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Faith in Real Life

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In Faith in Real Life

4 years later…

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Going in for the kill...

 

 

My anniversary is coming up!  Can you believe that!  My 4th year anniversary is next Thursday.  Four great years with my wife Tiffany.  So, here’s the deal.  Four years later, all of the stuff that we had gotten for our wedding and some things that we have purchased early on ourselves are all breaking!  It’s like all of a sudden all our things got together for a meeting late one night and decided to up and quit working.  The biggest thing is that our iBook has begun it’s decline.  The screen is broken, and the computer will randomly freeze up.  Our ipod speaker is broken, and our panini press handle is busted off.  There are various other things, but man I’ll tell you what… How frustrating is that?  

Well this got me to thinking.  What can I make Tiffany for our anniversary that won’t break in 4 years.  As I was laying in bed thinking about this last night, I thought, maybe I should ask all of you guys.  What would do you think I could/should make for Tiffany for our 4th year anniversary?  Any ideas?  Bring on the brainstorming….

It has to be something that tells this woman how much I love her!  

~Peter

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In Faith in Real Life

Sand in my cuticles…

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Today we went to the beach with the Junior high.  The beach is one of my favorite places to be, pretty much anywhere near a body of water.  It was a great day, we had a great group of kids come, and I really enjoyed spending time with each of them.  We swam, laughed, played cards, ate lunch, fought off pirating seagulls, laughed some more and all around just enjoyed the beach.  It was quite the day.  We went to Island Beach State park where we found great weather but not warm water.  The water temp was 55 degrees.  That is cold for those of you who don’t know it.  That is ice cold.  That is also really strange for the end of July.  Anyhow, we had a great time.  I enjoyed the sand between my toes, and sand sticking to the back of my bald head.  Everyone seemed pretty intrigued by that.  It’s the small things in life.

Today actually brought back a flood of memories for Tiffany and I.  It brought us back to our old church, our old youth ministry, our old home, our old life pretty much.  We lived about 30 minutes south of where we were today.  Every week we used to get our students together for “Beach and Bible” (I doubt any explanation is necessary…)  I have only the greatest of memories of those days.  Today was filled with throw back moments.  It reminded me of those days.

Ed, one of our student leaders, reminded me today that if Al Gore is really right, it won’t be too long before Doylestown is beach front property and I will have the sand between my toes yet again.  If that’s the case, and global warming pans out Beach and Bible could thrive again.  Gotta love Ed.

Where is your favorite place to be?

~Peter

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In Faith in Real Life

I’ve got the golden ticket!

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Yeah, that’s right. You heard it hear. I’ve got the golden ticket. The golden ticket came back yesterday. What’s the golden ticket you ask? A pretty sweet golden Chrysler town and country, that’s what.

3 weeks ago, the transmission went out on the van. We had it towed to one shop, and then towed to another shop. Finally after 3 weeks of frustration, (and many thanks to the Millers, and the Atkins for loaning us their cars) we got the golden ticket back.

So here is the most frustrating part. 2 years ago, we replaced the transmission in this car. So, just about 730 days later we were in need of another transmission. Unbelievable. Anyhow, yesterday when I went to pick up the van, I recieved a very detailed report of what happened, what went wrong, and all this other technical jargon. Here’s the synopsis. The computer that controls the transmission went bad, and told the car to shift into some other gear it wasn’t supposed to shift into and it threw the trans into the wrong gear. This is what it did. It took a part that is supposed to look like this:

And made it look like this now:

It sheared off this whole hunk of metal due to the fact that it was going in the wrong direction or it was the wrong downshift, or who knows exactly what the scenario was. Either way, we ended up with a bum transmission. This is the close up.

