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and I have lots of pictures, but won't inflict them all at one time...

My "new sport" is disc golf (which I only play when I'm with my kids). We were in Mackinaw City and wanted to try a disc golf course in St. Ignace. Judy (my sister in law) didn't care to go so she stayed at an overlook to kick back a bit (good choice) and the rest of us (Deb - my other sister in law, Tom, Amanda and I) went to "Silver Mountain Ski Area", where they've put in 18 holes of disc golf. The guide said "wooded" and they really meant it.

On the 3rd hole, the mosquitoes found us. At one points there were 9 of them on my legs and they were swarming Manda. She went back to the van and the rest of us played the 4th hole and quit.

These were very straight holes about 15 feet wide with heavy woods on both sides. Tom has a very long drive, but it has the wonderful "s-curve" that all the best disc golfers look for. He didn't do well on this course because he hit the same trees I did. 😉

If it had not been for the insects (or if we had remembered repellant) it would have been a great course and we'll most likely hit it again the next time we're in the area.

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June 12, 2007—Synod today encouraged Christian Reformed churches to become familiar with the Belhar Confession, a declaration focusing on justice, unity and reconciliation.

1. We believe in the triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who gathers, protects and cares for his church by his Word and his Spirit, as he has done since the beginning of the world and will do to the end.

2. We believe in one holy, universal Christian church, the communion of saints called from the entire human family.

We believe

  • that Christ's work of reconciliation is made manifest in the church as the community of believers who have been reconciled with God and with one another;
  • that unity is, therefore, both a gift and an obligation for the church of Jesus Christ; that through the working of God's Spirit it is a binding force, yet simultaneously a reality which must be earnestly pursued and sought: one which the people of God must continually be built up to attain;
  • that this unity must become visible so that the world may believe that separation, enmity and hatred between people and groups is sin which Christ has already conquered, and accordingly that anything which threatens this unity may have no place in the church and must be resisted;
  • that this unity of the people of God must be manifested and be active in a variety of ways: in that we love one another; that we experience, practice and pursue community with one another; that we are obligated to give ourselves willingly and joyfully to be of benefit and blessing to one another; that we share one faith, have one calling, are of one soul and one mind; have one God and Father, are filled with one Spirit, are baptised with one baptism, eat of one bread and drink of one cup, confess one name, are obedient to one Lord, work for one cause, and share one hope; together come to know the height and the breadth and the depth of the love of Christ; together are built up to the stature of Christ, to the new humanity; together know and bear one another's burdens, thereby fulfilling the law of Christ that we need one another and upbuild one another, admonishing and comforting one another; that we suffer with one another for the sake of righteousness; pray together; together serve God in this world; and together fight against all which may threaten or hinder this unity;
  • that this unity can be established only in freedom and not under constraint; that the variety of spiritual gifts, opportunities, backgrounds, convictions, as well as the various languages and cultures, are by virtue of the reconciliation in Christ, opportunities for mutual service and enrichment within the one visible people of God;
  • that true faith in Jesus Christ is the only condition for membership of this church;

Therefore, we reject any doctrine

  • which absolutises either natural diversity or the sinful separation of people in such a way that this absolutisation hinders or breaks the visible and active unity of the church, or even leads to the establishment of a separate church formation;
  • which professes that this spiritual unity is truly being maintained in the bond of peace whilst believers of the same confession are in effect alienated from one another for the sake of diversity and in despair of reconciliation;
  • which denies that a refusal earnestly to pursue this visible unity as a priceless gift is sin;
  • which explicitly or implicitly maintains that descent or any other human or social factor should be a consideration in determining membership of the church.

3. We believe that God has entrusted to his church the message of reconciliation in and through Jesus Christ; that the church is called to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world, that the church is called blessed because it is a peacemaker, that the church is witness both by word and by deed to the new heaven and the new earth in which righteousness dwells.

