There are some questions in life to which I don't get an answer.

That thought drives me nuts. I'm the kind of guy who will spend hours combing the internet, searching the library, or asking my friends if they know the answer to some question. I love to do that.

So when I'm reminded from time to time that faith actually requires faith, it stings.

We've been raised in a post-enlightenment world that teaches us to question everything. It's part of the scholastic model that teachers use to educate us. Is that a bad thing? No. As long as it doesn't get in the way of remembering that God is control whether we understand how/why things are the way they are.

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Psalm 46:10 - "Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!"

When I get stuck in one of those "why God" spin cycles the Holy Spirit regularly brings this verse to my heart. We need to get comfortable with this idea because there are some questions in life to which we don't get an answer.

Journeying Together

If anyone could have heard what I was listening to at the gym this morning they would have given me some strange looks. For years I have wanted to go back and re-read Bunyan's classic Pilgrim's Progress, but I haven't been able to find the time. So I finally downloaded it to my Blackberry figuring that I might as well make the most out of my time on the treadmill.

For those of you who have never read the book, it's written like a dream where the main character Christian (his name) is on a journey from this world to the next. Along the way he meets all kinds of different people, both godly and ungodly.

During my workout this morning Christian ran into a man called Faithful. For a while they journeyed together, then Christian decided that he would rather run ahead. It didn't take long before Christian stumbled and fell. Eventually Faithful caught up to Christian and they continued their journey together.

As I was about to pass out on the treadmill I remembered all the days in seminary when my friend was there running right next to me encouraging me to keep going.

Listening to the story of Christian and Faithful and remembering the many Faithful(s) that God has put into my life, I was reminded that we were not meant to make this journey alone.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 "9 Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. 10 For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up."

New Series: Genesis - "Beginnings"

This past Sunday we began a new expository sermon series in the book of Genesis.

Since I came to Franconia over two and a half years ago we have worked our way through the books of Ruth, Mark, Philippians, and most recently Romans. After studying three New Testament books in a row, it seems right to get back into the Old Testament.

The title of this series is "Beginnings". Most likely you think of "in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" when you hear the name Genesis, but it is full of many other beginnings as well. We see not only the creation of the world, but also the creation of mankind, the advent of sin, the initial call of Abraham, and the establishment of God's promises that will carry believers to the end of the world as we know it today.

There is so much foundational material in Genesis, making it a must read and more importantly a must understand for all Christians!