On the eve of a new year

It has been a while since I have written a blog.  Maybe because my last one caught the attention of one of my professors, and I didn't want that going into finals.  I thought that it would be appropriate to write something as this year comes to a close.   I was going to write it "tomorrow" but since I am hopped up on a triple shot cappuccino that I made on the machine that we got for Christmas (thanks Laura) I guess I'll write now, seeing as it is officially just past midnight pacific time on Monday morning.  

This year has been so awesome.  Last new year’s eve, Emily was 4 months pregnant with Brynn, who was born in May.  I was in my 8th year teaching at Portland Christian Schools, and life seemed quite grand actually.  And it was, until June, when I received the news that I would no longer have full time employment from the school, I searched my heart and prayed to know what the next move would be.  As the summer progressed, it became so clear through divine construction that I was meant to go to Multnomah Seminary, and start the M.Div Chaplaincy Program.  In the first semester, I have learned so much and have been challenged in so many ways.  I would like to credit Dr. Metzger, Dr. Robertson, Dr. Josberger, and Dr. Clemen for having such a big impact on what has been a life altering semester.  As I progress into semester #2 starting in one week, I look forward to more mind-blowing activities and challenges.  

As I think about the future, I am faced with the unknown.  While I think that I have my whole plan worked out, who knows if my plan and God's plan are going to be the same path.  I have all these grand ideas (even an aspiration to become the Chief of Chaplains for the US Navy) but I know that they do not mean a thing if they are not what God has in store for me.  I am reminded of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane, when He prayed, "Not my will, but [the Father's] be done."

It is so hard to trust the will of God.  For us, we currently are still trying to sell our house in North Portland.  That's right.  It went on the market in September, and within 36 hours we had 3 offers on the property.  I was convinced that God was moving in that situation, but now it is December 31st, and the bank is still dragging its feet and we have not closed.  I trust that God will provide an end to this financial nightmare we are in, but it is hard to do things in His time.  

As I look into the future, I am worried for my family.  If I do become a Navy Chaplain like I feel called to be, it will mean a significant time away from my wife and girls.  If this is God's will, I know we can do it, but I know that it will be hard.  I have been able to be home a lot more ever since I lost my job at the school, and one thing I cannot bear is the idea of missing seeing my daughters grow up.  Even a six month deployment sounds like an eternity.  I am so thankful for the time that I have now, and in the next 2-3 years, to be around and be with them.  I am also so thankful that they are healthy.  In a couple of weeks, we are going in to see a specialist in the Deformational Plagiocephaly clinic at OHSU because Brynn's pediatrician things that she has a small deformity in her skull.  It sounds a lot worse than it actually is, considering that at this very moment a very dear friend of mine is sitting in the PICU at  Doernbecher Children’s Hospital with a child who has a blood clot in her brain.  My heart breaks for them and again, I have to question "How can this be a part of God's plan?"  I know that Dr. Josberger would say that is the "wrong question," but still, I have to ask it sometimes.  

Again, I would be amiss not to mention and thank my beautiful, caring, and supportive wife, Emily.  She has been my constant friend and #1 cheerleader through this whole transitional period.  I know it may sound cliche, but I honestly could not be doing this program without her.  And to our friends and family who have lifted us up in prayer and supported up, we are forever grateful.  

I hope that the New Year will be a great one.  I cannot wait to see how God will direct our paths, and if you have time, I still covet your prayers for:

• Closure on our house sale
• My studies
• Our family (Emily's Mom especially is having surgery on Jan. 21)
• God's continued financial, physical, and mental provision.  
• For my ministry at Rivercrest Community Church

Daniel

12-31-2012

Oppression versus Liberation-Living the Dance

                                                

In today's theology class I was challenged to consider how the Holy Spirit works in our lives.  My professor made a claim that the works of the Spirit never oppress the believer, but liberate them.  That really struck me, because as I am trying to live into the calling on my life, I often feel like the Christianity that I was raised in had nothing to do with liberation, and was pretty much bound up in oppression.  Not that I was oppressed by the church, far from it, but I never felt like I was raised to feel free to live a life whole in Christ.  I think the main emphasis of my spiritual upbringing was that we have to live a certain way in order to be in communion with Christ.  It felt like, at the time, that our whole spiritual life was based on "sin management."  Don't drink or do drugs, Don't fornicate, Don't lie, Don't steal, Don't gossip, don't, don't, don't.  I am not saying that being alive in Christ gives us carte-blanche to practice immorality, but what I am saying is that living in the life of fear (oppression) hinders us from living in the Spirit, who's ultimate goal is to liberate and free us from our sin.  

