Walking with Jesus

. First, thank you for your prayers as Olivia and I travelled to California for my first week of school and as Olivia travelled back by herself after the weekend. (Brave Girl!) The week went well, and I think I'm getting back into the swing of graduate studies. These studies are, of course, beyond anything I have ever done, but I am excited about them. Now, I need a different kind of prayer. I want to learn. I want to soak up the material, engage it, and be able to speak cogent ly (isn't that a fun word?) as I engage the theological community in defense of the truth of the Word of God and the reality of the Lordship of Jesus Christ. I want to engage the Bible and these studies thoughtfully as I follow the Lord down this path, but I don't want to loose the ability to communicate effectively with 'regular' people. I want to be a good student, a good academic; but I also need to be a good husband and leader for our family, and effective minister (more on that in t

A few days ago I had a dream. I was observing a church-based radio broadcast and call-in show with a guest speaker (not me). A young man named Chris was fielding phone calls on the air with questions about persecution and the end times, and how they relate (over against how many have been taught to think they relate). If you are a believer, I am sure you can sometimes feel the clock ticking as I can. He had an emotional moment in one call and suddenly handed the headset and mic to me. Praying even as I took it, I preached without notes from Matthew 24, Daniel, and Revelation for about 15 minutes. One phrase the Lord gave me as I preached summed it up as far as End Time Persecution: Before heaven comes down to earth, earth will be more like hell than it has ever been before. That isn't an overstatement, but it isn't meant to panic anyone either. It is just what it is going to be like. The world is dividing light and dark. Some of us (in spite of our own evil hearts) have been

. I am beginning a new chapter in life in two weeks: I am going back to school. Ok, so I guess I've already begun. (There is a lot of reading and writing to do before I get there.)   I am starting at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary in the Master of Theology program, an advanced degree with a 90-hour-Masters as its pre-requisite! The goal is to matriculate to the PhD program next year, so I am taking a couple of doctoral level classes and trying to remember my Hebrew. I will be travelling to California for classes each month until I find a job on the West Coast. Olivia and I are excited (and nervous) about the change, but we need to make it. She will be going with me this trip, because we have an interview with a church on the Sunday before classes start. Once I do find employment, we will be finishing our home improvements here, selling our house, and hauling ourselves across the West. So, why would we do this, you ask? Well, because we believe God has spoken to us,