First aorist active infinitive of purpose- a title only an English major could love. Maybe the English or Greek majors among us already know what it means- I certainly did not when it came up in my Bible study this week. But it turned out to be the perfect fit for what I wanted to tell you, about what Sherri and I bought this week.
You see, Sherri and I and technically Jake, bought a house this past week in Maryville Missouri. It's not a new house, in fact I guess you'd have to say it's an old house since it was built in 1910. The idea is to have Jake stay there while in school at NW Missouri State and rent out the other 4 bedrooms to make the house payment and have a little left over for spending money. That's the plan anyway, we'll see, hopefully it works out that way.
Of course an old house has it's issues and that's where grandpa and grandma come in. They're going to go down with Jake in the next couple weeks to see what really needs to get done to prepare the house for 5 guys who in just a couple months will be fully devoted to study (insert smiley face here and roll eyes). I'm not sure if Jake liked the house because it had a master bath for him or because of the sorority house next door. Either way, there is work to be done there.
Lately it seems we watch a number of 'fix up the house' shows like 'Extreme Home Makeover', 'Designed to Sell' and 'Sell This House'. The places look sad at the beginning of the show and then are turned into gems with some interesting design combinations, hard work, and oh yeah- various amounts of money. We have visions of doing the same thing in Maryville- with very little money of course.
Anyway, all this got me to thinking about the 3rd house I have and the work going on there. Jesus talks about it in John 14:2 saying, 'In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.' And that last part made me smile, thinking of Jesus, the carpenter, in His own home improvement show fixing up the place for us. He's preparing the greatest home ever. Think about what He did in 7 days and then consider what He can do in 2000 years! We can't even imagine it. My guess is He's looking forward to the big reveal- so much so that He just had to give John and us a sneak peak in Revelation.
The title of our thought here describes the verb 'Etoimazw' which is the Greek word that means 'prepare'. The other words like 'aorist' mean 'expressing action'- as in Jesus is actively preparing a place for you and me with purpose. How cool is that? He's actively preparing on our behalf- can we really grasp the meaning of that? But I know it is true and happening because Jesus said it- He's all about getting the place ready for you and me. He said if it wasn't true, He wouldn't have said it.
If you've ever watched these improvement shows you know how the reveal works. The couple is brought into a room, eyes shut and then are told to open their eyes and see the results. Their first words are usually 'Oh my God'. I can easily imagine us having the same reaction on the heavenly big reveal. My 3rd house is going to really be something. Probably bring me to tears like you always see in Extreme Home Makeover. Well, enough about my three homes, see you Sunday in the house of the Lord where we can actively, purposefully prepare for His return!
Blest Regards,
Keith
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Graduation
Dan graduated from Roncalli High School this past Sunday. It was great to see him walk across the stage and collect a little red diploma display book which including grade school I calculate as costing me somewhere in the neighborhood of $30,000. Even as I write that big number, it doesn't bother me in the least. Sure I have thought about what a nice car that might have bought, or what country club I could have joined, but really, I'm not all that big on possessions or status.
So why does a Lutheran guy spend that much on a Catholic education for his kids? Well, I might have considered Concordia but 4 (or 5 for Jake) years ago but they were still pretty new, very small and not close to our home. Roncalli is close, a nice size, and the boys were used to Catholic education from their days at St Bernards, so we decided to take the plunge. I remember walking into the school one morning to deliver a forgotten book and hearing prayers over the school PA. I knew right then for sure I had my boys right where I wanted them.
I welcomed the fact that my boys were taking religion classes in school. I don't think they thought that was anything special or a big deal but maybe that's what I like best about their Catholic school experience- the daily subtle influences of Christian teachers and coaches. Teachers can talk about God and faith and creation without fear in any class. The result is a learning environment in a culture of faith. These days, that's not the norm.
Public schools in Omaha do a great job in my opinion for those who want to learn. Compared to parochial schools they have nicer facilities and more resources at their disposal along with higher paid teachers. Honestly, I think you have the opportunity to stretch your abilities further at a public school. And plenty of great Christian kids do just that, taking advantage of these fantastic opportunities. Still Sherri and I will most likely send Caleb to Roncalli in the Fall of 2010.