So, here’s the problem. Two years ago, when I had the transmission replaced with a rebuilt one, why didn’t they replace the transmission controller at the same time? The part is seriously only $150. That’s a lot of money to me. However, I would gladly have paid $150 bucks initially to protect against ruining another transmission! I mean, that was basically $2,500 dollars down the drain because someone didn’t really fix the whole problem the first time.  Yes, they got the van running again; but fixed?  I’m not sure…

So, here’s where this hits me in real life. Have you ever had some sort of sin that you just couldn’t kick? The kind of thing that you don’t want to do, but end up doing anyway? It isn’t fun. The way I see it, it’s kind of like that transmission. If we don’t ever get to the root of the sin/problem in our life, we may find ourselves going through the same pain, the same sin issues time and time again. When we see that something is going on in our life, or when God shows us something that needs to be removed/fixed/changed, we better do something before our transmissions blows up, and shears something off of our life. I was recently hanging with a friend of ours who was expressing a time in their life when they were living with serious depression. They said that they stand here today completely healed and changed because they prayed and prayed, and asked for God’s wisdom, and sought counsel, and got to the very root of the issue. They went to the core and corrected it. They didn’t just mask it or wait for it to kind of go away for a while only to see it come back stronger and more intense. There is wisdom in that.

What do you think?

~Peter

P.S. My man Jesse has just started blogging over here, why not stop by and give him some love. Jesse is one of our Youth Leaders and is a great guy who really has a heart for the Lord.

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In Faith in Real Life

Blue Like Jazz

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Just about a year ago, I got Blue Like Jazz for my birthday.  I am ashamed to say that tonight I finally finished it.  I am feeling kind of behind the cutting edge on this one.  I mean seriously how long has this book been out, and I am just finishing it now?  That’s like just discovering that they sell loaves of bread pre sliced and neatly bagged in that thing we call the super market.  Seriously, where have I been.  Anyhow, I finished the book tonight.

A lot can be said about a book to me in the way that I read it.  Some books I can’t put down.  Some, need to be put down.  Here’s the progression of Blue Like Jazz for me.

I started reading with great enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm wore off…

Book was grabbed to read during toilet time.

Book remained next to bedside table for many months.

Book was grabbed to read during toilet time.

Book remained within arms reach of the porcelain.

Book was redeemed from the clutches of the bathroom and moved back to the illustrious bedside table where it was picked up and read with great enthusiasm again.

So, if that didn’t make sense to you, let me help you out with how I felt about Blue Like Jazz.  I began reading this book with great anticipation.  I was expecting to have my mind be really opened up to new ways of thinking.  I was expecting a second great enlightenment.  I was disappointed.  My friend Tim loved this book.  I highly respect Tim and his literary knowledge.  I was ready for this to be an awesome book.  The beginning and the end where indeed that for me.  Donald Miller is an excellent story teller.  However all in all, I give the book maybe a B.  (Sorry Tim…)

Here is the number one thing that I drew out of the book.  Miller did an excellent job of helping me understand what Hell could be like.  He has this whole cartoon imagery helping describe what Hell could be like.  He describes hell as floating around the earth in a self contained space suit.  Watching the earth and seeing life, and seeing connection, seeing relationships, yet also watching as your hair slowly creeps in and clouds out your vision.  Your beard growing all over making it so that you can’t even see earth anymore.  All the while still floating through space orbiting this planet earth.  I thought this really put flesh on what hell could be like.  What I mean by that is I now have a better feeling of what hell could feel like.  I can imagine what hair clouding out my vision would be like.  Sometimes it’s hard to understand what fire and brimstone would be like.  Job well done Miller.

All in all, I am glad I read it.  I wish it didn’t take me 11 months, 29 bathroom visits, and 1 long car trip.

What books are you reading right now?

~Peter

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In Faith in Real Life

Friends

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I have got some great friends… Let me tell you about a few.  So, I’ve got this friend Rick.  Rick is Old.  (Okay not really that old)  Rick is like one of the funniest guys ever.  See, Rick was a banker for years, and now Rick works at a college.  He is awesome.  I love Rick because he is a thinker, yet at the same time not removed from us normal people.  Rick thinks about stuff, and is super intelligent about things.  That’s generally a fresh perspective for me!  Rick has an arm that doesn’t bend all the way either.  Which makes for some funny jokes too.  Gotta love Rick.

