Good News and Bad News

It has been an eventful week for us! Bad news first - the powers that be at my school have decided that they must fill an open Spanish position two weeks before finals. As I have the certification necessary, I have been elected to move departments into the position. I will no longer have a classroom, as the open position is for a floater who moves throughout the four story school. Also, I will be teaching the "comprehensive" aka behavior issue classes. This will not be pleasant.

Now for the much more pleasant good news: Ben has been asked to be a Garrett Fellow to Dr. Nettles! This is an honor for Ben and I am very proud of him. He has worked very diligently this semester and God has blessed his efforts with new friends, new knowledge of several areas, and now, the opportunity to be a Garrett Fellow.

To SBC or not to SBC?

That is the question...

With the fallout of the John 3:16 Conference dulling to a low roar, I thought that I would share some thoughts and fears about our future as Southern Baptists. (You can read some of the responses here or here, or just ask Ben. He has plenty to say on the matter.)

Ben and I love Baptist churches. We especially love Mississippi Baptists and feel called to work in our home state again one day. Lately, however, I have been concerned about whether or not the Southern Baptist Convention will have us. We are branded with the scarlet letter. That letter is a "C."

As you may know, Ben received his M.Div. from RTS Jackson. My family and I were members of a Presbyterian church. Now, we are in Louisville, KY where Ben is pursuing his doctorate and studying under men like Dr. Tom Nettles and Dr. David Puckett.

We are Calvinists. Wow. I'm not sure if I've ever actually seen that in print before. It is a little scary considering the current climate, but it is necessary to say. We are not confrontational people, but I would not have us hide what we believe. It is the whole doctrine of God.

Earlier this week Ben sent me this blog. I read it and my immediate reaction was to get really angry that poor guy has been blacklisted because of his beliefs. Then, I thought about how many times I have avoided the Calvin conversation myself. I thought of a recent lecture that I heard on William Tyndale. Tyndale sacrificed his life for what he believed. I guess a little ostracism is a small price to pay for holding to the scripture-based solas.

My second reaction to reading Voddie Baucham's blog was fear. After all, if these things can happen to someone like him, we are certainly at risk. I have lots of questions like: Will the SBC go on a witch hunt and kick all of us out? What will some of the reformed-leaning pastors at home do about this? Will they ignore us? Or will they help us? Will Southern Seminary officially take a stand on this matter for its professors and students?

I do not know the answers to these questions today, but I do know that we will continue to be Southern Baptists. This week, I will start working on the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering at church. (If that ain't Baptist, I don't know what is!)

I grew up Baptist, but I rarely shared the Gospel because I didn't know what I believed. Now that I listen to solid, biblical preaching, I am told that my beliefs kill evangelism. I disagree. I am on fire now. I want to be a new kind of Baptist. I want to share the Gospel with unbelievers and not skip over anything. I want to be the kind of Baptist that can articulate what I believe and back it up with scripture. I will know the attributes of God and praise Him daily for his sovereignty. I think they call that Reformed Baptist.

Harry Connick Jr.

Thanks to a connection at my school, we got free tickets to the first performance of Harry Connick Jr.'s new tour.

Ben and I enjoyed the concert at the Louisville Palace on Tuesday night. We had a great time watching Harry Connick Jr. perform Christmas music and some other favorites. The Palace is an incredible venue. This was a fun way for us to kick off the holiday season!

Lately..

It is cold and rainy here. We are bracing for the winter, and hoping for a mild one. My car is out of the shop, and the tires repaired from a blowout that we had on the way to church last week. We are worry-free and on wheels again!
Ben has been working like crazy getting the last of his papers completed. I got really sick last week and am still recovering from a sinus infection. With his busy schedule, it is a blessing that Ben did not catch it. This is his last big, busy week and then he can take a breather.
At school, there is still a possibility that I may get moved into another department in January. We are hoping and praying against that because it would be a big inconvenience and very stressful. In the meantime, I am teaching The Odyssey to my Freshmen and they are working hard. We are all ready for the holiday breaks.
So, that's what's happening lately.

