boot camp grad

My cousin, Daniel "Bubba" Freeman, is now a Marine. We are so proud of you, Dan, and we pray God's protection for you in your service of our country.

an evening which reminded us of Dr.Schuler

we recently went to a couple of Christmas concerts at Holy Cross church here in Santa Cruz. the first was the Cabrillo Symphonic Chorus (pictures below), with orchestra, and it was absolutely beautiful. we are constantly reminded, especially by these particular musical outings, how blessed we are to live in such a place as this, where fine music and talented musicians are a such a part of the fabric of the town. this particular chorus will be singing at Carnegie Hall in the spring!

the second concert was the Santa Cruz Chorale, directed by Christian Grube (German, and a life-long friend of Arvo Part!...in fact, Arvo dedicated his Magnificat to Grube and his Berlin boys' choir!) it was all acappela, and so moving, you could hear a pin drop in the sanctuary. Grube chose works by Monteverdi, Mendellsohn, Part, Ralph Vaughan Williams, William Byrd, Gustav Holtz, and other of our favorite composers with whom we were made so familiar in our college choir days. And this reminded us wholly of Dr. Schuler, and we longed for the old days, and realized how grateful we are to have had such a musical education (really, a transformation!) in those four years.

Christian Grube is a Christian man (fitting) who fashioned this concert to be wholly gospel. every song, excepting the Glouchestire Wassail, spoke unabashedly of Christ, and he even required the audience to learn "Jesus Christ was born today, born today; He took all our sins away, our sins away!" to the tune of Jospeh Leiber, Joseph Mein. we were so delighted, especially to be singing and hearing Christ proclaimed in such a touchy and spiritually dark place as santa cruz. later, as we thanked Mr. Grube for his concert, he made it known that he had heard Joe singing in the audience (we were in third row) and said twice "good job!" :)
we have no pictures from this concert because we found out photography is not allowed.

the organ in the balcony, which was actually played for the prelude

joe recognized this guy as a regular at coffee cat

our friend and church music director Stan Neff guest-conducted the women's choir section of the concert. the Neff family has a musical reputation 'round these parts.

mrs. cheryl anderson, conductor (she's super nice...i was in her chior and musicianship classes when i attended Cabrillo back in the day).

our friends Elizabeth Neff, Stan Neff, and their cousin/neice Anna, who is a songbird and did beautifully on her soprano solo in Mozart's Coronation Mass. thank you for sharing your gifted voices with us!

Fruit of the Spirit: Week Nine

The Fruit of the Spirit
And the Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Against such there is no law.

For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools.

Here we have gone through each of these paintings, these works of art created by the Spirit of God, exhibited in our lives like art hung on a wall. We revisit the truth that each of these are a work of the Spirit, and they are only accomplished in our lives as we submit ourselves to God’s instruction and discipline. This means submission to the Word of God preached, eaten, sung, read, and lived. What follows from this is a healthy and dedicated Church life. Often we Christians think of Church as one more thing to check off the list, situated somewhere above the grocery store, but after dropping the kids off at school. This is completely backwards, and belies a self centered way of thinking. The Church is not another thing we do, it is who we are. Our weekly worship of the Creator God of all (just think of that phrase for a bit) is not an isolated event. It is the very definition of what it means to be a Christian. If our whole week is not centered around our worship, and subsequently affected by our worship, and furthermore a continuation of our worship, we have no idea what it means to live as a Christian. As Christians our lives are Christ-centered. This means every little thing from picking up groceries on Wednesday, to taking a walk on Monday, to mowing the lawn on Saturday. Taking every thought captive to the Lordship of Christ, Paul says. And unless your thoughts and actions live separate lives, that statement means taking everything to the Lordship of Christ. So what does this have to do with Worship? Worship means service. Service requires submission. Submission comes out of humility. Humility is the result of self denial. Self-denial can only be accomplished through the Word of God. Where do we hear and receive the Word of God? The local representation of the Body of Christ, our mother, the Church.