I have a friend James.  James is so musical.  He touches strings and they just begin to make music.  I’m pretty sure that if we put 6 pieces of fishing line on the back of my VW Golf, he could play it and like seriously do some musical damage.  James inspires me to be creative and artistic, both musically and in other ways.  James also isn’t afraid to ask how I am really doing.

I have a friend Matt.  Matt is great.  Matt and I can get laughing and laughing about some of the dumbest stuff, but it’s the kind of laugh that when it’s over you actually feel better about life.  Matt challenges me to continue to find out more about stuff.  See Matt is training to be a CSI.  So, in a weird way, Matt is always looking at things, and situations and figuring them out.  I want to do that better.  I want to look at stuff and be able to really understand what is going on behind the scenes.

I have a friend Tom.  Tom is the type of friend who is their for you whenever you need something.  You know how yesterday I was stranded at the airport?  Well, I blog about it, and no sooner did I do that, then i get a phone call asking if I need to be picked up.  Tom is an awesome guy.  Tom makes me want to be a better servant.  To literally pick up the towel and wash feet just the way that Jesus did.  I see that in Tom.  I want that for my life.

There are countless other stories that I could share with you.  Countless other people who I could mention.  It’s important to have friends.  Friends are so important.  I am so thankful for the friends that God has put into my life.  For all of you, I am grateful.

Who are your friends?  What are you learning from your friends?

~Peter

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jet setter 2

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so I don’t always get why God does what he does. I’m not sure why thngs happen the way they do. This morning I packed up rolled out and got to the Philly airport only to find out that my flight isn’t till august. Of course my ride has already left so here am I stranded on an empty stomach with my daughter who right now is having fruit snacks for breakfast. (when your the one stuck in the airport I’ll let you tell me whether or not fruit snacks are a good breakfast food.). So anyhow. I was really excted to go and see my dad and mom. Slot has changed since the last time I was there and time is precious. This is the second trip that hasn’t flushed out in the last month. I guess God doesn’t want me to fly out today. That’s all I can figure. Sometimes it just doesn’t make sense.
Do you ever struggle with why God allows things to happen I why God causes thngs to happen?
I have a little bit of time to sit here and ponder this, maybe grace and I will discuss it for a while.
-peter

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www.THESALTLICK.tv

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So, I guess it’s for real. Me and Blogging that is. We’re pretty much a steady item these days. You could say that we are pretty serious about each other. So, we took the next step together.

We are residing at www.thesaltlick.tv.

Pretty cool…

For those of you who are coming to check it out everyday, I’m thankful that your there. I appreciate it… It’s a pretty cool platform to express thoughts and feelings. I love being able to share with you in such an informal atmosphere what God is showing me, teaching me and bringing into my life. I also really like the fact that it could be bringing people together from all over the world… I know it’s pretty high and lofty thoughts, but still, pretty cool thought to think that someone may stumble upon this site and read about who God really is and what He is really like… Hence the whole Salt Lick idea…

I’m sitting here at Saxby’s Coffee in Lansdale getting ready for my sermon on this Sunday. I’m taking a thought break… I’m listening to my boys James and Phil play some live music here at Saxbys Coffee. I’m loving it. Right now their playing a great rendition of High and Dry by Radiohead.

Thoughts going through my mind right now:

  1. Wish my wife was here with me now…
  2. Sure would like a Mocha Latte
  3. Wish I had my sermon completely finished… as in DONE…
  4. Can’t wait to preach this Sunday
  5. Looking forward to sleeping through the night for the first time all week, thanks Keswick
  6. Wish we could be back at Keswick with our youth group
  7. Gotta get back to the sermon prep

Come on out this Sunday to FBC Doylestown if you want to give me some emotional support! I would love it… (or stay home and pray, that’s even better…)

~Peter

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In Faith in Real Life

Keswick-Day 5

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Even as I type, bodies are waking up, rooms are being packed up, and what once was a pristine keswick campus is being picked up and put back together after 150 different teenagers came together and lived as a community for a week. Words cannot begin to describe what this week has meant in the life of our ministry.