As we see in Galatians 5, there is a dichotomy between how humans act in the flesh: [Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. v.19-21] and the things that are of the Spirit [But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. v. 22-23]  Granted, it is clear that the apostle Paul is not condoning the acts of the flesh, in fact, he plainly says, those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God, but what he doesn't say is to manage your life against these things.  He is saying that the things we should be looking for in your lives are the fruits of the Spirit.  The fruits of the Spirit are not Guilt, Shame, Blame, Culpability, Embarrassment, Dishonor, Humiliation, and Disgrace.  These are the results of living a life of sin management.  Always looking over your shoulder at the last thing you did wrong, consumed by what is coming up that you cannot see the love, joy, peace, etc. that comes from living in the Spirit.  Often when we read this passage in Galatians, we stop at the fruit of the Spirit.  We say, "that is nice," and close the bible, but Paul goes on to say "And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit."  If we claim to be believers, we have had our sinfulness (guilt, shame) and our lusts destroyed. (Not by us, because humans cannot overcome sin by their will alone, but by the power of the Holy Spirit that indwells our hearts.)  Through the Holy Spirit, we are no longer slaves to the human desires and imperfections, but we can live out the fruits of our union with Christ.  Remembering that living by the Spirit means to keep in step with the Spirit. (some translations say to walk with the spirit.)

Keeping "in step" with the Spirit draws to mind a dance.  Where the partners are joined and moving together around the dance floor.  Not in arm in arm down the yellow brick road, but bonded together in one union, one motion.  Sin does not merely disappear.  We all sin and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23) But if we are dancing with the Spirit we do not let go, we do not break the union. We confess to God and one another (James 5:16), get over it, and keep on dancing.  The problem comes when we are just holding hands with the Spirit, walking down the road, and when we sin, we let go, and start walking down a side trail of guilt and shame.  We are lost, and apart from God because we try to manage that sin one our own, and continue to walk further and further away from the road that we were on.  While we are on our side excursion, we cannot see the fruits of being in the Spirit, because we have walked away.  The Spirit never leaves us because of our sin.  

I am not sure if this resonates with you, or if you even agree with me.  I am still trying to work all this stuff out for myself too, but please feel free to comment, disagree, push back, constructive thought's are welcome.  All I know is that I am going to stop trying to oppress those around me and in my ministry, and start being a conduit that Christ and the Holy Spirit can do their redemptive, healing, and liberating work through.    



Scripture quotes from: The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Kindness and faith

The past two weeks have tried my patience and faith immensely.  Last week I developed mastitis, which any women who has ever breastfed will tell you is incredibly painful.  Awful, in fact.  And it happened very quickly - fever, redness, the works. (Since having children I have developed a semi-'push through it' attitude towards my own health.  Everyone always says that you have to take care of yourself, but I seriously doubt there is a parent out there who has not felt that they couldn't get sick because there simply isn't time to be sick.)

When I finally chose to do something about the mastitis, it was Friday morning.  I called my doctor and left a message explaining the situation.  Three hours later, the advise nurse returned my call and said the doctor was recommending ultra-sound physical therapy at the hospital.

*BACK STORY*
One of the scariest parts of this new life path was the complete loss of health benefits for our family. I've been denied individual health insurance for ages, and Daniel's group health insurance was a blessing.  Losing that was terrifying.  We had no choice but to continue individual coverage for me through COBRA, while the girls and Daniel went on other plans. 

I love my doctor.  I would go hang out with my doctor at the local pub - she's that amazing.  And the shift in COBRA means I no longer have the ability to keep my doctor, or her resources.  The girls can also no longer keep their pediatrician, who is amazing as well.  And I'm bitter...very bitter.  I'm trying to remind myself that at least I have insurance (for now.) I am not always successful in this endeavor.

*WE NOW RETURN TO OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED BLOG*
I called the advise nurse back and requested a referral for someone in my new network.  Thirty minutes later and no response.  I called the new insurance company, and waited for twenty minutes on hold before someone told me that they couldn't give me any information on treatment options without a CPT code.  I called the advise nurse again, this time getting through, and requested a CPT code.  She said she would get back to me.  Thirty-five minutes later, the advise nurse could only tell me one CPT code that might work with the insurance.  She also said that she called the new network's hospital to see if there were any openings for treatment, and there were no openings until the middle of next week. 

