Josh Harris: A Year of Grace at Covenant Life Church

Each December, my family tries to sit down and recap the year that is almost gone. We list the big and little events that defined the year. It’s a chance to reflect on answered prayers and give thanks for God’s goodness. This month, I did the same for our church family’s year, which I shared in our December “Family News.” Here’s a short of list of highlights in no particular order:

1. The look on everyone’s face when we did a “reverse offering” at the end of our Affluenza series and gave out money to invest in God’s kingdom.

2. Changing our meeting times to 9 and 11:30am. Boy, did 8:30am feel early!

3. Encountering Jesus’ love and compassion for sinners in our series through the Gospel of Luke.

4. Karin Layman, Valori Maresco and my wife Shannon led their first series of Titus 2 meetings.

5. Emma attended Summer Celebration led by Mike Bradshaw and asked me the day after it ended how long it would be till the next one!

6. Grant Layman and his team launched the Family Room meetings and had so many parents and couples say, “Why didn’t we start this years ago?” Good question!

7. John Loftness and Robin Boisvert began Covenant Life College, where members can go deeper in theological study every Wednesday night.

8. Attending Together for the Gospel and seeing CJ’s friendship with—and leadership alongside—men like Al Mohler, Mark Dever, Ligon Duncan, John Piper, R.C. Sproul, and John MacArthur.

9. Having New Attitude back and better than ever under Eric Simmons’ leadership and the creativity of our amazing singles.

10. After many years of prayer, we sent out Chris Silard and many Covenant Life members to plant a church in Frederick, Maryland.

11. In February, the children’s ministry at Covenant Life grew with the addition of Mary Kate Harris. (Okay, I so snuck in a personal one. I couldn’t help it!)

12. I, Mindy, will slip in one as well. In November, the children’s ministry at Covenant Life grew with the addition of Brianna Joy Mayhew…hehehehe

God has been very kind to us, and we say goodbye to 2006 with grateful hearts for all His mercy.

This is an excellent post from Joshua Harris’ brother’s site, The Rebelution.  If you’re concerned about the future of America, you should read this….especially if you have children!  And, I’d also suggest going to the  link and reading the comments.

The Rebelution: TWIF (Part 4): The American Idol Syndrome
TWIF (Part 4): The American Idol Syndrome

If I had to sum up my feelings regarding the growing threat China poses to American young people I would most likely end up saying something like: Ready or not! Here China comes!

To me this exclamation, most commonly associated with the game of hide-and-seek, accomplishes a very important thing; namely, it informs us of our only two options: to be prepared or to be unprepared.

I wish I could say that American young people are working hard to stay ahead. That we are striving diligently to ensure that we continue to deserve the levels of success and affluence associated with the United States of America. Unfortunately, even my bent towards optimism cannot hide a distinguishing characteristic that plagues America’s youth. Indeed, I am of the opinion that American young people are prone to what I call “The Entitlement Complex.”

This entitlement complex could also be termed The American Idol Syndrome. If you’ve ever seen the faces American Idol contestants when Simon Cowell tells them they have no talent, you understand what I mean. Many American young people cannot accept the fact that they don’t deserve high-paying jobs, that they aren’t “beautiful,” or that their voices sound funny.

As one of my readers told me, “Young Americans today [believe that] it’s their “right” to have a education, Social Security, a job, a nice house, a fun car, and plenty of money.” We’ve taken the American dream a “step farther,” she says, “Not only can everyone have an opportunity to achieve their dreams, everyone has a right to have their dreams (the results of the opportunity)—without doing the work.”

In a stark contrast, the majority of Chinese teens are doing the work. They are motivated and they are diligent. They have direction and they get moving. In fact, one of the consular officials who oversees the granting of visas at the U.S. embassy in Beijing said, “I do think Americans are oblivious to the huge changes. Every American who comes to visit me [in China] is just blown away . . . Your average kid in the U.S. grows up in a wealthy country with many opportunities, and many of the kids of advantaged educated people have a sense of entitlement. Well, the hard reality for that kid fifteen years from now Wu is going to be his boss and Zhou is going to be the doctor in town. The competition is coming, and many of the kids are going to move into their twenties clueless about these rising forces.”

My friends, we are not entitled to the affluence our ancestors left us. They have granted us a figurative “cruise control” but we’ve still got to stick behind the wheel. Our continued diligence, provided we focus on important areas, will allow us to stand on their shoulders, but let us never assume that success is a right. It is earned, and right now the Chinese earn it more than we do.