The central aim of this study on the fruit of the Spirit has been to expose the desire in each of us to live life as if we were the center of the universe. Our lives are an expression of self love, joy in ourselves, an inner peace that denies others, patience only with ourselves, kindness, goodness and gentleness that goes no further than our own noses, faithfulness to our own needs and passions, and a self control that serves only our own goals and pursuits. The ironic part is that this list of self-centered ‘fruits’ leads firmly to the list presented by Paul directly before he listed the fruit of the Spirit. That list again is: fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, wraths, factions, divisions, parties, envyings, drunkenness, and revellings. It should be obvious that this list is bad. Those who dwell in this list are evil, God-hating, self-centered people. Such do not inherit the Kingdom of God. But it is easy to think that since we don’t commit fornication, or don’t attend orgies, or never think about getting drunk, that we are alright. We begin to rely on our ‘pretty decent’-ness. But God damn that self-righteousness. And He will. Our only hope is to turn to the Gospel, the good news. The Good News is that God has breathed new life into the valley of Bones, and what was dead is now alive. What was salty, is now fresh. What was stone, is now flesh and blood. Thanks be to the Creator and Re-creator God of all.

So what is all this about?
So what does a Christian life look like? It has love for all men. “Love thy neighbor, for in this command is contained all of Scripture.” “Love one another, for by this the world will know you are my disciples.” Love is the key response to every action. The key word to every slander. They key thought to every deception. If we have not love, we are nothing. Love is patient and kind, and seeks the ill of none. The fellow who cuts you off on the freeway, love him. Our attitude toward all is one of love. Now it should be obvious to us that this means humility. To love another even when they are wronging us, means letting go of our own agendas. It means bearing the reproach of the world, and with Christ-like silence, showing love in return. But humility is hard. We are hardwired for self-service, “ just looking out for old number one.” That is really the only painful part of love, letting go of self, and putting others first.

So what does a Christian life look like? It is full of joy. “Rejoice always, again I will say it: Rejoice!” “Count it all joy my brethren, when you encounter various trials, for the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” Life is a struggle, life is hard work. Life encounters various trials. The self, left on its own, will take those trials and turn inward, becoming as sour as a ripe lemon. Bitterness will grow like mold, and take over. But through the Spirit, if we take a breath and count all as joy, meaning taking every thing that happens as a gift from God, and giving thanks for it, our faith is made more perfect. The result is that joy will become easier and easier. With joy becoming easier to put on, and climb into, life becomes more simple, clearer, and frankly more enjoyable. The life that is truly enjoyed gives glory to God, because it understands that God is over all, and keeps us in the palm of His hand, providing every need. In fact life becomes downright exciting, as we watch and wait on the Lord. Watching the Lord work is an amazing and humbling thing. The product of seeing the Lord work is pure joy.

So what does a Christian life look like? It is one of peace. When we put ourselves at the center of the universe, we naturally become the highest power of that universe. Because everything revolves around us and our actions, whatever we do affects everything else. This is good and sound reason for outright panic. We understand on a fundamental level that we are finite and unable to address everything that comes up. This means we cannot, not just are not, but cannot be in control. This gives rise naturally to obliterating anxiety. We know this, and still place ourselves at the center of our tiny little universes. Why? Because we are in love with us. However, should we stop this adulterous affair, and place our husband in the center, where He actually is, and has been, and will continue to be, peace will reign. Peace will reign because our husband, Jesus Christ, is God. He is able to address everything that comes our way. In fact He sent it in the first place. If we actually believe this and trust that God is in control, peace enters into the very pit of our soul, and fills us to our toes.

So what does a Christian life look like? It has patience with others. Again, as self-centered beings, we want things to happen on our timeline. We want things to happen our way. When events do not transpire according to our wills, we feel sinned against, or at least hurt. This is blatant pride, of course, as we bear witness to our self-centered universe. However, when humility comes, and we give up our ‘right’ to things going our way, then an amazing thing happens. When we actually rely on and trust in the One who is working all for our good, and who knows the end from the beginning and who has promised to complete that which He has begun, when we actually believe what God has revealed to us, Peace comes. With peace comes rest, contentment, trust, reconciliation, and harmony with all around. The Lord is our Shepherd… We will walk through the valley of the shadow of death, and fear no evil, for Thou art with us.