And even I ask myself why, why would I forego this better opportunity which comes at no cost? The answer returns again to the environment, the culture in which learning occurs. Psalms 111:10 teaches us, 'The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.' Look, I think there is an element of humor in what we call ourselves as humans, 'homo sapiens' which means 'wise ones'. The point is fellow wise ones, the Bible tells us 'the fear of the LORD' is the only reason we could possibly be 'wise' to any degree. Based on this I find satisfaction in a school day for my boys that starts with prayer and continues on in a culture of faith.
Sherri's and my commitment to a faith-based education began with pre-school. One of the folks who came to congratulate Dan at his party was his pre-school teacher Marge Kirkpatrick. She has such a love for the Lord that you would pick her out of a thousand qualified applicants to teach your child. She is a shining example of how faith and teaching can go hand in hand, of how fear of the LORD is the beginning of all wisdom. What a blessing it is to start your search for wisdom with such a Godly teacher. Maybe you had a teacher like this as well. Mrs. Kirkpatrick made it easy for us to see the benefits of a faith-based education.
As for Sherri and I, we want to give our boys every opportunity to understand what true wisdom really is. In Romans 1 we read, 'professing to be wise they became fools' which describes those who trade faith in God (true wisdom) for faith in themselves, in this world, in what they know and idols of their own creation. They are lifelong 'sophomores' which means 'wise fools'. Our hope is that our boys' faith-based education has helped them to know that God is indeed the beginning and end of true wisdom. I pray that you know this as well and that we will all have a glorious graduation party one day, on that final day. And it is on that day we will begin the ultimate catholic education, an eternal opportunity to explore the infinite wisdom of our omniscient God. See you in pre-school this Sunday!
Blest Regards,
kp
So why does a Lutheran guy spend that much on a Catholic education for his kids? Well, I might have considered Concordia but 4 (or 5 for Jake) years ago but they were still pretty new, very small and not close to our home. Roncalli is close, a nice size, and the boys were used to Catholic education from their days at St Bernards, so we decided to take the plunge. I remember walking into the school one morning to deliver a forgotten book and hearing prayers over the school PA. I knew right then for sure I had my boys right where I wanted them.
I welcomed the fact that my boys were taking religion classes in school. I don't think they thought that was anything special or a big deal but maybe that's what I like best about their Catholic school experience- the daily subtle influences of Christian teachers and coaches. Teachers can talk about God and faith and creation without fear in any class. The result is a learning environment in a culture of faith. These days, that's not the norm.
Public schools in Omaha do a great job in my opinion for those who want to learn. Compared to parochial schools they have nicer facilities and more resources at their disposal along with higher paid teachers. Honestly, I think you have the opportunity to stretch your abilities further at a public school. And plenty of great Christian kids do just that, taking advantage of these fantastic opportunities. Still Sherri and I will most likely send Caleb to Roncalli in the Fall of 2010.
And even I ask myself why, why would I forego this better opportunity which comes at no cost? The answer returns again to the environment, the culture in which learning occurs. Psalms 111:10 teaches us, 'The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.' Look, I think there is an element of humor in what we call ourselves as humans, 'homo sapiens' which means 'wise ones'. The point is fellow wise ones, the Bible tells us 'the fear of the LORD' is the only reason we could possibly be 'wise' to any degree. Based on this I find satisfaction in a school day for my boys that starts with prayer and continues on in a culture of faith.
Sherri's and my commitment to a faith-based education began with pre-school. One of the folks who came to congratulate Dan at his party was his pre-school teacher Marge Kirkpatrick. She has such a love for the Lord that you would pick her out of a thousand qualified applicants to teach your child. She is a shining example of how faith and teaching can go hand in hand, of how fear of the LORD is the beginning of all wisdom. What a blessing it is to start your search for wisdom with such a Godly teacher. Maybe you had a teacher like this as well. Mrs. Kirkpatrick made it easy for us to see the benefits of a faith-based education.
As for Sherri and I, we want to give our boys every opportunity to understand what true wisdom really is. In Romans 1 we read, 'professing to be wise they became fools' which describes those who trade faith in God (true wisdom) for faith in themselves, in this world, in what they know and idols of their own creation. They are lifelong 'sophomores' which means 'wise fools'. Our hope is that our boys' faith-based education has helped them to know that God is indeed the beginning and end of true wisdom. I pray that you know this as well and that we will all have a glorious graduation party one day, on that final day. And it is on that day we will begin the ultimate catholic education, an eternal opportunity to explore the infinite wisdom of our omniscient God. See you in pre-school this Sunday!
