Scripture Juxtaposition...

This scripture in John gains new life to me when set together with the Proverb.


Just as the Father has loved me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept the Father's commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be made full.
John 15:9-11

For the commandment is a lamp, the teaching is a light; and reproofs for discipline are the way of life.
Proverbs 6:23


So often we want to only read the first part about abiding in his love without asking the question...how? By recognizing that He is not only our loving Savior, but also the ultimate loving authority in our lives. Authority isn't established to just be a bunch of rules for the sake of keeping rules...but a lamp, a light, a way to find true life. By recognizing Him as the ultimate authority it acknowledges that we trust Him. That we trust in His love. When we trust His love we abide in it. The commandment, teaching, and reproof goes from being a pain in our side and begins to be a light leading us towards true joy.

Finished!!!

Mosaic Christmas album is complete!! It has been recorded, mixed, mastered and sent of be duplicated and packaged! In about three weeks we will have the tangible cds!

The songs sound awesome! We will be launching a website sometime near our cd release which is scheduled for the 17th of November. I'll let you know when everything is ready for sale and when the tracks will be available for purchase...or just simply available to listen to on myspace or whathavenot.

This is so much fun!

Mosaic Christmas Tour and CD!

We have spent all weekend in the studio to get our Christmas album finished. It sounds so good and the process has been tons of fun! We are sending the final mastered copy off with disk makers next Monday (hopefully). Album should be finished and released for sale by the 12 or 13th of November...more details to come.

We have a total of 7 (maybe 8) dates within a week in a half...Florida, Louisiana, Tennessee, Chicago...from deep south to the cold cold north...it will be fun to be in Chicago a few days before Christmas!

Dates...

Music stuff is picking up quite a bit!

Oct. 24-26: Leading worship for youth retreat in TN

November 6-7: Mosaic leading worship in Champaigne Illinois for a conference

November 13-14: Mosaic show in Hebron, Kentucky

December 1-?: Will likely be headed to KENYA to lead worship with some members of Mosaic!!! We will also hopefully be stopping in England for a few days on on our way back.

December 13-21: Mosaic Christmas shows in Florida, Louisiana, and Chicago


We also have a potential house show here in Nashville and we might end up also doing a show at the church I now work at part-time.

I'm in a weird, but great season in life. It's really great to not be in school and free to do all of this traveling and playing. I'm still trying to get used to not having school dominate my time and energy...while learning to channel that energy towards being productive each day with other things. I'm loving it and having a blast!

Sacred Marriage...

Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas is by far one of the best books I have ever read. In fact, I borrowed it from a friend of mine and enjoyed it so much that I am about to go buy my own copy so that I can reread and mark in it.

Obviously, the book centers around marriage and I picked up the book because I will be getting married soon (April 10th!). Honestly though, I would recommend this book to pretty much anyone...because while it centers on marriage, the premise is about holiness and becoming closer to Christ. It's about learning how to seek a deeper fulfilling relationship with Christ in the midst of marriage...but really in the midst of whatever. Marriage is naturally going to be hard because we are forced to transition from being primarily self-concerned. Marriage also exposes the things that we could normally hide or ignore while single, which is frustrating...but for a heart that longs to truly be holy and righteous in order to gain the discipline of living and indulging in the presence of Jesus...it is a blessing if we can truly learn, through marriage, to get past ourselves.

I cannot say enough good things about this book. Please, go read it! For me it has redefined many things including what it means to pray, be in the presence of God, what fulling sex is and isn't and why God created it to be expressed in the context of marriage (it's brilliant really!), what it means to communicate, the importance of discipline, the importance of enjoying life, the importance of striving to be content in all things while fighting against discontentment, the importance of giving (all that you have: money, time, energy, body, etc.). I have unlearned and relearned several things...and now I will reread it so that it might stick even better.

It makes my heart soar to even think about it...

Anyway, I am VERY excited to get married. I love Emily, in that, I feel very much in love with her. I believe that I made a list of sorts on one of my recent previous blogs as to why I love Emily. However, I am also getting excited about marriage because I am starting to value Emily even more with each day. Through her, God is going to pull me closer to Himself (and does already). How cool! And hopefully, through me He will do the same for her. That excites me 10 times more than simply getting married because we are "compatible" and "like each other." Facing the difficulties that I know will come with only a base of feelings is scary...but facing them while standing on the base of knowing that maybe this marriage isn't solely meant to make us feel good...but to help us change into people that are more like Christ...brings readiness, excitement, and hope in knowing that we will face difficult times.

A side note:

Marriage was truly intended to tap into a love that never fails. I hope that my generation can learn from the pain and destruction caused by the selfishness of our parent's generation. My generation was wounded early on. I am just now tasting what MANY of my friends have tasted as children. We can either take the first step towards not becoming like our parents, by truly and selflessly forgiving them, or we can let bitterness destroy us. We can have self-pity because of our scars...or we can embrace them as reminders of the destruction caused by things like self-pity. I pray that the pain we feel and have felt will direct us towards the deep and true love that never fails, that we will truly learn how to be participants in that love, and that it will not push us further into the selfishness that wounded us in the first place.

