e r i c . s p a n g l e r

Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards, pt 2

More of Jonathan Edward's resolutions.  Wikipedia says of the preacher:  "His  fire-and-brinstone sermon Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, emphasized the just wrath of God against sin and contrasted it with the provision of God for salvation; the intensity of his preaching sometimes resulted in members of the audience fainting, swooning, and other more obtrusive reactions. The swooning and other behaviors in his audience caught him up in a controversy over "bodily effects" of the Holy Spirit's presence."

21. Resolved, never to do any thing, which if I should see in another, I should count a just occasion to despise him for, or to think any way the more meanly of him. (Resolutions 1 through 21 written in one setting in New Haven in 1722)

22. Resolved, to endeavor to obtain for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence, yea violence, I am capable of, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of.

23. Resolved, frequently to take some deliberate action, which seems most unlikely to be done, for the glory of God, and trace it back to the original intention, designs and ends of it; and if I find it not to be for God' s glory, to repute it as a breach of the 4th Resolution.

24. Resolved, whenever I do any conspicuously evil action, to trace it back, till I come to the original cause; and then, both carefully endeavor to do so no more, and to fight and pray with all my might against the original of it.

25. Resolved, to examine carefully, and constantly, what that one thing in me is, which causes me in the least to doubt of the love of God; and to direct all my forces against it.

26. Resolved, to cast away such things, as I find do abate my assurance.

27. Resolved, never willfully to omit any thing, except the omission be for the glory of God; and frequently to examine my omissions.

28. Resolved, to study the Scriptures so steadily, constantly and frequently, as that I may find, and plainly perceive myself to grow in the knowledge of the same.

29. Resolved, never to count that a prayer, nor to let that pass as a prayer, nor that as a petition of a prayer, which is so made, that I cannot hope that God will answer it; nor that as a confession, which I cannot hope God will accept.

30. Resolved, to strive to my utmost every week to be brought higher in religion, and to a higher exercise of grace, than I was the week before.

31. Resolved, never to say any thing at all against any body, but when it is perfectly agreeable to the highest degree of Christian honor, and of love to mankind, agreeable to the lowest humility, and sense of my own faults and failings, and agreeable to the golden rule; often, when I have said anything against anyone, to bring it to, and try it strictly by the test of this Resolution.

32. Resolved, to be strictly and firmly faithful to my trust, that that, in Proverbs 20:6,‹A faithful man who can find?Š may not be partly fulfilled in me.

33. Resolved, to do always, what I can towards making, maintaining, and preserving peace, when it can be done without overbalancing detriment in other respects. Dec. 26, 1722.

34. Resolved, in narrations never to speak any thing but the pure and simple verity.

35. Resolved, whenever I so much question whether I have done my duty, as that my quiet and calm is thereby disturbed, to set it down, and also how the question was resolved. Dec. 18, 1722.

36. Resolved, never to speak evil of any, except I have some particular good call for it. Dec. 19, 1722.

37. Resolved, to inquire every night, as I am going to bed, wherein I have been negligent,- what sin I have committed,-and wherein I have denied myself;-also at the end of every week, month and year. Dec. 22 and 26, 1722.

38. Resolved, never to speak anything that is ridiculous, sportive, or matter of laughter on the Lord' s day. Sabbath evening, Dec. 23, 1722.

39. Resolved, never to do any thing of which I so much question the lawfulness of, as that I intend, at the same time, to consider and examine afterwards, whether it be lawful or not; unless I as much question the lawfulness of the omission.

40. Resolved, to inquire every night, before I go to bed, whether I have acted in the best way I possibly could, with respect to eating and drinking. Jan. 7, 1723.

Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards, pt 1

I've read that Jonathan Edwards sat down at the age of 17 and wrote 21 resolutions by which he wanted to live his life.  He added to this list until he died, the list totaling 70.  Each year at this time I revisit them, and I'm posting them in three parts for you.