I called the insurance company again, waited on hold again, and was told that the CPT code was not valid according to their computer system.  They could, however, email me a list of physical therapists in the area and I could call to see if someone was available.  Awesome.

At 2:34 pm on Friday afternoon, I received an email from the health insurance company with a list of 219 physical therapists that I could call to see if they have any openings.  By this time I was in tears and completely frustrated.  I called Daniel and cried.  I called my mother and cried.  My mother cried.  (I really hate it when my mother cries - I feel bad.) 

By then Daniel had driven to Whole Foods, in search of Lecithin.  Several mom blogs on breastfeeding swore by the supplement and I was willing to try anything. I said a silent prayer and began calling down the list of 219 physical therapists, watching the clock and trying to entertain the girls at the same time.  I left two messages at two different places.  No one called me back.  I was about to give up and was thinking about going to the emergency room instead. I felt guilty for even thinking of that, since I knew that the cost even with insurance would be more than we could afford. 

3:15 pm rolls around and I decide to call one more place.

This time, someone answered the phone.  She told me that it was unlikely I could be seen that day, but she would check. I started to sob on the phone, while Aurelia screamed for applejuice in the background.  I sat on hold...and waited...and waited. 

An appointment was available - LAST APPOINTMENT OF THE DAY. 4:45 pm and the therapist was staying later than normal just to see me.  I couldn't believe it.  I cried even more.

Daniel came home and thoughtfully brought cookies.  ( I think he's a keeper.)  After he came in the door, he walked right back out again, leaving the door open.  It was very weird.  My neighbors started trickling in the front door.  (I am really embarrassed by the state of our house right now, even though we have worked really hard to get it to where it is so far.  Pictures still aren't hung up, piles of stuff line the hallway, things aren't organized the best way possible...it's just not where we want it to be.)  But our neighbors came in because Daniel asked them to.  They came in to pray with us.

I was, and still am, humbled by both my husband asking for prayers on my behalf, but also for our neighbors, who still don't know us very well, but surrounded us with love and prayers. 

I felt a peace in my heart that afternoon that I truly believe came from God.  And I know that it was due to those prayers.

On religion, politics, and family.

For our Sunday Family Dinner tonight, My sister Jennifer and her two sons, Greyden and Trenton joined us for pulled pork tacos and chocolate cake and Ice cream.  I have missed seeing my sister, and I really enjoyed the time we were able to spend together.  Her husband Dan has been working in a small town outside of Houston, TX, for the last several weeks, and we were able to skype with him, and see how he was doing.  I realized I will most likely be in his position in a couple of years if, no, when I am deployed in the Navy, and I am going to cherish those times that I get to talk to my wife and girls.  I am really proud of Jennifer and Dan, how they are making the best of a hard situation, and I pray that things will work out soon so that they can be together.  In this hard economic time, Dan had to make a very tough decision to put the welfare of his family before what would have been comfortable for him, and for that he has my utmost respect.  We will see you soon for Christmas!!

My studies in seminary are creating more questions than they are solving.  Not that I was lost adrift in a world of theological confusion before, but not I am not completely sure that what I thought and was raised to believe is what the Bible actually teaches.  Take Politics for example.  On Saturday, I attended The Institute for Contemporary Theology: New Wine- New Wineskins Fall conference "Church and State."  For someone who HATES politics with a passion, my mind was opened to new thoughts and ideas that I had never before processed.  Being raised in the conservative Baptist church, I always thought that Christians should fall on the republican side of the party lines.  Whenever I saw democrat bumper stickers in the church parking lot, I wondered if they were visitors cars, or if someone from my church was actually going to vote for Michael Dukakis?  Well, I did grow up a bit between then and now, but I still find myself with mostly conservative ideals.  At the conference, I was challenged to think outside of my political comfort zone.  Dr. Paul Louis Metzger challenged everyone in the attendance to put aside partisan principles and focus of working for the common good.  He said "WWJD applies to politics too.  Jesus trumps all other obligations." Being a conservative, I am against outrageous government spending by principle, but I have been challenged to consider the alien, orphan, and widow, along with the other disenfranchised and marginalized parts or our culture.   I am not saying that I am going to vote to raise taxes to help them, but I think it is important to see how the Church and government can come together to help these needy among us.  Like St. Paul (not Metzger) wrote in Ephesians 4:4-6, "There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all."  We are all in this together (to quote an abomination of a Disney movie)