Blest Regards,
kp
Thursday, May 14, 2009
The Church of Tiger Woods
The Church of Tiger WoodsI take each of my boys on a senior trip. Dan likes golf so we went to The Players Championship just outside of Jacksonville Florida. This is a big tournament known as the 5th Major, in other words a big deal. We got cheap flights and a free room thanks to my First Data travels so the trip was affordable. We had a blast.
On the flight to Jacksonville Dan and I shared a good laugh because whenever he opened his shade, the sun reflected so brightly off the billowy clouds he had to shut it again. Then he would crack the shade again and again and in would flood the crazy bright light. So bright it made us laugh. Even now I find it hard to explain just how blazingly bright white these clouds were. It was just the slightest glimpse of God's glory on a short plane ride.
I had hesitated to buy tournament tickets ($75 apiece) on-line in advance in hopes I could find a better deal when we got there. We did. Our hotel check-in guy told us he knew someone who was staying there who could help us. One phone call later to someone I didn't know and we had FREE tickets to see the practice rounds and former President George Bush (daddy Bush) plus $45 tickets to Thursday's opening round of golf.
As we strolled the holy land of golf on Wednesday evening, we saw some of the top pros practicing their putting. Padraig Harrington (winner of two majors last year) came over and signed a pin flag for Dan. We looked over the most famous hole in golf, the 17th, an island green with only a small path connecting it to the shore. The next morning we got to the course early to watch the pros on the driving range. Charley Wii's caddy walked over and gave Dan a golf glove. John Merrick's caddy who is from Omaha gave him a glove as well and added a golf ball to boot. We were having fun!
We walked over to the 10th tee to watch Tiger Woods start his day and follow his every shot. I couldn't help but think of our gallery as the Church of Tiger Woods. We were here to praise Tiger and we did just that! We all clapped when he walked out onto the course to start his round. We clapped for every drive and chip, we clapped for every made putt. We did a lot of praising of Tiger Woods. Dan and I were standing on a small footbridge over a pond on the first hole when Tiger crossed the bridge right next to us. Dan turned to me and said, 'I told you he didn't walk on water!'
For the most part Tiger took the narrow road golfers call the fairway. He played ok, missing putts that he normally makes and finished the day at even par- not a good day for a golf god. We tired of the Church of Tiger Woods and left before he finished to see others like Sergio, Phil and Zach just to name a few. We also got to see a number of balls go into the water on 17. One golfer hit two in and walked off with an 8, a snowman, a score usually reserved for golfers like me. We watched golf from 7 in the morning till 6 in the evening in 90 degree heat and were happy to sit down in the shuttle bus back to our car.
I can't help but wish everyone was as excited about their faith as they seem to be about golf. I mean the praise service at the Church of Tiger Woods took about 4 hours and no one complained. Lines formed for $7 fellowship hamburgers. Shirts with logos to proclaim our support of Tiger to others started at $85. For many here, Sunday School meant watching and learning how to hit straight drives and fancy flop shots. Golf's popularity continues to grow, God's popularity seems to be waning.
Dan and I spent Saturday in God's water hole- the Atlantic Ocean. Oceans never cease to amaze me with their vastness and beauty. I don't think you can look at an ocean, or stand in the small waves that come on shore without seeing it as God's handiwork. Small shells and grains of sand as numerous as Abraham's descendants lined the shore to put the finishing touches on God's masterpiece beach at St. Augustine. Taking it all in as I stood in the water reminded me of the lyrics Andrew Peterson wrote recalling how he was awestruck into silence at the beauty of creation as he drove through the Grand Canyon. In 'Nothing to Say' he sings:
'And I don't believe that I believedIn You as deeply as today
I reckon what I'm saying isThere's nothing more Nothing more to say
And the mountains sing Your glory hallelujah
The canyons echo sweet amazing grace
My spirit sails The mighty gales are bellowing Your name
And I've got nothing to say
No, I've got nothing to say'
Watching Tiger Woods golf was fun but seeing bright white lights, colorful golf courses and ocean blue oceans sing their 'glory hallelujahs' on our trip was even better. Awesome really. And now I've got nothing more to say. No, I've got nothing to say.
