Covenant Authority On This Earth

Destin-ation Wedding

2008-10-16T14:48:00.000-07:00

We are getting married Nov 8, 2008;
On the beach in Destin FL.
Her name is Amanda.

Romance

2008-01-27T20:48:00.000-08:00

Cupid has struck once again.
My bloglife has been put on hold,
Until further notice when I know
Where my heart is located.
MLS

A Long December

2007-12-11T20:37:00.000-08:00

It's already been a long December
And there is reason to believe
Maybe this year will be better than the last.

You can't remember all the times
You've tried to tell yourself to
Hold on to these moments as they pass.

I guess the winter makes you laugh a little slower
It makes you talk a little lower, about the things
About the things we wouldn't know but

It's back to Louisiana next week to see
Friends in my high school senior class
A blast from the past, the last time I saw them,
I threw my cap in the air and said see ya!

Ten years later now, and ...
Yes, His mercy endures forever.

On The Advent, Politically Speaking

2007-11-25T19:37:00.000-08:00

A body politick or society
Historically is generated from a revolt of the people,
Conquest of a national army or tribe,
Or a covenanting of people and rulers.

Submission of all men to God's written constitution,
The Holy Scriptures governing all of society,
Makes for a peacable way of life for men,
Jesus is the Prince of Peace.

Christ Jesus is the Mediator of the Covenant,
Society covenanting in Him to be faithful.

2007 AD will be 2008 AD in a month or so...
And for the last two millenia,
Humankind has been transformed!

The advent of the God-Man in the womb of Mary,
Conceived by the Holy Ghost, is the
Most important political event in history.

All of time is centered around Christ for this reason.
Joy to the world, the Lord has come!

Pressing the Crown Rights!

2007-11-15T17:50:00.000-08:00

Congressman Broun is confessing faith in Christ,
On the floor of the US House of Representatives!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUKnAaPvyNo

Who said that Christ is not extending Himself?
He is building His Kingdom, here and now!

"Give me Liberty or give me Death!"
Says Patrick Henry.

Apostle Paul says to the Galatians,
"It was for freedom that Christ set you free.
Standfast, therefore, and do not again become
Subject to a yoke of slavery!"

Washington DC

2007-11-06T21:28:00.000-08:00

I ate dinner with the staff tonight
At a Mexican Diner in DC... with our Congressman.
It was nice to meet the DC staffers face to face
For the first time ever! Great folks....

For the next three days I will be
Taking classes, learning the ropes,
Touring the Capitol and the White House.

In my wildest dreams, I never thought...
Actually I have always dreamed of this.

Myself as an assistant to a God-fearing man,
In the halls of US Congress, learning how to
Lead the people on this land...through service.

Utilizing the tools of dominion;
And seeking to be right, just, and fair.
I think of "With Libery and Justice for All."

Double or Nothing

2007-10-02T11:38:00.000-07:00

It was a friendly wager without wages,
That's what he thought anyway.

He placed before me a proposition that
It is impossible for me to know what I know.
Epistemology was on the table with high stakes.

Holding my presuppositional cards close to my chest,
We discoursed through philosophical thinkers
Thinking that there was some kind of answer
An answer that just can't be had, he said.

I asked him if he knew for sure that it can't be had.
He looked a bit perplex, as he...
Expressed certainty that certainty is unavailable.

It were as if I laid down a royal flush and all he had,
He had noting but a pair of deuces!

The moment happened when I stated to him that
The Creator who knows all things about creation
Proposes in Scripture that He reveals to His own.
That God speaks to us covenantally in His Word.

He went all in, and then realized that his answer
Dogmatically proposing that there is no true dogma,
Is simple and foolish, void of episteme.

Congenially, I began postulating,
"You admit you have nothing.
God declares He has everything.
Let's start over again with God's Word,
And let's go in together, Double or Nothing."

I then called upon him to confess faith in Christ.
He then said, "Ok, I love Jesus."
Now he needs to be discipled to wager truth.

"The wages of sin is death, but
The gift of God is eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord." -Romans 6:23

Aroma's at Five Points in Athens.

Vanity of Vanities

2007-09-24T19:34:00.000-07:00

Pastor Hal Farnsworth preached on Ecclesiastes
This last Sunday, and it really hit home.

Taking every thought captive to make it
Obedient to Christ is NOT just the name of
Richard Pratt's handbook for Christian apologetics.

Every moment of life that slips away so quickly
Cannot be regained, but is lost forever in the
Shifting and sinking sands of time as we are
Wasting away and forever forgotten by the rest;
Except that our purpose be connected by God
In Christ who is the beginning and end of time.

The middle times are timely placed by Himself.
And if we are in covenant joined to Jesus...
We are joined to the protagonist of all time.
Time belongs to Him, and we are joint heirs.

"So teach us to number our days,
Let us gain hearts of wisdom.
May your favor rest upon us, and
Show your glory to our children,
Oh Lord, you have been our dwelling place
Through all generations, before the mountains
Were formed, you are our dwelling place."
-Judy Rogers, Never Be Shaken

Incarceration

2007-09-21T19:29:00.000-07:00

"Is incarceration a just penalty for crime?"
When I was in sixth grade, I studied this,
Actually, I did a social studies project on this.

Rubin "Hurricane" Carter is a character in a movie
It was on TV a few minutes ago, and I saw
That he was falsely accused of murder, and convicted.

I know of two people in jail right now,
Young men who I have been close to.
I haven't written either one of them,
And I really should. A letter is gold-plated in jail.

It is like getting a new car or something.
It is a feeling of excitement and jubilance.
Interesting, how only a few moments of my time
Are appreciated so greatly by these humans who
Though created in the image of God, are depreciated
And treated as worth less than animals and plant life.

It is truly disgusting!

Follow Up

2007-09-17T20:54:00.000-07:00

In the post, "Secular Gov't", I described a conversation.
We spoke again today along the same lines, and
I asked him for his thoughts on "Legislating Morality."
"Hog-wash," he replied. He followed up with,
"Every legislator makes laws
Based on what is right and wrong."

"The main issue is authority.
One either submits to the authority of Scripture,
Or they lean on their own understanding.
It is as simple as that," he finished.

I am honored to serve a man dedicated to faithfulness.
MLS

On Creation And Providence

2007-09-11T19:20:00.000-07:00

The cohesion of substance is constant,
Yet all tings are in flux, fluctuating on purpose.
Even the allergy season comes regularly,
Tylenol Cold and Flu are displayed in front
Of cash registers everywhere today.

The order is consistent, so is the disorder.
The reason behind all of this is beyond us.
Who can say where this order comes from?
Who would be so arrogant as to make imposition?

Creator alone can make propositional truth,
He declares Himself to be the author of all time.
He says that all space and time are held together
By Himself and for His own reasons.

He reveals these reasons to whomever he chooses.
But if you ask Him, He will show you.
Go on now, try it!

A Secular Government

2007-09-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

I was driving with my boss today,
And he let me know that my position is
Working for a secular government...
The US Congress.

Catching my breath,
I don't know what to say.
Am I supposed to sit quietly,
Or is there an answer that is fitting?

I asked "What do you mean?"
...To be continued...

10th Disrict Congressman

2007-09-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

To listen to the audio...
Taking the Oath of Office, by Swearing
On the Bible, So help me God!

Click on the title of this post. ;)

The Election

2007-09-05T20:14:00.000-07:00

The most important thing to ever happen,
The turning point in History for anyone,
The axis on which all of History rotates,
Is not the vote cast at the polling place.

Rather, the life given on the cross by our
Lord Jesus Christ purchasing souls and
The salvation of the whole world!

BC and AD revolve around Jesus Christ.
He has accomplished that which matters,
He alone directs the course of human events.
He alone is Sovereign, King of Kings indeed!

The election of the saints to salvation was His.
He chose before the foundations of the world
Those He would redeem for Himself.
He purchased us in time and space. Period.

Alas, the hope for social justice rests by faith
In the power of the Living God, in Him alone;
For who can reverse the Babel of selfishness?
We need the God-Man, we need Jesus the Christ.
Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus!

Federal Fidelity

2007-08-28T13:27:00.000-07:00

The US Federal Government has a beautiful name.
The root of which in Latin means covenant.

It was a beautiful thing to stand in Nancy Pelosi's office and
Watch her ask Paul Broun to place his hand on the Bible.
To hear her say, "The one who holds the Bible is the one we trust."
That the oath of office is what makes Dr. Broun a congressman.

Entering into covenant with God
Is what makes the government in America great
It makes Americans free from tyrrany.

Alas it is broken covenant with God
Infidelity and unfaithfulness that brings the people into bondage.

Oh, let us pray for our leaders that they would have fidelity
To the One to Whom they swear oath of office.

The Ancient Paths

2007-07-30T18:46:00.000-07:00

Etymologically, "conservative" could mean
Just about anything other than liberal....

Men and women of principle,
Standing on the foundations,
On the shoulders of our founding fathers.

Unafraid of new changes to usher in
New methods of civil government...
Methods that are as old as the hills,
Indeed, the ancient paths!

The Rulers of This Earth

2007-06-20T10:12:00.000-07:00

The election was held yesterday...
The results came in last night.
We were tied for second with a Dem.
At 21.5% each, we were 3 votes behind,
With 92% reporting haven voted.