Fall Foliage

Take a look at these pictures of the pretty fall leaves around the campus. We took a walk tonight and got these shots.

Hillcrest Halloween

On Hillcrest Avenue, just a few streets down from the seminary, there is an annual display of Halloween decorations. Almost every house on the street gets into the act. We walked down with our neighbors, Todd and Kim. We particularly enjoyed "Dante's Disco Inferno." The "Martha" house was also fun with it's tombstoned dedicated to Freddie Mac, 401K, and Enron.

Prayer Requests

Please keep us in your prayers during this especially hectic week. Ben is in the thick of his paper-writing time and is extremely busy from dawn to dusk. Both of our cars are giving us some trouble. Mine broke down this morning and is in the shop. Ben's will go in when we get mine out.
Also, this weekend we will be part of a marriage conference at a church in Indiana. Ben is leading two sessions and I will be leading one. The conference takes place on Friday evening and on Saturday. As this is a busy time for Ben, we need prayers for preparation time and for blessings on the conference itself.

Beginning and Ending Well

Everyone has those days when it is hard to face what waits for you. Many times I have had difficulty going into my day. God has blessed us with my job as it provides for us here, however a significant amount of stress accompanies the provision. Last semester I struggled with anxiety and fear when I woke up in the morning and when I went to bed at night. It's a long story, but suffice it to say that just the thought of going into my school was enough to make me despair. I know that God does not want those feelings for me. We should never despair in what He has ordained. So, I started doing some reading and I wanted to share some of the ways that I learned to change my thought processes.

Starting the day:

1) Begin by acknowledging that you really can't do anything - not without Christ! Remember and have faith in the fact that you need and are completely dependent upon Him.

2) Take your thoughts captive. (This was the hardest one for me.) Do not allow yourself to listen to your negative thoughts. Stop listening to yourself and talk to yourself about the goodness of God. Remember that you have faith for the future. He will bring his work in your life to completion for His glory and your good.

3) Use your commute or "getting ready" time to pray or memorize scripture. This also helps with #2! If you are busy memorizing or praying, you don't have time to think poisonous thoughts.

Ending the Day:

1) Thank God for the gift of sleep! (see blog below)

2) Thank Him for the blessings of the day and acknowledge that He is the source of all good things.

3) Seize this opportunity to express gratitude for the cross. There is no comparable gift.

These things have really worked for me. I am much less anxious and more positive as I begin my day. This has also helped me to have that invaluable reflection time before bed. Ending the day contemplating the blessings of God has a real affect on how you wake up.

Check out this blog...

Ben reads this blog pretty often. I recently commented on a post concerning the state of public schools. Check it out!

http://ericcarp.blogspot.com/

A busy week...

The second week of school is really busy with new students and getting started activities. I am teaching all Freshmen this year, and they have no clue. They don't know where the bathroom is, how to open a locker, when to eat lunch, etc. They are wearing me out!

I am working until my eyes are blurry every night and getting up at 5:30. (Ben doesn't like that part.) Tonight, I am cheering myself up by posting some previously unseen pictures of our trip to Philadelphia and New York.

How long until summer break comes again?

I survived the first week of school!

Seriously. I'm thinking of getting a t-shirt made. My classes this year consist of a Literacy Lab (2 hours with one class!) and two levels of Freshman English. I LOVE my Advanced Freshman. I could hug them every day. The regular groups are a bit rowdy, but it is much better than the groups I had last year. With a school of 2,200 students, you never know what you are gonna get. Hope everyone else is having a good week!

There and Back Again

Today we made it back to Louisville after a long visit to Mississippi. It was hard to say goodbye to our friends, but it is good to be back with all of our own belongings. I am so glad to get to sleep in my own bed tonight!

