Prayer

Just when the clean up was starting to pick up and the water starting to receed anther Hurricane is setup to come rumbling through.

Please be in prayer for the citizens who are still in New Orleans, Pray for the Army Corps of Engineeers as the begin to re-repair the broken levee.

and it General being prayer for everyone from the Gulf Region.

In Prayer

Thanks for your comments Whipple and Adam. Those of you with an encouraging word or advice feel free to leave it. Whipple your comment is very true in that can learn to get along with it(the politics) or agree to disagree and ignore the politics.

I'm Open to Advice???

I know alot of people who read this title and post would say pray about it. I will tell you that I am I would just like to know what people think about this situation.

I'm trying to weigh my options on my future. Here's the situation I'm discouraged by the politics of the Church brought on by the SBC (Southern Baptist Convention) and how it invades everything and how everything that is not in line with what the SBC says is painted as liberal and wrong. So option number one is going to Gardner Webb Divinity School and continuing my ministry training there. My church has a real vision for those who are called to ministry. In that they provide money towards tutions, books, etc. They're policy is that to receive said funds the seminary has to be one of the 6 major SBC seminaries. So if I go to Gardner Webb I go without the financial assistance of my church and possibly without their blessing/commissioning as a minister of the gospel. If go to Southeastern I will receive said funds and everything will be as normal.

I had a conversation with a gentleman tonight at work that really helped me. I told him what I was facing and he being from FBC told me that there are somethings that he doesn't agree with in the church yet that doesn't stop him from worshipping and following his God. It didn't solve my problem on where to go to seminary but it made feel better nonetheless.

so I'm open to advice and suggestions.....

Back at a Crossroads

Well after thinking about it and what I exprienced at Southeastern I'm back to considering either Southeastern or Gardner Webb Divinity School with a slightly heavier leaning to Gardner Webb.

I just saw the SBC politics starting creep in to the seminary a little more that I would like so I'm back to considering Gardner Webb.

So be in prayer for me as I pray and try to get a word as to where to go.

Visit Report!!!

Typing from my new home away from home...the "Sartain Hilton" Crashing for the night with one of my Frat Bros Brandon then heading back to Knoxville for work tomorrow afternoon.

Well I guess I will report on my trip to Southeastern, I went with yet another Frat Bro of mine Rick down to Wake Forest and toured and looked around Southeastern Seminary. Its a very small campus I would venture even to say smaller than Carson Newman. What I didn't know was that Southeastern use to be Wake Forest College and Southeastern and Wake Forest College used to be all contained with same campus. I noticed this by the insignia on the floor in the administration the letters WFC.

The tour was good until around the last part of the tour the subject matter of conservative vs. liberal came up and how the advice to any prospective student was to be warry of some these area "churches" that they tend to be too liberal and not totally preaching the truth of the bible. This started the pre-progamed SBC speech which basically summed up is a call to indoctrination. I adhere myself to the Apostle Paul in that my righteousness is no more than filthy rags. I'm called to peace not to argue. Furthermore I'm commanded to search the word for the truth. I take everything taught or spoken to me concerning the Bible and I look to find it for myself to prove that its valid.

All in all it was good trip and I learned and saw alot that I needed to see. The chapel service that we attended was by far the best part of the whole trip. The message spoke to me in special way and in a drastic switch all the people at chapel sang during worship as opposed to Carson Newman chapels where a fraction of the people attendances sang.

Attack of the Spammers

The sad commentary of the modern era is the subject of spam. Not the cans of potted meat although good I'm speaking of those ads and offers for things such as "free topless pics" and "get rich quick schemes" that end up costing you more money than you make, provided you take the bait and sign up.

Spammers have invaded our e-mail. On top of that they have forsaken everything that is good and holy and invaded our blogs.

I say this only cause its true check the blogger comments link on my previous post and you'll see one is from a legit source Adam the other two are from unknown sources. with links in their posts that are of no interest to me.

A Case of the Laxing Blogger

Well after reading Adam's post on blogging tips I started to feel a little guilty for neglecting my blog for almost a week.

I guess with that I can go into update mode. Still workin on some tracks for Whipple actually its two songs different versions. He called me the other day asking if I had them done and I said they were in the floor. "What do mean in the floor"? he asked. When stuff is in the floor its not in my line of sight therefore I forget about it and easily at that.