Last night we heard from Jason Mitchell one last time. He wrapped up the whole week with a great story. It’s a timeless question that we all need to answer. It’s a question that Jesus asked His closest followers. He asked this to those around Him who where His friends, those He loved. He asks His disciples this one very profound question. “Who do people say I am?”

Next question, even better, (I love this one) “WHO DO YOU SAY I AM?”

This is the question that each one of us in the room was faced with. Who do you say I am? Having learned about several different attributes of who Jesus is this week, we are faced with the reality that Jesus is indescirbable, our human language doesn’t contain enough words to begin to describe who Christ is. How do you answer that question? Who is Jesus to you?

We closed with communion. Very fitting if you ask me. We talked about who Jesus was all week. Now it was the time to remember Jesus in the way that He wanted to be remembered, with the 2 symbols. Bread, and Wine. He was broken, and poured out; as a student minstry, and as a youth pastor, I want nothing more than for this family that God has brought together to live a Jesus centered life. A life so broken and poured out that it absolutely infultrates their surroundings. That it changes you. That it changes my church. That it changes me even. I’m ready to see these students, this family, rise up and live in such a way that they are not Christian by name, but are Christian by what the way they live.

Last night we had an unbelievable time together. It was what sealed the whole week for our group. It wasn’t in a speaker, even though he was great. It wasn’t in a worship band, it wasn’t in anything programed. It was in a sharing time. God was working in the hearts of these students in a mighty way. I’m not even sure how to put words to what we shared last night.

I can’t say this one thing enough.

To those of you who have been praying this week for us. THANK YOU.

I know without a shadow of a doubt that God answered our prayers. If you were praying specifically, you know that I had asked for us to come together with unity and love for one another. Well we prayed, and God showed up in a big way. PRAISE GOD.

God is in the process of healing. He is bringing about restoration in so many different areas. We have a very bright future in store for our student ministry, and it is in part thank to each one of these students that came with us this week. They are incredible.

To God be the glory great things He has done, so loved he the world that He gave us His son, who yielded His life an atonement for sin, and opened the lifegate that all may go in.

PRAISE THE LORD, PRAISE THE LORD, LET THE EARTH HEAR HIS VOICE, PRAISE THE LORD, PRAISE THE LORD, LET HIS PEOPLE REJOICE, O COME TO THE FATHER THRU JESUS HIS SON, AND GIVE HIM THE GLORY GREAT THINGS HE HAS DONE!

~Peter

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Keswick-Day 4

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So, last night was an incredible night for our camp.  God was definitely at work.  The theme was Jesus as our Healer.  This had the potential to be absolutely amazing.  It was.  God used our speaker Jason Mitchell in a very powerful way.  There was a great drama of how God picks up the pieces of our life and puts them not only back together, but weaves our broken pieces into a beautiful stain glass window.  In our group alone, I already know of several stories of healed relationships, healed hearts, and changed lives.  The lines from an old hymn keep coming to mind, “To God be the glory for the great things that were done” last night!

Here is the breakdown… We started by looking at Genesis 1 how God took chaos and made something beautiful.  God looked down over the water and made something that He said is good.  God wants to take the chaos from our lives and make that into something good.  From there we jumped to John chapter 5 were we see Jesus asking a very important question.  It is a simple, yet profound question.  “Do you want to be made well?”  See, God isn’t the cosmic healer going around touching everyone just so that they are perfect.  Jason had a great thought last night, it was something like this, “Why do you keep sitting in the same brokeness that you’ve been experiencing for so long.”  When will you bring it to God?   From there we jumped over and looked at the story found in Mark 2 where we find several guys doing anything they could to get their friend in front of Jesus so that he could be healed.  What a stark contrast from what they had seen in John 5.  These guys were willing to “claw and scratch” their way to be before Jesus because they believed in their heart that only He could heal their friend.

God has a still small voice that is asking each one of us, “Do you want to be healed?”

So, here’s a lesson for all of you who aren’t at Keswick with us this week.  Let me ask you a question.  Are you guilty of trying to heal yourself of anything?  Or maybe let’s start with this question… Do you even want to be healed?

What do you need healing from?

What’s preventing you from being healed now?

To God Be the Glory,

~Peter

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