With that understanding I close with an African proverb, which not surprisingly can be found posted, in Mandarin, on the factory floor of ASIMCO Technologies, an American auto parts manufacturer located in China:

Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up, you better start running.

Are you running?

This entry was posted on Friday, September 2nd, 2005 at 8:00 am and is filed under The Rebelution. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

As we were having our nightly Advent time and Jeremy was reading the Christmas story he got to the part about the wise men. As he was reading about the one who brought myrrh to the newborn King, Justin interjects quite confidently, “Myrrh is dried poop!” There was dead silence for a few seconds and then I realized what he was thinking and said, “No, Justin, that’s manure, not myrrh.” Then, there was peals of laughter as he buried his face in the couch…poor little guy! But, leave it to him to let us know exactly what he’s thinking. And, boy are we glad he did in this situation. Don’t want him thinking the wise men were bringing baby Jesus dried poop as a special gift!

Merry Christmas!

(Can you believe the spring weather up here?!?)

My dad called on the 14th and said he was on his way from Nashville, Tennessee to spend Christmas with us. He’s been here since that night and what a delight it’s been to have him here. It has been a timely visit. The night he got here he was able to go with me on a much needed grocery shopping trip which Jeremy wasn’t able to do because of a catastrophe at work. I couldn’t go alone because I’m not supposed to be carrying the baby in her carseat by myself yet. The next few days involved necessary errands as well which he was able to help me with.

On Sunday after church we went down to the Sackler Gallery to see old biblical documents and remnants from before the year 1000AD. This was an amazing opportunity. In the above picture you see us in our monkey hats. We just got these to wear on fieldtrips so that when we lose someone (usually Justin) people will remember seeing him…you know, the one with the monkey hat on. Papa Wayne even wore one with us.

The kids have been having a blast with him. He’s read to them over and over again (especially “Alphabet Soup” which is now hidden!!) He’s watched “Cars” twice and Roy Rogers a few times. He’s played bear and hunter with them in the floor (and now has a hurt back) and he’s taught Nate about the Sport’s page in the newspaper. So now Nate is cutting out “football cards” which is any picture of a football game and gluing them to construction paper. Lela is making her own newspaper by drawing and also cutting out newspaper articles.

Lela’s lost two teeth (both in the same day) since Papa’s been here. The first one was in her mouth when she woke up and then later that night the kids were doing handstands in the living room and Nate knocked the other one out somehow.

Soon after Daddy arrived we had our Care Group Christmas party which he was able to attend with us. He even participated in the White Elephant Gift exchange and got his own gift (a nice Starbucks mug which now had a missing lid).

Jeremy, David and Luis

Us!

Tim and Ruth (the new homeowners).

This is from my Senior Pastor’s blog.  I just had to share what our children are learning in Children’s Ministry…and, yes, I too thought it strange that they were studying about Elijah the Sunday before Christmas!

Josh Harris: Elijah, Baal…Merry Christmas!
I just learned that this past Sunday the lesson plan for the children’s ministry had them studying 1 Kings 18:1-39, the story of the prophet Elijah (who I happened to dress up as for this year’s Harvest Party…see picture). One member of our church named Drew Jones–one of the funniest, most creative and insane people I know–thought that it was very strange to have kids studying Elijah and the prophets of Baal the week before Christmas. So, he took it upon himself to write and perform a song for the kids that both taught the Old Testament story and was appropriate to the Christmas season. Well, I’ll let you decide for yourself whether or not what he came up with was appropriate in any sense of the word…But I think it’s pretty funny!

(To the tune of “Deck the Halls”)

Gather everyone in Israel
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
Bring some bulls and prophets of Baal
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
Kill the bulls and make an alter
Fa la la, la la la, la la la.
If Baal is god he will not Falter
Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Dance like fools don’t be so haughty,
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
Where is Baal he’s on the Potty
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
Thrash around kick up some mud
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
Cut yourself and make some blood,
Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Baal’s an idol nothing real,
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
Fire came, God made a meal
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
Even drenched in lots of water,
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
God has spoken start the slaughter
Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Hope for the Holidays at The Family Room
Hope for the Holidays
Published by Erik Sheffer December 13th, 2006 in Holiday Season

The holidays for some are the highlight of the year. They often are for me. However for others they can be just the opposite. Holidays simply remind them once again of their trial or loss.

I know nothing of loss. Trials are foreign to me. The closest I have gotten to serious tribulations is vicariously through others or from reading books on the topic.