Blest Regards,
Keith
On the flight to Jacksonville Dan and I shared a good laugh because whenever he opened his shade, the sun reflected so brightly off the billowy clouds he had to shut it again. Then he would crack the shade again and again and in would flood the crazy bright light. So bright it made us laugh. Even now I find it hard to explain just how blazingly bright white these clouds were. It was just the slightest glimpse of God's glory on a short plane ride.
I had hesitated to buy tournament tickets ($75 apiece) on-line in advance in hopes I could find a better deal when we got there. We did. Our hotel check-in guy told us he knew someone who was staying there who could help us. One phone call later to someone I didn't know and we had FREE tickets to see the practice rounds and former President George Bush (daddy Bush) plus $45 tickets to Thursday's opening round of golf.
As we strolled the holy land of golf on Wednesday evening, we saw some of the top pros practicing their putting. Padraig Harrington (winner of two majors last year) came over and signed a pin flag for Dan. We looked over the most famous hole in golf, the 17th, an island green with only a small path connecting it to the shore. The next morning we got to the course early to watch the pros on the driving range. Charley Wii's caddy walked over and gave Dan a golf glove. John Merrick's caddy who is from Omaha gave him a glove as well and added a golf ball to boot. We were having fun!
We walked over to the 10th tee to watch Tiger Woods start his day and follow his every shot. I couldn't help but think of our gallery as the Church of Tiger Woods. We were here to praise Tiger and we did just that! We all clapped when he walked out onto the course to start his round. We clapped for every drive and chip, we clapped for every made putt. We did a lot of praising of Tiger Woods. Dan and I were standing on a small footbridge over a pond on the first hole when Tiger crossed the bridge right next to us. Dan turned to me and said, 'I told you he didn't walk on water!'
For the most part Tiger took the narrow road golfers call the fairway. He played ok, missing putts that he normally makes and finished the day at even par- not a good day for a golf god. We tired of the Church of Tiger Woods and left before he finished to see others like Sergio, Phil and Zach just to name a few. We also got to see a number of balls go into the water on 17. One golfer hit two in and walked off with an 8, a snowman, a score usually reserved for golfers like me. We watched golf from 7 in the morning till 6 in the evening in 90 degree heat and were happy to sit down in the shuttle bus back to our car.
I can't help but wish everyone was as excited about their faith as they seem to be about golf. I mean the praise service at the Church of Tiger Woods took about 4 hours and no one complained. Lines formed for $7 fellowship hamburgers. Shirts with logos to proclaim our support of Tiger to others started at $85. For many here, Sunday School meant watching and learning how to hit straight drives and fancy flop shots. Golf's popularity continues to grow, God's popularity seems to be waning.
Dan and I spent Saturday in God's water hole- the Atlantic Ocean. Oceans never cease to amaze me with their vastness and beauty. I don't think you can look at an ocean, or stand in the small waves that come on shore without seeing it as God's handiwork. Small shells and grains of sand as numerous as Abraham's descendants lined the shore to put the finishing touches on God's masterpiece beach at St. Augustine. Taking it all in as I stood in the water reminded me of the lyrics Andrew Peterson wrote recalling how he was awestruck into silence at the beauty of creation as he drove through the Grand Canyon. In 'Nothing to Say' he sings:
'And I don't believe that I believedIn You as deeply as today
I reckon what I'm saying isThere's nothing more Nothing more to say
And the mountains sing Your glory hallelujah
The canyons echo sweet amazing grace
My spirit sails The mighty gales are bellowing Your name
And I've got nothing to say
No, I've got nothing to say'
Watching Tiger Woods golf was fun but seeing bright white lights, colorful golf courses and ocean blue oceans sing their 'glory hallelujahs' on our trip was even better. Awesome really. And now I've got nothing more to say. No, I've got nothing to say.
Blest Regards,
Keith
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
You've Got Charm Disponibility, Love Disponibilty...
