The Year in Review

Well, my Blog has been around for exactly one year as of today. It has been an enjoyable and learning experience, both as a Blogger and as a Christian. The Blog itself has undergone numerous changes since its inception last year. I altered how many Posts appeared, whether or not they had titles, whether or not I showed my number of followers…I never could rightly decide how my Blog should appear in a finished and satisfactory state.

Yet my wife, who patiently bore with me as I switched this and that, altered this and that, and removed this and that, finally spoke reason. She told me that readers would likely wish to see stability in the Blog, so it wasn’t a surprise every time someone visited. It was sound advice, and after a few final changes (including the template and background to a more pleasing appearance) we settled on what seemed good. Gillian is also great at helping edit my Posts before I Post them, to make them more cohesive; she also contributes her insights on the subject matter.

My doctrine has matured some over the course of the year, and I am pleased and grateful to God the Holy Spirit for clearing my thinking, and correcting my thinking when I have been in error. I am also grateful both to my mom for her many conversations with me about certain topics (such as Christian liberty), as well as to Dorian Beaulieu and Jim Gruba for their counsel and friendship over the course of time. I have also made a friend afar whose name is Williams Ray, a pastor in India near Hyderabad. Any brothers and sisters in Christ reading this please pray for him; he is having a difficult time there and needs our prayers. I would also like to take the time to direct fellow believers (or anyone for that matter!) to Ron Joe White’s Blog spot, which he calls the Old Geezer Blog. It is at Ronjoewhite.blogspot.com.

It has been an interesting year at work for me where I primarily evangelize or minister. I have a co-worker who is a fellow Christian, and she needs our prayers for her growth and encouragement. She is a believer, but not strong in the faith. Pray for her to seek God’s wisdom and to be filled with the Holy Spirit, that she may know His will, and take pleasure in being conformed to that same will. I have hope for her.

My manuscript is going along at a grudging pace. I sent it back revised and edited (or so I thought), but I must put it back through another revision, which although minor, was another minor speed bump in the road to publication. But God has things well in hand, and we will proceed at His pace, which is perfect both for His glory and for my good.

My daughters are almost 11 months old by this time. They are learning to crawl, grab food with their hands, mimic what they see, and babble long sentences understood only by them. They also don’t like to take their naps. My wife has been wonderful in staying at home with them while I work, caring for them without fail and keeping the home in order; in short, she has been amazing, and a real blessing from God. She has assumed the mantle of mother well, and our daughters are a delight to watch grow; and how quickly they grow!

All believers are equipped and empowered by God the Holy Spirit to minister, both the word of salvation to the unsaved, and counsel and comfort to our fellow Christians. And though I am not thundering behind a pulpit, or out on the missions field, or writing long novels on Christian conduct or theology, I have become a teacher. First to my wife; who God saved through me. It is now my position to disciple her; as it will be for my daughters when they come of age. But more than that, since my voice is abroad in the public forum (aka this Blog) I must respect and recall the admonition of James: “My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment,” James 3:1. Verse 2 indicates that men will not be perfect teachers, “for we all stumble in many things.” Amen. I have stumbled over Christian liberty, passages out of Hebrews I did not clearly understand (thanks be to God for greater clarity!), and carnality among Christians. I leave you with Paul’s advice on the matter to an aspiring young Christian man named Timothy:

“Remind [the brethren] of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness,” 2nd Timothy 2:14-16.

I pray God will bless us with more years to minister via this Blog, and we are both grateful to Him for His provision and inspiration!