Rockstanding

After much urging from my family, I bought a new lawnmower last week at the local Sears store. Like I told my wife, I’m very comfortable buying electronics, but buying tools and machinery leaves me more uncomfortable. I looked at several stores before we settled on the 625 series Craftsman mower.

My current mower, a Snapper, I bought 13 years ago for $75 from one of my neighbors. He used to go to estate sales and buy lawnmowers and then fix them up. So I don’t know how old this mower really is, but I got a great deal on it and it has run for years. Still, my family hates it because it is loud and is not the easiest to push around the yard. I’m the only one who mows our yard, so I don’t care. But now that the kids are old enough, we decided it was time to get a more family-friendly mower. And now the time has come.

Because I want to use my new mower the right way, I’ve been reading through the owner’s manual. You know, how to use it correctly, maintain it and generally avoid cutting off a needed toe or finger. As I’ve read it, I realize that it is sort of like a bible of lawn mowing. There are things to do and things not to do on the path to happy mowing. Here are some of them that I’ve read:

• If you feel uneasy on a slope, do not mow it
• Clear the area of objects such as rocks, toys, wire, bones, sticks, etc. which could be picked up and thrown by the blade. Bones? Maybe cutting the grass isn’t the problem.
  
• Be sure the area is clear of other people before mowing. Stop the machine if anyone enters the area. That’s not a great incentive to get that lawn mowed: “I saw someone while I was mowing so I stopped.”
• Never direct discharged material toward anyone. It’s a lawnmower, not a gun.
• Never assume that children will remain where you last saw them. So true. That is, unless it’s summer, they’re teenagers and they are watching television.
• Never run a machine inside a closed area. It’s easy. The lawnmower is for the grass, the vacuum cleaner is for the carpet. Lawnmower outside. Vacuum inside.
• And finally: Mower blades are sharp and can cut. And you thought this machine was for BENDING the grass.

I came across a post from Dan Phillips over at Pyromaniacs detailing his receiving this card at home and which church sent it. I think we can all relate to the situation, so I think his way of dealing with it is challenging, convicting and thought-provoking for all of us who call ourselves Christians.

Read all these posts, they’re right on.

http://teampyro.blogspot.com/2008/01/preaching-good-news-part-one.html
http://teampyro.blogspot.com/2008/01/preaching-good-news-part-two.html
http://teampyro.blogspot.com/2008/01/preaching-good-news-part-three.html

Tags: Evangelism, The Gospel

It has been a blessing to attend the same church for more than 12 years. I love my church family, and it has been wonderful to have grown closer to them by growing closer to our Heavenly Father during that time. And like all families, we have children, teach them and then send them off to the world. It is a great privilege and huge responsibility.

Each year, we have children who’ve grown up in our church who, hopefully, have heard the gospel message and God has changed their hearts. Many of those kids head off to college where, sad to say, the attitude toward people who believe in God is less than kind. It does us no good if we raise children whose faith can only survive in an incubator of the local church but shrivels when they head off to college.

That’s why I was pleased to come across an article on Focus on the Family’s e-zine (Web magazine, for those who wonder) Boundless entitled “How Not to Lose Your Faith in College.” The author shares some basic steps a youngster can take to make sure their faith is nurtured rather than hindered when they go away from home. If you have a child that is nearing the end of their high school career and will be heading away to college this fall, I’d encourage you both to read the article and talk about it together.

I haven’t posted on this yet, but last week I received John Piper’s latest book from the folks at Desiring God, entitled “When The Darkness Will Not Lift: Doing What We Can While We Wait For God — And Joy.”

Even though it comes in a mere 79 pages, it is full of great insight and advice about how we can fight the battle daily for joy and how to encourage and minister to those around us who are battling depression. The book comes from a chapter in Piper’s “When I Don’t Desire God,” which is another excellent treatment of this subject.

I received the book in the mail and sat down and read it in an afternoon. I am not a fast reader by any means but this book is very easy to read and is something I would return to often for words of wisdom and would highly recommend it for passing along to those who are hurting. Piper acknowledges that this book’s intent is not to be an exhaustive treatment of this subject — he lists several good books for those who wish to read more to explore — yet he gives good counsel in just a short number of pages.

This is an area where many of us have struggled. It is good to be able to have a book like this from one of our top Christian authors as a resource.

John Piper writes at Desiring God about John Newton and how he ministered to those who struggled with depression. Newton, some of you may recall, is best known for writing “Amazing Grace.” It is through his own experience and the grace he found through Jesus Christ that he was a great encouragement to many. I would encourage you to spend a few minutes reading about this man’s great testimony to God’s love.

I have experienced dark seasons and know what it feels like. But, because of God’s goodness, I have found relief in scriptures like II Corinthians 7:6 and reading about the lives of saints like John Newton, David Brainerd and countless other who struggled with depression. But it not good enough to be comforted in myself and be done with it. For that reason, I have decided to share some of the good things I have found in order to help others, like myself, who are fighting this battle.

Here’s to your health and God’s goodness.