The Beach!

In March we took a wonderful family vacation to the beach. It was so relaxing and God blessed us with amazing weather for March. It was sunny every day and one of the days we were out on the beach in t-shirts. Enjoy the pics!

No Condemnation II

Many of you know that Todd preached on this subject last Sunday. It was absolutely wonderful. I know you'll want to hear his sermon so here is the link!
http://tbcrenton.org/sermons.php

No Condemnation! - by Todd

I've been chewing on Romans 8:1-2 for the last month or so and never seem to exhaust its worth.

"Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life has set me free from the law of sin and death."

As amazing as it is to hear God tells us "there is no condemnation", how many times do we place condemnation upon ourselves? I have fallen prey to the idea that self-criticism (condemnation in wolf's clothing) will motivate me to be a "better person". As if another whip on the back will compel me to become a better husband, share the gospel with greater vigor or make me a better employee. My problem is that I begin and end with myself. My starting line is self-analysis and I am running toward the finish line called "self-perfection" (has anyone reached it yet?)

The beauty of the gospel is that One has already reached perfection and has chosen to give me the reward of His fulfilling work. By faith, His work of redemption has already placed me on the finish line called "glorified" with Him. I no longer need to continue striving out of fear and the threat of separation from Him, but rather enjoy Him for who He is and so find within Him the strength to do the good work He has begun. Life is no longer a list of "things I must accomplish", but an opportunity to enjoy Him and let every action and word be out of gratitude for who He is. This is a lasting work that will endure anything conjured up by self-criticism or condemnation.

The result of this fixation on Jesus is an uncontainable, gospel-centered, God glorifying life that is filled with evidence of His work. When my eyes are on Jesus, not condemnation, I am empowered to be that better husband, to share the gospel with greater boldness and to be a better employee. His work of redemption continues to bear fruit in day-to-day living through His transforming work in me. This is real change.

A song I'm reminded of expresses it so well:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajczMxNu45M

Piper does a steller job of clarifying the fact that we are first justified before God, then He brings about His work of sanctification:

http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/ScriptureIndex/10/68_Set_Free_by_the_Spirit_of_Life_in_Christ_Jesus/

Download Todd's latest Sermon!

If you want to dowload Todd's sermon, you can do it at
http://www.tbcrenton.org/sermons.php
Then click on
2008-01-13 The Beauty of the Gospel Todd Merry
It's so good!

Merry Christmas Letter! 2007

Merry Christmas Family and Friends!

December, 2007

The holiday commercial craze can sometimes take the joy out of Christmas, but through the eyes of our three year-old, we’re reminded how wonderful this season can be. On our hearth sits a miniature nativity scene with signs of Christmas discovery. The three wise men have chips on their feet from their "travels" across the rocky stone. Added to that is the recent discovery that one of the magi is missing a gift. All is evidence that Christmas should never seem old or mundane.

This was a fun and busy year. In January, we moved into our new house. Though there are still many projects left to be done, we feel wonderfully blessed with the added space, beauty and conveniences. February brought the birth of our happy little man Silas – 3 weeks after moving in!. He arrived in fine style, with a quicker and in some ways easier birth than Maggie’s. In April we took a trip to the ocean for our anniversary – with kids in tow. Over the summer, we enjoyed the SPU Writer’s conference, family camping, and attending a 100-year birthday party for Molly’s Great Aunt! In July we celebrated the birth of a new niece, sweet little Jillian. In August and September, we visited Todd’s Grandmother in Utah, shortly after the death of his Grandfather who will be missed. While we were there, we took her to see Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon – which were stunning! Molly’s Grandma Dorothy also passed away in her sleep this year, just a few days before Christmas. We know that she had a joyful reunion in heaven with Molly’s Grandfather and Dad.

It seems that every year, we pick up new interests and tasks. Todd has become involved in the local Firefighter’s Union, and has also taken on some Chaplain duties. He’s been active in teaching Sunday school and preaching. Molly’s role as Mommy has been even more fun and busy with two kids who wear her out and make her laugh at the same time. They are so fun! She has also felt especially blessed as of late with good friendships and late night discussions. She’s started doing some mystery shopping and loves it. In her spare time, she’s enjoyed digging deep into some theology and discussing ideas with friends online. Both Todd and Molly have especially been challenged and loved by our Home Builders group that we meet with twice a month. We look forward to great times with our friends.

Maggie is a bright, extremely expressive, happy little girl who always keeps us in stitches. This Christmas she keeps asking us if we’re going to give Jesus gold, frankincense and myrrh for His birthday. She talks up a storm, loves taking care of her brother, sings loudly, loves dancing, swings, candy and camping! She enjoys her Sunday School class and all her friends there and likes to play with her cousin Mishayla and her friend Esther. Recently we took her to her first two plays – Narnia and Sound of Music!

Silas is a happy little 10-month-old who also keeps us chuckling. He is definitely a little man, wanting to show off for us. If he notices anything he does that makes us laugh, we find him doing it much more often, from bouncing in his chair, to wagging his head back and forth and grinning – all for a little response from the audience. Our little lumberjack smiles freely to his fans and is already sporting four front teeth.

Throughout the year, we’ve enjoyed several books. Our favorite has been one written by our good friend Mike Trillo, entitled What Does God Really Want? http://www.whatdoesgodreallywant.com/ Mike does a great job of sharing the truth of God’s eagerness for friendship with us. Some other favorites have been The Supremacy of Christ in a Post-Modern World (Piper et al.), Emotionally Health Spirituality (Scazzero), Living from the Heart Jesus Gave You (Friesen et al.), as well as (of course) several marriage books.

A key passage for us this year has been Ephesians 3:16-19 "I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-- that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."

This hit us that the love of God is not just about knowledge in our head or a belief that He loves us, but an absolute filling up of our inner beings with His love that surpasses knowledge. This includes our emotions, as well as our mind and spirit. It is one thing to believe He loves us, but we now are learning how to feel His love as well. Both are important. This kind of love provides the foundations for all of life and gives us the ability to love others. This fresh awareness and wonder of His kindness has borne the fruit of beautiful praise times together. We are awed by his new ways of showing us His love.

In the coming year, we look forward to: spending time with Grandparents, (both Todd’s dad, Richard , and his mom, Marie retired this year – Congrats!) landscape projects (Todd’s favorite), "Mommy and Me" Ballet lessons with Mishayla and Esther, an anniversary trip without children :-) and of course – more writing!

We also look forward to hearing from you! You are in our prayers and thoughts. God bless you as your Celebrate Jesus this season!

Love
Todd, Molly, Maggie & Silas