In May, continued preaching through the end of Mark 10. Was called for Jury Duty, but ended up not having to report. Prepped for a summer intern that would come my way to oversee worship ministry. HomeWord was on parenting. Meg, Andrew and I were busy prepping for Gabe’s arrival and he arrived toward the end of the month. Visited some graduations and observed Mother’s Day. Cleaned out my files for the first time in a lot of years, which greatly helped my efficiency. Had some marital and pre-marital sessions with some couples. Got to be a part of Clint and Kylee Goodsen’s wedding ceremony. Continued prep for Ruth which was appropriate when Gabe was born on May 27. “The Lord gave conception…and she gave birth to a son…” (Ruth 4:13). Ended the month not sleeping well with the new addition in our home.
2008 Review – April
In April, Starbucks had Casi Cielo. Read Gracism, Do Hard Things, Dynamic Diversity, the Wit of Martin Luther, and advanced prep for summer series on the book of Ruth. Traveled to Together for the Gospel with the Elders. Hosted Humberto Alencar from Uruguay. Took special offering for Bill’s Oasis Center. Got Hillsong United’s new CD – The I-Heart Revolution. Continued Wed PM class, Sunday preaching through Mark 10. Conducted wedding for John and Genessee Hall. Also dealt with various pastoral issues.
2008 Review – March
Continuing posts reviewing year, we come to March.
Got news from Bill Bacheller that Humberto would be coming to us soon. Started preaching on Mark 10. Read Carson’s Memoirs of Ordinary Pastor and Murray’s Redemption: Accomplished and Applied. Met with Steve Hodgson, Pastor of Union Valley Bible, about a joint Good Friday service. Really wrestled with “fear of man” issues as it pertains to sanctification. Also read Ferguson’s John Owen on the Christian Life and Keller’s Reason for God. Continued to prep for Easter. Also read Triumph by Jeremy Schaap. Hosted Charlie Davis of TEAM for a meeting on vision and planning with all leadership and missions. Tried to learn how to receive criticism that wasn’t given well, seeking to learn and not allow bitterness to sprout. Celebrated Easter. Also read The Civil War as a Theological Crisis. Did some pre-marital counseling. Read Preach the Word and Liberating Ministry From the Success Syndrome. Continued with my Wed PM class as well. Ended the month in Galveston, TX for Meg’s mother’s Wedding.
2008 Review – February
Continuing this series of posts reviewing my year…
In February, read Ministries of Mercy by Keller, Sex & Supremacy of Christ, and Christ-Centered Preaching. Continued preaching through Mark 9. Giants defeated undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl. HomeWord was on Sex in Marriage. Preached Bob Fletcher’s funeral. Watched Central Christian basketball game. Also read In Christ Alone by Ferguson, April 1865 by Jay Winik and Christian Ministry by Charles Bridges. Continued regular habits of meeting with men, couples, and date night with Meg. Watched Hutch High basketball. Traveled to Midwest Founder’s Conference at St. Peter’s Mo. Was really edified by the time with men on the road, the teaching and fellowship at church.
2008 Review – January
I’m going to do a series of posts reviewing highlights from the year…
In January, began the New Year at my Mom’s house and started using Carson’s For the Love of God in my daily Bible reading. Enjoyed Week of Prayer at Crestview. Began preaching (back at Crestview) from Mark 9 on the Transfiguration. HomeWord was on the heart and communication. Continued regular meetings with some men from church. Began communicating with the American Consolate in Uruguay about Humberto Alencar’s potential visit to Crestview. Read Owen’s Communion with God. Worked to serve some single ladies at church who had lots of downed limbs after the big ice storm of Dec. ’07. Had a personal retreat at Sterling College to orient things for the year. Got an invitation to join the pastoral staff of another church and promptly brought this to the Elders for prayer. We began a SS class for women’s ministry at our church. Ended up communicating my intentions to stay at Crestview, feeling encouraged that this is where God has me. On the home front, had sonograms to see Gabe’s progress and tried to maintain discipline in family worship. January ’08 was the time I finally was devoted to long-term journaling, which helped develop this post.
Vacation Recap Part 1
I thought it might be helpful, since there are so many people who might be interested, in recaping what we have done on vacation since we left. So, here is a brief summary of the highlights to far.
Monday, Dec 22 – We left the house at 5:40AM and arrived at my Mom’s at 4:00PM. Pretty uneventful day of travel, really. We felt blessed by God that the boys did really well on the road and we were able to arrive before my Mom got off work (since part of our aim was to surprise her). We ended up meeting some other family at a restaurant called Moe’s. My mom was meeting this family there to go to the Saluki game that night. Mom was surprised and we ended up leaving there and heading to surprise my sister. Then, we came home and hit the hay.