Another area that I was forced to reconsider was the Muslim Moment in American Politics.  The question was raised, if most conservatives are going to vote for a Mormon for president, would it be out of the question to vote for a qualified Muslim, if one ran? Old Daniel would have said that he under no circumstance would ever vote for a Muslim, because their values are so much different than my own.  After listening to Mr. Harris Zafar, national representative for the Ahmadiyya Muslin Community Intentional  I must admit that I have been open to considering the possibility. Not because I believe that the Christian and Muslim (or Mormon) faiths are the same side of the coin.  Not at all, but if the candidate was actually following what the Koran (4:136) teaches about government being separate from religion, and if this candidate was going to work for the freedom of religion, justice, defense of OUR country, and assistance for the poor and needy that they base their views of government on, I could consider voting for anyone with whom I shared similar beliefs if the alternative was more against my beliefs.

The reason I say that I hate politics is not that I think the government is evil, but I believe the system is broken and needs an overhaul.  In my mind, the 2 party system is flawed, and nothing is ever going to change for the better until something is done about the way our government works.  I hate that my choice for president in several of the past elections felt like picking the lesser of two evils.  I am not really concerned about this up coming election either, because which ever person wins is not going to be able to change anything.  Look at all that Obama has done in the last 4 years (or not?)- I am pretty sure that I am not any better off than I was before, and I am sure that if McCain was elected, he would have had just as much trouble enacting any changes that would have put America on the "right path." Don't ask me how to fix it, I have no clue (and that is why I stay out of it as much as I can) but something needs to be done so that all of us can see a change that puts America back on the map as a country that "Love's its neighbors as itself" and strives to work for the common good.

I am grateful for all the experiences and new ideologies that I am being exposed to.  It is a lot to take in.  Music school was way easier, but I know that God's plan for my life includes this season, and with His strength, I can do great things.

Family and Sacrifice

So while Daniel has been diligently blogging, I have not.  I honestly don't really know what to write.  I've started several blog posts but have never posted them.  Perhaps I am most afraid of how I will appear to the ouside world?

Right now life is very complicated.  There are just so many things going on.  Daniel is perpetually busy.  If it's not class, it's reading.  If it's not reading, it's writing papers.  If it's not writing papers, it's study group.  If it's not study group, it's worship team.  If it's not worship team, it's church responsibilities.  If it's not church responsibilities, it's outside musical gigs.  It does not leave a lot of time for anything else.  Sometimes family gets left behind.  I'm trying not to complain but I'm not always successful!  I have never been a meek and quiet woman.

I'm not so much afraid of our relationship - Daniel and I will survive and come out stronger than before (a ridiculous cliche, but true nonetheless.) I'm mostly afraid that he will miss "IT."  The day to day little things: Brynn discovering her toes; Aurelia playing with magnets in the playroom; Aurelia reading to Brynn and Brynn talking back; and the major day-to-day tantrums. I really wish he could see those in all their hour long glory.  He sees some of it, but oftentimes he is distracted. 

There are times that he's alone with the girls.  I work three days a week in the evening, so Daniel is in charge of entertainment, dinner and bedtime (he has his own ritual with Aurelia, including hair brushing, monkey sounds, and Llama Llama marathons.)  I know it's stressful for him during these times.  He semi-jokes that the girls prefer me to him.  At this point in their lives, they probably do.  I'm around most of the time. 

Don't mistake this complaint for ingratitude.  Daniel is an amazing father and provider.  He works very hard and has sacrificed a lot for our family.  But we are sacrificing a lot in return.   

I have been told by several people that it has been too long since the last posting, but I have been so busy.  I should really be writing a reflection of an article that I just finished reading, but I have had some thoughts that I felt like needed expressing, so here it goes.......


As alluded to in the title of this blog, the point is to reflect on how God is guiding this journey we call life.  Not only for me and my studies at the seminary, but for my whole family.  I have been struggling with being able to trust God's timing as of late.  I have so many questions as to why He has chosen this calling for me now.  As I reflect on the past, I know that it would have been much easier to go to seminary when I was still single, or at least newly married.  I have so many things that combat for my time and attention, and it is so hard to keep a balance.  Between my relationship with Emily, being a present father to Aurelia and Brynn, doing all the reading, writing, and class attending that I have, being a pastor of a fledgling program and a church that needs a lot of my efforts to keep in moving in, professional music gigs, and trying to find a moment or two to myself, I realized today that I have put on the back burner the one thing that should always be #1, my personal time with God.  I get plenty of time in the Bible, for class and church, but I am not spending the time that I really need to reflect and grow personally.
  