Paul pulled ahead with 187 votes at the end
Entering into a runoff with the front runner
Of the Republican Party, Jim Whitehead.

Go to paulbroun.com for details.
And we need money, too!

David's Wedding Day

2007-06-14T08:18:00.000-07:00

So... we went golfing that morning.

Amber called David once and I said...

Tell her you are busy golfing with us!

He said something else like I love you.

It was a beautiful day.

And a beautiful wedding!

My New Sister, Amber

2007-06-11T10:31:00.000-07:00

Diana's best friend, and

My new sister...

I love this girl, Amber!

The Sign Guy

2007-05-18T09:18:00.000-07:00

Augusta

State

University

Toe Jam Removal

2007-05-08T11:59:00.000-07:00

I jammed my toe and it turned blue for a week.
Then I noticed it turning yellow, and it
Began to smell bad, signs of infection.
I had to tear it off, view the link above at...
Toe Jam Removal!

Self Defense...Offensive?

2007-05-05T06:58:00.000-07:00

If someone is stealing on your property,
And it is late at night, can you shoot to kill?
Yes, in GA you can... watch it on the news!
http://spaceygreview.blogspot.com/2007/05/hunting-humans.html

Craziness...
What does Hebraic case law teach here?
Hmmmmm....

I Love Mama

2007-05-02T06:47:00.000-07:00

For all the times she held me
As I screamed at the top of my lungs for

Cuts, gashes, bruises, and broken bones....

Diligently disciplining us, and

For her patience with the paddle
The rod, the switch, and the belt.

For the tears that she has shed

Over the years crying out to God

For the hearts of her children to love Him.

For the fight that she had chosen to fight

When she was much younger than I am now.

Yeah she was teaching me Bible verses when

She was my age. I was like 6 yrs old or so.

I'm thankful for all of this.

Most especially for her quote...

As we walk to the schoolbus,

"Don't forget about the Lord!"

Godless Education

2007-04-30T22:14:00.000-07:00

Click on the title of this post and
See the impact of Secularism...
Right here in America!

Athenian Glory

2007-04-27T13:07:00.000-07:00

Plato's Academy in Athens over 2400 yrs ago
Taught the Athenians loyalty to the state
In Plato: The Republic,
One of the most influential political treatises
On American political thought in the 21st century.

Under the Arches there are aggressive
Pacifists holding signs of anti-war,
"Bring the soldiers home"
Such desires are genuine and sincere.
The activists glory in their position.

One states the cause of the war
Is American Pride, or nationalism...
Another may point to the object of faith,
Uncle Sam himself is glorified in protecting us.
Yet another blames the officials in charge.

Meanwhile, in the halls of Athens, Georgia...
The glory of man is chief end of academia.

Glory, glory to old Georgia!
Glory, glory to old Georgia!
Glory, Glory to old Georgia!
Oh Georgia, hail to Thee!

War and rumors of war prophetically rise
When education of the populus forgets to remember
The Prince of Peace, King Jesus!

Federal or Confederate?

2007-04-26T21:23:00.000-07:00

Latin Foedus, Foederis means covenant.
Federal or confederal, either way...
America is in a covenant structure
Of civil polity.

Bedside Baptists

2007-04-22T19:39:00.000-07:00

I asked a friend of mine today where
He and his girlfriend worship in Athens, GA.

"We are Bedside Baptists," he said with a smile.
They continued to explain that they haven't found
A good church yet... so they don't go to church.

This refusal to worship God
Is the most destructive of all

The private worship of God is important,
But when the public worship of God ceases...

There will be another form of worship introduced
And it will be accompanied by tyranny and slavery.

Beloved, do not grow weary in your well doing,
For in due time, you will reap your reward, if you do not faint!

Belong to a local Bible-believing and evangelical church
My dear friends, or you will fall off the wagon!

Grace and peace.

The Death of Freedom

2007-04-04T22:16:00.000-07:00

It was the best of times,
It was the worst of times.

The worst of times as Americans
Had forgotten the defintion of liberty.

The best of times because a few...
Lift their heads in humility before God
And plead with the people to return
To Christian Freedom.

Fighting for the cause with the
Weapons of our warfare...spiritually
The experience of hope in Christ
For this land is beautiful.

Beautiful, the spring air we breathe
Beautiful, the amber waves of grain
Canopied by spacious skies painting
The purple mountains' majesty
Above the fruited plain....

Cursed is this land with tyranny
If we forget Him who blessed.
Him who died for us on this land.
That His blood purchased for us freedom.

It was the best of times,
It was the worst of times.

Gal 5:1 "It was for freedom
That Christ set you free.
Standfast therefore and do not again
Become subject to a yoke of slavery."

I Should've Been a Cowboy

2007-03-29T14:15:00.000-07:00

Click on the title of this blog
To hear me sing. :)

Postmodern Honesty

2007-03-28T13:29:00.000-07:00

Modernism and his son...
Postmodernism are a bump/set
For the Gospel to Spike.

As modernism is honestly
In the quest for meaning to life:
Allowing the meaning of the whole
To be determined by self, (part of the whole).
And that part is self defining though without
Knowledge of the many parts of the whole...
Leaning on your own understanding, I say.

Postmodernism is even more honest:
Self is without warrant in defining the whole.
That self has no epistemic authority to speak
To matters of the whole, or matters of the parts.
Therefore self is silent, and the whole is undefined
Words from individuals are therefore without meaning
For the sake of being consistent,
Say the postmodernists....
(Sacrificing the individual for the sake
Of the many) social tyranny!

Gospel spike: Um...yeah actually.
Don't lean on your own understanding
Could'a told you that before!!!
Ur consistently inconsistent
Using words to describe ur position...
If words do not have true meaning,
Postmodernly speaking....

Instead trust in the Lord with all your heart.
He has created the many parts of the whole.
He has created the whole, is outside of it,
And has come inside of it incarnationally...
Christ Jesus is the epistemic solution!!!!
Solution to all your problems, ya know?
One and the many, problem of evil, pain and suffering....
He speaks with authority to all of His own creation.

By taking every thought captive
Obedient to Christ...(Thanks Pratt)
By Thinking God's thoughts after Him,
(thanks Van Til)
Epistemological Self-Consciousness is
Applied by the Holy Spirit to the creature
Only possible by the Creator's authority.
(Christ sacrificed for the sake of the many.)

Experience that knowledge of Him
While you are on earth...
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
And thou shalt be saved,
And your household!
Boo-Ya!

Seeker Friendly

2007-03-23T21:43:00.000-07:00

Driving through the countryside,
I realized I needed the ATM

Atonement, Truth, Mercy.

Its All Political

2007-03-21T22:08:00.000-07:00

My best friends know me best
When I say these three words.

It means that Christ Jesus who reigns
Has all power and authority in heaven and
On earth...where we are.

This is the Gospel applied to all of life.
All experience saturated with His power!

Anti-Christians cringe at this statement;
But the kingdoms of this earth will be
The Kingdom of our God who reigns forever!

He is making His enemies His footstool, even now.
Not only with the physical elements is He
Destroying pagan society, cult and culture.

Even greater, the Holy Spirit is enlightening the
Hearts of men with saving faith that externalizes
In moral and ethical conformity to His Word.

A blessed union of souls is the Church of Christ.
Unstoppable is their leader, Jesus...
Unstoppable their cause, the Great Commission.

The gates of hell shall not prevail against the church
As we march forward into time following Him.

Remember the hymns of old...
Conquering now and still to conquer
Rideth the King in His might
Leading the host of all the faithful
Into the midst of the fight
See them with courage advancing
Clad in their brilliant array
Shouting the name of their Leader
Hear them exaltingly say
"Not to the strong is the battle,
Not to the swift is the race;
But to the true and the faithful,
Victory is promised through grace."

Everything we ever do...
It's all political.

No Valentine

2007-02-14T15:20:00.000-08:00

I'd say I'm better off now.
No woman, no cry...!

It's been cold the last couple of weeks,
But not nearly as cold as the months
Before, when I did everything I could
Intentionally think of to keep her...

And did everything I could
Unintentionally to lose her.

"You've got to get yourself together
You got stuck in the middle and
You can't get out of it...."

It's pretty much what happened then
And now, I see providence released me
When she dumped me for being "immature."

I don't believe in Valentines Day anyway....
But then again, I'm not very normal!

I need to move on, and become a man who
Can show husbandry and fathering of
Property and dominion first.

Then look for a sweetheart.
God help me!

Real Fireplace

2007-02-05T21:56:00.000-08:00

I built a fire again.
Five nights in a row,
It is so cold out there!

Too, I love watching the
Blue and Green small flame
Dancing about an eighth of an inch
Off the surface of the end of a log,
But the flame never touched the log!

Almost like a Spirit, the flame would disappear
For only a moment then reappear.

Never touching the log the whole time!

She is still on my heart
And I could use the fire
As parabolae for her and us...

But,
I must not look back lest I become
A pillar of salt!

Fire must not carry symbolism of her.

Everything that points to time with her must be
Either deleted or defragged!
No compromises. Period.

Besides, she only ever had
Gas fireplaces.
Which has artificial logs
And fake fires.