So what does a Christian life look like? It returns every evil, and every good for that matter, with kindness, in goodness and righteousness, by means of gentleness. Kindness in Scripture is synonymous with salvation. God’s Kindness toward us is Christ Jesus. When we bestow kindness on others, we share with them the salvation of Christ. A glass of water saves from thirst. A solid roof and a warm bed save from cold, and sleepless nights. Salvation is in the little things. Goodness is the launch pad for our actions. If we perform the kindest act in the entire world, with the intention of gratifying self, or receiving something in return, it is but a dirty rag. Our intentions are to be wholly good and righteous. And if our actions, though they be kind, are not gentle, then all is for naught. We approach our neighbor and love him, with kind words and actions, spoken and performed from a good and righteous heart, with the tongue and hands of gentleness. Through this the world is saved.

So what does a Christian life look like? It is faithful, to God first and His word, and also to our neighbor. Faithfulness is steadfast love for another. Faithfulness also can be turned on its head with a self-centered approach. If we are faithful to ourselves first, like the world would have it, “be true to yourself!” it chants, then we will only show faithfulness to others when it benefits us. That flies directly in the face of Scripture. We are to be faithful to others, especially to God, no matter what the cost, be it imprisonment, bodily injury, persecution, or even death. None of those things would be considered ‘personal betterment.” But that is the world’s ‘wisdom’ and not God’s. No, we are first faithful to God’s Word, no matter what the cost. Next we are faithful to others, despite the world’s taunting. Why are we faithful? Because God was first faithful to us. While we were yet sinners, Christ died on the cross. That faithfulness we receive and in turn share with the world.

So what does a Christian life look like? It is a life that is controlled and mastered. We are told that all things are lawful, but not all are profitable, all things are lawful, but we ought not to be mastered by any of them. In a world of temptation and corruption, it is easy to take things too far. Many sins are the perversion or exaggeration of something good and God-given. Our duty is to enjoy life, but to know moderation. This takes wisdom and like all else, humility. To know what to say is knowledge, to know how to say it is understanding, and to know when to say it is wisdom. We must approach our lives and be taken captive by wisdom, to be shaped and molded by Wisdom. The Spirit is given for such a reason. He comes and molds us, shapes us, and teaches us throughout long years of submission, and willing reception of God’s instruction through His Word, and discipline through His Church.

So what’s the point?
So why do we care what a Christian life looks like? As believers we are called to honor God as God. This means to understand Him, as He has revealed Himself to us, and not in any other fashion. These fruit of the Spirit are a picture of what God Himself is like, and in what ways He has interacted with us, the sheep of His hand. We honor Him by seeking to reflect Him, meaning do to others what He has done to us. We learn by imitation. Simply put, we love and ought to love because He first loved us. We as Christians are also called to give Him thanks. Gratitude is obedience with a smile. We obey His Word, and live in thankfulness. This thankful life stands out in this world like diamonds on black velvet. People do not quite know how to respond to true gratitude. It takes them by surprise. To the sinful heart it is a slap in the face. But that is the goodness of God.

So honor God as God and give Him thanks and live life as if you do. As Augustine said, love God and do as you please. The former will inform the latter. If our hearts and minds and souls and strengths are truly set on loving God to their fullest capacity, what will come as natural as anything will be a complete, utterly selfless love for others. Through this selflessness, God brings the world into the family of salvation. Glory be to God!

warm and toasty

here's our little place all decorated for Christmas! the decorating happened three days before Thanksgiving. :) Wasn't planning on doing it that early, but i found the cutest, most perfect tree for $17 and i couldn't leave him! joe was ecstatic to find a tree waiting for legs to stand, and this year (because we re-arranged the furniture about three times since last Christmas!) there was actually a spot for him. he's only two feet tall, and so that we don't feel like such giants, we put him up on a box. i think it has greatly improved his self-esteem. he smells just as a Christmas tree ought, and his boughs are green and healthy, even if they are tiny.