 Why did God wait 8 years to call me to this course?  I am not saying that my career as a school teacher was a waste of time or that I regret any of it, but I know that if I had gone directly from undergraduate studies (preferably in an area that would have better prepared me for where I am now) to seminary, I would be done now, and not brawling for every free minute to get the next task completed.  It is just hard to Trust that He knows best.  I have trusted Him to guide my paths to this point, but I guess a look back (in hind sight, of course) I see how I think He could have done a better job.  (Of course- I am not saying that His timing is not perfect in His own way)

Another difficulty in His timing, is that if I had come to seminary in 2004, I would have finished before Aurelia was born in 2010.  Now we have 2 children (and about 75% of the other seminarians also have families so it seems to be a trend) and every day I have a hard time knowing that He will provide financially for us.  Last Friday in my Old Testament survey class, I pointed the finger at the Hebrews who were in the wilderness wandering for not trusting that God would provide. "Over and over, we see the Hebrews complaining 'We have not food' and God gives them manna. 'We have not water' and out of a rock comes a stream of drinkable water.  'We are tired of manna. Can't we have some meat?' and the quail as far as the eye could see and 3 feet deep appear for the people, but yet they still said that it would have been better to be back in slavery in Egypt than to 'die' out in the wilderness.  DON'T THEY GET IT" I exclaimed.  While all the while I am thinking, where are we going to live, and God gave us a house on campus.  How are we going to eat and God provides WIC and SNAP benefits.  Will my dog ever get adopted from OHS, and today we found out that Rocco has a new home.  What will happen if one of my girls gets sick, and God provides OHP.  How am I going to sell my stupid house, and after being on the market for 36 hours, we had 3 offers.  How am I going to pay the $1151.80 auto mechanics bill for my stupid used car that I only bought for $1900, and God puts it on the heart of someone close to me pay every cent.  I am brought to tears with how He continues to provide, yet I still wish that I was in a more secure position.   WHY AM I SO BROKEN?

I find comfort in I Corinthians 2:11b "Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God"  I can have questions.  It is okay, I am only human, but I will still try to have faith, that is after all the true meaning of faith, being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.(Hebrews 11:1)

The semester is 3 days from being 1/3 over.  I have finished several of the 13 books I had to read.  Turned in several of the 29 papers I had to write.  I have my first big exam on Monday (Christian Theology) and so far, of all the work I have had returned to me graded, the lowest grade has been 75/80!!  I am hanging in there, keeping going one day at a time.  I am thankful for the support and prayers of my friends and family.  I am most thankful for my wife.  She really is a "bulwark never failing" to borrow from Martin Luther.  I am so grateful for her love and attention.

I will continue to keep you posted.

DAB 9-25-2012 11:31PM

Heading into week three

Well, we survived week 2 and as we push into week three, I realize that things are beginning to come due in a hurry.  I have 2 papers that are due on Wednesday and Friday respectively, and as of next week, several of the books that I have to read should be finished (I am on task to finish several, but I really need to get going on a couple.)  I really need to start getting up earlier and use some time in the mornings to get work done, but laying in bed with my family and rushing to class is much more my current style. (Having the seminary building a 4 minute walk from my back door has its advantages and disadvantages.)  I am excited about our youth program starting back up at church this Wednesday, but it is more work that I have to keep on top of.  Thank goodness for Google Calendar, because without it, I don't think I would remember anything that I had to do.

I had an interesting discovery today.  I was singing with Cappella Romana, one of my favorite groups that I sing with, at the Middle Eastern Festival today (St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church), and I noticed that one of my professors was in the audience. After our performance I approached him to say hello, and I found out that he is member of the Orthodox church.  I thought that was different, seeing as he is a professor at an Evangelical Seminary, but it didn't bother me in the slightest.  I actually hold the Orthodox church with great respect.  I love their music and sense of tradition as well as the way that they are hospitable to everyone.  I also ran across the woman who lives in the town house directly across from us.  She revealed that she and her husband also called St. George their home church and that the were becoming Orthodox members very soon.  She said it in sort of hushed tones, like she didn't want it to get out, but who really cares.  Are evangelicals so rigid that they cannot even accept the teachings of the "Original Church?"

