daddy4ms

Here are more promises of God from the book of Ephesians compiled by Kenneth Boa: We have been blessed in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ (1:3). God has chosen us in Christ before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight (1:4). It is by grace we have been saved through God’s gift of faith (2:8). We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (2:10). God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us (3:20). Our new identity in Christ was created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (4:24). We were once darkness, but now we are light in the Lord (5:8).

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”                                    (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Here are promises of God from Galatians compiled by Kenneth Boa: Christ Jesus gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age (1:3-4). As believers in Christ, we have been crucified with him, and it is no longer we who live, but Christ lives in us.   The life we live in the body, we live by faith in the Son of God, who loved us and gave himself for us (2:20). Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us (3:13). We who have been baptized into Christ have been clothed with Christ.   There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus.   If we belong to Christ, then we are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise (3:27-29). When we live by the Spirit, we will not gratify the desires of the flesh.   Since we live by the Spirit, we are called to keep in step with the Spirit (5:16, 25). The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, ki...

What do you do during morning devotions?  I have shared previously that I read It is Finished by Tullian Tchividjian and New Morning Mercies by Paul David Tripp.  However, I have also been looking for ways other than reading through the Bible in a year to spend time with Jesus. Let me remind you that devotions are not something to check off a list or to prove you are a good Christian.  It is all about relationship with Jesus.  God does not love you more if you do them or less if you don't.  Most recently, I have been reading through the Psalms and listing the characteristics of God.  As I list them, I then incorporate them into my prayer time. I have loved this time with God.  After I finished the Psalms, I wanted to continue this.  So, I recently started reading through the gospel of Mark and listing characteristics of Jesus.  I list these and then pray about them as well.  Why do I share this?  To offer you another opt...

Wow!  What a week.  6 of us from Hesston MB Church were in Guatemala from July 9-16.  We were on a "vision trip" to consider the possibility of future long term partnership with a ministry in Guatemala.   If interested on the process to choose Guatemala, we can talk later.  We spent about 3 days at each ministry location learning what they do and their vision for the future.  Our team has not met yet to come up with a proposal for our missions committee, but let me say that both ministry organizations are doing great things and would be a great choice for you personally or for your church.  Below are the links to both ministries. Impact Ministries in Northern Guatemala http://www.impactministriesusa.org/ Eagle's Nest International in Western Guatemala http://www.eaglesnestint.org/index.php Now, I would like to share my personal reflections from my time in Guatemala. Joy-filled worship --Due to travel, we were not able to attend worship on ...

I am continuing to share great hymns of the faith which focus on the cross and Jesus.  Be reminded what Christ accomplished for you and me on the cross. We are redeemed, purchased by His blood, our debt has been paid and we are free.

“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.”   (2 Corinthians 5:20)

As you know, during my sabbatical, I have been scheduling trips one-on-one with each of my kids.   Molly and I went to World's of Fun in June.  Mackenzie and Megan decided to pass on one-on-one and instead served with me in Guatemala for a week. Today, Mitchell and I are spending the day at Schlitterbahn in Kansas City.  Since it is my son and he does not like pictures, I will probably not be posting as many pictures as I have with the girls.  But I hope to get a few. We hope to be able to ride the world's tallest waterslide.  If you have not heard about it, here is a picture.  I hope we survive!

As a dad, I find myself constantly keeping tabs on the amount of screen time my kids have.  With smartphones, they can be connected to YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and more wherever they are.  At times, it can be frustrating to see them on their devices so much. I have said several times during my sabbatical, "No more screen time.  Go outside or let's go to the pool or let's play a board game." As a dad, I seem to think they might be out of control when it comes to screen time. Now to confess something to all of you.  I like screen time as much as they do.  I would be the first to say that I don't need social media and I can quit at any time.  Then I go on a trip to Guatemala where internet is limited.  What do I feel?  I feel withdrawal.  I feel anxiety.  I get frustrated because the internet that I do have is slow. The light bulb goes on.  I need social media more than I think I do.  I realize there is something inside of ...

It has been several days since I have posted anything on the blog.  I was recovering from lack of sleep and a great week in Guatemala.  I hope to post some reflections from Guatemala over the next few days along with my regular posts on hymns, identity in Christ, and promises of God.  So...check back tomorrow for new posts over the next several days. Also, in the next few weeks, I will be posting reflections from my sabbatical which is quickly coming to an end.  On an exciting note:  I submitted my children's book to three publishers today.  I have at least one more that I plan to send to as well.  Pray with me that one of them chooses to publish this book that I am excited to share with others. Have a great rest of the week!

Today was our fun day. It also included shopping in Antigua and a trip to the airport. We fly out of Guatemala a little after midnight and arrive in Wichita at 10:19 a.m. Here are pictures from today:

We started our day working on site of future sand volleyball court. The afternoon was spent playing with kids or playing soccer with youth. Here are pictures from today:

Yesterday was a travel day so didn't have many pictures. Here are pictures from Eagle's Nest in Solalà:

Today we learned more about religion and spirituality from Guatemalan history. We visited another school and heard from its principal who also pastors church that meets in community. Finally we visited a sinkhole where we prayed and worshipped together. Here are some pictures: