Blount Family Update

Just a quick update. I spoke with my brother Ryan and he is returning to Huntsville tonight to be with Amber, Abbie and Jacob and to figure out how to handle the no power situation. New estimates are the area will probably be without power for a week give or take a day. Ryan told me there is also a curfew in effect for Huntsville which runs from sun up to sun down. I imagine the curfew is to stop looters, break-ins and vandalism while the power is out. I will keep you posted as I find out more information.

Family Tornado Update

Since I am the only member of my family who is not in North Alabama at the moment I thought I would share this update about Mom, Dad, Ryan, Amber, Abbie and Jacob. I spoke with Mom and Pop last night from 8:30-9. Mom, Dad, Amber, Abbie and Jacob are fine. They are at home and do not have power. Ryan is in Birmingham taking depositions for a case he's been working on for four years. Ryan is the one who has done all of the background research for these depositions so he could not get out of it. Luckily everyone is safe. Mom and Pop lost two trees on the back of their property and their neighbors have water within 30 yards of their back door.

The forecasters are calling it the worst storm in 40 years with over 200 twisters on the ground. As I understand it all of the network television stations are down, and most of the local radio stations are down. There is one station in Athens which is still able to broadcast and they are now the source of information from the national weather service. CNN is giving okay updates about Alabama, but without power there are no updates with specifics out of Huntsville.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/04/28/severe.weather/index.html?hpt=T1&iref=BN1

Evan Update

Evan is six months old and as the pictures can attest he is picking all up kinds of new skills.  Evan enjoys grabbing the spoon when he's being fed. The trouble is he tries to either jab the spoon into his mouth or chew on it. Thank goodness for the rubber coating on the flat part of the spoon. Evan has been introduced to the sippy cup with water which he is so so about. He has even started trying to grab the bottle to feed himself. Evan can't quite handle the full bottles yet, but it doesn't stop him from trying. Most nights when I get up for the O-dawn:thirty feeding Evan has rolled himself from his back to his belly, and I've given up turning him over. Now he gets changed, fed, back to bed on his back, and by the time I get up early to study Evan has long since rolled over onto his belly again. Evan smiles now when Karen or I go into to get him up in the morning. This morning he smiled real big when I went into get him up, and then he smiled really big when Karen got up. Today was a nice change because of Good Friday. I didn't have to work today, but I got up early to study anyway. Because I didn't have to work I was able to give Karen a little break, and fed Evan breakfast this morning. Evan is recovering from a double ear infection so he's getting amoxicilan in his cereal in the morning. Nothing like pink cereal to get your day started, but Evan takes it well so it's not a real big deal. Just three more days of the antibiotic, and hopefully Evan will only have to worry about teething. Sorry to report there are no teeth yet, but his bottom row look so close we hope they'll break through any day now.

The Mountain

The Mountain

I found this on Yahoo this morning. I don't know why, but I've always looked at the sky and been awed by it's size and beauty. It's probably a direct result of growing up in tornado alley and watching for wall clouds why I mowed the lawn. Anyway, click on The Mountain to see a cool video showing the night sky video taped from a mountain top in Spain.

You Might Be Wrong

Before I came to seminary I had a lot of ideas about theology. I didn't know that's what it was called, but I had a lot of ideas. I also had a lot of things I was really confused about. What's the difference between justification and sanctification? Why do they matter? Stuff like that. Here are a few basic definitions to keep it simple.

Prevenient Grace: God is out to get you. He spent all of his anger for all the sins you and I have committed on His only Son, Jesus Christ. Now that the price has been paid, God is out to make us part of the family. God loves us. The price for our sin has been paid. God is calling us, and enabling us to accept God's grace and to become part of the family. We cannot accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior if God has not first given us the ability to do so.

Justification/Regneration: The moment we stop filling our eyes and ears with sin, the moment we stop trying to drown out the sound of the Holy Spirit, and listen for God's still small voice calling out to us. The moment our soul respond's to God's calls saying, "Abba, Father!" In that moment we are reborn and we are given the ability to resist our sinful nature.

Process of Sanctification: The race run to the end of our days to become more like Christ, and to cast off all of the sins we habitually commit in every waking breath. The purpose? To be fit for heaven. This is not a terrific example, but think of it as joining the military. Justification/Regeneration is like getting off the bus at boot camp. Your head is shaved, your clothes are sent home to Mommy, and the drill instructors set out to make you into a new person. Sometimes you're torn down, but all of the time you are in basic you are becoming stronger. Why? To be ready for what's ahead. What's ahead for Christians? Heaven. And Heaven is worth being in shape for.

Entire Sanctification: Entire sanctification is a qualitative change. You can no more earn, or build yourself into being entirely sanctified than you could earn your way to salvation. There should probably be another term to distinguish between the process of sanctification and entire sanctification. I've often been confused about the two. Entire Sanctification is like the change in the new birth except way better. If regeneration wipes away all of our past sin, and relieves us of the burden of guilt for those sins, entire sanctification takes away the stain of sin. - I think. To be honest. I'm still trying to work this one out.

I hope this helps.

A Bag of Marbles

"A sweet lesson of this kind happened to her in the case of one of her children. She was making a bag for her to hold marbles, and she wanted a string in it, and she went to put the string in with a bodkin; but when the child saw the bodkin disappear, she said, 'Mother, I want the string,' but no string appeared; and she said, with an anxious sort of brow, 'Oh, mother, do put the string'; and she said, 'Darling, trust mother.' Presently the string came out, and she tied it, and gave it to her, and the little girl looked at it thoughtfully for a moment, and then said,  'Oh, that is just like Jesus. We give Him things to do, and He don't seem to be doing the right way, but we know that Jesus knows, and we wait and don't worry, and it come out all right,' Now, that is rest. they should trust Jesus, and although they may not understand at the time His way of working, yet they leave it with Him, and he brings it out all right, and they have rest." ~ Mrs. Pearsall Smith quoted in The Baptist June 11, 1813

I'm not sure I can top the simplicity of this story. However, it seems quite relevant to my wife and I. We did not receive a student placement in the Western North Carolin Conference this year. The conference is full. I have a promise to keep to my wife so I find myself and my family in the familiar situation of looking for a job with the added responsibility of a wife and son to provide for, while I still have another year of seminary to complete. It is helpful to be able to look back on that time of unemployment and remember all of the ways God looked after me; especially as I work to continue putting my trust in God. Isn't that the definition of holiness? Instead of a laundry list of do this, and don't do that shouldn't holiness be about daily practices which help us to better trust in God? During this season of Lent when people often give up something isn't the point to learn to trust in God more? Giving up something in Lent is like "Basic Training" in the military. We give up something while we have the option not to, so when we are caught between a rock and a hard place we have practiced trusting God. What is that old phrase; first we try then we trust? Lent is about learning to trust God when life is easy so when we face trials of various kinds we have a firm foundation of trust in God and the reassurance God will see us through.

Every Ordinary Thing Can Be Sacramental

"Earth's Cramed with Heaven
And every common bush a fire with God:
But only he who sees takes off his shoes,
The rest sit around and pick black berries."
~Elizabeth Barrett Browning