  • that God by his lifegiving Word and Spirit has conquered the powers of sin and death, and therefore also of irreconciliation and hatred, bitterness and enmity, that God, by his lifegiving Word and Spirit will enable his people to live in a new obedience which can open new possibilities of life for society and the world;
  • that the credibility of this message is seriously affected and its beneficial work obstructed when it is proclaimed in a land which professes to be Christian, but in which the enforced separation of people on a racial basis promotes and perpetuates alienation, hatred and enmity;
  • that any teaching which attempts to legitimate such forced separation by appeal to the gospel, and is not prepared to venture on the road of obedience and reconciliation, but rather, out of prejudice, fear, selfishness and unbelief, denies in advance the reconciling power of the gospel, must be considered ideology and false doctrine.

Therefore, we reject any doctrine which, in such a situation sanctions in the name of the gospel or of the will of God the forced separation of people on the grounds of race and colour and thereby in advance obstructs and weakens the ministry and experience of reconciliation in Christ.

4. We believe that God has revealed himself as the one who wishes to bring about justice and true peace among men; that in a world full of injustice and enmity he is in a special way the God of the destitute, the poor and the wronged and that he calls his church to follow him in this; that he brings justice to the oppressed and gives bread to the hungry; that he frees the prisoner and restores sight to the blind; that he supports the downtrodden, protects the stranger, helps orphans and widows and blocks the path of the ungodly; that for him pure and undefiled religion is to visit the orphans and the widows in their suffering; that he wishes to teach his people to do what is good and to seek the right;

  • that the church must therefore stand by people in any form of suffering and need, which implies, among other things, that the church must witness against and strive against any form of injustice, so that justice may roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream;
  • that the church as the possession of God must stand where he stands, namely against injustice and with the wronged; that in following Christ the church must witness against all the powerful and privileged who selfishly seek their own interests and thus control and harm others.

Therefore, we reject any ideology which would legitimate forms of injustice and any doctrine which is unwilling to resist such an ideology in the name of the gospel.

5. We believe that, in obedience to Jesus Christ, its only head, the church is called to confess and to do all these things, even though the authorities and human laws might forbid them and punishment and suffering be the consequence.

Jesus is Lord.

To the one and only God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be the honour and the glory for ever and ever.

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I haven't paid much attention to the whole thing and now I'm curious. One of the churches that I've visited is PCA (Presbyterian Church in America), so why don't I just find out what the controversy is all about!

Joseph Minich wrote a paper and the question that he wants to ask (and answer) is NOT whether or not Federal Vision is correct, but whether it is acceptable.

That question really caught my eye - how can something I believe is incorrect, be acceptable? Then I read on and I understand.

There are a lot of doctrines that we don't think are "correct", but that are "acceptable" - Mark Driscoll put it sort of like this. We have two hands and there are doctrines that we hold in our right hand - and we hold them tightly. We believe they are not only correct, but are essential to our faith - like belief in salvation by grace, through faith, not of works, and like belief in the Trinity, the eternal existence of God, the deity of Christ and the crucifixtion and resurrection. I believe that religions such as Latter Day Saints and Jehovah's Witnesses are NOT beliefs that hold these "essentials" and I do NOT believe that they are Christians.

In the left hand we hold other beliefs that we believe are correct (and important), but not essential. For the "Reformed", that might be TULIP, for Roman Catholics it might be prayer to Mary, for Arminians it might be "free will", for Charismatics it might be tongues, for others it might be infant baptism, full immersion, complementarian vs. egalitarian, etc. Because they are not essential, we can hold that hand a little more loosely. What is important is that the person that will be sitting next to us at the table in heaven may not hold the same things in their left hand - we still consider those who hold to our "right hand" beliefs to be brothers and sisters in Christ, regardless of what their "left hand" beliefs might be.

What that leaves us with is that we have our essentials in order - these are all the "right hand" things that we, all Christians, hold onto dearly. It also leaves us with differences that are "acceptable" for other Christians to believe, but that we believe are incorrect.

