Asking

“And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you, seek, and you will find, knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”  Luke 11:9-13

Heavenly Father, I ask for your Spirit now. I ask humbly and timidly. I feel as though your Spirit has left me. Although I don’t believe that to be true, it is how it feels. Like a body without blood I feel my soul is without your Spirit. Please return him to me. Don’t leave me alone. I know that you won’t, but don’t leave me.

I’m asking. I’m trying to seek you in your Word. I’m wanting to knock but I’m not sure where. Father, give me the “good gift” of the Holy Spirit or show me that I already have him.

six and counting…

Tomorrow, will be our 6th wedding anniversary! I cannot believe we’ve been married 6 years already. I also cannot believe it’s only been 6 years with her, it’s hard to imagine or remember life without her.

Our relationship was birthed in sin. Its only attribute was sin. I remember thinking, and believing, for a long time, that there was just no way Amanda and I could be together because of how messed up and sinful our past was. At times it’s still hard to believe. As I think about it now all I can think of is how amazing Gods grace is. He has been so very merciful to us, and has blessed us with a wonderful marriage, and now 4 beautiful kids. It doesn’t make sense to me at all. But I guess grace doesn’t make much sense, that’s the wonder of the gospel.

So, in honor of our 6 years together, here are 6 things I love about Amanda (in no particular order):

1: She’s more amazed and thankful for Gods grace then I am. I love her broken joy when we talk about how God has blessed us. She is a delight to my soul.

2: She loves to serve. She is always serving somebody. With 4 kids there is much demanded of you. When they’re all 5 and under there’s more demanded. When your homeschooling there’s more. When your husband is as sinful and selfish as me there’s way more demanded. And yet she longs to be a blessing to more people! She has so much reward awaiting her.

3: She’s an awesome cook!

4: She makes our home, OUR HOME. She fills it with joy. I love coming home. But I really love coming home to her. When I came home tonight, I saw her and was immediately thankful for her in my life.

5: I get to brag about her to others. When I’m out with guys I get excited when our wives come up in convo. I get to boast in the grace of God in her life, always. What a joy that is!

6: She’s smokin’ hot! It’s like I hit the lottery with this gal. She’s off the hook.

Godly, humble, servent, cook, growing in grace, and beautiful!

God, thank you for hooking a brother up.

Eric

Comes with the Season

A Child and his/her puke. I hate it. Cant stand it. Keely’s puke wasn’t too bad, real watery, not much substance. Lila’s puke was a little worse, mainly formula and baby cereal, but she only hurled a couple times. Ezra however, his body really gets into it. All the food from the past week is apparently still in there and wanting splash on the floor.
It’s just that season I guess.

Some RV Fun

So we picked my bro up from the Marines in South Carolina this past week, and we all rode home in an RV on Fri. It was late at night after about 10 hours of driving that we resorted to entertaining ourselves this way: (the better part is in the middle, involving the cookie)

My Brother Nick

Tonight my brothers, Ryan and Josh, are driving down to South Carolina with me to see our youngest brother Nick graduate from Marine Boot Camp. He’s a Marine now, and I am very proud of what he has done and what he will continue to do. I can’t wait to see him! My parents are also going down along with many other members of our family. I hope he knows and feels our support for him. I’ll be glad to bring him home so that my kids can see their uncle Nick. They def missed him, they would pray for him, sing random senseless songs for him, play with the GI Joes and say that they are uncle Nick. I’m excited about this week. I love my brother.

Reading On

After a brutal game of Othello, where I showed no mercy to Amanda, we both finished our latest reads for the year.

Mine was Everyday Talk. It’s a book on parenting that I thought was pretty helpful. There were a lot of examples that were used that  served me in making it more practical. Though the times that there weren’t any examples seemed to be the times I needed them the most. The best chapter was called “Big sins, Little Sins”, and will hopefully prove to be very beneficial. It was a helpful easy read, but it seemed to be only that one chapter that left a mark.

This Sunday

…I cried purple tears…

The Man Himself

So….yesterday was cool. Amanda and I went out for a “breakfast date” to a somewhat nearby little coffee shop. We were sitting on the couch inside the shop enjoying the espresso when in walked Terry O’Quinn the actor who plays John Locke on LOST!!! As you know we’re big fans, so I got uber excited. I drank my coffee really fast and decided that I needed to go say something. I went up to him and talked with him for a min, and then he wanted to say hi to Amanda because she was still sitting on the couch, and he talked to us for like 3 min. He was very kind, had nice teeth, no scar, and maybe gave us a clue.

That was pretty exciting for us! Now we really cant wait to watch our new BFF in the premier next week!!

