not another blog, v2.0

I really need to start posting here again.  Blame Twitter for my absence.

Anyway, I preached at my church again this morning, this time from Psalm 19.  I’d post the audio again, but the recording ended up being very echo-y and practically inaudible.  So, I’m posting the manuscript that I worked from.  Feel free to read, comment, critique, etc.
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http://www.gracecentral.org/mediafiles/hope-1-peter-113-16.mp3

There it is: my first sermon, preached tonight.

Go easy.

I was sitting in my car, waiting to pick Zoë up from school, when a bumper sticker on the car in front of me caught my eye.  On it was a picture of a reverent-looking Martin Luther King, Jr, and above him it said “I HAVE A DREAM”.  Next to that picture was a similarly posed picture of President-elect Barack Obama.  Above him, it said “I AM THAT DREAM”.  Immediately, I wondered “really?!”

Now, I don’t have Dr. King’s speech committed to memory or anything like that, but I’d say his “dream” is best summarized in this famous sentence . . .

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

Keeping in mind that no bumper sticker and no pithy turn of phrase can fully capture a sound argument, I have to wonder . . . as we now sit on the precipice of seeing our great nation’s first black president inaugurated, is it time to be satisfied (as Americans, and especially as African-Americans)?  Is Barack Obama the very Incarnation of “The Dream”?  I’m gonna say “no”, and if we think that it is, then our interpretation of the dream is far too small and our vision limited.

Not only that, but Senator Obama’s election may be a strong attestation to the fact that we’re not there yet.  Dr. King said that he dreamed of an America in which his children (and, by extension, all black people) would be judged according to their character, not their skin color.  Amen!  But what’s do so many black people say today in their jubilation that Mr. Obama was elected?

He looks like us!

Am I saying that every single black person that voted for BHO did so just because he’s black? No, of course not. What I am saying is that his blackness was certainly a huge factor in his garnering of virtually the entire black vote, and the primary factor in the great black emotional outpouring we’ve seen since Election Day.  Isn’t this yet another way that someone can be “judged by the color of [his] skin” instead of by the content of his character?  Or does black skin, like love, “cover a multitude of wrongs”?

Please don’t misunderstand me. I think that it’s pretty cool that our citizens have finally gotten to a point where, after over 200 years, they’re willing to elect something other than a white guy to the Presidency. But I also think that MLK’s dream is more than that.  And while great strides have been made toward the realization of that dream, Barack Obama ain’t it . . . and I’m willing to bet that we won’t truly see “it” anywhere outside of or before the coming Kingdom of Christ.

Resolved: with God’s help, to lose not another moment of this life to vanity, but to work, study, pray, teach, play, and even rest with all vigor, to the glory of God.*

I’m 30 today.

* (No, this is not one of Edwards’ Resolutions, but it’s partially inspired by them.)

. . . but I probably shouldn’t wear it to the polls tomorrow.

Zoe’s first goal today (of six) from Rae Whitlock on Vimeo.

I started the recording a little too late, trust me, she was the one who kicked it in. She’s got 15 goals for the season

The above is what a friend of mine told me during a discussion/disagreement on worship.

Umm… thanks?

I just find it funny, since just a few years ago, I was on my way to becoming a dyed-in-the-wool (Reformed) Southern Baptist.  Also funny, because the guy who said this is arguably more Presbyterian than I am.

Family

• Zoë started kindergarten last week.  The initial separation was difficult for her (surprisingly . . . first day of preschool last year was easy), but when we came to get her, everything was great.  She’s really enjoying it, and already doing well, academically and socially.  Amy and I are sending her to a really good Christian school, but we’re not anti-public school or anything.  We’re just anti-THESE public schools around here. (They’re… not good.)
• I still like being married.
• It’s reported that Amy likes it, too

Church

• Things are going well.  We’re planting another Grace Central congregation (with a view toward even more over the next ten years). Folks are being gathered, forming relationships, believing the Gospel, serving eachother.  It’s cool to see Jesus work in and through people.
• Greg has been preaching through the book of Ezra, which is just what we need to hear at this stage — the story of God rescuing his people from exile, and then working through them to build his temple.  He’s doing the same now — his temple now known to be his people, the Church.
• (Feel free to subscribe to Grace Central’s podcast to hear these sermons, by the way.  Maybe you’ll want to come join us! The iTunes link is here, or you can subscribe manually here.)
• I’ll be preaching my first sermon (ever) at Grace Central some time in the next few weeks.  Please pray for me as I study and prepare to deliver God’s Word to his people.
• Home groups are starting back up in a couple of weeks after a Summer hiatus. We’re looking forward to that.

Tech

• I’ve been enjoying Ubiquity, a new experimental extension for Firefox. The best way I can describe it is that it’s like Quicksilver, but for your browser. You should just watch the video and try it out for yourself. It has the potential to change the way we browse.  Seriously.
• We got an Xbox 360 a few weeks ago.  I’ve actually been using it as a media extender (thanks to Rivet and a Linksys WRT54GS w/ DD-WRT firmware — in bridge mode) almost as much as I’ve used it to play games.  The ability to watch HD video podcasts on our TV rather than on my Macbook’s screen is pretty darn nice (not to mention streaming the iTunes library to the TV, as well).
• (My Xbox LIVE gamertag is raekwon00, by the way. Add me as a friend!)
• I added an Airport Express router to our home network (this is in addition to the Airport Extreme and the aforementioned Linksys).  This little thing is fantastic for extending your network’s range or creating a dual-band 802.11n/g network.  It’ll come in handy if I’m ever again in a hotel with wired-only internet as well.

Music

• I wish I had something to report here. I need some new tunes. Suggestions?

Zoë is an occasional “model” for the Ohio Department of Education’s early childhood brochures. This photo (taken by Amy about a year ago) was recently being considered for a “Read to Your Child” brochure.

Well, apparently, there was a two hour special meeting today at the ODE over this picture, because (despite numerous other department people loving it), according to one of the department’s photographers/art directors, it’s was “inappropriate”. Why? Because we’re on a bed. And I’m the “main focus” of the picture instead of her (mainly because I’m bigger . . . shocking, considering I’m an adult and she’s a child). But, mostly because we’re on a bed.

TWO HOURS today discussing this!

Your tax dollars at work, Ohio citizens.

“Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations . . .” – Dueteronomy 7:9