Thoughts of Hearth and Home

2007-02-04T10:03:00.000-08:00

It was a long December
And there was reason to believe
Something worth believing in.

I sat by a bonfire
Listening to the left to the left
Everything in a box to the left...
It seemed prophetic, I believe

I believed in it anyway,
I knew better, it would get worse.
And it did, though I can't remember
All the times I tried to tell myself
To hold onto those moments as they
Passed...a long December.

Pouring myself into a lost cause from
The beginning she forgave and forgave

I boasted of covenant thinking
And externalized the opposite

I wasn't ready for a relationship
I told her that at the beginning.
Instead I wound up roped and tied

Until I cut loose, and now I'm
On the run, and I'm screaming at
The top of my lungs
I'm free at last!

Now I sit by the fireplace and
Think of what might have been
Misery for both of us, no doubt.

But the fire is beautiful with
Or without her, beauty is objective
Ugly is too, and my words were ugly.

I should have been true to conviction
First and saved the Lover of my soul
The shame that I bring to His name
When I sacrifice my obedience to Him
For beauty in the eye of the beholder.

Self is my greatest fear, I say.
Selfishness is what drove us apart.

Wild at Heart

2007-01-25T21:18:00.000-08:00

Climbing the trees
Swinging from vines
Scraping his knees
On the bark of the pines.

Sap on his hands
Dirt under his nails
Dirt and sweat smells
Eyes dancing he stands

On his own two feet
On a limb that is weak...
When it cracks he smiles
With that wild-eyed streak

He wanted to be here
He went out on a limb
Chose to leave security
He left everything

To be in this moment of
Disconcert and discomfort

He wanted to die
Living a life on the edge
He wanted to seize every
Moment before it was gone.

He was a happy boy for
He was wild at heart.

The Best of Friends

2007-01-14T19:56:00.000-08:00

The best of friends are
There for you to make you
More like Whose you are!

It is the wounds of love
That cleanse away evil.
...Faithful are the wounds
Of a friend, says Solomon.

Because a true friend is
Concerned about what is most important.

I have a new friend in my life.
She is consistent with blows that hurt
For they cleanse away evil.
With discretion, she calls me out.
She explains my imperfection to me gently.

With mercy and grace...
She reminds me with her actions,
The words of our Lord,
"Be holy for I am holy."

This is what good friends are for.
These kind are the best of friends.

Vintage Wear

2007-01-13T16:07:00.000-08:00

Much can be said for the
Recent effort in fashion,
Old styles have become
The new thing...call it
Vintage Wear.

Is it respect given to
Those who have gone before?

Amidst a revolt against maturity,
One recognizes the beauty
Of elderly wisdom.

Will the grandchildren
Of our Generation X see
Abercrombie's porn as the
Vintage Wear for them?

There is nothing new
Under the sun, speaks
Hebraic Wisdom...

Rather, we must choose
Who we will serve.

Trends come and go, but
May we strive to conform
To the image of Him who
Leads Christendom, yes
Christ Himself!

To be or not to be?

2007-01-11T19:01:00.000-08:00

How to be or how not to be
That's the question.
Aye, there's the rub!

The last four weeks of my
Life is like a whirlwind.

I have started liking this great girl...

First time I parked in her parent's driveway,
A large oil spot appears
Under my truck.

Next time I park down near the road, and a
Cop pulls up behind my
Parked truck to run the tags.

I walk down to the road
Talk to the friendly cop
And see I have a flat tire.

Her parents put me up in
The guest room for the night, and
I left a brown Christmas gift in
The toilet for her mother
To find 3 days later! Oops...

The story gets worse and worse!

More tears, heartache, and laughing
Until it hurts my stomach.

I'm learning how to be and
How not to be.

Beauty Defined

2007-01-08T16:38:00.000-08:00

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."
Ah, widely accepted deconstruction of
The meaning of value in this life!

The modernists and their modern art
Would like to fragment the pieces...

Cognition alone is good enough now,
Away with the recognition of beauty!
So they say....

However,
Beauty is constant, though vivid.
And, that which is beautiful is real.
Before and after the eye beholds.

Alas,
I am constantly amazed at the effort;
The daring of incorrigible infidels
To place a brand new standard of
Beauty onto a beautiful creation.

Look up! Look around you too!
His oil on His canvas, you will see!
You are His workmanship...sculpture.

Be amazed with Him, stand in awe...
And then see things through His eyes.
Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder!

Blue Collar Art

2007-01-06T16:11:00.000-08:00

That sounds like a
Blue Collar job!

It is truly sad when
A culture despises the
Art of craftsmanship.

When the one who works
With his hands is the one
Who is socially misfit.

The normal people don't know how to
Build, repair, decorate.

Such things are to be done by
Those we don't speak of.
Builders, Repairmen, Decorators.

We pay people to do that,
We don't know how!

Economic danger when
Nobody knows how to bring
Food from the ground, or
Mold the earth constructively.

We can all have a bit of
Blue Collar in our blood
Whether or not we have
A Blue Blood Trust Fund.

Education's Rations

2006-12-27T21:31:00.000-08:00

It was the best of times,
It was the worst of times.

School Choice Vouchers
In the Florida State House.

As homeschoolers wave their little
Bonnie Blue Flag...
The serpent's bruised head hisses

The Messianic nature of America's
Education coils gently like a boa
Constricting the family slowly, with grace.

Giving tax vouchers in education
Creates a free market system, they say
The family chooses the environment and
It will close down the bad schools.

Finally, the government is paying parents
To take the responsibility for the
Education of their own children.

So you got that goin for ya
Which is nice! Except for the fact that
The point is made with education rations
"The state owns all children."

It was the best of times,
It was the worst of times.

Christian Reconstruction

2006-12-20T11:41:00.000-08:00

Does Christ speak in His Word
Authoritatively to everything?

Does He reconstruct our lives
Redeemed by His blood
With power of His Word and Spirit?

What about little decisions like
Which kind of undershirt to wear
Or whether or not to wear socks?

While chapter and verse with
American Eagle vs Banana Republic
Was not included in Hezekiah...

Yet the full counsel of God speaks
Clearly to all of life, even this.

Careful study of Him in His Word
We know what, why, how, and when.

This wisdom, according to Solomon
Is more precious than silver or gold.

I have a friend who is taking time
To share the application of the Word
Showing me things that I need to change.

Though it hurts every time, I know that
It is from God, and that I needed Him
To put her there for my sanctification.

It's all about you, Jesus.

Wide Open Spaces

2006-12-11T22:58:00.000-08:00

She was laughing so hard.
She cried, several times.

Tears streaming down
Her face, numb from crisp
December pasture 4wheelin
Air making her cry...

Air does make her cry!
Horses make her cry too,
The allergy medicine

And my jokes
Now she chokes
Again she cries.
While laughing she cries.

A loved one lost
She remembers and cries.
We hug. She smiles.

Sheds one last tear in
Big pretty blue eyes,

She needed
Wide open spaces
Room to make her
Big mistakes
She needed new faces
She knows there's
Higher stakes.

And,she knew John Calvin
Before I came to Georgia.
She's a young life girl!
Comment on that!

Dade County

2006-12-08T23:05:00.001-08:00

After spending the beginning of the week with my dad and my sister in Destin, I am now in the northwest corner of Georgia where things are still the way they used to be. A small town community of families and churches that puts priority on God and Country in that order, Trenton is a corner of the world where folks encourage each other with prayer and hard work together in effort to live on the land before the face of God in freedom...with liberty and justice for all!

Just do it!

2006-12-03T20:44:00.000-08:00

Dr. George Grant used to encourage
The Bannockburn Fellowship
With the words, Just Do It!

Though Nike has chosen to wear it on
Their sleeves and they wear it everywhere...

The idea of being only a preacher;
The idea of not doing godly things
Because they would be distractions
From preparation/study for the ministry...
Say what?

I'd rather just do it,
And never be a preacher.

For a preacher who just doesn't do it
Is not worth his salt, he leads astray.
If he has not love, he's a noisy gong....
No matter his elocution and oration.

John Bailey Adger agrees, I'm sure.
More importantly, Jesus commands.

Resting in Providence

2006-11-30T16:52:00.000-08:00

It was a befuddling week.
Today Pastor Morecraft recommends
I ask presbytery to drop me
From being under care
So that I can get financially stable
Before pursuing study for the ministry.

Cornerstone Bancard's Sales Manager
Cussed me out for not getting accounts.
He told me that I might need to
Find something else to do.

My interest in one young lady
Was shot down earlier this week.

I have $2.35 to my name at this point!
But I am finally out of debt.
With a very big question mark as to
What's next in my life...

I'm thankful she doesn't like me.
I'm thankful Pastor understands.
I'm thankful I'm out of debt, though uncomfortably.
I'm thankful I got cussed out.

Bless the Lord oh my soul praise ye the Lord.
Praise ye the Lord.

Now I look to Him again for direction
I rest in Him and His providence.
I thank him even now, for now
I see my need for Him more than ever.

Compleat Mom

2006-11-28T19:27:00.000-08:00

Is that you Mrs Beisner?

I'll never forget your Christian Charity.
I try to pry the wisdom from your husband.
He is an excellent seminary professor.