this is looking from outside through the berry wreath on our front door into our living room...and there you can see trudy and donovan!

my dad made this votive candle thingy for us last year for Christmas!

better than pottery barn - really!

it's so pottery barn

here's our new coffee table! joe and i found it by the roadside, in the dark, and promptly picked it up...without a close inspection. needless to say, it needed help. we didn't much like it aside from the design itself, since it was white and peeling. so joe undertook a project and it sat patiently in our parents' garage till the unveiling. the coolest features are the basket storage (yay for more storage! i think every wife can give three cheers to that) and the two-sided top. one side is the black finish, the other side is a black chalkboard! we saw it in a pottery barn magazine and had to do it. now, we're prepped for kids. :)

Fruit of the Spirit: Week Eight

And the Fruit of the Spirit is Self-Control.

Here we come to the last of the fruits. It is interesting that this one should be the concluding attribute, the final painting the Spirit hangs in the exhibit of our life, in this list of attributes. Here lies the point of interest. When true self-control is received as the gift it is, and practiced in truth, it will become evident that the highest form of maturity that can be attained to in this pre-glory life has been reached. What does that mean? Simply, this: The person has become wise. Wisdom, flying in full colors, is self-control. Wisdom, therefore Self-Control, means knowing when to shut up, when to speak up, when to act, when to stand by, when to think through things, and when to let comments roll off your back like ducks in the rain. Self-control means the ability to control your self, your being, your everything about you. When you are able to control your thoughts, your words, your actions, your feelings, everything, you have reached maturity. To be sure, by way of reminder, Self-Control itself is a gift of God, and a work of the Spirit. Do not be deceived and think that maturity is a mountain top to be reached through self will and pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps diligence. It is reached through continual submission to God and His word. Through a selfless and teachable heart, the Spirit brings us to the point of maturity, and grants us the wisdom to face everyday life.

So what does this look like? In medieval fashion, I will break our bodies into four sections: the hands (our actions), the mind (our thoughts), the heart (our emotions), and the tongue (our words). To go before the scoffers, let me quick make a disclaimer. These are not separable. Nor is one above the other. I do not elevate the mind over the heart (like rationalists), or the heart over the mind (like romantics), or the hands over the tongue (like empiricists), or the tongue over the hands (like philosophers). We are one body: heart, mind, soul, and strength. But allow some inseparable distinctions to be made for the sake of learning. So let us look at these each in closer detail.

The Hands
The fruit of self-control is like this. A man was running a marathon. Despite the advice of his coach, he began by sprinting all out, for three miles. At the end of three miles he was far ahead of everyone. He backed off a little, but continued to run pretty fast, without regard to pace, or storing up energy for the last stretch. Another man, who had listened to his coach, started at the same time, but paced himself. He controlled his speed, and his energy. A quarter of the way into the race, he was two miles behind the first man. Half way through he was a mile behind the first man. Three quarters the way through, he had caught up to the sprinter, for the sprinter had spent all his energy and had none for the last five miles. The controlled runner continued past the sprinter, and won, with the first man trailing by three miles.

The fruit of self-control is also like this. A young boy, one who enjoyed eating candy, wandered into a candy store. A sign hung over the counter that said, “All is free, take what you will.” The boy, being an ‘obedient’ child, naturally follow the command, and subsequently ate far more than was healthy for him to eat. Another boy came in, while the pig was at his business. He likewise saw the sign. He wondered through the store, simply looking at what was there. His eye finally fell on one piece of chocolate. He took it and ate it slowly. He then walked out, feeling satisfied and, more importantly, not sick as a dog.

We must control our actions. This means understanding what our bodies are capable of and what they are not capable of. Study your body. Study your temptations and areas of weakness. Know what you can handle, and what is dangerous for you to do. If you are in a situation where you are unable to control your body, you are in danger of falling into sin. If you are the type of person who cannot refrain from eating tons of candy, to the point where it makes you sick, do not walk into a confectioners store on a day when they are giving away free candy. Know your weaknesses and practice self-control, meaning do not set your self up for failure. On the positive side, if you like candy, eat candy. But only one piece, not one hundred. Control your actions, for those who cannot are known as gluttons, thieves, and murderers.