How does this apply to the PCA and "Federal Vision"?

PCA doctrine conforms to the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms and they stand on the belief that these confessions and catechisms accurately reflect Biblical doctrine. So how does "correct" vs. "acceptability" apply?

"Correct" means that "Federal Vision" then it adheres fully with the confessions and catechisms, all that is in "Federal Vision" is in those confessions and catechisms and there is nothing in "Federal Vision" that is NOT in the confessions and catechisms. If this is true, then all PCA members must accept "Federal Vision" as true doctrine.

"Acceptable" means that "Federal Vision" does NOT adhere FULLY to the confessions and catechisms, and that there are statements that do not appear in the confessions and catechisms, but there is nothing that contradicts the confessions and catechisms. If this is true, then a PCA member can belief that "Federal Vision" is correct - or incorrect - and still fully comply with the confessions and catechisms.

This is an important distinction - as it allows individuals to examine the belief against Scripture and decide for themselves (as the Bereans did) whether stacks up against God's Word.

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The Gateway Sabre is our stable driver and one of the straightest flying discs on the market. A fast disc with pinpoint accuracy and a predictable finish late in its flight, the Sabre is versatile enough to hold any line for players of all skill levels. While the Sabre is stable enough at high speeds to compare to more overstable discs, it does so without a lot of fade at the end of its flight.

I am having a blast going "disc golfing" with my son and my daughter went today also. I still am really bad, but I don't take myself seriously - AT ALL.

The color of this disc is a lot prettier in person - I'm still so bad I buy my discs based on how pretty they are - but Tom has given me a bunch so I've only had to buy a putter, this mid-range and a very pretty hot pink one that I liked.

I needed a bag, and I found a general tote bag just the right size on clearance at Walmart for $4.00! Every time we go I make a point of telling Tom that what makes it so much fun is the company I'm in.

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for those who keep up with the fitness thing...Fit Friday is posted.

I've nearly given up on the diet thing - I'm hanging in there because health goes way beyond weight loss. The reason for my frustration is graphic (warning for men) but the exercise part is going well.

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The night I graduated another man received his honorary AA from the Noorthoek Academy. Fred has Down Syndrome and has been working on this degree for 18 years. I walked their fund raiser a few weeks ago with one of my students that attends there and got a small book of poems that the students wrote.

Here is a poem that this man wrote for his wife (also impaired)

When I Read This to You

As you have touched me,
On Valentine's night I feel
your loving, thoughtful heart
has touched me in very special ways
For a wonderful person is Katy.
She is my Valentine's night
With her red top on
With this ring I thee wed
with red sparkling wine
by the candlelight
by the window.
I am saying something
to you by the fireplace at night.
You may cry when I read this to you.
And I love you so much all the time.

If anybody out there is looking for a charity to throw some money at, please consider Noorthoek Academy - they get no government funding and this is all done through student money and donations. (or you can donate to my "Race for the Cure" page in my sidebar 😉

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From a conversation going on elsewhere (Thinklings and Mrs. Blo)

And the subject is Christian kids in public schools.

Here's a resolution from SBC (2005)

Voddie Baucham (who I generally like) explains his stand on removing Christian students from public schools.

  • I believe our current government education harms children academically, socially, morally, emotionally and spiritually.

Then what about Christian teachers and other staff. Can we (as Christian educators) in good conscience participate in a system that harms children? Take it to the extreme conclusion and see if it bears out - can a Christian, in good conscience, participate in a system that harms children? Public school? Gay pride day? Kiddie porn? You draw the line - at what point is it okay (on one side of the line) for a Christian to participate in a system that harms children and where (the other side of the line) does it become "not okay"?

If the public schools are harmful to children - then how can Christians participate, even as teachers?

  • (...)if the Bible teaches that education is discipleship (Luke 6:40) and we are commanded to place Christ not just at its center, but throughout its warp and woof, then those who have chosen to send their children to the government to be educated have erred.