I miss the evening prayers on Lord's Day
The veritas of the preaching by Pastor
The love for evangelism and orthodoxy.

The excitement on Christmas Eve.
When all through the house, nothing but
Rejection and dejection for Matt Stout.
The next day I took photos and you were
Not happy, I still have that one, want it?

It seems I always get in way over my head.
Even when my intentions are well and good.

I'm trying to grow up...
Trying to settle down.
Now its up in the air
And not even off the ground.

Just got rejected again today.
Chalk it up as another failure.

If something's worth doing,
It's worth doing right.
If something's worth doing right,
It's worth failing at.

My problem is I keep doing it wrong.
And can't quite figure out how and why.
But I do love every minute of it.
And chuckle under my breath,
During intermission.

Ministering to the Crack Cocaine Addict

2006-10-12T18:43:00.000-07:00

Some define a preparation for the ministry, "Reading Systematic Theology, learning Biblical Languages, and gaining a comprehensive understanding of 2000 years of church history."

A young man who is addicted to crack cocaine was crossing the exit ramp from I-24 onto Rossville Blvd 4 weeks ago. He asked me for a ride, but I had just barely enough time to finish my tasks for the day and then complete my homework for seminary classes. So I considered for a minute that perhaps I should reject him so that I can become prepared to minister the Gospel which is the power unto salvation.

Instead I impulsively said, "Jump in the back of the truck and how far do you need to go?" As I dropped him off (less than a hundred yards from where I picked him up), he told me that he had stolen a bag of pork chops that he was carrying because he was so hungry. He didn't have a job currently, and none of the restaurants would give him free food.

Off to Ryan's Steakhouse we went, stopping at Bi Lo so that he could return the stolen goods. I asked the Lord's blessing and thanked Him for his sovereign grace before we ate. Afterward, I drove Shawn to the motel where he had a weekly stay, and handed him a ChickTrack which presents the Gospel kindasorta. I explained to Him the crown rights of King Jesus. He looked at me eagerly and said, "I need prayer, dog. Fo-sho I need prayer. Man, I won't make it through if I don't get prayer."

He agreed to hear the faithful preaching and teaching of the Word at First Presbyterian Church, Ft. Oglethorpe the next morning, so I carried him to church. We asked the elders and deacons to pray for him following the service and they agreed. Shawn has ceased any form of drug use over the last 4 weeks.

He called this last Saturday and asked me to take him to church; so I drove to Knoxville to pick him up from his mother's house, and he rode with me to Chalcedon Presbyterian Church Sunday morning to hear Pastor Morecraft preaching from Isaiah...Pastor Morecraft prayed for Shawn directly following the service. We ate lunch at the church and at the Minkoff's (2 huge meals) and then I drove Shawn back to Knoxville Sunday evening.

Where is Shawn today? I don't know. Tomorrow? Your guess is as good as mine.

I don't know everything about everything, and neither will I. It's not my job. However, I know the One who does know everything about everything, and I listen to His voice alone. The Lord knows Shawn and everything about the evil surrounding him. I yield to God and pour out my heart in supplication to the Author and Finisher of our faith. He gives me peace as I do what I do.

He alone is calling me to study for the ministry,
He alone completely understands Systematic Theology,
He alone breathes the meaning of the original Greek and Hebrew texts,
He alone knows exactly what happened in church history, how and why.

I don't really know very much of anything,
On this side of the River Jordan I only see in part.

But ministry is a general calling to all who believe,
For if we have not love we are a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

I need to study Reformation Theology now...
Keep lovin Jesus, man.

INTOLERANCE

2006-09-24T19:09:00.000-07:00

John Steiner and (Ben) Barlow Jacobs set fire to my hat because it had the word Rebel on the front of it. they felt like it was a hate symbol, and asked me not to wear it. I said "No problem, the hat was given to me...I'll give it to you and you can do what you want with it." With great fury they quickly torched the hat in a display of hatred for the Old South.

2006-09-23T20:11:00.000-07:00

He Leadeth Me Beside The Still Waters

Knowledge of God's Loving Hand

2006-09-23T19:16:00.000-07:00

"Embark upon a ship, you are one step away from death. Mount a horse, if one foot slips, your life is imperiled. Go through the city streets, you are subject to as many dangers as there are tiles on the roofs. If there is a weapon in your hand or a friend's, harm awaits. All the fierce animals you see are armed for your destruction.... Your house, continually in danger of fire, threatens in the daytime to impoverish you, at night even to collapse on you. Your field, since it is exposed to hail, frost, drought, and other calamities, threatens you sith barrenness, and hence, famine. I pass over poisonings, ambushes, robberies, open violence, which in part besiege us at home, in part dog us abroad. Amid these tribulations must not man be most miserable, since, but half alive in life, he weakly draws his anxious and languid breath, as if he had a sword perpetually hanging over his neck?"

John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion: Book One, Chapter XVII, Section Ten, Without Certainty About God's Providence, Life Would Be Unbearable

Thou Preparest a Table Before Me

2006-09-23T18:55:00.000-07:00

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. Psalm 23:5,6

Early America

2006-09-13T12:36:00.000-07:00

The Mayflower Compact
1620

"In the name of God, Amen. We, whose names are underwritten, the Loyal Subjects of our dread Sovereign Lord, King James, by the Grace of God, of England, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, e&.

Having undertaken for the Glory of God, and Advancement of the Christian Faith, and the Honour of our King and Country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia; do by these presents, solemnly and mutually in the Presence of God and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil Body Politick, for our better Ordering and Preservation, and Furtherance of the Ends aforesaid; And by Virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame, such just and equal Laws, Ordinances, Acts, Constitutions and Offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the General good of the Colony; unto which we promise all due submission and obedience.

In Witness whereof we have hereunto subscribed our names at Cape Cod the eleventh of November, in the Reign of our Sovereign Lord, King James of England, France and Ireland, the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth. Anno Domini, 1620."

Aristotle "The Theory of the Household"

2006-09-11T18:35:00.000-07:00

"The village according to the most natural account seems to be a colony from a household, formed of those whom people speak of as, 'fellow nurslings,' sons and son's sons. It is owing to this that our cities were at first under royal sway, and that foreign races are so still, because they were made up of parts that were under royal rule; for every household is under the royal rule of its eldest member, so that the colonies from the household were so too, because of the kinship of their members. And this is what Homer means: And each one giveth law, To sons and eke to spouses-- for his Cyclopes lived in scattered families, and that is the way people used to live in earlier times." -- Aristotle (the first paedo communionist)

Preparation For Ministry

2006-09-04T19:11:00.000-07:00

They say that I am called to the ministry.
They say that I'm supposed to be a preacher.
They say that if I don't get aggressive with my studies that it won't happen.
"Time isn't going to wait for you, you're not getting any younger."

Who has called me to the office of minister of the gospel?
Who walks with me and talks with me, along lifes narrow ways?
He lives, He lives! You ask me how I know He lives.
He lives within my heart.

--ML Stout

My Sister Elizabeth

2006-08-26T20:05:00.000-07:00

My sis traveled to England to be with her pregnant best frien, Jessica Linn. Elizabeth is having a blast, spending her spending money and earning a little when she feels like it. She is taking after her brother Matthew and becoming a World Traveler. I love my baby sis.

Campaign Manager

2006-08-25T22:00:00.000-07:00

A State Representative for Georgia hired me to be his campaign manager in the summer of 2004 when he was elected for the first time. Now we are hot on the campaign trail again, as his Democrat opposition has decided to run again. Last time he beat her 69% to 31%. We hope to get more than 70% this time. She is losing support even from the Democrat party as she makes inhumane humanistic statements publicly. She attacks the very heart of liberty with liberal sociology and political dogma; so that she is making it very easy for us to beat her like a drum as the Lord chooses to bless.

My preacher

2006-08-18T08:30:00.000-07:00

Joe Morecraft is the preacher at Chalcedon Presbyterian Church.
For anyone who wants to listen to his sermons...
They ring true with the accuracy and faithfulness of the Reformation.

Magic Carpet Ride

2006-07-11T10:22:00.001-07:00

Alladin's music is a-musing,
Insofar as the message has no muse--a bard relaying understanding through song.

The idea of a thing containing power permeates the western cannon of epic literature.
Gilgamesh and the quest for that shrubbery of eternal life,
Midas and his manipulation of the elements via touch,
The list of ontological whoopee cushions goes on endlessly.

Treasure that gives power to change the stuff of life...for self.
Of course, supernatural power over the natural is desirable to humanity.
These stories and myths of journey away from home are all amusing and fun to read.

Except the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
When the invisible and immutable God of creation incarnated,
The promises of the Holy Covenant were realized in Himself.

They still are realized by the people who are changed from above,
As we are joint heirs in Christ to all of the covenant promises.
We are born from above, or adopted into the family of God and called...
Sons of God. Behold what a manner of love.

Speaking of love, it is in the covenant of marriage that power is manifested.
A magic carpet ride? No. Instead, much much more.

Not the futile efforts of the self to create life from nothing,
He promises to bestow everything into a life of self-less-ness.
All that the family needs and more is provided by the Head of the household,
The Lord Jesus Christ Himself, for He has covenanted with those who vow to Him.

