Change of Study

As many of you know, my plans were to begin this fall at Southern Seminary in the Billy Graham School of Missions with an emphasis in International Church Planting. However, after much consideration, prayer and wise counsel from many trusted friends and advisors, I have felt the Lord leading me to switch my focus of study to the School of Theology with an emphasis in Christian Ministry. It seems as though this track will better prepare me for the teaching/discipleship role that I would like to play among the Chinese people in the future after seminary, Lord willing.
Thank you so much to all of you who have continued to pray that the Lord would grant me direction in this. I would also petition anyone who would to continue to lift this area up for me, as I simply desire to obey the voice of Jesus Christ. The 4 classes that I am tentatively planning on taking in the fall are: 1. Beginning Greek 2. Hermenutics (Biblical Interpretation) 3. Spiritual Formations 4. Intro. to Church History.
Please pray that the Lord would prepare my heart and mind to fully take in that which He desires to reveal of Himself to me and that He would grant me the appropriate affections to His truth. I love and appreciate you all so much! May the blessings of knowing Christ be yours in increasing degree.

Memorization Tips

Here are some memorization tips that have been very helpful to me:
1. make notecards and review daily2. make into songs or rhythms 3. favorite verses before chapters (can serve as a nugget of encouragement when you get to it) 4. bible on CD(3x-morning, 3x-evening) 5. accessibility -Deut. 6:9(car, bathroom, desk....wherever you go everyday) 6. paper or cards in pocket-Deut. 6:8 7. set goals (short & long-term) 8. meditate, meditate, meditate 9. study one verse/day in time w/the Lord 10. accountability-Deut. 6:7 11. use in prayer (public & private)-Deut 6:7 12. work together w/friends or family 13. repetition, repetition, repetition
***When memorizing longer passages, chapters or books, work through the authors argument in your own head and speak it with the voice inflection you think he would.

meditation on "the sword of the Spirit"

(Eph. 6:17)-"And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

If the word of God is the sword of the Spirit, then the Spirit can be said to be the master of the sword and the only one that can wield it properly for us in our internal battle of sin mortification. The Spirit has access to His sword in the life of the believer only as the believer has access to the word. Therefore, it would follow that the only way for the Spirit to have constant access to His sword to fight for and in us is through the means of Scripture memorization. And if the sword is not hidden away in the mind and heart, then the believer is in fact limiting and grieving the Spirit's efforts of conforming them to Christ in their own heart, thereby limiting their own joy and satisfaction in God, coming as a result of increased holiness. In this sense it would seem that we can grieve the Holy Spirit of God by limiting His power to sanctify and wash us through the water of the word.
(Eph. 5:26) - "so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word."
(1 Cor. 6:11) - "Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God."
(John 15:3) - "You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you."
Therefore, the disciples are described here as being clean through the washing of the word of Christ.
(John 17:17) - "Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth."
The word of truth is the Spirit's tool of sanctification, so may He not be limited by our laziness of forsaking the great privilege of memorization.
(Ps. 119:11) - "Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against you."
Our ability to treasure His word in our heart is dependant upon how much of His word is in our minds to treasure. You can't treasure what's not there! Therefore, not treasuring His word in our hearts more through the act of memorization is a conscious weakening of our ability to fight sin through the enlightening and effectual power of the Spirit. Now just because the word is in our minds and memory does not mean that we will treasure it with our hearts, yet we can never treasure any truth about God with the heart that had not first been enlightened in our minds by the Spirit. Therefore, the more Scripture that is in the mind, the more there is at the Spirit's constant access to use.
(Ps. 37:31) - "The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not slip."
The law of God in the heart is his prevention against slipping. If the Spirit's way to the human heart is through the human mind, and if out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks (Matt. 12:34), then the more the word is known by memory and accordingly delighted in through the heart, the more our mouths should speak the praise of God. The more scripture we have in our minds to meditate on, the more likely the Spirit is to beget Christ-exalting affections for God through the revelation He has given us of Himself in His word. Now, the Spirit is still sovereign to work in us that which is acceptable in His sight, yet this is a practical way He has given us to join Him and walk in step with Him in His revealed purpose of transforming us to the likeness of Christ.
(Ps. 40:8) - "I delight to do Your will, O my God; Your law is within my heart."
(Ps. 119:15-16) - "I will meditate on Your precepts and regard Your ways. I shall delight in Your statutes; I shall not forget Your word."
You can't forget with the mind, if there's nothing there to forget! So how does the psalmist plan on delighting in the statutes of God; by not forgetting (memorizing) His word. So God help all of Your children to memorize as much Scripture as possible and as often as possible to the glory of Jesus Christ through the sanctifying work of His Spirit.

Christ Alone

With gratitude of heart I write,
To update you of the loving light
Of Christ displayed to me these days,
Spent pursuing Him in many humbling ways,
Among a people who in ignorance forsake
The One desiring all the more to make
Their thirsty souls satisfied in He,
Who makes lame to walk and blind to see.
What a vital purpose He has revealed,
And of infinite means He is ready to yield,
Such that these may be made in holiness,
Like that of His Son who is our righteousness,
Forever to have their desires fulfilled
In Christ alone and their spirits stilled
By His calming voice of peace and insight,
Assuring all of His exaltation through a people's delight.

Grace

(Dedicated to Cypress Grove Intermedite – 5/19/05)
All praise to God for endless grace; no power of earth may dare replace
The beauty of the memories that we’ve all shared alike in these
Short days of teaching near teenagers, the truths of life, it’s joys and dangers,
Our steady song of encouragement; our heart’s desire is that we meant
The things we taught and the lives we brought to demonstrate maturity
To a generation in desperate need of love and honest humility
Exemplified in the Christ who died to free us now to die to pride
To model peace and faith inside a volatile environment, where we
With wonderful astonishment are blessed to learn that one did pass
The test of life, makes joy surpass the countless nights of anxious prayer,
though tears near forced us to despair, we now look back on what was done
And give with thankful hearts the Son our praise for blessed opportunity
His glory our responsibility to uphold and forever proclaim His majesty,
Resulting in His fame.

Go

How wonderful our great God is who bountifully provides us with,
The ones He uses to perfect His perfect image then reflect
The glory of His loving grace and mercy to behold the face
Of He who is our destiny, His presence joyful, wise and free.
So now we look with hope to then when we will with our whole heart pin
His sword into our bosom blessed to know He cleans us through the tests
He puts the faith He’s given through so that it may shine bright and blue,
With purity it’s sure result, and holiness that catapults
Our souls into a place so pure that angels long to find the cureFor the deep hunger more to know the depth of He who now says, “Go!”

Purpose

How wonderful His grace has been, to allow His love to shine to men, deserving not a thing but wrath, receiving such a love no math could ever dare to calculate, the delight of souls His purpose to create an ever-changing image-bearer, forever planned to see and hear the glories of the Lord and share His satisfying love with those among the nations whom He chose to shed His blood and forever seal their eternal happiness in He so real that insane must be the only description of the thought that through any other, one may find redemption!

I'm now a blogger

In attempt to keep my friends and family updated on the events, praises and prayer requests of my life, I have decided to join the world of the blog. I pray this will be an effective way for us all to share fellowship, though for some not physically. Please let me know if you have any ideas for more effectively keeping you updated on my life and fight of faith. Thanks!
jason