Tuesday, Dec 23 – This was a fun, lazy day. I got up early (6:15AM) to read and enjoy coffee. After getting around, headed to store for my Mom (she had to work all day). Meg and I cooked a turkey and had supper on the table for Mom when she got home. There are 4-5 books I’m reading on top of regular quiet time stuff: In Christ Alone by Sinclair Ferguson, Don Carson’s Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor, Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, Relationships by Tripp & Lane, and The Christian Life by Sinclair Ferguson. On this day, we also watched the Pixar film Cars and the Christmas classic White Christmas. I played with the boys a lot and enjoyed the relaxed pace. Things got crazy with company on the next day.
Wed, Dec 24 – I was up at a pretty decent hour and did morning reading. Got boys cleaned up and Andrew and I headed to store (yes, again!). We visited 2 different stores looking for a gift for my Mom (that she was getting for someone) and also made the daily trip to Wal Mart. After grabbing some lunch, my Mom’s brother Carl and Dusty came in. We all headed to my Mom’s church at 5PM. Lots of family came over afterward for pulled pork and other treats. Once home, we finished off the Advent calendar with the boys and relaxed with family in the evening.
Thurs, Dec 25 – Up early again and got around. My Mom’s parents showed around 10AM. Enjoyed a good visit with them. He is filled with pastoral wisdom. Pretty normal Christmas day for us here (presents, big meal, White Christmas Pie). My brother bought his sons Guitar Hero and we ended up playing it instead of them all afternoon (they were tied up with new PSP’s). The evening was pretty stressful with the 7 children racing around, but we survived.
Fri, Dec 26 – Meg and I (with Mom and the boys) got up early and shopped the post Christmas madness. We left at 8:30AM and returned around 4PM. We were able to get lots of items we needed. Once home, played Skip-Bo with family and worked on puzzle, ate supper, got boys cleaned up and got to bed.
Sat, Dec 27 – Was my brother’s birthday. We got up and headed to Paducah, KY to do more shopping (this is about 1 1/2 hours south of my Mom). Did get the best sleep this night too. I was looking for some shoes and finally found the ones I desired down there. Also got some new clothes. Once home and after celebrating my brother’s birthday, we got the boys cleaned up, played train with Andrew, and relaxed.
Sun, Dec 28 – Full Lord’s Day (but aren’t they usually this way for me?). After reading headed to my paternal grandparent’s church with all my siblings, Mom and kids. This church (Liberty Baptist in Ewing, IL) is the church my Gpa currently pastors. They are a country church and with all the family there, their attendance doubled. My cousins sang, I offered a greeting and my cousin’s husband, who pastors in Belle Rive preached. Oh, the reason for all this was it was grandfather’s 80th birthday. (No Auxier has lived to 80 since 1800.) It was quite the milestone. Enjoyed a nice day there and came back to Mom’s putting the kids down. Ended the cleaning out digital camera and digital video cameras. Oh, also headed to Lowe’s and purchased a new garage door opener for my Mom (hers bit the dust on Saturday night).
That is week #1. Now we have a few more days to go.
Thank You To My Peeps…
Any time I leave and get some time away on vacation, it takes a lot of people to fill in. I am really grateful, then, to the Elders in allowing some inconvenience to come their way so I can enjoy rest and relaxation. My secretary, Jandee Oard, for being the rock of organization I can rely on to cover the details. The deacons and their wives who work extra hard to not let details slip through the cracks. Various members of our worship ministry step up in big ways. And, this time, Graham Hill and his wife Beth Ann, who have taken time away from their family in Edmond to provide pulpit supply for me. I want all of you to know how grateful to God I am for you. You have chosen to be a servant and, thus, positioned yourselves for greatness. Know that I am being refreshed and will miss everyone, but I can be refreshed due to your actions.
Merry Christmas!
I wanted to take an opportunity to say Merry Christmas to everyone. Many of you may wonder if I made it to my Mom’s and if I was able to surprise her and the answer is yes. We have had a good, relaxing time so far and we have family coming in today and tomorrow.
Thank you to all who have made this past year such a blessing. We appreciate all of you and hope you have a blessed holiday.
SOW – Matt Chandler on Rebuke
Free audio you must check out:
Matt Chandler’s latest sermon: The Anatomy of a Rebuke
Holiday Update
Just so you know, I will try and get an occasional post here and there but they might be sporadic during the coming holiday season.
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