He promises in so many words, "I can show you the world, take you wonder by wonder...."
He defines all of life with the meaning of it in His Word, revealed by the Holy Spirit.
Dazzling them with the beauty of His space and time in ways that they could never imagine.

Lo children are an inheritance from the Lord, happy is the man with His quiver full of them.
The two become oneflesh, and the oneflesh (little baby) grows in stature,
In favor with God and man, as did the Lord Jesus Himself.
Experientially, every moment of family living is like a miracle. It's sacred.

Words that we say can't describe the experience that His Word and Spirit supply.
Instead, hugs and kisses...actions of praise and adoration, reactions of mercy and grace.
See my family.

For my God shall supply all of my needs according to His riches and glory in Christ Jesus.
The Christian family is an institution of Him and He ordains all of the means to His end.

Outside of Him there is nothing to wish for, nothing to be anxious for.
It becomes day to day meaningful conversation about the weather.
It's just over and over again, experiencing Him in us, and His for us.
We catch ourselves blurting out ecstatically little snippits of His Psalms.

Ecstasy. Though we have discomfort at times, as each struggles with mortality.
Ecstasy. Though a struggle with self, sin and pride.
Ecstasy still, on the epic journey, for we always are at the comfort of Home in Him.

How to be where you are

2006-07-04T21:39:00.000-07:00

It's July 4th in Phoenix, AZ, 100 degrees.
Fireworks are popping around Justus and me,
As we sweep up the dust that is left on the floor
Of a 12x15 shed that we converted into an office.

We have been here much longer than we should have.
And then I remember, that I am supposed to be where I am.
As if that is so difficult. Why can't I just do it?
So often we spend our desire on that which is not.

And that which is...is gone in the twinkling of an eye.
Our lives are then over, and it is as if we never even began.

And then I got a phone call from a friend who is not my girlfriend,
I wanted so badly for her to call me, three weeks ago.
Today, I let her go to voice mail. I am learning to be without her...
Because I am without her, regarding space and time.

Lord's teaching me how to be His creature.
Lord's bending my will to say to Him, "You make the call."
I'm learning to be exhilarated when I see His will done.
Which makes for an exciting life when you believe that His will can not be thwarted.

"Inch by inch. Ya gotta remember we're running cross country, not a wind sprint." --Marc Stout

America the Beautiful

2006-06-29T00:38:00.000-07:00

I'm so thankful for the One who died for us
So that we could have the freedom in this land.
"Freedom don't come free," but it's not the American soldier
Who purchased this land by fighting for it.

It's not North Americans, South Americans, or Central Americans.
We Americans are recipients of the grace God has blessed America with.

But it's the moment that we think to ourselves
That more bloodshed will purchase more freedom.
That's when we depreciate the blood of Christ
Arrogance convinces us that we can add to His work.

"It is finished." We can't stop His powerful hand.
He rules the world with truth and grace and makes the nations prove.
This nation for instance proves the glories of His righteousness,
As we are founded in covenant with Him and bound to legislate in accord with His Word.

We've got more freedom and blessing than any other nation...because of that.
And wonders of his love and wonders of His love and wo-o-0-o-0-onders of His love.

Courting nor Dating

2006-06-27T12:53:00.000-07:00

Daddy's little girl has the protection of her papa bear,
Meanwhile she is learning to spread her wings to leave the nest.
It was meant to be that she would have her own nest,
Lay her own eggs, sing her own songs, and bicker with her own husband.

The problem is that there are boys.
If all the girl needed is another girl, this task would be easy.
But instead, there are boys. Boys are dirty, sloppy, cocky,
And they are completely unable to provide for a family.

And then there are men. With a deep understanding of life,
With a desire to sacrifice himself as did Christ, this man
Is listening to the voice of God in his vocation,
And living every moment to appreciate the value of the wife God has given him.

But there is herself. The impulsive boyishness that causes her to fear boys,
She sees in herself and she doesn't know if she is as ready for a family as she should be.
So she enjoys the ones who desire her for a moment, and then the moment is gone.
She feels like the homecoming queen for a moment of praise, and then high school is over.

Her papa bear watches as his little girl grows into an old maid,
Time well spent in the high rises to make it to the top,
A little flirting with the men in order to break the glass ceiling,
Time well spent in the club when she was lonely and had to go wild.

She's not a lesbian, she's bisexual without a guy at the moment.
She's a Christian, a member of the United Methodist Church.
She's enjoying every moment, she says to herself...
And that is most important isn't it?

Ontologically speaking...

2006-06-22T14:59:00.000-07:00

Is value in particular stuff of life to be differentiated objectively or by consensus...majority opinion? I dare you to try commenting on this.

Culture--Religion Externalized

2006-06-11T14:35:00.000-07:00

The sermon this morning was from Acts 10.
One of the points was that other cultures offend us,
And that Christianity offends other cultures.
That we shouldn't allow that to get in the way of the Gospel.

However, the way of the Gospel is straight and narrow;
And the physical externalization of the Gospel is consistent.
The culture of Christianity is visibly seen in western Christendom,
(Though we as fallen sinners are frail in our attempts to keep God's law.)

But the moral direction of the Holy Spirit in our lives is pure and holy,
The world's immorality stands in opposition to Him, us, and our lifestyle.
The world's worldview is antithetical to the thesis of Christianity.

Therefore, Christian expression is sacred...set apart.
Everything that we do is heartily unto the Lord,
And therefore has an element of His transcendence moving us to action.
It's an element of beauty that is timeless, yet takes place in time.
Kind of explains why the kingdom of darkness hates us.
And we hate the kingdom of darkness.

Old News

2006-06-10T10:23:00.000-07:00

"We teach nothing new here," my pastor likes to say. The Christian faith is a stream of consciousness that is directed by the Holy Spirit of God, and it is a consisitent thought pattern. Consistently repeating the truth of God for thousands of years, the covenant people of God have nothing new to say. It's just over and over again.

Nelly and Tim McGraw had a song that got worn out quickly because the radio stations played it over and over again. Worn out.

For millenia, the Christian people can not get worn out by the Gospel song, as the blood shed by Christ defeated death, and re-united the all powerful Creator of the universe with His people in the person and work of Christ Jesus.

We just keep on singing the same old songs...but we love doing it. In fact, we will be doing it for all of eternity, filled with a heart of adoration and feelings of praise for Him.

Bless the Lord oh my soul praise ye the Lord, and may the sinners all be consumed from the earth. May those that walk in wickedness be no more.
Bless the Lord oh my soul praise ye the Lord. All that is within me, bless his holy name.

My Brother John

2006-06-09T22:25:00.000-07:00

I never did get his last name, but the guy in the orange shirt is John. The Lord used him as an encouragement in many ways while I was in Ft Lauderdale. John is a newborn Christian and loves to share what the Lord is doing in his life, recenetly delivering him from addictions and substance abuse. He is on fire!

By the way, he treated me to a Chai dinner and I had SAKE (pronounced sockey) for the first time, though he didn't drink any alchohol. I love this guy as we share a common faith in Christ.

Hot Sunday!

2006-06-04T22:07:00.000-07:00

116 Degrees in Phoenix, the bank sign read yesterday...Air conditioner would be nice, but the truck doesn't have one.

We worshipped with the Desert Palm Springs PCA folks, and a Greenville Grad preached. I loved the service.

Afterward I met an alumnus of Covenant College, and then went and ate with Ken Kaye and his family.

This evening my Grandaddy and Ginger hosted us in Tuscon, and we witnessed a beautiful sunset. God's artwork changes me...the perfect arrangement of his colors refracting through the dry air with timeless origin, yet experienced in the moments. It's a happy ending to a taste of the eternal rest. It's not a sign, it's significant.

Let's go away for a while...

2006-06-03T12:36:00.000-07:00

Weezer says it well, "Don't bother to pack your bags, or your map, we don't need them where we're going; we're going where the wind is blowing, not knowing where we're going to stay. Holiday, far away, we'll stay...on our Holiday."

My little brother Justus and I left out of Atl on Tuesday at 4:00 pm, and arrived in Phoenix Thursday at 10:00 pm.

We drove for a day and then we took a look at the map. It wasn't until we were halfway across TX on I-20 that we finally decided to cave in and make sure we were headed in the right direction. We are having the time of our lives, in this strange and distant land, where we speak the Word of Truth, though they don't understand on this Holiday....

It's hot in Arizona! Like, extremely hot.

Napoleon Dynamites Church

2006-06-03T12:26:00.000-07:00

Pedro and Kip join with Napoleon for not covenant theology, but rather "Whatever I feel like, gosh!" Lacking the regulative principle of Sola Scriptura to guide worship, the Flippen United Methodists make the church look like a bunch of "Freakin' idiots!"

Miniature Dinosaurs

2006-06-03T12:24:00.000-07:00

In the background, see the 5 foot long iguanas in Miami, FL this past Sunday after church!

Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church

2006-06-03T10:47:00.000-07:00

On the Lord's Day, I worshipped with one of the most famous Reformed Presbyterian preachers of our day.

Dr. D James Kennedy led the worship and preached a powerful sermon pertaining to Memorial Day weekend. The hooligans standing with Dr. Kennedy and me are: Danny on the left, Tony in the back, Travis on the right. Danny and Tony felt like the sermon was too political.