But I do know that hope is vital. And what you hope in this Christmas is of utmost importance. This season reminds us to hope.

“Behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ our Lord.” Luke 2:10-11

Christ Jesus our Lord was born to die for our sins. He is our suffering Savior. Our rock. Our refuge. And because of his life, death, and resurrection, hope in Him will never disappoint us.

Some suggestions for those who are hip-hip-hooray for the Holidays:

Pray as a family for those who are suffering, needy, or going through trials

Serve as a family those who are suffering, needy, or going through trials

Be grateful for all that God has given you

And for those who find themselves amidst a trial, loss, or simply fighting for joy this holiday season, let me point you to a quote by Joni Eareckson Tada. Joni is a quadriplegic, as well as a profound and gifted speaker and writer.

Joni says, “I sure hope I can bring this wheelchair to heaven. Now, I know that’s not theologically correct. But I hope to bring it and put it in a little corner of heaven, and then in my new, perfect, glorified body, standing on grateful, glorified legs, I’ll stand next to my Savior, holding his nail-pierced hands. I’ll say, “Thank you, Jesus,” and he will know that I mean it, because he knows me. He’ll recognize me from the fellowship we’re now sharing in his sufferings. And I will say, “Jesus, do you see that wheelchair? You were right when you said that in this world we would have trouble, because that thing was a lot of trouble. But the weaker I was in that thing, the harder I leaned on you. And the harder I leaned on you, the stronger I discovered you to be. It would have never happened had you not given me the bruising of the blessing of that wheelchair.”

May our hope this Christmas season be rooted in our Savior.

Tuesday night, the 21st of November, was our scheduled Care Group ladies’ meeting, so we had it at the hospital.  All the ladies were able to come meet Brianna and we had a great time fellowshipping. They came bearing gifts and some sweet words of encouragement for me.  I truly am blessed with sweet friendships and feel so loved by these ladies.

In the midst of new baby and Nana’s passing I have received meals, cards, emails, blog comments, phone calls, snacks for the road trip to Texas and many prayers!  Thank all of you ladies for the way you care for me.  I love you!!!!

This is a letter I wrote for my Pop to send to their friends they had while living in Reno, NV for 11 yrs. It is written from his perspective…

Dear Friends ,
I am sorry to have to let you all know about Dorothy’s passing in this letter. This has been a difficult past few months and a sudden ending to a joy-filled life.

For those of you who don’t know, I wanted to fill you in with a little timeline of the past few years. In 2001 she had quintuple bypass surgery and has been doing rehab since then.
Shortly after the bypass surgery the doctors found that 2 of them had closed back up, but there was nothing they could do about it because her veins were so thin.

In 2003 she had hip replacement surgery and her heart held up just fine through that. Also in 2003 she had her carotid artery cleaned out.

Sometime in late summer 2006 (July or August) strange things started happening. In early July she fell while making her bed. She wasn’t sure what had happened but just assumed that her foot had gotten caught up in the blanket. Then, in August she was standing at the refrigerator and her right leg drew up under her and she wasn’t able to straighten it out. She didn’t fall because she had something to hang onto and I was able to wheel a dining room chair over and have her sit in it.

She also began having seizures in bed at night during this time where her right leg would tremor. We went to the doctor and he did an MRI and discovered a brain tumor. It was 2 cm growth in the top left side of her brain. It was called a Meningioma and is almost always benign. They said it was slow growing tumor and that if you’re going to have a brain tumor this is the kind you want to have. The tumor was pressing on the lining of the brain and causing swelling which was supposedly causing the seizures/symptoms that she was having.

So, then he sent her to the heart doctor for a CT scan to check her carotid arteries and they were fine. He called her heart doctor in Dallas who set her up an appointment with a neurologist. After more tests they decided to treat the tumor with stereotactic radiosurgery. It only took a few minutes and we were eating dinner at Red Lobster soon after. This procedure was supposed to kill off the tumor and reduce the swelling that was pressing on the brain. They were hoping the symptoms would then go away.

However over the next 6 weeks the symptoms increased to where she was using a walker, and eventually went to a wheelchair. She lost the ability to use her right leg and arm. She wasn’t able to do anything for herself. We had tried to contact the doctor in Dallas, but he wasn’t getting back to us. On November 20th I took her to see her doctor here in Mt. Pleasant and he was so shocked at the deterioration that he admitter her, called her Dallas doctor himself and had her moved to Dallas the next day. They began doing a battery of tests. Then, it was Thanksgiving and they decided that they would do the surgery to remove the tumor the following week. They did a chemical stress test on her heart on Tuesday, November 28th which was really scary for her, but she made it through it. Then, the surgery was scheduled for November 29th at 7:30am. She did not make it through the surgery. Her heart rate and blood pressure dropped and they weren’t able to save her.