THE RESOLUTIONS of Jonathan Edwards
BEING SENSIBLE THAT I AM UNABLE TO DO ANYTHING WITHOUT GOD' S HELP, I DO HUMBLY ENTREAT HIM BY HIS GRACE TO ENABLE ME TO KEEP THESE RESOLUTIONS, SO FAR AS THEY ARE AGREEABLE TO HIS WILL, FOR CHRIST' S SAKE.

1. Resolved, that I will do whatsoever I think to be most to God' s glory, and my own good, profit and pleasure, in the whole of my duration, without any consideration of the time, whether now, or never so many myriads of ages hence. Resolved to do whatever I think to be my duty and most for the good and advantage of mankind in general. Resolved to do this, whatever difficulties I meet with, how many soever, and how great soever.

2. Resolved, to be continually endeavoring to find out some new contrivance and invention to promote the aforementioned things.

3. Resolved, if ever I shall fall and grow dull, so as to neglect to keep any part of these Resolutions, to repent of all I can remember, when I come to myself again.

4. Resolved, never to do any manner of thing, whether in soul or body, less or more, but what tends to the glory of God; nor be, nor suffer it, if I can avoid it.

5. Resolved, never to lose one moment of time; but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can.

6. Resolved, to live with all my might, while I do live.

7. Resolved, never to do anything, which I should be afraid to do, if it were the last hour of my life.

8. Resolved, to act, in all respects, both speaking and doing, as if nobody had been so vile as I, and as if I had committed the same sins, or had the same infirmities or failings as others; and that I will let the knowledge of their failings promote nothing but shame in myself, and prove only an occasion of my confessing my own sins and misery to God. July 30.

9. Resolved, to think much on all occasions of my own dying, and of the common circumstances which attend death.

10. Resolved, when I feel pain, to think of the pains of martyrdom, and of hell.

11. Resolved, when I think of any theorem in divinity to be solved, immediately to do what I can towards solving it, if circumstances do not hinder.

12. Resolved, if I take delight in it as a gratification of pride, or vanity, or on any such account, immediately to throw it by.

13. Resolved, to be endeavoring to find out fit objects of charity and liberality.

14. Resolved, never to do any thing out of revenge.

15. Resolved, never to suffer the least motions of anger towards irrational beings.

16. Resolved, never to speak evil of anyone, so that it shall tend to his dishonor, more or less, upon no account except for some real good.

17. Resolved, that I will live so, as I shall wish I had done when I come to die.

18. Resolved, to live so, at all times, as I think is best in my devout frames, and when I have clearest notions of things of the gospel, and another world.

19. Resolved, never to do any thing, which I should be afraid to do, if I expected it would not be above an hour, before I should hear the last trump.

20. Resolved, to maintain the strictest temperance, in eating and drinking.

Enter the Market

My buddy Andrew has some great new shots over at his flickr site...
Follow the link HERE.

Blogged with Flock

A Kiss: For DAD!!

The girls got dressed up for their Youth Christmas Party last week.  I asked them to pose for me.  BTW, this kiss is ONLY for their father.  ME.  :)

What is Christmas without Pentecost?

Fellow Fuller student and friend of mine wrote the following essay; I asked his permission to share it with you and he kindly granted my request.  Enjoy his thought provoking words!

What is Christmas without Pentecost?

It's the bitter let down after a season of anticipation which culminates in the moment when you rip all the pretty paper and bows off the box that you just know has the BB gun, or the game, or the doll, or horse you've always wanted and find...another pair of pajamas.  Great, just great.  I wanted to play, to celebrate life, and instead I got another set of special clothes that just keeps me warm and comfortable while I sleep my life away.

Pretty cynical huh? Maybe, but is "God with us" all there really is?  Sometimes I think I've gotten stuck somehow.  I've finally resigned myself to the comfort of a warm set of pj's year after year and now I'm afraid it just doesn't get any better than this.