Travis didn't really comment...side note, I found out yesterday that Travis is back in jail as of Thursday night. He was driving Virgil the Bug and he didn't have a license or tags, even though i gave him a bill of sale so that he could make it all legal. He is on probation for grand theft auto back in 2003, this charge of grand theft auto will probably put him away for a while. Inside or outside of the jailhouse, I have conFIDEnce that Travis is going to tell people about Jesus.

With these guys, if it's not one thing ... it's another. Shenannigan after shenannigan, they always need a spiritual diaper changing and milk. They have all just recently begun trusting in the Lord.

Phoenix, Arizona

2006-06-02T00:42:00.000-07:00

The legend of the phoenix includes a riddle describing the life of a man.
What has four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs at night?
Man crawls on all fours as an infant, walks under the sun in maturity, and feebly uses a cane in old age. The phoenix asked this riddle of Oedipus at a turning point in his life; he was in the process of becoming a manly man.

According to Greek oral tradition, Oedipus killed his father as a means to dominion and power; which stands antithetically to the principle of covenant heritage in the Old and New Testament.

Grandpa Jim, Justus, and I are united in Spirit and in Truth. We know Jesus, and share a spiritual peace that passes all understanding. Our fellowship is so sweet, as we sit around the table He has spread for us in the presence of our enemies. Our cups overflow with new wine; surely goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our lives, and we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

I'm currently reading through Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion, a gift to me from Grandpa Jim...a Pentecostal charismatic, definitely not a five point TULIP. But it's about knowing God, according to Calvin. Knowledge is power, when it is from God. True freedom comes from knowing Him and Him crucified. Then the wisdom of men is turned on its head, and we begin sacrificing self for Him, instead of the inhumane way that so naturally comes to Oedipus in his complex quest for the name, Oedipus Rex.

Grandpa Jim, Justus, and I are indicatively kings and princes to our God who will reign forever and ever. God has called us this objectively. He has promised covenant dominion and inheritance to us. Now that we know that for sure, all that we have left to do is spend our time praising God, loving each other and talking about the weather.

Tis so sweet when brothers dwell together in harmony, especially since this is an experience with a completely transcendent God condescending to create harmony in and for us. Soli Deo Gloria! Sola Fide! Sola Gratia! Sola Scriptura!

Victor Patterson

2006-05-15T11:33:00.000-07:00

This man is a friend of mine in Franklin, TN. He lives in a house in historic Frankiln, and it is listed in the national register...whatever that means. He is an antiquarian, as am I...we both like old things; I have shared with him the covenant perspective of all histories, and he has shared with me the his stories of the way things used to be, and might have been if. I praise the Lord that He directed our paths to cross, as Victor is beginning to see all of life in a worldview that is Biblical and Christian...he asked me the day that we met, "Matthew, what is that light that burns so bright from your soul, and how do I get it? I feel like that I'm a bad person, not worthy of this experience that you have with God...is there any way that I can get it?" I said to him, "Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than going to McDonalds makes you a hamburger...but repentance unto faith is a gift...a gift of God, not of yourself lest you should boast. So wait on the Lord patiently, relentlessly crying out to Him for grace. You'll know." I've had several conversations with him since then; we talk about life and death, and that which we can and can't do between now and then. The Lord has put Mr. Victor on my heart regularly with a sense of urgency to pray for his health, physical and spiritual. I expect to see this man doing great things as a soldier of Christ.

Fraternal Relations

2006-05-14T00:28:00.000-07:00

"Tis so sweet when brothers dwell together in harmony"
Daddy used to say it every time us boys would get into a fight and he would have to get out the belt or the rod to spank us! It was kind of a routine thing that we would have to go through, and we could never quite figure out why it meant so much to Daddy. Squabbling, pushing, throwing pinecones at each other...these were things that we did as young boys to establish a kinda organic connection of dominion to the land and each other. Daddy would whistle like a referee into the middle of it and say "Cut it out!" Occasionally there were bare-bottom spankings.

As I am almost over the hill, (I'm 27 yrs old) I am beginning to really treasure the time that I have with my siblings. The time that they spend without me...I really care about that too. I want to know that everyone is ok. I want each of them to know that I feel this way. The moments are going by faster it seems, and we can only try as hard as we can to slow down. But it doesn't work that way. "Teach us to number our days and let us gain hearts of wisdom. May your favor rest upon us, show your glory to our children." I guess that we need to plan on dying, and therefore spend each moment here with a kind of pre-meditated hindsight of our deaths. I suppose that my dad was thinking the same thing when he saw us throwing the green hard pinecones at each other. Perhaps Daddy was overlooking the fact that we were just flippant kids who really didn't have deadly intentions for each other. But I think that Daddy saw something almost prophetic. He saw his own seed growing into olive trees, and he probably was concerned that we didn't think in terms of ontological value determined objectively by the Creator and now revealed epistemologically to us His creatures chosen to be redeemed by blood. The realization of this beauty from the perspective of transcendent revelation into the here and now I get to taste, thanks to Jesus.

It's when I get to go home. It's when I get to hug my brothers and kiss my Mama and Sister. It's when I eat at a table that He has prepared for me in the presence of mine enemies.
It's this taste of heaven that brings tears of joy, knowing that...

Tis so sweet when brothers dwell together in harmony.

Mickey McDaniel

2006-05-12T14:43:00.000-07:00

Mickey McDaniel was probably my best friend in Ft Lauderdale, FL. He is not only a godly man providing for his family (that's Abby and Rosy) as an insurance adjuster, but he also is studying at Knox Theological Seminary under Dr. Beisner.

He fed me when I was hungry; when thirsty, he gave me drink. He also gave me a 94 Ford Ranger when he upgraded to a newer model. One time he directed his wife to buy a stockpile of bachelor edibles from Sam's Club to feed me for a week down there.

Every time I would go over to their mansion, Abbie and Rosie would run up to me and give me a hug...which I needed cuz I was down there away from my family. I would exclaim, "I LOVE Rosita," and "I LOVE Abbita." A great family set out on a journey to find home. Kinda like George Grant's Going Somewhere.

So I thank the McDaniel family for ministering to me physically and spiritually, and for shepherding my new brother Travis to a more steady walk with the Lord.

Ode to Mama

2006-05-12T12:39:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day has been formulated into the tradition of American people because of the influence of the fifth commandment, "Honor thy father and thy mother."

When I look into my mother's eyes,
Battle scars of our spiritual warfare on her soul,
Joy of the Lord her strength, in victory she cries,
"Don't forget about the Lord!"

She makes up no false impressions,
Her face no makeup, true expressions.

Living for Jesus a life that is true,
Striving to please Him in all that I do.
Yeilding allegiance, glad hearted and free;
This is the pathway of blessing for me.
O Jesus Lord and Savior, I give myself to thee,
For Thou in Thine atonement, didst give thyself for me,
I own no other Master, My heart shalt be Thy throne,
My life I will henceforth to live, O Christ for Thee alone.

Mama used to sing this to us at night when tucking us into bed.
She would scratch our backs, and pray for us over and over again.
Lord knows that the Word of God always returns unavoided,
Her teachings of Proverbs have led me to walk as a Christian.

Mothers Day.
Alas, 1 of 365 is significantly in disproportion to that which God reveals to us in His Word.
Always, we are called by His voice to love our mothers.
Always, we are called by Him to respect their wishes.
Always, we are driven by the Holy Spirit to acts of kindness, charity, and obedience.

Travis is now My Brother

2006-05-07T22:49:00.000-07:00

Almighty God's sovereign grace knocked this boy from Miami, Fl down on the ground and he got up off of his face loving God more than anything in the world. Travis used to try as hard as he could every day to "get laid" and he is a convicted felon for a burglary in 2003. He doesn't mind me putting this on the internet because he boasts of how awesome God is to save a guy like himself. Travis has real living faith, and I love to be around him because it is like he is on fire for the Lord. though he is ashamed of his sins, he loves to brag about God and the ways that God is changing him to make him holy. This picture is of a pornography video that he broke over his knee when the Holy Spirit convicted him of lust and evil that was in his life. I kid you not, this guy is on the warpath against sin, and is walking and leaping and praising God. Therefore, God has united Travis to the family of God, and I call him my brother whenever I answer the phone.

$500.00 Lost and Found

2006-05-07T22:08:00.000-07:00

This cashiers check was made out to Chalcedon Presbyterian Church for tithe of $500.00 So there I was in Miami FL, driving along the interstate and I noticed a car on the shoulder and people were getting out of it. An African American male, a Caucasian female and a toddler, none of them had taken a shower in over a week, I'm sure of it. They needed to change a flat tire, but they didn't have a tire iron or a spare tire. The tire iron for Virgil the Volkswagen was a perfect fit for their Honda Accord, providentially, but the man asked me if I would drive his wife up the road to the tire store about 3 or 4 exits. Ok, I'll do it. On the way back, this 345 pound (I'm guessing) woman is sweating like crazy in the front passenger seat of the Volkswagen, and I have no A/C. So I open the glove compartment because air blows through there like crazy (it has a hole in it), and actually the smell of gas comes with the air because of the leaky gas tank...but anyway, this $500 cashiers check blew out of the glove box and out the passenger window. The lady had recommended that I put the check in the glove box to keep it from flying out the window. So she knew the seriousness of the lost cashiers check. She screamed and yelled at me to stop the car. I calmly looked at her and said...Hey lady, the check is God's tithe. He in His providence caused it to fly out the window. He knows exactly where it is right now, and if He wants me to find it and take it to the church, then He will show me where it is. So I drove back to where I basically remembered it blowing out, and as soon as I got out of the car, there is the money in the grass on the side of the interstate. So I started singing praises. I'm glad that I don't owe God that $500 anymore. Whew, close call!

