Back for Round #2

At first you may think I am jumping into a boxing ring and getting ready to fight an opponent. In some sense that is true, but I am not jumping into the boxing ring. Rather, I am once again jumping into the seminary ring. Though there will be spiritual battles that must be fought and deep theological truths that we all must wrestle with, it truly is a pleasure to e here at Dallas Seminary.

In retrospect, I cannot begin to tell you how much I learned in my first year at DTS. I generally tell people that I quickly learned that I do not know as much about God and the Scriptures as I think I know. I fully confess that I came to school thinking that I knew a lot. Man was I wrong! There is so much that I do not know, and at times, what I do not know or completely understand can be daunting and frightening. As I look back at my first year though, and as I look ahead to this upcoming school year, what I do not know or fully understand encourages me to press on, and continue my seminary education and training.

We will never know everything there is to know about God or everything that is contained within the Scriptures. Now we may look at this as a disappointment or discouragement at times, but this actually makes seminary all the more enjoyable. Part of the excitement of seminary is knowing that when you go to class you are going to be challenged with something new that you have never learned. Sure I will read passages that I have read several times prior to class, but my professor will show me something in the text that I have never seen before. Some of these truths challenged me in my walk with Christ, showing me areas of my life that needed attention. At other times, these new truths were observations that others have seen, but I have never seen until now.

Not everything that I learned during my first year came through the classroom and my professors though. One of the greatest lessons I learned during my first year at DTS, and am still learning today, is that God will provide for all of our needs. I was looking through some papers a couple of days ago, and in one notebook found a journal entry that I made during my first week of seminary. I specifically wrote in this entry a prayer to God, asking that He would help me to meet people that would want to spend time with me, basically be good friends. God more than provided in that area. I have a core group of friends that I can depend on and reach out to at any time. At other times though, my needs were not centered around friends and relationships. As is true with most every seminary student, I also faced financial needs and was uncertain how they God was going to meet them throughout the school year.

Before coming to DTS I had to take out a student loan to pay for classes and living expenses, and I was thinking that the money would be gone in no time. Amazingly, God has stretched every dollar in ways that I never imagined. This year there have also been more outside scholarship opportunities. One seminary scholarship opportunity is through SeminaryScholarships.com. Scholarships such as these are just another way in which God blesses seminary students. I know that for myself, this scholarships would help offset many of the various costs of seminary. As many of you know, college books are by no means cheap, nor is Bible software, and so every seminary scholarship is a greatly appreciated blessing.

So please continue to be in prayer for me and every student at DTS as this new school year begins. God will provide for all of my needs and your needs. Please pray that all the finances for school that I need will come through and please pray that my heart and mind will be completely prepared and ready as I get set to begin my second year at DTS. I am very excited to see what God is going to reveal to me and teach me this year!

Check the Lists...

Sometime last week, I was sitting and reading various passages of Scripture, and felt compelled to stop and make two lists. The first list is of things that the world has to offer each and everyone of us. The second list consists of everything that God offers and gives to us.

The World:

Pain, Misery, Death, Unhappiness, Depression,
Addiction, Anger, Murder, Lust, Lying, Stealing,
Fallacies, Self-Mutilation, Heartache, Physical Ailment,
Emotional Turmoil, Idols, Temporary Happiness, Back Talk,
Back Biting, Hate, Turmoil, Strife, Deception, Destruction.

God:

Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness,
Faithfulness, Gentleness, Self-Control, Restoration
Healing, Freedom, Another Chance, Clarity in Mind,
Strength, Support, Forgiveness, Encouragement,
Promises, Truth, Fulfillment, Purity, Honesty, Life
God Himself, Relationships, Genuineness...
And the list goes on and on.

I leave you with a couple of different verses:

"And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house we will serve the LORD." Joshua 24:15 (NKJV)

"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." John 10:10

Check It Out!

Aight, so I know y'all are probably tired of me posting these, but get over it. Just another friendly reminder that a Harvest Crusade is coming up in a couple of weeks, and you can check out the live webcasts online.

Watch it. It's worth it!




P.S. Check out a video regarding the past 20 years of Harvest Crusades and here some great testimonies here.