In all of our seasonally appropriate preaching and teaching and singing, we rightly proclaim that God has come to us; but to what end?  Yes, he is Emmanuel, God with us.  So what?  So we can go into the world and tell others about this "other" who is now somehow "with us?"  What does that even mean?  You pray the little prayer, you join the faith community, and somehow God is now "with you" in a way that he was not "with you" before?  What difference does it make?  This is the question I stumble into everywhere I go, and occasionally ask myself.

Perhaps Christmas was never intended to be the ultimate event that it has become, but merely a preparatory one.  Perhaps we need think about the way we celebrate?  I think that Pentecost is the ultimate event in human history where/when "God with us" became "God in us."  And doesn't that change everything?

God wants to bless everyone, but he can't; because we won't let him.  We are like Adam and Eve hiding from God, or Jonah running from God, or Joshua seeking for just one more proof, or Saul (not yet Paul) zealously (violently even) defending our idea of who God is, and the list goes on.  Yet throughout history, God has always been coming to us.  Over and over again he comes both to those who accept him and to those who do not.  Yes, the incarnation is huge, and worth celebrating, but if "God with us" was the last word, wouldn't Jesus have stayed with us on earth?  That's what the Jews in Jesus day expected, and they crucified him in part because he didn't set up an earthly throne and make everything right for them.  I wonder if today's pre-tribulation rapture, millenialist evangelicals aren't doing the same thing - just waiting for Jesus to come set up his throne on earth and make everything right for them?  I know I think that way sometimes.

I think Pentecost is the ultimate expression of God's love because he truly has become God in us.  This means that WE are the visible, touchable, experiencable presence of God in the world.  I think sometimes as Pentecostals we can get so caught up in searching for a worship experience where we can say "I really felt God's presence" that we forget that his "presence" is the person of the Holy Spirit, not a thing, a force, or a feeling, and that Pentecost has made possible a union of his person and my person resulting in the full expression of the "new creation" that Paul writes about.  Perhaps the simplest explanation for that sense of the presence of God that we feel in some meetings is that we have surrounded ourselves with persons in whom God is present, and in the act of worship we ourselves have experienced a transformation wherein we become at least temporarily more God-conscious then self-conscious.

God wants to be with people.  That's the simplest summary of the Bible I can write.  God is present to me as I write this because he is in me - despite my self-consciousness, and the total lack of a worshipful environment (whatever that means).  God wants to be present to the people I come into contact with.  How can that happen?  Not ultimately through the Advent, but through Pentecost.  Dare I think it, dare I say it, "I am emmanuel?"

I like Christmas.  Jesus's birthday is worth celebrating because without Advent there would be no Pentecost, and people need more than to just be kept warm and comfortable while they sleep their lives away.

thanks for listening and Merry Christmas,
Joel Butz

Couldn't Resist: An Unaired Mac vs PC Commercial

The Lost Choice

A good read, recommended.  What difference can I make?  Does my action (or inaction) have any implications, any ripple effect anywhere else, upon anyone else?  Great story illustrating important truths!

"Don't be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds. All he'll have to show for his life is weeds! But the one who plants in response to God, letting God's Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life.

So let's not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don't give up, or quit. Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith."  - Gal 6:7-10 (The Message)

Andy Andrews will be in Everett at the end of February.  You can hear Andy speak and help Children's Hospital (Seattle).  Don't miss the event!  More info HERE.

CT's Top News Impacting Believers in 2007

Top 10 Stories of 2007 as chosen by Christianity Today's editors:

1. Taliban takes Korean short-term mission team hostage, killing two
2. Atheism tops the bestseller charts
3. Presidential campaigns start early, with some faith surprises
4. Ruth Graham promoted to glory
5. Anglican Communion fractures over Scripture, homosexuality
6. Three Christians tortured and killed in eastern Turkey
7. Lions of the Religious Right pass away
8. Francis Beckwith returns to Catholicism
9. Campaign to oust NAE's Richard Cizik fails
10. Supreme Court upholds 2003 federal partial-birth abortion ban

Each article has a link that will provide a full article if you're interested.  Link to the list here.

