daddy4ms

I picked up Jack Klumpenhower's book, Show Them Jesus last Wednesday.  Here are some great quotes from the chapters I read: That is the way everyone's hearts naturally works. Our kids (and us) are programmed to try to earn points with God. At such a moment the issue is not what those kids should do--it's how to reach their hearts. They need to rest in Jesus until they have such joy over his beauty and what he's done for them that it spills out into the way they live.   The good-news teacher skillfully steers a kid's heart by showing the breathtaking beauty of Jesus. We often imagine the Christian life is like a game of king-of-the-hill played between our heart and our head...Only a stronger love for Jesus can overpower and displace our love of sin. If we cut individual stories off from the Bible's central story arc about Jesus, we miss the main thing the Bible wants to say... The good news is the Bible's drumbeat. To ignore it at any point is to ...

So often as parents and/or teachers, we want kids in our homes or classes to be good and behave.  We know this is selfish in many ways, but we still do it. I do it.  I started a new book a few weeks ago called Show Them Jesus by Jack Klumpenhower.  This book might change the way I parent and train and equip teachers in children's ministry.  Here is a quote from Chapter 1: The message of Jesus' death and resurrection is a tool of the Spirit to change hearts. Nagging is not. Rather than coax kids into temporarily acting better, Joe told about Jesus and trusted God to use that message to make the kids become better. What is your motivation in your home? Your church? Can it really be as simple as preaching and teaching Jesus?  Check back for more quotes from this great book.

I am continuing to read The Naked Gospel by Andrew Farley.  Here are some quotes from some final chapters: "We're invited to depend on the onetime sacrifice as the means to lifelong forgiveness, without any strings attached" "The Son of God has finished his work. He is risen and is now seated in heavenly places. There's only one appropriate response. All eyes on him!" "As believers, our forgiveness and cleansing aren't dependent on our memory, our confession, or our asking. Our forgiveness and cleansing are solely because of the finished work of Jesus Christ." "If we sin against someone, we may experience difficult circumstances an dour own disappointment with our choice. But we shouldn't mistake these earthly consequences for moving out of fellowship with God. Our fellowship is stable and certain. God's face is always toward us." "Too many Christians succumb to the Accuser while wrongly attributing these attac...

Last week, I was reading several books.  One thought jumped out at me because of the different perspectives/backgrounds of the two authors.  My wife reminded me of a saying we learned from Erma Prutow at Sterling College.  Erma said "Truth is truth."  She meant the source does not matter because all truth is God's truth. Here is the summary of what I learned from these authors: in our battle against sin and behavior, we have the order mixed up in the church.  We try to fix behavior so that we can better focus on God.  Whereas, God's Word teaches we need to fix on our eyes on Jesus first so that behavior will be fixed.  Here are the quotes from Matt Chandler and Joseph Prince: "What ends up happening to so many of us is that we spend so much time trying to put sin to death that we don't spend enough time striving to know God deeply, trying to gaze upon the wonder of Jesus Christ and have that transform our affections to the point where our love an...

On Thursday, I was again reading Creature of the Word by Geiger, Patterson, and Chandler. Chapter 8 is a great chapter that all children's and youth workers should read. It gives a perspective that we all need to consider. Here are some thoughts from the chapter: "children and students are often pummeled with curriculum designed for behavioral modification rather than gospel transformation." "Perhaps many churches fail to teach the gospel to children because law is more attractive. Law provides children's ministry leaders and parents with the false assurance that we are doing the right things, that we can check boxes off a spiritual checklist." "A changed heart will result in obedience." "So the hearts of children ultimately do not need protection but transformation." "The "next big thing" mind-set regarding a student-ministry calendar fosters an unhealthy dependence on programs." "While children...

Tullian Tchividjian closes his book, Jesus + Nothing = Everything with two great chapters, but I wanted to share some thoughts specifically from Chapter 11.  In this chapter, he challenges us not to just know this information, but live it.  I again recommend this book to all of you.  Here are my final quotes from this book: "It's one thing to affirm the gospel; it's something altogether different to experience its power where the rubber meets the road of life." "my passion, as a preacher and a pastor and a Christian, is to show others how the gospel of grace really speaks with practical hope into everything that fallen people will face in this broken world." "Paul doesn't pray that the Colossians will find something they don't have; rather he prays they'll grow in their awareness and understanding of what they already have." "Bad behavior happens when we fail to believe that everything we need, in Christ we already have; it...

On Thursday, I was reading Chapter 8 from Jesus + Nothing = Everything by Tullian Tchividjian.  I highly recommend this book to everyone.  It would be good for Christians and non-Christians. Here are a few quotes: "Therefore, focusing on rules and regulations means missing Jesus altogether." "The gospel, on the other hand, always addresses the root of the problem. And the root of the problem is not bad behavior." "We tend to think of the gospel as God's program to make bad people good, not dead people alive. The fact is, Jesus came first to effect a mortal resurrection, not a moral reformation, as his own death and resurrection demonstrate." "Moral renovation, in other words, is to refocus our eyes away from ourselves to that Man's obedience, to that Man's cross, to that Man's blood-to that Man's death and resurrection!" "if the focus is on what you must do instead of what Jesus had already done, it's anti-gospel....

Today is "Daddy Day" in our house. This just means that it is my day off and I am home with the kids. Molly and I were sitting in the doctor's office this morning and I started to bite my nails. I looked up and she was watching me and then she started to bite her nails. I told her to stop and she said, "why-you are doing it?" Ouch. An innocent bad habit, but my daughter saw me do it and decided to copy. As I thought about this simple example, I am reminded about the power we as parents have on our children. All of us as sinners have areas that we struggle with. Sometimes these bad habits or sins are seen by our children. Because they trust us, they decide to copy our behavior. What behaviors are you passing on to your children? Do they see you talking harshly about a friend or co-worker? Or do they hear you blessing or encouraging someone? Do they see you with your eyes on a TV show? Or do they see you praying or reading your Bible? Do they hear you t...