I'm also happy to report that I'm going to really enjoy my new job I mean does it really get any better than dipping and mixing Ice Cream. Granted I'm not about to leave the ministry and work the rest of my life as an Ice Cream server. Looking forward to Monday week, even Sunday night cause I will leave and head to Carson Newman and from there me and Rick are heading to SEBTS for a night's stay and a tour and stuff.

watch out this linking to other peoples blogs within the body of my posts my catch on....Talk atchas later.

Be Safe!!!!

New Things

Well as I type this post I type it using my new Dell Laptop w00t!! A purchase made for seminary for notes and papers and what not.

After thinking about yesterday my last post and the article that I posted to compliment it may how have sounded like I codone the explicit behavior mentioned in the article. I set the record straight I don't I belive that lifestyle is in direct rebellion to God.

My point was simply you shouldn't use the Bible out of context just simply because a verse that you scan over happens to fit your argument. I have to believe that 9 times out of 10 when you use the bible in an arguement/discussion the verses we use out of context and and deal with total different lines of thought in the bible.

Tomorrow is really special for our Church: First Baptist Concord we're having what we are calling "Founder's Day" we are celebrating the people of Creighton Memorial Baptist Church. It was located in Old Concord which now most of it is underwater because of TVA. There were members of the church tht\at sensed that God was going to do something big. So in faith they move to a small plot of land out on Kingston Pike and by one vote start a new church called First Baptist Concord.

tomorrow's service is going to be "retro" what I mean by retro is 1963 era church service no praise band just organ and piano, no big screen with the words to the songs just singing hymns from the hymnals, and after the service an Old Fashion Baptist "dinner on the grounds"

Alot of people would say that I'm too young to know what that was like but I've been to a church or two that still conducts it's services like that and yes they do feed you after church.

Unbelievable

Talk about Cut and Paste Bible....what I mean by that is taking verses of scripture out of the bible so that they make your argument valid even though the verse is completely used out of context.

This website's position: Hurricane Katrina was God's way of punishing New Orleans "A City of Sin" as they call it.

Read This:

REPENT AMERICA - CALLING A NATION IN REBELLION TOWARD GOD TO REPENTANCE


Oh and for those you wondering what passage this verse was cut out of...its kinda ironic, the passge is talking about Love for your neighbors/enemies. Matthew 5:43-48

"You have heard that it was said, `YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy. "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. "For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? "If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? "Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Wow 2 posts in a Day

I almost forgot to mention I landed a job at Marble Slab Creamery here in Knoxville as possibly a shift leader which would have me working 9-5 or 5 to close, and 35-40 hours a week.

This job comes as a blessing the guy who owns the particular store I will we working at is a christian who wants and keeps his store a christian enviroment.

This Rocks my face off. oh and check this the uniform for this job is Khaki shorts, shirt they provide. and tennis shoes.

my kind of job!!!!!!

Angels Among Us

I meant to post about this the day it happen...but as you know you get caught up in the things at hand and you forget.

I was around the house last week when the doorbell rang to find a "door to door" sales rep who was selling gutter covers( the things you can place over your roof gutters so you don't have to clean them out).

He asked me if I was the home owner, I responded by saying that he was not in right now. You would think that would be the end of the conversation/sales pitch but no, he asked me if I went to school here in the area. I told him that I had recently graduated from Carson Newman. That prompted him to ask was my Bachelor's was in. I told him religion and he then asked what did I plan to do with that. I told him my plans for seminary and my calling after seminary.

He also asked me if I was working in a church right now and I told him no that I was working in "the real world" so that I would be able to better relate to my congregation when the time comes(props to Adam F.)

He told me that he was a christian and looking for a church in his hometown. He asked me about how my jobs were going to which I replied about the discouragement that I go through sometimes. I told him that all of the jobs that I've worked so far I have gotten now inner satisfaction from which tells me that is not my life profession.

We talked for about 15 mins about all of this and in closing he told me that no matter what you do you always have to do it as it says in the word and that being "Do as unto the LORD" and as he left he told me that he was going to pray for me as we continued through my neighborhood.

afterwards sitting in the kitchen getting I bite to eat I stare up and the ceiling and just told God thank-you. I did because I had been having very crummy work week and that was just encouragement beyond belief.



In closing of this post my prayers and thoughts go out to all the NOBTS students that have been displaced by this disaster. my prayers also go out to the rest of the people of the Big Easy.