The Nativity Story: Remember His Birth

Our family watched the "Nativity Story" last night.  If you've not seen it, I recommend it as a great way to think about THE story this weekend.  Follow this link to the website.  Here's a clip:

Monkeys Take Over Delhi

Click the photo to see a news video about how monkeys are proliferating and 'taking over' Delhi, India.  (I was in Delhi just over a year ago...)

Just War? Pacifist? Work Together?

There's a thought-provoking article in this month's Christianity Today, also published online at this link; written by Ron Sider.  What I liked about it was Ron's call for believers on either side of the argument to get on the solution side of the problem.

"...one wonders what might happen if the Christian world became serious about exploring the full possibilities of applying nonviolent methods of seeking peace to unjust, violent situations around the world."

What WOULD that look like?  Instead of defending a position, what if we truly exhausted all options for peaceful and nonviolent solutions?  Easier to call for this than to actually do something about it, as Ron suggests:

"Pacifists have long claimed they have an alternative to war. But that claim remains empty unless they are willing to risk death, as soldiers do, to stop injustice and bring peace."

At the same time, it cannot be said that Christians on the other side have fully exhausted all options:

"In order to engage in a serious, large-scale test of nonviolence, just-war Christians do not have to believe that nonviolence will always prevent war. All they must do is implement their own rule that war must be a last resort."

It's worth reading the entire article, and you can find it online here.  Ron does not seem to be critiquing any current conflict, nor criticizing decisions already made as much as simply calling for us to come together and seek nonviolent solutions which have worked in history past.

Time's Top 10 Lists for 2007

From Time Magazine online, here are a few of their top 10 lists for 2007:

• Top 10 News Stories
• Top 10 Underreported Stories
• Top 10 Religious Stories
• Top 10 Most Popular Stories

Girl Time!

The Spangler girls have just enjoyed a week with great friends visiting from the Indianapolis area.  Amy, Jill, Emily and Grace head back home tomorrow... we'll miss you!  And, hey, we missed you too Brad!  (I hid most of the time...)

Do You Know About Preview?

Preview Online is a website I've used for several years... it used to be a prepaid service (and was worth it to me), but completely free now.  Preview is a website that has new reviews weekly of most current movies, and a pretty extensive archive of movie reviews that you can check before heading to Blockbuster, or ordering your Netflix queue.

Among the great features Preview offers, like +4 to -4 scales on both morality and entertainment ratings, you'll also find summaries of the movie, and very helpful warnings about content.  For example, you can learn whether or not nudity will be present, how much crude, profane, or obscene language is used (and how many times), and find an opinion as to whether or not there is a redeeming message present.  Generally reliable, but I have been surprised once or twice.  However, I've still found it to be very helpful as I consider what to allow before my eyes, and my children's eyes.

Additionally, a friend of mine and fellow Free Methodist pastor maintains a website with very helpful commentary, AND provides some great small group discussion questions with every review.  Check out Cinema In Focus too.

Questions 4 Those Leading Worship

Here are some great questions for worship leaders from a post over at blog.worship.com

1. Did I pray and seek God’s direction over this praise set beforehand?
2. Am I listening right now for God’s voice of direction?
3. Will my going longer with the music portion take important time away from my pastor or others?
4. What cues am I getting from my pastor (the main worship leader in the service) right now? Is he telling me to keep going or to finish up ASAP?
5. How will a change in the order affect my band and choir, my production team and the people out there in the congregation? Could this change be detrimental in some way?
6. What do I need to verbally communicate at this moment to keep down confusion and encourage cooperation?
7. Is there a specific song or service element (like asking for a testimony) that keeps coming to my mind at this moment, indicating the possible leading of the Holy Spirit?
8. Am I willing to obey whatever God tells me?
9. Am I willing to get out of the way and trust God to handle the outcome of whatever happens?
10. Ultimately, whose service is this anyway, mine or God’s?

Great questions to think about regardless of your role on Sunday morning (or evening...).  How do they fit you?

Eastern Washington Winter

On study leave for a few days here in Eastern Washington.

