Our Christmas Party

Well like the vast majority of Americans we decided to carve out one night to just hang out with each other and practice the age old tradition of giving gifts. We started out with a most scrumptious dinner which was cooked by Barb (aka my mom). This is the point where I really need to brag about my mom. She made the house really Christmassy (if that's a word), with a bit of decorating around the house along with making the table look extra special for the night. Afterwords we exchanged some gifts. We did the secret Santa or whatever it's called where everyone gets someone else's name and you get that person a present. Jon was really clever and packed Christina's present inside of a little checkbook box, which was packed inside of a bigger box, which was packed inside of a bigger box, and so on.

For sake of space I didn't include all the boxes

I think that we are getting better at knowing what to get eachother, because everyone seemed satisfied with their gift. We continued the funfilled evening with a fierce game of Pictionary. If you haven't played before it's where a person is given something to draw and with the drawing get their team to guess what it is.

Bruce drawing something

Well once it got late we called it a night and headed home and to bed. I personally was thankful for the group of believers that the Lord has placed me with and how blessed I was to be with them.

Hopeless to Hopeful

As I type our student this year, Jon Foster, is in the middle of an Apologetic class, learning "the defense of the faith". Last week, I sat in on part of the class for a refresher. We watched a video with discussion afterward. Among other things we discussed how many of the things we think are based on the evil culture around us. One quote from the move was:

Through the conflict of religion, through the conflict of philosophy, the depravity of the human heart ultimately showed its power over any of the ideas presented to civilization.

Since the beginning of time, man has tried again and again to solve the world's problems through religion, philosophy, or programs, but what man has failed to realize, is that the very problem of evil in the world comes from himself. When it comes down to it, our innermost selves are wicked, selfish, and contrary to truth.
I sat there in class, nodding my head, and thinking, "That's right!". Then it struck. That meant me! The situation for us, mankind, is seemingly hopeless. Praise the Lord the source of all truth, God Himself, has revealed truth!

"God...hath made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; that they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us..."
Acts 17:26-27

God put each individual person where they are, so that they may seek Him and find Him. So, yes, as humans we have no way of knowing whether truth is truth, but the One who knows all, has put us where we are to find Him. What was seemingly hopeless, is now overwhelmingly hopeful!

Thanksgiving the Way it Should Be

I know that Thanksgiving was last Thursday, but since I was out of the office and never got on the internet at my cousin’s house I didn’t get to write this until now. I was in Ohio over the holiday spending time with my family, some of whom I had not seen for a while. Thursday morning my dad and I went to Westlake Bible Fellowship’s Thanksgiving morning brunch. Boy was it good! But I have to say that the highlight of that morning or the day really was not the food, as good as it was. It was the time after the food where some 150 believers sat in a giant circle and shared what they were thankful to God for and capping it off with singing some hymns. I have never had a better Thanksgiving morning in my short life and I think that one is going to be pretty hard to beat. Even though the time of reflection and praise was short, about 30 minutes, it just put the whole day in perspective. This is the true meaning of Thanksgiving. I think that is very important with the holiday season coming in very full swing (23 more shopping days til Christmas) that we keep the right focus of what these holidays are meant for. Glorifying God. I hope that you had a good Thanksgiving and I pray that all of us will keep in mind the reason for the season.