Perseverance...

"May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance." 2 Thessalonians 3:5

After taking some time to think and reflect some more I realized that what I was trying to highlight in my last blog was a need for perseverance of our faith.

Understanding how persevering plays out in our faith is especially important to me now. I am not afraid to admit that in light of current going ons in my life... I am confused and trying to sort through some troubling things.

Right now...it doesn't so much matter to me what the lack of perseverance means (understanding may come in time...or it may not)...what matters most to me right now is grasping the fact that perseverance is needed and highly important. And that a lack of perseverance, though troubling, is possible...

False Salvation...

I do not believe that a person can lose their salvation. I am, however, starting to see why there are so many people that think that they can lose their salvation. One extreme: you can lose your salvation. The other extreme: Every person that says the right prayer in a moments time is saved. Neither extremes can fully embrace all of what the Word teaches.

Salvation is not about the words of a prayer...salvation comes when Jesus becomes our treasure. Period. Salvation comes when we see Jesus as the beautiful Savior that He is while also willfully submitting to His authority. You can't separate the two. The Word is clear. He is the Lion and the Lamb. Savior and Ruler. It is a beautiful thing when people see and feel the grace and mercy that flows from the cross...it is a terrible thing when they see and acknowledge only that. Submission is a key factor in salvation...we are the bride and He is the groom.

Never before have I even seriously considered the idea of false salvation. The more that I read the Word...I can't ignore it. I don't know why there isn't more warning sounded in our churches...especially American churches.

Matthew 13:20-22 (middle of Jesus explaining the parable of the sower):

"And the one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away.
And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world, and the decietfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful..."

WHAT?!?! This verse has rocked my world recently. They received the word with joy?!

An example of this is found in Acts 8:9-23...I'll paraphrase in order to save from posting the whole story on the blog. A magician named Simon believed, along with the whole town, when Philip came to preach the good news. Simon was even baptized. When Peter and John heard, they went to the town and began laying their hand on people...when this happened the people were filled with the Holy Spirit. Simon witnessed this. He offered to pay money for the the ability to do what Peter and John were doing. Peter tells him to repent because He has no part or portion in the Spirit. Dang! Simon did not treasure and love Jesus...he loved and treasured the power of God. Big difference! That difference kept him from having any real part or potion in the Holy Spirt...or God...or Jesus...or true saving faith.


The word is full of warnings.
"Enter through the narrow gate...wide a broad is the gate that leads to destruction."

"If we say we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness we lie and do not practice truth."

"If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons."

"Not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform any miracles? And then I will declare to them, "I never knew you, you who practice lawlessness."

He NEVER knew them. Dang. They looked good. They did good things. They probably said the prayer. They didn't treasure Jesus. They treasured something else. I think that it is right that this should be a fearful thing for us because it should cause us to accurately evaluate our love for Christ...not just what He offers...but Him. Simply Him.

It's amazing how much I have placed the security of my salvation and the salvation of others in a simple prayer...in words. Shouldn't there be evidences to faith? Aren't our actions, choices, and very being shaped by what we treasure most? Isn't this what the word is warning about? "No one can serve two masters." Isn't this why we are told to look at the fruits? "A good tree cannot produce bad fruit and a bad tree cannot produce good fruit." Fruits? "Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control."

As if this weren't enough...since salvation is all about His ability to redeem and sustain...shouldn't we be more concerned about those that claim themselves as "Christ followers" but really look no different than the world? Should we be more concerned for those that seemingly fall far away? I mean...either He really can't sustain or they were never His to sustain in the first place. Either way we have a HUGE problem. Shouldn't we see evidences of His promises? "A wise man builds his house on the rock...and it will not fall." Christians are still obviously capable of sin...but isn't this also true? "Now unto Him who is able to keep your from falling, and present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy."


I've never taken a good hard look at these challenging verses and truths. I've never thought about their implications. I've just always settled within myself that the words of a moments prayer with suffice. False salvation is a hard thing to face because it gets to the heart of things. You must pull away the curtain of words and actions and get to the center of motivation. Piper has a great quote about this:

The point of James was that right doctrine without a demonstrative, heartfelt delight in God and reliance on God is spiritually worthless. Devils realize it and sell their souls to do as much damage as they can before they are bound and cast into the lake of fire. But religious humans seem to be unaware of it. This is what is so pitiful -- people with no real love to God pronouncing truths about God. People in love with themselves and with the praise that comes with religious performance, but who have not tasted the true glory of God himself.

The greatest thing about learning all of this is that it has been accompanied by peace. That might sound strange, but I just don't want anyone to get the idea that this is all about fear...there is healthy doses of fear involved...but by asking these questions and embracing the truths and answers I find in the Word...confusion and lack of understanding are banished. Confusion and lack of understanding create fear in me...they are some of my worst enemies.

If you have made it this far throughout my rambles and rants...I would love to know your thoughts. Many of you have probably thought and studied about these things much longer than I have.