Dominion Over The Earth

2006-05-07T21:58:00.000-07:00

Ok, I wanna know who put these crazy jokers in charge of the landscaping and groundskeeping at DCHS. Next thing you know their going to give David and Luke a security badge, uniform, and a bullet in their pocket!

I can just see it...David and Luke have the full time job of making sure every student's uniform is in keeping with the dress code.

The Stout Family

2006-05-07T19:14:00.000-07:00

Left to right, Micah is my older brother with his knee up in the air because ants are biting him and he is holding his daughter Ja'el. Elijah is barefoot and wearing a blue shirt next to Micah and he is not aware of the ants yet. Esther is aware of the ants, but is Micah's oldest and is trying to encourage everyone to cooperate until the pictures have been taken. Noah is trying to get down on the ground, as Candace...Micah's godly Proverbs 31 type of woman...begins to set him down. Candace is trying to figure out why Noah wants to get on the ground when ants are everywhere. That's Micah's family, they keep on going out west to California for a year or two. I think that they are trying to get the wagon trail thing to come back in style, they just don't look for gold out there. They are in a quest for Jesus, the only problem is that they find Him everywhere! So they don't ever want to stop. And I believe that they never will stop loving Jesus and training their children up in the way they should go. Their family would make an excellent reality show.

Me hiding behind Candace and prickling everyone with pinestraw to make them think ants are biting them. Justus in the white shirt, thinking that my prickling joke is hilarious...he's always a great sidekick, laughs at all my jokes. Justus loves to pick my brain with a theological pick, and then once he gets me talking, he sits there the whole time with this bewildered look on his face. I guess that I like it when he looks confused for 30 or 45 minutes straight, and finally I get to my point and he then realizes what I meant the whole time. Yeah, I appreciate him doing that for me. I'd say we are kindred spirits because nobody else asks me to start talking, nobody else begs me to talk about theology...everyone else just rolls their eyes when I start in on a breif ontological justification for modernisms existential dilemma. Justus wants to know. I like that.

Daniel and Kelly are newly weds, almost a year ago, but still madly in love with each other. They kind of do their own thing...I never get to talk to them much.

Benjamin is in the dark blue shirt and he always has something up his sleeve, doing all kinds of random acts of kindness and then following it up with some kind of request for me to take him fishing or play basketball or tell him spiritual war stories. He's a great kid, just talks alot.

My Mom and Dad are celebrating 30 years of being wed to one another. You can see that my Dad is content to have her as the "wind beneath his wings" (he always says that about her), and she is still having the time of her life after 30 years, birth to 8 kids, and having to deal with us teenage boys when we "become monsters" (she always says that about us). Yep, she still says to me when I walk out of her house, "Matthew, one more thing...Don't forget about the Lord!"

And then there is David and his girlfriend Amber. She's great, and he is growing leaps and bounds spiritually. He has a kind of peace about him that he definitely didn't have back when he was running with those hooligans. Everyone says that he has been praying and reading the Bible a lot...I think he just rides around on a lawnmower at Dominion for 40 hours a week as the Landscaping Technician. Inhaling the freshly cut grass smell, listening to an i-pod with a berzillion of his favorite songs on it, and several books of the Bible on tape (to drown out the background drone of the riding lawn mower or weed eater) is bound to change anybody. I like to think that David has the best job of anyone in our family, taking dominion over the earth the way that Adam did in the Garden of Eden before the fall. Only difference is that Adam didn't have a weedeater (he didn't need one). I love to watch David growing up and becoming a man. He is going to Kennesaw State and has aspirations to be like Aeschylus or Euripides.

Elizabeth is right next to my mom, and all of her friends are getting married. She is very responsible, working at Bank of America full time and full time student at Kennesaw State. She really loves the Lord in a deep and sincere way that has kept her from even kissing anybody and she is 22 yrs old. I love her to death, I always give her a hug and a kiss on the cheek when I see her, but she hates it when I ask her to scratch my back. Like it's some kind of a chore!

And then there is Luke on the end trying to be funny and different at the same time. Luke has been trying to find himself lately, as we all do at some point in our lives. And I keep telling him...YOU ARE RIGHT HERE! I don't think you could be anywhere else because you are right here right now. He tries to argue with me, but it's no use. I believe in the doctine of being exactly where you are and nobody is going to change that. He says I need to be more open minded. Whatever.

So the Stout family is still going strong after 30 years, walking by faith and not by sight...which is a tough road with many potholes. Straight and narrow, it's painful when one of us stumbles. Painful for all of us, mainly because we love Jesus and His perfect standard of righteousness. We hate to see any of our family struggle with sin...but He is always faithful to carry us when we can't even see straight. Then He sets us back down gently when He is ready to teach us how to walk with Him. The journey is long and hard, but we wouldn't trade the journey for anything. The scenery changes as we go forward into time, but the path remains the same.

Having the time of our lives making the most of every moment, knowing the future lies before me, living today to give God the glory, and I'm having the time of my life, knowing my times are in His hands with the saints who have gone before me, on His word I stand. From Him and through Him and to Him are all things, Soli Deo Gloria.

Par 5, Hole in One

2006-05-07T18:55:00.000-07:00

Ok, not exactly hole in one. My brother Daniel actually hit the golfball so far off the fairway that the golf cart got stuck! Rodney Upton pushed him out. We had a blast, shared spiritual war stories from my adventures in Ft Lauderdale/Miami, and edified one another as we prepare for the ministry, and talked about the excellent illustration of hamartia (sin, missing the mark) because we couldn't hit the ball straight. My brother Daniel counted score, since he is graduating from Kennesaw State with a degree in ac counting/marketing/finance or something like that. Instead of a hole in one, we just got muddy and had a great time...I think that we lost about 45 golfballs into the woods and water that day!

Painting Church's

2006-05-05T18:37:00.000-07:00

Who says that protestants don't know art? With a Graco 1095 paint sprayer, a case of Sherwin Williams 1100A caulk, and a few days in Chicago's ghetto suburbs, watch the externalization of the Christian religion in fine Ruskinian aesthetic extreme makeover.

Backstreet Baller

2006-05-05T18:04:00.000-07:00

I'm in Gary, Indiana right now, and in between pressure washing three Church's Fried Chicken buildings, there were nine brotha's hoopin' it up. I was compelled to stop and show 'em a thing or two. We got two teams of five, and I nearly broke the ankles of the playa' guarding me when I crossed him up...that's me above the rim gettin ready to flush it. As I elevate with dominion over gravity, for a 360 honey-dip, I feel God's pleasure. Kinda like Eric Liddle in Chariot's of Fire. The sun is setting on all of us, but we run the race as hard and as fast as we can, forgetting that which lies behind and stretching forward to the goal, our high calling in Christ Jesus.

One may say that I am on the other side of the tracks just putting another meaningless coat of paint onto old crusty buildings that smell of unhealthy and irresponsible spending of conservative tax dollars. That it is time for the rapture, to get us outta here. I disagree. Now is the time to sacrifice our lives, and invest ontologically into that which is hurt and broken, for we do know the objective promise of return to our investments. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son; that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

Home, Home on the Range

2006-03-14T20:17:00.000-08:00

Oak Grove Cumberland Presbyterian Church, membership/attendance is 11 people!
Charlie Guthrie is the local community's story teller. He loves to say "Used to be..." and "I can remember when...." Charles hasn't been to his local Oak Grove Cumberland Presbyterian Church in about 45 yrs. Until the Lord put me in his life to encourage him. The 15 members of this small church couldn't believe Charlie was back in the church after 45 yrs of leading the moonshining business in south Tennessee!

345 Defur Rd.
Whitwell, TN
37397

This is the rental house on Buntlington Properties, that Mr. Harold rented to me while I was working in Chattanooga. I kind of painted the interior and exterior and he had new carpet installed because there was a skunk living under the house which cause a strong odor...at least that's what we thought. Turns out the prior tenants had been growing a few plants in the house that smell like skunk, if you know what I mean. Any way, I experienced a mouse waking me up in the middle of the night by snuggling up against me, and I jumped out of the bed shouting words that I never thought I could say...I was pretty angry with that critter! I saw a snake in the attic just above the front porch one day, and there were tons and tons of these little orange ladybug looking things that covered the ceiling and walls during the fall and winter. "Just another day in paradise" as the country song goes...I fell madly in love with this peice of property and the ex-coal mining Community of Whitwell. Spring water from the rock comes out of Walden's Ridge behind the house and fills two 500 gallon tanks on the side of the mountain. Gravity pressure feeds the water into the house...so that I showered, washed my clothes and dishes, and flushed my toilet with fresh spring water! This experience of contact with the outdoors, living as a frontiersman, and seeing more animals than people changed me forever. After seeing the beauty of the earth, the agrarian lifestyle, the smalltown community, eating the produce of the earth...I can't imagine why in the world God would want to burn this place up with fire! Combined with reading the Bible, I resigned to postmil TR theology, and rejoined RPCUS of the coal mining, Appalachian foothill, TR's.