I have to be honest.  I am not even sure that I am an "evangelical" with a capital E.  I grew up in that church, and serve as a Pastor in one, but I am not sure that I like the stigma that comes with being an evangelical.  I love God, and accept that Jesus took my place on the cross, but every time you hear about some Christian religious wacko in the news, they are fundamentalist evangelical Christians saying and doing things that embarrass me (Westboro Baptist Church, I am looking at you) and making Christians look like a group of people who are hateful and bigoted. To quote Dr. Metzger (again, and it won't be the last time) we need to foster a sense of HOSPITALITY and not HOSTILITY.  We need to meet people where they are, to show them the way to Christ, not scream at them until they throw a FROSTY in your face.

As a young person, I spent a lot of time protesting abortion.  That is what my Dad was into, and that is what we would do on a Saturday morning.  Take some signs down to the clinic and make our presence known.  There were often times where people would scream at us, and sometimes people who were with us would scream back.  I remember those times always made me feel uncomfortable (as a 8-13 year old.)  There would also usually be a group of Catholics who would protest with us, but they didn't have any signs, and they didn't scream at anyone.  They would just stand in a circle and pray the rosary.  That stuck with me too.  They weren't militant, or even drawing attention to themselves.  They would just pray for God to work in the hearts of women who went into the clinics.  In the end, I am not sure who did more "good," but now I think that the Catholics may have modeled what it means to be a Christ follower better than we "evangelicals" did.

Sunday Family Dinner - take 1

I have this grand notion that since we are no longer a TV watching, or even a TV possessing, family that perhaps we should do something familial.  Something considered fairly old school by today's standards.

Imagine a Norman Rockwell painting...Burnett style

It is exceedingly difficult to plan a family dinner when:
1. You can't find any food except dried beans and a bit of onion;
2. The 'active' yeast you try to use for your domestic goddess style french bread recipe is not, in fact, active and;
3. You can't actually see your dining room table

So Sunday Family dinner - take 1
Recipes: US Senate Soup, Homemade Quick Rise French Bread
Attendees: Daniel, Myself, Aurelia, Brynn, Diane Burnett

Verdict: Soup was incredibly bland, but let's be honest, there's only so many things you can do with WIC dried beans. 

French bread dreams foiled by non-active yeast - utter fail.  Daniel and Diane made a valiant attempt to tell me that it wasn't that bad, but it really was.

  Conversation interesting.  How can there be anything but interesting conversation with this around?



 

-PW

Week One in Review

Well, I made it to the end of week one and i am not running for the hills yet.  I sat down to figure out exactly how much work I have to do, and it is a little overwhelming.  For the 17 semester hours that I am taking (the recommended number for someone who wants to finish the degree program in 3 years) I have 13 books to read, 29 papers to write [17 of them are 5 pages or less, but still..,] and 11 examinations to pass before December 15.  That along with coming up with meaningful lessons for Sunday school and Wednesday evening services at my church, and trying to keep my marriage together (which one class will actually give me credit for going on dates with my wife) and seeing my kids.  I guess the one thing that I am not going to do is have a life.  Oh well.

On Thursday's I have Principles of Spiritual formation, a class designed to make sure that all the Bible study in seminary doesn't become just head knowledge, and that we have an outlet to make it practical and applicable.  I was skeptical at first, like thinking that it will be a waste of time, but after the class, I was stoked.  As I alluded to before, this class requires married students to spend 3 hours a week "dating" their spouse.  It is called the Marriage Enrichment portion and it is 20% of our grades.  Other things that we have to do for the class include a 4 hour and 8 hour retreat of solitude to "be with" God.  I am not sure exactly what that means, but the instructor was adamant that we could not take anything with us, and we were to go somewhere that we wouldn't be distracted, and do nothing but sit, or stand, in the presence of God.

My longest class of the week is a 4 hour Old Testament Survey.  I was dreading this one too, but it turned out to be really cool.  It is another one of the ROBO-classroom classes where people from all over the country are joining in.  The professor, Dr. Josberger is really excited about the subject and her excitement makes what could be a very long, very boring class actually very interesting.  I am looking forward to diving into the word in that class.