The past few years she’s enjoyed volunteering at the local hospital as a Pink Lady, being involved in a local woman’s club and spending time with her family anytime she can. Our daughter, Julie, got married in July to a wonderful man and our son, John, has a job here in Mt. Pleasant. Julie’s daughter, Mindy, gave birth to their 5th child on November 20th and she’s named in honor of her Nana. Dorothy got to spend lots of time with John’s kids and enjoyed anytime she had with any of her 5 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren.
We enjoyed almost 42 years of marriage and have many happy memories together. If you would like to give anything in honor of her life please send donations to First Baptist Church of Mt. Pleasant designated for the building fund. First Baptist Church 3rd and Madison P.O. Box 867 Mt. Pleasant, TX 75456-0867

While I was spending time worshiping the Lord as we approached Texas I was thinking about my childhood.  I’ve oftentimes shared with people about how I remember praying and wanting to go to church even when I was a little child.  This always amazes me to think of how the Lord was drawing me to Himself even when I was little.  Well, Friday night I realized that that memory of praying as a child was always in my mom’s king size bed in the  house that Nana and Pop lived in before they moved to Reno.  That means that it was after they moved to Reno that I was praying and wanting to go to church.

This led me to the realization that it was those summers in Reno that the Lord used to introduce  Himself to me.  I would go to Vacation Bible School and eventually to church with Nana and Pop.  I then remembered how I used to sit in Nana and Pop’s den at the record player listening to “Go Tell it on the Mountain” and crying because I wanted others to know about Jesus.  This was so amazing for me to realize and it gave me great comfort and made me EVEN more grateful for my Nana and  Pop.

At the funeral one of the songs was called “Day Star”.   Part of the lyrics were, Day Star shine down on me,  help me be a beacon in the night.” or something to that effect.  As I listened to that I just rejoiced as  I thought about how Nana had been exactly that in my childhood.  She was the beacon in the night of my childhood.  Every summer I would spend almost 3 months with her and Pop.  My growing up years were  pretty hard and these summers were an escape for me to just be a kid and have normal experiences.

Another thing I realized was that if Nana and Pop hadn’t moved to Reno they probably wouldn’t hvae been much help for me because of our family’s tendency to “not get into other people’s business”.   But, the fact that they were away where I could go it was a refuge and safe place.

Thank you, Lord, for showing this to me and giving me peace and gratefulness in the midst of such a devastating time.  I love you, Nana, more than I could ever express to you in words.

When we were in the hospital Jeremy was trying to figure out what Brianna’s nickname was going to be. Lela’s nickname is “Puddin’” and he had decided that he would nickname Brianna “Itty Bitty”. But, on the way to Texas he shared with me that he would like Brianna’s nickname to be “Dot” so that when she’s older she’ll ask him why he calls her that and he can tell her about her Nana named Dorothy. This meant so much to me…that he was thinking of ways to make sure we can tell her all about Nana.

At some point during the drive I heard this song from the Sovereign Grace Ministries Awesome God album for kids that was playing in our CD player and the Lord really used it to minister to my heart and give me peace. So, as we were nearing Mt. Pleasant I went back to this song and then listened to some other worship songs to strengthen my heart for what I was about to face (visitation at the funeral home). The Lord was so faithful and I look forward to sharing what He revealed to me in a later post. For now, be encouraged by this wonderful, faith-building song. What a wonderful truth for our kids to learn at such an early age…

When I’m all alone and afraid, I will trust in You, For You watch over my ways.

When things in my life don’t make sense, for You are good You are good.

Sovereign One You work all things to Your plan.

Sovereign One You hold all things in Your hand.

When I don’t get to have my own way, I will trust in You, for You know what is best.

When tears begin to roll down my face, I will trust in You, for You are good, You are good.

Sovereign One You work all things to Your plan.

Sovereign One You hold all things in Your hand.

Perfect in power, You control all things.

Perfect in wisdom, You know everything.

Perfect in goodness, Jesus, You’re so good to me, so good to me, for You are

Sovereign One You work all things to Your plan.

Sovereign One You hold all things in Your hand.