He wasn’t  like this, he was just getting coffee so he was a bit cleaner and nicer.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! (at least in Baltimore)

The Night Before Festivus

‘Twas the night before Festivus, when all through Charm City
Ravens fans were stirring and even felt giddy.
The jerseys were hung by the chimney with flare,
In hopes that Joe Flacco soon would be there.

The fans were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of the playoffs danced in their heads.
And when we awoke and January 10th was the date,
We just settled down for a winter’s tailgate,

When out in the end zone there arose such a clatter,
The opponent looked over to see what was the matter.
The season had boiled down to one single game
as the players were looking for more than just fame

And what to my wondering eyes looked intense,
For it was Ray Lewis…and the Baltimore defense.
A terrifying unit, so lively and quick,
They’ll hit you, they’ll haunt you, or even grab the pick.
More rapid than wolves these hunters they came,
And Ray whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;

“T-Sizzle! now, JJ! now, Bannan, Haloti!
On, Trevor! on Leonhard! on, Reed and Samari!
To the top of the mountain! to the top of the hill!
Knock them out! Get the ball! Now in for the kill!”

And then, the offense, led by a menacing line,
Came onto the field and was ready to fly.
A three-headed monster was at running back,
led by McClain, a big rumbling mack.
And Mason the veteran, with his shoulder so sore,
Kept reining in passes, one, two, three, more!

And finally, a sight so perfect, so new;
a quarterback to be proud of, a little like Johnny U.
Joe Flacco was ready to take the city by storm,
his cannon for an arm much better than norm,
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And led them downfield, the fans going berserk.

The Ravens were ready to give such a gift
to the fans of Baltimore who needed the lift.
Coach Harbaugh exclaimed, while his team looked so sleek,
“Happy Festivus to all, and we’ll see you next week.”
(From an email I recieved)
GO RAVENS!

Reviews on Books I’ve Read?

Ummm…prob won’t happen. I mean, it could, but realistically… probably not. I can at least recommend them or not.
Amanda and I are keeping a running list of the books we’ve read this year on the right of the page.
So, I’ll do the three I’ve read so far.

• The book on Jed (Johnathan Edwards)- First off its a big book. One of the bigger ones I’ve ever read. I really enjoyed it though. Read mostly like a novel which made it easier. Got a little tough towards the end (a lot of political things going on, but it was helpful to learn). I would Def recommend it to anyone wanting a in depth look at Jed or for anyone just wanting a good bio. Read it.
• The Book on the Emergent Church – Very helpful in understanding what their movement is all about, and why its so messed up. It should also help with your discernment. I would recommend to anyone wanting to know what the hoopla is over Rob Bell, and why he and all who follow him need our prayers. Read it.
• The Gospel and Evangelism Book – Nice small easy read. You’ll prob finish in two or three sittings. Pretty basic stuff, mostly clarifying misunderstandings. Helpful. Challenging. Read it, it wont set you back much financially or in time.

New Years Resolve

Here is my new years resolution. I wasn’t planning on making any (Don’t aim, can’t miss).

So far I’ve already done one (I really just finished it though, I had started it in ’08)! Pretty sure I won’t get 52, but if I end up reading 20-30 that would be pretty sweet.

The hard part is…applying all 52 books. Plus you also have at least 52 sermons. Any conference teachings. Any additional teachings that a friend says “You really gotta listen to this!” And finally, all that you read from the Word! You could be looking at 250-400 points of application for 2009. If done faithfully, our 2010 resolution might be to start changing water into wine for more people.

Late night conversation with my honest wife

Amanda: “I think I’m hungry”

Eric: “Well, lets go eat something”

Amanda: “Lets”?

Eric: “We are “One Flesh”

Amanda: “Well, your half is bigger.”

I like Japan

Pretty fun, not gonna lie.

Lila Madalyn Price has been Added

So, as most of you now know, God has pulled that little baby out of Amanda this past Sunday! She weighed in at 6 pounds 15 ounces, 19.5 inches long, and much more hair than either of her siblings. Both Amanda and Lila are doing fine. Dad is doing fine too (thanks for asking). Ezra seems to like Lila, although he keeps referring to her as “the other white baby”. We don’t know what that’s about.

Here are some pics of the wee one, and you can get more from that link on the side of this page.

Another good post! (Not by me)

Another wonderful post and reminder from our friend Deborah! Thanks Deb!

The Great Debate!

Here it is! What you’ve all been asking for! Here is the Great Debate! A debate between a presuppositional  apologetic (Greg Bahnsen) and an atheist (Gordon Stein). Rare find indeed!

