A New Baby in the House

He's a cute black ball of fur when he's awake...

...asleep....

...playing...

...or relaxing with his friend!

This is the newest member of our family: "Axle"

Test Yourself!

Lukewarm people are continually concerned with playing it safe; they are slaves to the god of control. This focus on safe living keeps them from sacrificing and risking for God. Excerpt taken from Crazy Love by Francis Chan


Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith: examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you - unless indeed you fail the test? 2 Corinthians 13:5


I've been thinking about these quotes and this one too: Jesus said, All authority has been given to Me in heaven and earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...I will be with you always even to the end of the age, from Matthew 28:19-20. The command in the middle of these verses is to GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES. Am I playing it safe when it comes to making disciples? Hey, I made disciples of my children as they were growing up - I've done my duty. Right? What a poor excuse! It's not something to check off my list of things to do - it should be a way of life. Look what comes before the command : ALL AUTHORITY HAS BEEN GIVEN TO ME and what comes after: I WILL BE WITH YOU ALWAYS. Do I really believe this? Is my faith real in my life? Am I trusting the One who has authority and is with me? I have no excuses. The Lord commands it - it's His mission and there is nothing to fear as He goes with me.


I used to think that going door-to-door to talk to strangers, cold turkey, and sharing the good news of Jesus Christ was for certain people with a special kind of gift.  I would say that's not my thing. I was really saying that I didn't believe that my God would be with me as I met new folks. I wasn't acknowledging the command to go. It was fear of the unknown and imagining the worst that kept me from getting involved. I certainly don't have control over how someone will respond to me or what hard questions they might ask, but is that important? I know the One who has all control and has the answers, so there is no need to worry.  I don't want to be lukewarm; I want to be on fire for the Lord. I believe that means stepping outside my comfort zone and seeing what God will do. He wants to reach people to add more worshippers to His church. I'm certainly being selfish if I don't want to share Him with others. Praise the Lord that He works with me and nudges me along, as always, in His loving and patient way. No more playing it safe! Jesus said, "Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men."

The Importance of Music Theory

It's a known command that we are to praise God with our voices. To quote just a couple places: Psalm 9:11 "Sing praises to the LORD, who dwells in Zion! Declare His deeds among the people." Isaiah 12:5 "Sing to the LORD, For He has done excellent things; This is known in all the earth." Have you thought about the importance of improving the instrument God has given you in order to be more faithful in your worship of Him? How about your children - are you raising worshipers of the living God? Do they know how to sing and do it well? If their overall education is important, then music theory should be included in their core curriculum right along with reading, writing and math.

There's an order to music - staffs, clefs, notes, measures, time signatures, scales, chords and intervals, to name just a few specifics, are used to put music together. Our God is a god of order- look around you and see His orderliness. Those who have been made in His image mimic this orderliness in producing music. It's a science to figure out the placement of notes. It's an art to produce beautiful music that singers can sing.

Perhaps you have heard of do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do? That's a scale! Did you know that scales consist of whole and half notes? Do you know what intervals are? Did you know that sharps and flats in the key signature have a certain order? You might say, "I'm not interested in all that stuff. I just want to sing!" Yes, you can sing, but will it be your best? Learning to follow along on a music score is foundational to good singing. It takes time and work, but is well worth it.

For a starting point you could go to lesson one on the 8notes website below and commit to memory the terms. Go to the subsequent lessons and learn as you go. One excellent way to really learn is to be in a group such as a music class, group lessons, or join with other families and learn together. Quite a few of us took "Music Fundamentals for Worship" at Caedmon http://www.caedmoncollege.org/classes/ this second semester. Brad McMurray was patient and inspiring as we went through many of the things mentioned above and more. It was challenging, yet fun and motivating! Learn the grammar of music to improve your singing so "that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" with more gusto!

http://www.8notes.com/school/theory/staff_clefs_ledger_lines.asp

Second Family Wedding of the Year!

Siblings getting ready

At the reception

First dance

Lots of smiles for the happy couple!

First Family Wedding of the Year

First Dance

Groom with most of the groomsmen - where was his best man?

Siblings

The happy couple!