One thing that I find interesting about Seminary is that while each class has required texts and the professors refer to the occasionally, most of them say that you don't even need to bring the text to class, just read, and in most cases write a paper proving that you have digested the information.  In only one class this whole week did a Professor say "Okay, now take out the book and turn to page......" and of course, that was the one book I was still waiting to get from Amazon.

I have so much work ahead of me, but I feel like this blog is an important way to decompress and share with others what I am learning.  I have written a lot this week, and I probably won't be able to keep up the pace, but I will make sure to check in regularly and I would covet the prayers of all of you while we are on this journey.

DAB 8-31-2012


I want to thank my wife Emily for all the support and hard work she is putting in.  Not only did she buy all my books for me online (not because I am incapable, but because she is great at finding deals online.)  She is also working part time, working hard to get our new apartment in order, and take care of the kids.  She is a real Proverbs 31 woman.  I love you!!!

Day 2 or 3, I can't remember

Well, today was day 3 of the semester, but I didn't have class Tuesday, so really it was day 2 of classes for me.  On Tuesday, there was a convocation chapel in which the whole student body (college, graduate school, and seminary) all got together to dedicate the year.  Dr. Dan Lockwood, who is the president of Multnomah and also a PCHS graduate, gave a great speech about finding and being a mentor.  He used the example of Barnabas in the book of Acts to encourage every student to find someone who could be an encouraging friend.  It got me thinking of all the people who were mentors to me in the past.  I can think of Jim Budlong, Don Ebel, and Evan Irwin who encouraged me to foster my musical talents at a young age, and use them to glorify the Lord.  Bob Barber and Nancy Parker who inspired my love of music, Choral music in particular.  Dr. Scott Tuomi and Dr. Bruce Browne who were instrumental in my studies at Portland State.  Tamara Anderson really came alongside me as I began by teaching career at PCHS.  Jon Stuber and more recently Paul Quarino as partners in music ministry.  But like Dr. Lockwood, I would have to agree that the people who were my biggest mentors and encouragers were also my parents.  Andrew and Diane, thank you for always supporting me.  Being there, and being an inspiration to me.  I know that you may not feel like it all the time, but I am who I am because of you.  The sacrifices you make and the blood sweat and tears that you both poured out.  THANK YOU.

Today, in class I was beginning to notice a couple themes that were prevailing in almost all of my classes thus far.  The first one is the idea of  Sola and Prima Scriptura.  Only Scripture, and First Scripture.  Multnomah has had the slogan for many year "If it's Bible you want, you want Multnomah" or something along those lines, but it really is true that we use the scripture as the basis for everything that we study.  In Theology we talked about the Wesleyan Quadrilateral which is seen here:

No it isn't the Wesley from ST:TNG, and it isn't even a real quadrilateral.  (even I know that and I am horrible at math and geometry.)  What it is are the 4 areas to be considered when studying Systematic Theology.  Reason, Tradition, and Experience; all wrapped in a large tortilla shell of the scriptures.

In both theology and Biblical Interpretation we discussed the concept of Presuppositionless Exegesis.  That concept says that you cannot study the scriptures (or anything else for that matter) without bringing your own "Baggage" for lack of a better term.  Our experiences and upbringing will always effect the way we look at the Bible.

Another thing that came up in both classes was the story of the rich young man who wanted to become a disciple, but wasn't willing to give up everything he had to follow Christ.  This story really hit home for me, even though I was by no means "rich," I did live a comfortable life.  We owned a home. Had some nice things, and now it seems like we have given most of it up to follow the call of Christ.

There is a pretty adequate workout facility here on campus, and we are free to bring one guest with us, so if anyone wants to work our for free, let me know.

I have my First "Bible Class" on Friday, the assignment on the class website is to come to class having read all of Genesis. It took three days, but I finished tonight.  Now, I was pretty familiar with most of the stories and characters from Sunday school, and bible class at PC, but there were some ones that I don't ever remember talking about like the raping and inscest stories.  I wonder how that discussion is going to go?

DAB-8-29-12  

Day 1

I know that I said I wouldn't write every day, but I thought that I would share some impressions from my first day.
1)  8:00 AM is really early for your brain to comprehend systematic theology.  Not impossible, but difficult.  My professor is Dr. Metzger, who is considered "The Hard One," out of all the people who teach the introductory class.  I found him passionate, and fascinating.  I won't bore you with all the class notes, but I will share 2 quotes from class that I thought were interesting.