Preparing for the Sabbath

“As all of us prepare our hearts and minds for worship tomorrow, my prayer is that we go expecting to encounter the glory of God, his powerful presence, first and foremost. I pray that, as we sleep, God would expand our want to sing of who he is and hear of what he’s done. I pray that we go ready and willing to feel the grief of our sin so that we can feel the glory of his salvation. I pray that we go, in other words, to see God on display, not preachers or musicians. A worship service is not the place to showcase human talent. It’s the place for God to showcase his Divine treasure. A worship service that contains the power to change us (even us preachers) is a worship service that leaves us with grand impressions of Divine personality, not grand impressions of human personality. Isaiah did not leave the temple in Isaiah 6 thinking, “What great music, what a great building, what a great preacher.” He left thinking, “What a great God.”

Perhaps John Stott’s words will be used to grow our love for the the great Gospel we will encounter tommorrow: “The essence of sin is man substituting himself for God, while the essence of salvation is God substituting himself for man. Man asserts himself against God and puts himself where only God deserves to be; God sacrifices himself for man and puts himself where only man deserves to be.” Amen!

Remember: we gather for worship not to escape the real world, but to be reminded that this world is not there is. For the Christian, the best is yet to come. So worship humbly and hard tomorrow. You need it!”

-From: BetweenTwoWorlds

Well, how ’bout that!

I thought this was interesting. Apparently a group of researches from Cambridge have proved that we all came from one individual ancestor. Read more here (short read)

Preparing for The Lords Day !!

Here is a link to two great reads on OUR role in the Sunday meetings. Oh, how important it is that we be an active member of our churches, not just showing up on Sundays or Care Group, but coming to those gatherings prepared to be used to build up the body, to worship God and listen and apply faithfully. May we be “expositional listeners” and may we “take care how we listen”.

Does Gods Sovereignty nullify our prayers?

We were just talking about this after Care Group tonight. How does Prayer fit with the Sovereignty of God and His Will? Does Prayer “change” anything? I got home and came across this little read, and thought it was helpful. Fun stuff!

One hairy year . . . ?

So I found out today about a bet revolving around my younger brother Nick. There was a contract written up, that if Nick signed, would keep him from cutting any hair from the shoulders up, for one year. If Nick keeps the deal, anyone else who signs the contract (7 of his friends and brothers already have) will pay him $30 each. When his hair is long it turns into a huge curly fro, and his beard is dark and very patchy, which should be pretty nasty in a year. This is his senior year of high-school, senior pictures, senior prom and all that stuff. If he sticks with it he’s gonna look pretty nasty, but he’ll be set to make at least $210.

Should be fun!

An Encouraging read!

 

From Deborah Sharpes blog:

Yesterday morning I had the privilege of praying for my church’s Sunday service with several other members of my care group. A couple of the guys from my care group had started praying before the service a couple of weeks ago and encouraged the rest of us to join them. It was such an encouraging time. Not only were we able to lift up the church and the various people who would be serving us that day, but it also helped to prepare our hearts for the message we would hear. I left that time excited to encounter God in the service and anticipating His presence. What a great pleasure it is to join with other saints in prayer for the local church! I feel so honored to be walking along side these people as we strive to live our lives to the glory of God. Thank you all for your constant example of love for the local church!

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

The joy of choosing without a choice!!

My friend Kevin, wrote a very helpful post on the freewill of man and the sovereignty of God!

Thanks Kevin for making it simple for us simple folk!

faith- lived

How stirring these stories are of faith lived!

They were then marched off to prison to join the other “Gospellers,” who also had been arrested. When Rose Allen was placed at the bar before her judges, she answered their questions not only with spirit but with true wisdom, positively turning their questions into ridicule. They asked her what she had to say about the Sacrifice of the Mass, and the answer she gave was more than emphatic, but in those rugged times it would be understood more than we perhaps do in these more polite days. She said, “I say it stinketh in the face of God! and I dare not have to do therewith for my life.” “Are you not a member of the Catholic church?” “I am not a member of yours, for ye be members of Antichrist, and shall have the reward of Antichrist.” “What say you of the See of the Bishop of Rome?” “I am none of his. (Read More)

How wonderful!

So, my wife Amanda and I had Date Night the other night (Fri), and we hadn’t had one for a couple weeks so we were both really looking forward to this time together to be alone and actually talk to each other. I just want to say that I’m pretty sure I have the most amazing wife ever. Yup, she has got to be up there towards the top of the “All-Time Greatest Wives” list. I told her, on our date, how I’ve often thought “Lord, why would you give me such an incredible woman?”. And I truly often think that. My thoughts usually end up concluding two things: 1- That I am supposed to be a amazing man so as to match the “amazingness” of my wife, or 2- That God is trying to beat me over the head with his goodness (in giving me Amanda) so that I might eventually submit to Him. Either way, I’ve been blessed with the most wonderful gift, a wife that I couldn’t even dream up(seriously), and I am soo very grateful to God for her.