A.W. Tozer – The Warfare of the Spirit

I do not advise that we end the year on a somber note. The march, not the dirge, has ever been the music of Christianity. If we are good students in the school of life, there is much that the years have to teach us. But the Christian is more than a student, more than a philosopher. He’s a believer, and the object of his faith makes the difference, the mighty difference. Of all persons the Christian should be best prepared for whatever the New Year brings. He has dealt with life at its source. In Christ he has disposed of a thousand enemies that other men must face alone and unprepared. He can face his tomorrow cheerful and unafraid because yesterday he turned his feet into the ways of peace and today he lives in God. The man who has made God his  dwelling place will always have a safe habitation.

year in pictures.

2011 in pictures. click here.

seeing Him as He is… Merry Christmas

desiring the vision of God..

what will it be like? the understanding can know no more. the will can will nothing other. the emotions of joy, delight and love are all in their proper center. for all good is in its chief good. as all the rivers of the world come from the ocean, as you bring a great ship into a narrow channel, she cannot swim or sail but runs aground. but give it sea room and depth and she can turn and sail before the wind. so it is here. all that delights you in earthly things can never satisfy you. for all of your desires are in God. the comforts you have here are only drops inflaming, not satisfying, the appetites of your soul but the lamb will lead you to fountains of living water. (john flavel)

we want something in all of our other passions that can hardly be put into words — to be united with the beauty we see, to pass into it, to receive it into ourselves, to bathe in it, to become part of it. (c.s. lewis)

for if we take the imagery of scripture seriously, if we believe that God will one day give us the morning star and cause us to put on the splendor of the sun. then we may surmise that the ancient myths and modern poetry, so false as history, will be true as prophecy. at present we are on the outside of the world, the wrong side of the door, we discern the freshness and purity of the morning but they do not make us fresh and pure. we cannot mingle with the splendors we see, but all the leaves of the new testament are rustling with the rumor that it will not always be so. some day, god willing, we will get in. when human souls have become as perfect in voluntary obedience as the inanimate creation is in its lifeless obedience, then we will put on the glory, or rather the greater glory of which nature is only the first sketch. (timothy keller)

listen here.

c.s. lewis

There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendors. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously – no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.

all i want for christmas..

#thedaytheclevelandsleft

moving .

my family moved from orlando when i was 9 years old. we left behind family, friends, familiarity, and shopping malls, for the mountains of western nc. i moved again when i left for college, a temporary move that became permanent. so goes life.. some will never move, some move often.

some dear friends of mine, brad and meredith, will be moving to tennessee. a move we all celebrate as God has called them to ministry at a church there. therefore, i thought i’d dedicate a post in their honor.

turns out ibm created an interactive map that showed population movement in 2008. when you click on a location you can see the movement of people into the county and out of the county.. for example, just as my parents felt that any place was better than orlando at the time, seems the sentiment has continued.. (to be fair, appears many from the north didn’t get the memo)

orange county, florida

yet in my hometown, macon county, nc, not much has changed. the floridians keep coming and no one else is leaving. (except those who move to raleigh, like me!)

macon county, nc

but who would want to live in raleigh anyway? oh, that’s right.. EVERYONE!               (wake county represent!)

wake county, nc

good news for brad & meredith, seems knox county is a happenin’ place in tennessee, you’re like the dart board of eastern tennessee…

knox county, tennessee

much better than alabama (their home state) where i had to click on 10 counties before i found even one where people were moving in from another state.. (see what i mean?)

lucky for you, it was jefferson.

jefferson county, al

brad and meredith, congratulations! you will be missed, but i’m excited to see what God has in store for you both.. and i anxiously await brad’s debut on the ten out of tenn album. #merchtablerepresent

the Turner family

 

Baby MacDonald

wedding .. aiken, sc ..

In the small town of Aiken, SC, known for its equine hospitality – Scott & Meghan gathered  with their families and close friends to begin their life together. It was an honor to share in their special day.