Our Trip to the Beach

We took our first trip to the beach as a family yesterday. Daniel loved it! He is definitely a beach boy. We went in the evening when it wasn't so hot and there weren't very many people out. It couldn't have been more ideal. Daniel liked to squish his feet in the sand, and he was fascinated by the water. The only time he was a little scared was when three fighter jets flew overhead, but that was a great opportunity for us to learn a new word: "jet." He worked on "beach," "ocean," and "sand" also. (No, he isn't really talking yet, but I'm sure he's thinking it!) Here are a few of our favorite pics:

My One and Only Political Post

This nugget is from class today: What political party did Adam and Eve belong to?

They were communists: they had no house and no clothes and called it Paradise!

I thought that was funny.

Setting the Bounds of the "Local" Church

What exactly is a "local" church? Do we have a tendency to read "local" in the NT when we should be seeing universal? More importantly, perhaps, what constitutes a local church? Organization? Membership? Covenant?

The question has many implications. There are implications for the legitimacy of the emergent church movement. There are further implications for the administering of baptism and the Lord's Table.

I know this is a HUGE question to ask (much less answer) in a blog post. So let me narrow it down a bit for now. In what sense can 5 guys who love God passionately get together at McDonald's and be called a church? We certainly don't doubt that they are members of the Church (capital "C"), but do they now constitute a "local" church? More specifically, could they break out their "grape product" (Dr. Windsor's term) and bread and have communion?

I think the ramifications of this discussion are even more enormous than I understand at this point, but I would love some input anyway.

Summer's Halfway Over Already

Can you believe it's already the middle of July?! So much has happened already that it seems as if this summer has flown by. We've had some very difficult and trying times recently, but we are rejoicing in God's goodness and faithfulness through it all.

Carrie is doing much better. She hasn't had any more vertigo for a while now. Kathy Erickson has a been a huge blessing helping us out through this. Thanks, Kathy! And we certainly could not have made it through without Bob and Janelle. They have come over any time we called and taken care of Daniel and Carrie. My parents came up and stayed with Carrie and Daniel while I was gone on a retreat. Thanks, Mom and Dad!

Daniel is doing well. He went to the doctor today for his four month check up. They gave him 4 more shots...and he did not like that at all. He is rolling all around the floor and exhibiting his stubborn nature more frequently now.

I just got back on Saturday from a retreat with some of our teens. We had a great time at Alpine Bible Camp. I'll put pics up at the teen website sometime this week, Lord willing: www.gbc-ch.org/gsm.

I've probably posted this before, but it's worth repeating. Rutherford wrote to a friend who was suffering that when she came to glory she would be forced to say, "If God had done otherwise with me than he hath done, I had never come to the enjoying of this crown of glory." How true it is! Our God is all wise and sovereign over our lives. We trust him completely that he is leading us on in the best possible way to the enjoying of a crown of glory! May he be praised and may we continue to be transformed into the image of Christ!

Here are some recent pics:

Fourth of July Party at the Barker's

Happy Baby!