What is the difference between "error" and "sin"? If we deliberately "err" and send our children off to a system that harms them, how can that not be called "sin"? (this is my attempt to follow the logic along)

  • Moreover, the next paragraph makes it clear that teaching children in accordance with the Law of God is ‘required’ of those who believe. Those who do not are called ‘least’ in the Kingdom.

Is Baucham prepared to say that those who send their children to public school are not following the Law of God? (He just did).

  • (...)then those who have chosen to send their children to the government to be educated have erred. There is no middle ground.

Is Baucham prepared to say that the Bible is clear, that there is no middle ground or room for choice? (He just did)

My logical conclusion:

Following this reasoning - that there is no middle ground, that Christian parents who choose to send their children to public school are "erring" - not following the requirements of the Law of God - and are intentionally harming their children, academically, socially, morally, emotionally and spiritually. Further, those who participate in that system are knowingly participating is a system that causes harm to children academically, socially, morally, emotionally and spiritually.

Question: Is Baucham prepared to exercise church discipline with those families and educators who knowingly "err"?

Why does this matter? Because of "incrementalism", SBC style. Read Wade Burleson's post, "The Practical Outworking..."

"The Baptist Faith and Message is neither a creed, nor a complete statement of our faith, nor final and infallible; nevertheless, we further acknowledge that it is the only consensus statement of doctrinal beliefs approved by the Southern Baptist Convention and such is sufficient in its current form to guide trustees in their establishment of policies and practices of entities of the Convention."

Adopted by the Messengers of the 2007 Southern Baptist Convention in San Antonio, Texas, June 13, 2007.

How do you get a consensus? You get more and more people thinking the way that you do.

How do you do that? You take a major player to present a non-binding resolution and present any way of thinking that doesn't agree as "error" and "causing harm".

Where will that get you? In time, you have enough people thinking your way that you can vote on whether or not there is a consensus.

There you go, a little time...

Do you think I'm wrong? Remember Burleson's history with the IMB and the gift of tongues? Do you remember the history of the question of tongues in the IMB?

Burleson wrote in 2005:

Again, I think if people are not careful they will see arguments against the new IMB policies on tongues and baptism and believe the problem is simply a theological one. If that's the case, the real issue at hand, the issue that is so disturbing to many of us, will never be grasped by SBC laypeople at large. The Southern Baptist Convention, through trustees of boards and agencies, is narrowing the parameters of fellowship and cooperation to the point that real, genuine conservatives are being excluded as unfit for service in the SBC.

How long will it be before sending your children to a public school will render you unfit for service in the SBC?

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Last night, we had some "tom and mom time" - we went out to see "Spiderman" 😉

Then, I went on my 5K walk this morning (found the right warm-up speed and stretches - very little shin pain and broke that silly 60 minute mark).

When I got home, I went to lunch and then disc-golfing with my son. It was my first time ever (and I didn't do so great) but he's pretty good.

It was fun and I really enjoy spending time with Tom.
I have a really good relationship with my kids. For a while, it was really tough with Manda but we got through it. I guess my goal has NOT been to raise "good kids". My goal has been to raise "good adults" and we're getting close.

I haven't encouraged them to hang onto Mom's apron strings and I've allowed them to make many of their own choices (with guidance, prayer and a good track record).

I don't want to be an empty-nester - but I know that when I am it's because my kids are on their way to being great adults and that's a good thing.

One of the things that I truly appreciate is both of my kids' willingness to check in. Sometimes too often (lol). Manda most often will text-message me, Tom calls. I think the reason they're so good about letting me know where they are is - well...I sometimes "forget" to let them know where I am so they have a real understanding of the importance of checking in.

I treat them like the nearly-out-of-the-house-young-adults that they are and they know and appreciate that. And I appreciate them.

So...kids...I appreciate you!