Tomorrow, Ben's parents will leave Clinton and make the trip to Louisville. They will spend one night here, and then we will all leave for the Amish Country. From there, we will go to Philadelphia and New York. We will be traveling in the Previa. This van has a few miles on it, however it seems to be the best option. We have our fingers crossed and Ben's Mom has branded this vacation, "Death of a Previa." It should be an adventure and we are planning to post lots of pics.

Prayer Request

Please remember to pray for the family of Stephen Curtis Chapman as they prepare for the funeral of his young daughter tomorrow.

http://www.stevencurtischapman.com/

More Conferences...

Over Memorial Day weekend, Ben and I will be attending the New Attitude conference. New Attitude is part of Sovereign Grace. Speakers this year include John Piper, Mark Dever, C.J. Mahaney, and Joshua Harris. In addition to this line-up of speakers, we are looking forward to the music. At Together for the Gospel, music was led by Bob Kauflin. The hymns were arranged beautifully and it was a joy to sing and be led by him. If you are interested in worship leadership, check out his blog or his book - Worship Matters. We have an extra copy of the book if anyone is interested.

I feel terrible that I still have not finished posting the notes from Together for the Gospel. I am off today for Kentucky election day, so I am planning to organize my thoughts on the sermons and post them. Better late than never!

P.S. I know that I have linked this blog within an inch of its life, but each link is a good one!

Creation Museum

Yesterday, schools were out for Oaks Day, and Ben and I went to the Creation Museum. This museum is a walk through history dedicated to Creation science. The museum is just about an hour and a half away from us, so it was a nice little day trip.

The museum is filled with live action dinosaurs, moving figures, multi-media, a large-scale ark, a garden of Eden and much more.

We loved learning about the history of skepticism, the intricate design of our world and the way that the flood still changes it.

This museum is no small place - it offers over 65,000 square feet of exhibit space and took us about 2 and a half hours to walk through. The grounds feature a beautiful botanical garden with gazebos and fully lit dinosaurs. We wish some of our friends from Mississippi could have seen this!

Spring Break 2008

We are in Mississippi this week! Ben is preaching in Mendenhall and working on his final big paper of the semester. We have enjoyed some beautiful weather here and it has been wonderful to see our family, friends, and church members again. It is hard to believe that babies can grow so fast!

When we return to Louisville, I will have just six weeks left in this school year, and Ben will have about 3 weeks until the end of his first semester in the doctoral program. He is going to wrap up classwork, preach once in Indiana, and prepare for doing his cousin's wedding in June.

I am planning to teach some Poe to my 10th graders. That should be an adventure!

I love this show...

People should watch more BBC.

Blizzard '08 - Part 2

Blizzard '08

Is that the sun?

The sun came out this weekend. It was beautiful. We had not seen it in so long that all of the light was kind of a shock. Since we came to Louisville, days have been gray and cold. Sunday was a wonderful gift from God with blue skies and mild weather that made everyone want to get outdoors.

Ben and I went to church on Sunday at Third Avenue with our new friends Ben and Cynthia. I forgot to mention in earlier blogs that every third person here is named Ben. We joke that it is the prophetic name for this decade. Just in our building there are three Bens and there are several others in class with my Ben.
On Sunday we also met Wes Pastor from NETS in Vermont. He will be speaking at the Seminary and at another couple of local churches. He was very interesting as he told about the challenges of church planting in New England. Ben and I are meeting with him on Tuesday to discuss more about planting churches. The NETS program of study and internship is an incredible model for preparing church planters. We have both been really impressed with what we have read about it, and hope to learn more from Mr. Pastor during our meeting.

My SWI class this term is about the history of the Southern Baptist Convention and it is wonderful. Dr. Wills and Mrs. Mohler have done an incredible job of educating the wives about our heritage as Baptists.

Teaching is still going really badly. I could list my many complaints against public education and the impossibility of this career, but instead I will say - FOUR WEEKS UNTIL SPRING BREAK!!!!!