As titles go, this is an obscure one. I've replaced the lyric 'personality' with 'disponibility'. Maybe you're old enough to remember the old song 'Personality' by Lloyd Price. The idea is to help introduce a new word I learned this week while reading 'My Life with the Saints' by James Martin, SJ.
In his book, Martin reviews the lives of a number of 'saints'- technically only folks recognized by his church as saints. He writes about them because he 'sees them as models of holiness relevant to contemporary believers, and to understand the remarkable ways that God works in the lives of individuals.' He writes about what inspires him about their stories. I am reading it out of curosity and to learn from these people what I can.
Anyway, enough about my goofy reading list, the point is it was in this book, in the St. Ignatius of Loyola section that I learned the new word 'disponible' which means to set in different places, place here and there, available and disposed. Which all these holy folks seem to be, perfectly placed, available for and disposed to do God's will.
And I like the idea that God set people in different places, arranged us in a meaningful and purposeful way. Like I'm a chess piece in the hands of the ultimate ChessMaster. The question is, am I and are we ready to act on His call? Are we really fully disponible? I know that's an unusual question- when was the last time someone asked you about your disponibility?
Maybe I'm like a perfectly placed pawn that decides I'll just stay on this here red square thank you very much. I faintly hear His call to move, to act, but quite frankly I'm a very busy pawn right where I am- besides the further I move forward the more I get out of my comfort zone. Plus pawns that move to far out in front generally don't last very long. I say move some other guy, a more disponible person than me.
Martin writes about Loyola, 'He was ambitious to do great things ad majorem Dei gloriam - for the greater glory of God.' And that 'After discerning God's will for himself, he resolutely set out to do it.' Very cool. What I am learning is that these saints were pretty normal common folks who heard God's call and made were moved to act (or acted to move) where God led them. What makes them notable to me isn't as much about what they did but what God did with them!
I believe we are all saints. You don't have to be a hero of the faith to achieve this title- Jesus earned you that title. Let us give thanks for such a great gift by using our charm, love, personality and disponibility for Him! This week consider just how willing you are to be disponible- afterall, it's better to be 'disposed for' than to end up 'disposed of'. Who knows, if we all become more disponible here at Atonement maybe I can write the sequel, 'My Life with the Saints at Atonement'!
Blest Regards,
kp
In his book, Martin reviews the lives of a number of 'saints'- technically only folks recognized by his church as saints. He writes about them because he 'sees them as models of holiness relevant to contemporary believers, and to understand the remarkable ways that God works in the lives of individuals.' He writes about what inspires him about their stories. I am reading it out of curosity and to learn from these people what I can.
Anyway, enough about my goofy reading list, the point is it was in this book, in the St. Ignatius of Loyola section that I learned the new word 'disponible' which means to set in different places, place here and there, available and disposed. Which all these holy folks seem to be, perfectly placed, available for and disposed to do God's will.
And I like the idea that God set people in different places, arranged us in a meaningful and purposeful way. Like I'm a chess piece in the hands of the ultimate ChessMaster. The question is, am I and are we ready to act on His call? Are we really fully disponible? I know that's an unusual question- when was the last time someone asked you about your disponibility?
Maybe I'm like a perfectly placed pawn that decides I'll just stay on this here red square thank you very much. I faintly hear His call to move, to act, but quite frankly I'm a very busy pawn right where I am- besides the further I move forward the more I get out of my comfort zone. Plus pawns that move to far out in front generally don't last very long. I say move some other guy, a more disponible person than me.
Martin writes about Loyola, 'He was ambitious to do great things ad majorem Dei gloriam - for the greater glory of God.' And that 'After discerning God's will for himself, he resolutely set out to do it.' Very cool. What I am learning is that these saints were pretty normal common folks who heard God's call and made were moved to act (or acted to move) where God led them. What makes them notable to me isn't as much about what they did but what God did with them!
I believe we are all saints. You don't have to be a hero of the faith to achieve this title- Jesus earned you that title. Let us give thanks for such a great gift by using our charm, love, personality and disponibility for Him! This week consider just how willing you are to be disponible- afterall, it's better to be 'disposed for' than to end up 'disposed of'. Who knows, if we all become more disponible here at Atonement maybe I can write the sequel, 'My Life with the Saints at Atonement'!
Blest Regards,
kp
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