35.6% through the Bible…

Hey there,

I’m now 35.6% finished with my most current attempt to read through the Bible.  I’m in the middle of 2nd Chronicles.

I’ve signed up for a plan to complete it in 90 days.  In the past, and I’ve attempted it many times, I’d sign up for/commit to a plan to read through the entire Bible over a year.  I was never able to make it through, and was hoping a shorter commitment would work out better.

Things I’ve been thinking about lately:

• God is Holy
  • He really is, holy, set apart, distinct.  Thinking about the OT, the rules, the laws, the plan for how they were supposed to live in a relationship with God.  It’s covered like 3 different times, do this, do that, don’t to this, don’t do that.  They had everything they needed to follow this but still failed.  Just like us today.  But I rarely, well, I used to rarely think about how Holy God really is, and how we’re called to the same Holiness.  Awesome stuff.

• The OT is fully of good stuff that applies today!!!
  • We host a Bible study on Wednesday nights.  We’re going through the book of James currently.  It’s been neat to see how much of what I’m reading through has applied to the same things we’re studying on Wednesdays.  It’s so good.

• Staying in the Word is beneficial.
  • Since being a “player” in the church I’ve read the Bible a lot.  It almost always had to do with preparing a message, or for a study, or doing research.  This is the first time I’ve been consistent in reading through the Word for the sake of spending time in it.  It’s really been a blessing to me.

If anybody is interested in signing up for a read through the Bible I would recommend signing up for YouVersion.  If you’ve got an iPod or iPhone they’ve got an app for it as well, so you can take the reading with you.

It’s a new year; lets try this again…

OMG!!! Look at that beard!!!

Haley, Rachel: I’m sorry I’ve not been supportive of the blog for so long.  I’m not trying to make excuses; it just had to be moved down on the priority list for a while.  Thanks for keeping it up, and posting a couple times.  I’ve decided to get back into it again, because, as you’ll read, Marissa and I are trying to be better stewards; again.

To the World at large, well, read through the pages and you should be able to understand where we’re at.  This post is all about short quick statuses to get everybody up to speed on what I’ve been up to.

Family:

1. We had family over for the holidays, tons of people.  We came and went to Florida for a few days.  The holiday’s were cool, but I’m glad they’ve come and gone.  I’m looking forward to normal life again.
2. The kids continue to get bigger and bigger.  God has blessed me with attractive kids… teenage and puberty are going to be great!!!
3. Marissa still loves me, praise the Lord!

Ben:

1. I’ve got a beard!!!!   It took a lot of getting used to, but I’ve got the hang of it now.
2. I’m 7.67% done with my latest attempt to read through the Bible cover to cover.  After trying and failing so many times to complete a 1 year plan, I’ve opted for a 90 day plan.  It’s about 12 to 15 chapters a day and it’s going well so far… 8 days in and I haven’t fallen behind yet.  Something about reading and seeing so much history in each sitting makes it seem more like a book and less compartmentalized then it does when I read just a little each day.
3. I’m trying to loose weight and get healthy.  My Wii avatar got fat after I did the Wii Fit Plus physical evaluation… that was humbling.  Evidently, I’m obese… I knew I was overweight, but obese just seems wrong.

Life Group:

1. We’re continuing to meet on Wednesday nights in our home.  We had 9 adults and 9 kids this week.  We’ve had as many as 15 adults, the holidays really threw a wrench to many of our meetings.
2. We’ve studied all the way through chapter 3 of James to date.  We get to get into chapter 4 next week.
3. We’ll be signing up to lead another group after we finish James.  I’m praying about what book to study next.

Family:

1. We’re doing better at “homeschooling” our kids now than we’ve ever done in the past.  It’s exciting.  I think the best thing is that I work normal hours, those combined with our semi-normal routines, makes the parenting thing so much cooler lately.  Our lives used to be so involved with either ourselves or church we had absolutely no free time. (This is because I wasn’t serving from pure motives, read James 4:1-4, that’s where I was at. The kids have a Dad again!!!)

Environment:

1. It was in the mid-fourty’s today, I was in a short sleave shirt again!!!!  We’ve still got snow that needs to melt.
2. It’s neat to have seasons, but almost claustrophobic to be stuck indoors so much.  I mean, you can go outside, it’s just not any fun…  I’m the palest I’ve ever been…   pasty
3. I’m excited about spring time coming, I miss the life.

Work:

1. It’s going well…  We’ve been here for just over 1 year now.  I’m finally feeling like I might start having a handle on what my job entails, or maybe better said, getting my job done each day.  My employees are great, and I really am blessed in all of the aspects.  God’s still got his hand on my career.

Holy Home:

1. I think I’m starting to get old…   or thinking like a grown up finally…  Anyway, we’re starting to see some of the things we’ve been “teaching” our kids through our choices and are finally trying to address them.
2. We’re not watching American Idol this season… Not that it’s evil…  I just couldn’t think of a single good reason to watch it.  Not a good one.  And with no good reason, we’re gonna sit this season out.  We’re trying to take the same approach with many of the things that take our time away from each other.