Why Wouldn't You Switch?

Come on now, no comments about Macs being more expensive, not able to do stuff, etc.  This article explains it all.  Read why if it is time to get a new computer, you should seriously consider a Mac.  LINK.

"It's like explaining the difference between a Buick and a BMW. Both get you from here to there, only the ride is generally smoother and more fun. Put another way, Windows users tolerate their computers to get stuff done. The Mac crowd enjoys its machines, whether managing music in iTunes or pictures in iPhoto."

Link HERE.

And, you can see those fun Mac Commercials HERE.

I Know Who I Am

From my friend Sanjay in India:

I KNOW WHO I  AM
I am God's child (John 1:12)
I am Christ's friend (John 15:15  )
I am united with the Lord(1 Cor. 6:17 )
I am bought with a price(1  Cor. 6:19-20)
I am a saint (set apart for God). (Eph. 1:1)
I am a  personal witness of Christ.  (Acts 1:8)
I am the salt & light of  the earth ( Matt.5:13-14)
I am a member of the body of Christ(1 Cor  12:27)
I am free forever from condemnation ( Rom. 8:  1-2)
I am a citizen of Heaven. I am significant ( Phil.3:20)
I am free  from any charge against me (Rom. 8:31 -34)
I am a minister of  reconciliation for God(2 Cor.5 :17-21)
I have access to God through the  Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:18)
I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms  (Eph. 2:6)
I cannot be separated from the love of God( Rom.8:35-39)
I  am established, anointed, sealed by God (2 Cor.1:21-22)
I am assured all  things work together for good (Rom. 8: 28)
I have been chosen and  appointed to bear fruit (John 15:16 )
I may approach God with freedom and  confidence (Eph. 3: 12 )
I can do all things through Christ who  strengthens me (Phil. 4:13)
I am the branch of the true vine, a channel  of His life (John 15: 1-5)
I am God's temple (1 Cor. 3: 16 ).  I am  complete in Christ (Col. 2: 10)
I am hidden with Christ in God ( Col.  3:3). I have been justified (Romans 5:1)
I am God's co-worker (1 Cor.  3:9; 2 Cor 6:1). I am God's workmanship(Eph. 2:10 )
I am confident that  the good works God has begun in me will be perfected.  (Phil 1: 5)
I  have been redeemed and forgiven (Col. 1:14). I have been adopted as God's  child(Eph 1:5)
I belong to God
Do you know
who you  are!?

Spangler Family Photo, November 2007

Worst Food In America

Here's a study on the worst foods to eat in the US.  20 worst foods, as a matter of fact.  The number one, absolute worst?

1: The worst food in America
Outback Steakhouse Aussie Cheese Fries with Ranch Dressing

2,900 calories 182 g fat 240 g carbs

LINK HERE.

What Does Your Faith Cost?

Here's a story about a teen in Washington state that died recently because he refused medical help because of his faith (Jehovah's Witness):

A few hours after a judge ruled that a 14-year-old Jehovah’s Witness sick with leukemia had the right to refuse a blood transfusion that might have helped him, the boy died, a newspaper reported.  FULL STORY HERE.

And here's a story about a woman who had been teaching in Sudan, and was convicted, imprisoned and will be deported for naming a teddy bear after the Islamic prophet.  She could have received 40 lashes:

A British teacher in Sudan was convicted Thursday of the less-serious charge of insulting Islam for letting her pupils name a teddy bear “Muhammad,” and was sentenced to 15 days in prison and deportation to Britain.  FULL STORY HERE.

So what about you?  What about me?  What does my faith cost?  How valuable is what I believe?  Is the name of Jesus sacred and protected by me?  At what point would I die for my convictions?

Man Cuts Off Own Arm To Save His Life

AMAZING story, and he refers to prayer and connecting with God.  It is a TODAY show interview, and not too graphic, but if you're squeamish, don't watch!

Farmer forced to cut off his own arm

Not On MY Flight!!

Yiiiiiikes!

Hole found in jet engine mid-flight