reason #80 why I am excited to marry Laura:

I have gotten her into the idea of tea and having tea parties together!

10 Simple pleasures

I didn't forget. It was just kind of on the backburner. For those who are curious. Below you can find my ten simple peasures. I think everyone else has already been tagged, so I am copping out of the part where I tag others. Enjoy!

10 Simple Pleasures

10)Sitting down with a hot cup of tea.
9)Going walking at Sugarloaf or someplace else where God’s glory in nature is displayed.
8)Watching football with my dad.
7)Hearing about what God is teaching to my friends.
6)Being able to spend time with my guitar.
5)The smell of popcorn (and also eating popcorn).
4)Baking with the love of my life.
3)Reading a good book.
2)Reminiscing about memories of all my friends from college and all the crazy things we did.
1)Making new memories with Laura.