Youth Groupie stuff:

1. I’m at some type of crossroads in the ministry/mission/purpose God’s given me.  I’m not sure where it will turn next.  I’m just trying to be patient and attentive.
2. I’ve been saddened as of late by all of the failure I’m seeing in the teens out there.  My heart yearns for kids to keep themselves from all of the mistakes I made.  There are a couple young people who by all appearances look to be making it through life unscathed, but many have chosen the dark side, or are flirting with it.
3. I’ve started to see the hope that shines through brokenness in all of it, and am excited on where my mission with the teens might go next.  I’m honestly thinking about trying to secure some kind of counseling, or psychologist training…   who knows?

I can’t really think of anything else at the moment.

Haley and Ray, thanks again and sorry its been so long.  I’m looking forward to 2010, it’s like a new era, kinda weird almost.

P.S. If anybody’s got anything they’d like to talk about or would like commented on, please let me know and thanks for reading!!!!

I’m out,

Ben

An Awesome God

I can’t believe how long its been since I’ve blogged! This post is going to be me kind of rambling, but here I go!

I recently read Job 38, (which is a really awesome passage that you should read if you haven’t yet!) and it hit me that the God who tells the ocean where to stop, the sun when to rise, and the rain when to fall, is the same God who’s a part of my life and cares about my day-to-day stuff that seems so silly compared to His greatness. In school, I’m taking an apologetics class, and we’re studying religions that view God as an impersonal, distant, and aloof being. I know that the opposite to be true, and I think it’s so awesome that I can know the God in Job 38, and He cares about me and is involved in my seemingly insignificant life. But then I think how dumb it is for me to constantly think that “I can take care of this myself” and “I know what I’m doing”, when God’s resume way over-qualifies Him to take care of me, which is what He really wants to do. Sometimes I want to just “fix” situations and take care of them, instead of talking to God about it.

And there are people in my life right now who are sick, going through divorce, are struggling at school and with friends, etc., and I wish I could do something about it. I like immediate solutions, instant gratification, stuff like that, and sometimes its hard for me to just stop and pray for others and myself, when sometimes that’s all I can do. But in knowing that God is such a personal God, and seeing in Job 38 how incredibly huge and capable He is, I’ve been realizing how ignorant I am and that I really can trust Him with everything. I’m really glad about that, because if it were all up to me, I’d probably end up breaking even more the things I try to fix. I’m finding that there’s incredible freedom in handing things over to God and letting Him take care of me and my life. God is continuing to help me trust and give things over to Him; I’m in super-capable hands!

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5&6

Hayley

I finally blogged again…

So it as been awhile since I last blogged.. I will use this post as a catch up post. Lets see so much as changed since I last blogged. My life progressed super fast in the last month.

First, I got a Job, I am now working at Oudom’s Thai and Sushi in downtown Mt.Dora, Im a  hostess and it is crazy. I am so blessed to get such a good job, I love it. All my coworkers are great,My boss is great. I am the baby and the only one who works their who is under 18, But it is a really good overall job I work alot, about 18 hours a week.So I have been SO busy.

Next, I am going to be driving soon! Which I am super excited about, now that I work and make money I will hopefully be getting a car and driving.

And last I am also going to start dual enrolling at Lake Sumter, working towards my AA. Everything is happening so fast, and It’s crazy for me to think I will be 17 in a few months, and only have 1 more year of highschool left, it’s bittersweet.

But so many choices are ahead of me, and it is so overwelming. Please pray I make the right decisons. And can stay focused because as you can see I have alot on my plate!

Well, that’s my catch up post. I FINALLY blogged! woo hoo!

Ray

Worship

Does it ever blow you away that we have the ability and opportunity to worship the one true God?

Do you ever sit back and actually think about the object of your worship; really sit down and meditate on His greatness?

When you sing of His greatness and glory, do you remember how He used His own lowliness and humility to show it to us?

When I really think about the words I’m singing, and whom I’m singing to, I loose it.  Tears, brokenness, humility.  It’s awe inspiring to me; really mind-blowing.  Jesus Christ, the Word, the great I Am is my God, my Savior.  WOW, what a glorious thing it is to be loved by Love itself.  This is joy, this is the abundant life, this is love overflowing; Jesus Christ lived, died and rose again for me, Ben Smith, to be redeemed and made righteous in God’s eyes.

I want to be a better man.  I want to be a better husband.  I want to be a better lover, father, worker, leader, shopper, worshiper, you name it.  Why can’t I make it?  Why do I keep failing?  How long will you tolerate my shortcomings God?

I’m still me, and it’s okay for now, but I must see my error, recognize it, confess it, and repent/turn from it.  Then I’m back on track again. How marvelous are Your ways.  We’ve been studying the book of James.  Our Bible study started; we had 12 adults and 15 kids this week.  We’ve made it through 11 verses so far, and already, God’s speaking to my heart.  I worked and studied and prepared to be able to help people through the book and I am being impacted more than I can even imagine the others are.  Basically, I need to get with the program, not for the program’s sake, but for mine, for it’s my time that I forfeit, time that I could be accomplishing great things.  Time that I could be drawing closer to my Lord.  Read through James and see if you don’t feel the same way…  wow

Lord, bring revival to my heart; a revival to serve and honor You with all I do, say and witness to this fallen world You gave so much for.

Ben