The Mind
The fruit of self-control is like this. There was a man who lived alone on an island. On this island there was one mountain that was impossible to climb. For all he knew, he was by himself. When he had first arrived on the island, he was pretty normal, and did not do anything weird or evil. After a while however, he lost control and began cutting down trees, setting things on fire, and destroying all forms of life. He continued to do this thinking he was alone, and that nobody saw him or what he was doing. However, one day a man came down from the ‘unclimbable’ mountain, and took the man aside, locked him in chains, and threw him in a pit. He condemned the man for the destruction he had accomplished. And there the man stayed until he died.

The mind is a place we can go, and think about anything in the world. Nobody will ever know what you think when you are alone in your room. Your thoughts are completely your thoughts and your thoughts alone. I cannot know what you are thinking right now, nor you know what I am thinking. On a strictly human level, this is true. However we forget that God knows your thoughts. He will come down the mountain and judge your thoughts. If your thoughts are continually evil, if they are lustful, destructive, vindictive, wrathful, malicious, or in anyway other than what edifies and builds others up, you are in sin, and your sin will find you out. Even if it is tightly locked away in the corners of your mind, your sin will find you out. The hidden will be made known.

The Heart
The fruit of self-control is like this.

There once was a boy named Willy.
He was hit by another named Billy.
He cried off his head
Until he was dead.
And everyone thought he was silly.

The fruit of self-control is also like this. A man worked at a water plant. His job was to turn on and turn off the water. One day someone teased him, and this made him so upset that he lost control of the valve, and was not able to turn it off, until it had flooded the whole room. The manager of the plant, who had just walked in, saw the flood and was very distressed. He was very angry with the worker. He ran over to the valve, and took control over it, and stopped the flooding.

Emotions are not bad. Emotions are God given. We would be sinning to not understand and be comfortable with our emotions. But emotions are like everything else and have the ability to be left on, subsequently flooding the room. We must know what our emotions are, and be able to be master over them. This does not mean never showing them, or ever displaying them in public. It simply means do not let your emotions control you.

The Tongue
The fruit of self-control is like this. There once was a man who talked a lot. Often his words were not nice, and sometimes down right mean. One day, as he said something particularly painful, a small dart came out of nowhere, though it seemed to come from his face, and shot right at the person he spoke to. The dart struck them right in the chest, and they stumbled over, dead. The next day, the same thing happened. He said one mean thing to his co-worker, and the co-worker ended up dead on the floor, having been struck by a dart. Pretty soon, the man was killing people left and right. The darts never ran out. He always had something mean to say. The man realized after a few days of this that the darts came whenever he said something mean. He realized that he could not continue to kill people. In order to stop killing others, he gagged himself with a cloth, and took it out only to eat. He refused to talk to anyone, and everyone from that point on stayed alive.

The tongue is the most dangerous creature of all. James 3:8ff say this: No human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessings and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. We must know what we say to others, and with what intentions we say things to others. Both are made known to the hearer. What you say to other people has tremendous power. There is something to be said for the old saying, “If you have nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” Nice is an awful concept. Nice is superficial and does not address the heart. I would change the phrase to this:

“If you have no kind words, whether in construction or edification, or in praise, do not speak. If what you are going to say will not help anything, do not speak. If what you say is said merely for your own pleasure, and without consideration of others, do not speak.

Think about your words to others, and their effect on them. Are they spoken out of a desire to see your brother built up and edified? Are they spoken with a desire to bless? We cannot bless God and curse our neighbor with the same tongue. If you bless God, really and truly, than you will bless your neighbor. If you curse your neighbor, you will curse God.

Wrap up
Here again we honor God as God and give Him thanks. He has blessed us, and given us every spiritual gift in heaven. Let us return our honor and gratitude in watching over our actions, thoughts, emotions, and tongue. Let us approach wisdom, and be taken captive by it.


Psalm One
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,and its leaf does not wither.

In all that he does, he prospers.
The wicked are not so,but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;

for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.