Virgil The Volkswagen

2006-03-14T20:11:00.000-08:00

Please see the blog on Power and Authority for a description of what you are looking at.

Power and Authority

2006-03-13T10:30:00.000-08:00

1971 Volkswagen Beetle, I've named him Virgil...as he is the author of many of my adventures. Historians find that Caesar Augustus requested his old classmate Virgil to write Aeneid because he wanted to capture the stories that the people knew from oral tradition and use these stories of men who became gods through victory in battle...use it as a tool to educate the young men in the Roman Empire. As the story goes, all of the events lead to the rightful ownership of Julius Caesar (Augustus' uncle) in the Roman Empire. The stories are a means to an end, as Augustus is the rightful heir to all power and authority in the Roman Empire.

By faith alone we are in Christ, and we have His stories. We have our own book. Christ is the rightful covenant heir as He is the only begotten Son of God, according to the geneologies and stories that track all of BC to the creation of the universe. All of history is His stories, BC and AD. The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof.

So, as I am here...in His earth, as He leads me to follow trusting the Lord with all of my heart, He directs my steps and grants me a peace that passes all understanding. It's the knowledge by faith that I am too a son of God, "Behold what manner of love the Father has given that we should be called sons of God."

Now, as to the nuts and bolts of everyday living, I do need His power in the petroleum form in order to get my Bug down the road; and, the battery does need to be charged up. But even though the last 35 years have rusted out the bottom of the gas tank, and now the generator has finally quit regenerating the battery in my "peoples car" (German secular humanistic socialism--volks wagen) yet still He leadeth me, He leadeth me, and no matter where I go He leadeth me. I just have to hook up the battery to a wall charger and plug and extension cord into every electrical outlet that I see on my journeys; and take the gas tank out and patch the holes with a glue called "gorilla snot," thinking that will fix it. Let's say the gasoline melts the snot out of this glue within 30 seconds of pouring gas into the tank; why then I can take the tank out again, drain the gas and then hook up a 2 gallon plastic gas can to the gas intake hose and drive down the road, stopping every few miles at a gas station to refill, until I get a gas tank repair kit from Auto Zone; then come home and patch it the correct way, so that leaking gasoline will no longer choke me with fumes and bring tears to my eyes, accidentally huffing and tripping down the meandering streets of Miami!

The moral of the story is this: No matter where I go, no matter what I see, God is imminently there. Not only is He there, but He is working there, all things together for the good of those who love Him and are the called according to His purpose. In other words, He has already accomplished everything for me that needs to be. What can I do? Praise Him for it and live every moment for Him!

Many have said that I act like I am in heaven already or something, that I don't see the reality of problems in this life. I explain the reality of problems are smaller because the reality of heaven is already in me; for the joy of the Lord is my strength! I'm a joint heir with Christ in the Covenant of Grace, and I just can't help it! As the song we sing at church meetin' goes, "This is my Father's world and to my listening ears, all nature sings and round me rings the music of the spheres." And, "He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today; He walks with me and talks with me, along life's narrow way. He lives, He lives, salvation to impart. You ask me how I know He lives; He lives within my heart!"

Assaults and Batteries

2006-03-13T10:06:00.000-08:00

Moses is a full time battery recharger. But he is armed and dangerous in downtown Miami. He packs serious heat, The Old and New Testament, pocket sized is bulging in his shirt pocket; Moses assaults the enemy every day using his sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. He considers it his primary calling to distribute the regenerating power of the Word of God into the hearts of men, and secondarily to distribute the regenerating power of a wall charger into batteries for the auto. Like a cold drink of water in a barren land, meeting the prophet Moses was inspiring and refreshing not only for me, but for my 1971 Volkswagen Bug also.

South Florida Roadkill

2006-03-13T09:22:00.000-08:00

Why did the iguana cross the road? Wisdom would have given this guy reasons not to cross the road at this particular time. Approximately 4 ft long with the tail, these creatures look like miniature dinosaurs... and they are all over the place down here. After leaving the Garden of Eden and embracing the Plains of Shinar, humanity makes use of the asphalt pits. Streams of pavement and steal belted tires sadly bear grim tales of misfortune for creatures. Remember Babel!

Hitting Golf Balls In The Water

2006-03-09T08:22:00.000-08:00

The water is a pretty big target at this driving range, so I usually hit pretty well. This is the perfect place for me to learn how to golf since I already have a tendency to hit every ball into the water.

Trinity Broadcasting Network

2006-03-09T08:08:00.000-08:00

TBN is the largest Christian television network program in the world. One of their main offices and studio is located on Pembroke Pines Rd, Pembroke Park, FL. This is so close to my house that if I wanted to, I could throw a rock and hit their building. But I won't, instead I have made pretty good friends with the old ladies who run the bookstore. I went in and introduced myself to them, and we ended up praying for Stacy. Needless to say there was charismatic prayer for her, and a this one bold lady had a prayer language (not English) that I'm not sure what she meant. she ejaculated clauses of consonants and vowels that I couldn't quite make out. Surrounded by my quotes from Spurgeon, and her thoroughly Calvinistic petitions, I have confidence that our imperfect prayer was heard by God perfectly in Christ Jesus.

The Back Yard

2006-03-07T20:39:00.000-08:00

This is the backyard of the house that I live in. 6729 Rose Dr, Miramar, FL 33023. Make checks payable to Matthew Stout. J/K but you can google earth me if you want to.

Sunday Afternoon Walk

2006-03-07T20:31:00.000-08:00

Let the boyz be boyz... We are standing on the intercoastal dock at the Antonacci's. Mr. Antonacci an I began a dialogue about the legislation of morality and even worse the legislation of immorality. He doesn't want to run for State House of Representatives anytime soon. Mainly because "It is so political." s

The Antonacci's

2006-03-07T20:20:00.000-08:00

Sitting down for dinner with the Beisners is always something else. Sunday afternoon, we ate lamb slow roasted, and it was so tender that it fell right off the bones! The sides were peas, and my favorite carrots...she makes them with nutmeg and cinnamon and a few other things. The earthy flavor of the lamb, the fine china, the sweet tea, the rolls with butter, the raspberry pie afterward with coffee, and the pleasant conversation makes for another beautiful Sabbath rest with the brothers and sisters in Christ...this is community.

Dominion Over the House Next Door

2006-03-07T20:03:00.000-08:00

So we beat our swords into rollers and our spears into paint brushes. Last week I got the chance to enter a home undetected, with the Roman "catholic" family thinking I'm a painter or something. They needed two ceilings painted and two walls in the living room. I'm on a mission, though. It's epistemological. But anyway, they paid me $450 for 10 hrs of work. But it's not about the money. See the blog below for the ontological transformation of their home. Protestant paint covers their Roman Catholic living room and the owner's bedroom. And it all started with a 30 minute act of mercy on the Lord's Day afternoon when they were trying to repair drywall and didn't even know where to start. I took over their job for 30 minutes, and I pray Jesus takes over their home.

Protestant Art

2006-03-07T19:51:00.000-08:00

www.renaissance-exteriors.com is my painting website, though it is still under construction. I painted the ceilings for my next door neighbor from back when I lived with Steiner and Co on Johnson St in Hollywood. I loved every minute of it, and they fixed me a Liverwurst sandwich, so I ate it for the first time! Yuck. I tried as hard as I could to be pleasant, and convinced them that I was thankful...the great thing that happened though was that they are Roman Catholic, and I put a whole bunch of Protestant art in their house...I felt like I was painting the Sistine Chapel ceiling on Saint Patrick's Day with orange paint for our dear friend William. But it wasn't the Protestant art going onto the walls of the Roman Catholic home, though straight lines into abstract corners with reason for every stroke of the brush, and the covering of everything so that it will be spotless without blemish was all means to an end for me the author. It wasn't that. It was the opportunity to explain to them the imputation of Christ's active obedience, and a legal declaration of "Not Guilty". It was the excitement of explaining to an RC family the Sola's of the Reformation, in between mouth-full's of liverwurst...just another day in paradise.

2006-03-07T19:28:00.000-08:00

Blood, sweat and roofing. Today I spent 6 hours replacing shingles on the roof of my house. Besides the aggravating fiberglass splinters in my irritated wounds from the hammer missing the nail and my 5in1 knife slipping on the gravelled asphalt every single time I try to cut an remove a bad shingle, besides both legs falling asleep at the same time when I was squatting on the edge of the roof, besides the sun burn on the top of my head and all the way down my back because I'm like one of the whitest people on earth...Besides all that, I did the work for free! And I loved every minute of it.

Lunch with Timothy Torres

2006-02-23T20:12:00.000-08:00

Lunch with Timothy Torres was earlier today and he paid for it...this guy is great!

My profile

2006-02-22T11:36:00.000-08:00

View my profile here Philosopher Ruler

Max's Fish Camp

2006-02-22T10:29:00.000-08:00

See the alligator adventures on New year's at Max's Fish Camp