Cute Little Guy

I think he is just really cute. We have more pics up, by the way. Sorry some of them are a bit out of focus. I'm trying to figure out why my camera is doing that.

Isaac Elliot

Well, today was quite the surprise.

Last night, Jen and I went to bed expecting to have a fairly normal day. After all, we aren't expecting our baby until August 9th.

I guess God had other plans. At around 1am, the contractions started! We were at the hospital by 2am, and after a long night of me learning how much I love my wife, we made it to morning and the blessings of some pain relief. At 1:20pm, we welcomed little Isaac Elliot into the world!

It sounds so simple, but it wasn't. If you want to know the details--we'd be glad to tell you. I just don't feel like putting them on the Internet :).

Anyway. The most important thing is the pics. Here are some of our first shots of this new little guy. He's cute, like his dad. And rather hairy too.

He's 6lbs. 5 oz., 19inches for those who like numbers.

I'm sure we'll post more stuff and have some more pics for you to look at.

Here is my favorite.

More Confirmation

Not that I needed further confirmation that the Bible is historically accurate, but a professor visiting the British Museum recently found a reference to a minor official of Nebuchadnezzar on an ancient cuneiform tablet.

Why does this matter? Since the official was a pretty minor guy, the fact that his name is recorded in both places confirms the historicity of that record in a pretty significant way. That's probably why scholars are calling this: "The most important find in Biblical archaeology for 100 years, a discovery that supports the view that the historical books of the Old Testament are based on fact."

Cool.

Why a Suffering World Makes Sense

I'm currently reading a book called Why A Suffering World Makes Sense by Chris Tiegreen. It was published by Baker Books last year.

Chris takes a fresh look at the problem of suffering...fresh, not in the sense that he is offering a NEW perspective, but in the down-to-earth, non-philosophical way that he presents a very classic, biblical view on suffering and the sovereignty of God. Instead of the usual evangelical answers to pain and suffering (we live in a sinful world, God gives us free choice, ultimately we have no answers, etc.), Chris looks at what the Bible has to teach about the purpose of human suffering.

What I love about this book (besides the fact that it is relatively easy to read) is that Chris begins with the reason why God created this world in the first place--for His glory. Everything, including human pain and suffering, exists to make known the hidden attributes of God, to make known His glory. There is a purpose...a very great and wonderful purpose...in all of human existence, even in our pain. Human pain allows us to experience certain attributes of God--his mercy, forgiveness, healing--in a way that we could not have known in the perfection of heaven.

Is our pain worth it? Is the suffering of this age worth the experience and understanding of God's glory? Chris does a great job of showing how it is worth any price to be able to see and know God. Yes, our pain is worth it. From an eternal perspective, the display of these attributes of God's glory is the very purpose of this present age. For ages to come, we will look back at this very temporary time of existence and give glory to God for his mercy in the midst of this age--but there will never be another time for all of eternity when we will experience it in the same way (once sin is defeated). This book got me thinking of Ephesians 2:6-7 in a somewhat different way...

ESV Ephesians 2:6-7: "...and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus."

Who knows what attributes and characteristics of God will be glorified in the ages to come? There are probably aspects of who God is--His character and being--that will be hidden for many ages, to be revealed one day. In this age, however, we can know the mercy and healing and forgiveness of God in the midst of our pain and suffering--that is one of the reasons why God has allowed sin and pain to continue. Who knows what graces of His glory will be known in ages to come, what hidden attributes of God we will experience when this age is done? Perhaps that is what Paul was thinking of when he wrote in Romans 8:18: "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." Paul perspective on pain: seeing and experiencing the glory of God is far more valuable than any pain we may experience in this world.

That's what this book is all about--getting an eternal perspective on our suffering. It's about seeking to know and experience as much of God as we can in the midst of our pain, because that is God's ultimate purpose in our pain. Knowing more of his love, his grace, his mercy, his forgiveness, his comfort, his healing--that is why pain and suffering exists. Yes. Suffering is here because of our sin. And yes, sin is evil. But the evil of sin is not ultimate--God is using the evil of sin in a way that evil would never intend. Suffering is not meaningless. It has a great and glorious purpose. Experiencing the grace of redemption in Jesus is ultimate. And that is why God has allowed sin to run its course...that we might experience him in ways that we will never know again, for ages to come, when sin is defeated and the pains of this age are gone.

So...if you are looking for a good, thoughtful, biblical read (that is still down to earth), take a look at Why a Suffering World Makes Sense.

Bi-Weekly Mortgage Payments

This may be old news to some of you, but I wondered if anyone had any insight on this. We're looking at doing a bi-weekly mortgage payment. I've looked at Dave Ramsey and some other financial advice places on the web, and they all seem to say the same thing about this--do it yourself!

Basically, if you hadn't heard, a bi-weekly mortgage is where you pay half of your mortgage every other week instead of making a full payment each month. With 52 weeks / 2 you end up making 26 payments, which is like adding an extra month each year. The downside is that most banks and mortgage companies charge you fees and such to set it up.

A better way to do all this apparently, is to take your current payment and divide it by 12, and then just add that into your monthly payment each month. You end up making an extra payment each year then (which is, of course, another way to do all this...but I'm better at budgeting monthly than yearly). They are all basically the same thing. I used the Dave Ramsey Mortgage Calculator and figured out that by doing this we'll knock two years off our mortgage and save around $7100 in interest we would have payed.

Sounds good to me. Is anyone else doing this?

Who Raises Kids?

You have to wonder who is really raising the next generation in this country. It seems like parents either 1) have less interest in the education of their children and assume that is the responsibility of the state or 2) the state assumes that it IS their responsibility and is interested in taking away the rights of parents.

I found the quote from this article somewhat scary...

"And although a parent does have a right to control the upbringing of a child, "that right is not absolute. It must bend to the State's duty to educate its citizens," the state board wrote."

One Year

I've been married one year.

And it's been the best year of my life!

Thanks, God, for giving us grace.

4th of July Victory! Chestnut Wins

Well, in case you haven't heard yet...Joey Chestnut from San Jose, California defeated the six-time world champion hot-dog eater, Kobayashi, from Japan! The annual event is held each 4th of July at Nathan's Hot Dogs on Coney Island and is the most hyped up, ridiculous sports event they broadcast on ESPN. But it's good fun, especially if you like to watch people get sick and throw up.

Anyway...here is the scoop.

After Kobayashi spit up some dogs in the final 30 seconds (you have to keep them down for them to count) he lost 3 dogs and Chestnut became the new world champion--eating 66 hot dogs and buns in 12 minutes and smashing the old record of 59 1/2 dogs and buns set by Kobayashi.