1) "Because iron sharpens iron doesn't me cream-puffs sharpen cream-puffs

and more seriously

2) Theology, or the study of God, is not divorced from practical application. Just because we study "God" and the scriptures, it doesn't excuse us from not applying what we learn and know.

I am finding a common trend here that we had at Portland Christian, and that is Biblical Integration.  Seeing every subject with God at the center of it.

I found my Foundations of Christian Counseling and Practicum rather droll,  but maybe that was because it was the first day.  We watched a Chuck Colson video, and that was pretty interesting, but it had nothing to do with counseling, so I am not sure why we wasted the 40 minutes on that.

I enjoyed my last class of the day.  It is called Foundations.  It is taught by Dr. Redman, the Academic Dean of the Seminary.  I find him approachable and knowledgeable. (Emily and I were guests in his home last Friday evening. He told me today during a break that after we left, because the baby needed to get to bed, that several people were playing his piano and singing.  He said that they even broke out the Schubert Lieder books, and that I would have been a good edition to that part of the party.  He invited us to come over again and sing some with them.)  The class is a Multnomah Live class, which means that students in Portland, Reno, Anchorage, and Seattle all interact with a pretty amazing teleconferencing system, as well as students can stream the lectures live anywhere in the world (without the interaction.)   The camera follows the prof around the room because he wears this lanyard with a transponder in it, and when we ask a question in class, we push this button on our table, and the camera focuses on us, so everyone can see it.  ROBO-CLASSROOM!!

I am glad that I have no classes tomorrow.  I have a hefty chunk of reading to do.  I need to read all of Genesis by Friday, plus a lot of other readings from my texts.  Emily and I also hope to go grocery shopping and keep unpacking from the move.

SIDE NOTE:  I looked around for the guy who gave us the money and he was no where to be found.  I asked a guy who lives 2 houses over and he said he didn't know of anyone named Jason in our complex.  There are 31 Jason's in the Multnomah Directory, but I am not going to go through each one to try to find the guy.

DANIEL-8-27-2012

GOD MONEY

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.

Tomorrow starts another chapter in our family's journey.  I will begin my divinity studies at Multnomah Seminary.  I though it might be interesting to document our journey on this blog.  I won't promise to write every day, but maybe once a week so follow us on this great path.

It is Sunday evening before the first day of class.  Today was a long day.  We had service this morning, and I just felt off because the worship team was forced to stop rehearsal before we were finished.  I felt disrespected, but I was able to let it go.  After church we had to take our family dog Rocco to the Oregon Humane Society, because we are not allowed to have pets in campus housing, and we were not able to find a home for him on our own.  The nice thing to know is that the OHS is a "no kill" shelter, and if they accept your pet, they will care for it until they find a family.  Rocco was like our first child, and it was very hard to see him go.  

When we got back to our new place (after drowning our sorrows in Yo-Cream) I was sitting outside doing some work for my church job when I was reminded by one of our neighbors that there was a free dinner for all the Family Housing residents.  FREE FOOD!!!!!  We were able to meet some of our neighbors, and Aurelia got to play with a lot of the kids.  

When we got back to our apartment Emily was sitting outside watching the kids while I unpacked some of the boxes inside.  The door was open and I could hear one of the other residents introducing himself to Emily.  I went out to say hello, and just as I reached the door I heard the neighbor say "I don't know why, but I feel like God is telling me to give you this." He handed Emily some money (a lot of money actually) and walked away.  I was stunned.  I had been on the other side of this situation, feeling the prompting of the Holy Spirit to do something, or say something to someone, but I could not remember a time that I was on the receiving end of it.  I pondered why God would want a total stranger to give us $100, and I thought about it through several boxes of fragile china I was putting into the cabinet, and I think I came up with an answer.

In the bible, when Jesus did a miracle, it wasn't because the person needed to be healed, or the people needed to be fed or so on.  Jesus did miraculous signs and wonders for one reason; to prove that he was the Son of God.  Period.  That is also why this guy gave us the money.  It was God speaking to me, telling me "Daniel, This is God, I am going to provide for you."  

Even though I have been amazed at the doors that have flung wide open to get us to where we are right now, I have continued to doubt whether or not this is really what I should be doing, especially because of the financial factor.  I don't really want to take out $60,000 in loans over the next 3 years, but I believe that by that stranger handing us money, God has assured me that He is Jehovah Jireh, my provider, and that I only need to cast my cares on Him, and allow God to do "Godlike" things for us.

Daniel A. Burnett-8/26-2012