The Problem with Science

"That's the problem with science. You've got a bunch of empiricists trying to describe things of unimaginable wonder."
- Calvin (Hobbes' friend)

The vastness of the galaxies and the intricacies of the atom are worthy of poetry, not just numbers. They point us to the greatness of our Creator!

The Least of These

My friend Randy in his blog referred to an article here. Again, I thought you readers would appreciate my comments on it:

Yes, that was a great article. The main point that I found to be true is that I should gladly give myself to helping the sick, the poor, the drug-addicted, the schizophrenic, the depressed... When I show my love for God by loving others that way, I actually find healing and great fulfillment for myself.

A few weeks ago I spent an evening with a deluded and quite paranoid friend. He thought he saw someone watching him - that person was definitely not there in reality. He warned me that there were hidden microphones in my car. He was absolutely tortured with fear. Somehow, I found it very satisfying to respond to his bizarre comments by showing him love, listening, telling him that God was there for him, and praying with him. My friend, who btw is very straight, hugged me and told me I was a true friend to him.

We don't find healing in pursuing heterosexuality, we find healing in pursuing God! One way He has given us to pursue Him is to show love to "the least of these".

Matthew 25:40 (ESV) And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'

Instantaneous Deliverance?

My friend Randy had a video clip on his blog where a man claimed that he was instantaneously set free from same-sex attraction (SSA). I thought you would appreciate it if I posted my response here, too:

God is sovereign. He can work the miracle of deliverance from homosexuality instantaneously if He wants to. I think that is exceptionally rare and certainly not my experience. I would still recommend to anyone who claims that miraculous experience to take the same path as anyone else fighting SSA. We all need to pray, know and apply scripture, and share in Christian fellowship with accountability.

If I personally knew that guy I would actively, regularly encourage him to continue to move forward in his walk with God. I would expect him to succeed, not fail. We should never have the attitude of sitting back waiting for the guy to fail so we can say, "see, I told you so!"

Emotional experience is definitely important in sanctification. I cannot persuade a drug addict to stop by mere logic. It takes a repeated display of sacrificial love and a vivid portrayal of the beauty and desirability of the alternative - God Himself! People need to both know and feel the beauty of the True God before they can drop their idols.

Mark Driscoll on Humility

This is a clip of our pastor Mark Driscoll publicly apologizing for his pride. He said that humility has been his most serious omission in ministry and he regrets the way his bad example has led many others in our church into sinful pride. I so respect that courage, honesty, and genuine-looking repentance.

Something to be truly happy about!

"But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive."
- 1 Corinthians 15:20-22 (ESV)

"Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?"
- 1 Corinthians 15:54-55 (ESV)

Beauty and Mystery

Last Sunday our pastor taught on the following scripture:

"Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."
-Philippians 2:5-8 (ESV)

It always amazes me when I think of the depth of love Jesus expressed in humbling Himself and serving that way! Charles Wesley wrote the following verses about this soon after he became a Christian. I often sing this to God in my private times of worship. It so movingly expresses the beauty and and mystery of what Jesus did. It just exceeds our ability to comprehend!

He left His Father's throne above
(so free, so infinite His grace!),
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam's helpless race.
'Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!

'Tis mystery all: th'Immortal dies!
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the firstborn seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
'Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;
Let angel minds inquire no more.

- Charles Wesley, 1738

Here is a link to the music for these verses.

Mark Driscoll Video

Here is a video of our pastor Mark Driscoll's "Tolerance Rant" from his sermon on Nehemiah 13 where Eliashib the priest allows the non-believer Tobiah into his family. This is fairly typical of Mark's unashamedly passionate preaching style. It may not be apparent here, but he actually shows compassion toward repentant gays.

Pictures around Seattle

Thanks to James Reggio for the photo above of Mt. Rainier, viewed from I-5 going south in Seattle. As you can see, this volcano dominates the view on a clear day even though it is more than 60 miles away.

Above is Mars Hill Church pastor Mark Driscoll preaching to the crowd gathered last month at Alki Beach to watch baptisms. Across Eliott Bay in the distance on the far right of the picture you can see the Space Needle, symbol of Seattle.

Here are some of the more than 200 people Mars Hill Church pastors baptized that day!

My Cross Country Trip

This August I moved from near Washington, DC to Seattle, driving my 1993 Honda Accord cross country with no A/C and windows open. Most of the drive was on I-90. I unknowingly chose the week of the Sturgis, South Dakota motorcycle rally, so I heard a constant stream of very loud Harley-Davidsons all day, almost every day. Above is a picture taken near Rapid City, South Dakota that shows how many bikers were actually on the road. It seemed like 80% of vehicles I saw were motorcycles.




Here is a car fire I saw outside Butte, Montana. Most of the trip was uneventful, though. When I went through Wisconsin, Minnesota, and part of South Dakota I drove hundreds of miles and saw nothing but corn fields. It amazed me to think of the enormous amount of food produced on those farms, and how it feeds the U.S. and there is still so much excess that gets exported all over the world. God has been very good to us and we often just take it for granted, but I have to thank God for such abundance.


I noticed that though much of the upper midwest everyone talked with an accent that reminded me of Coach Z from HomeStarRunner.com . As I went to the west side of South Dakota the scenery changed. Now there were WHEAT fields as far as the eye could see. Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho were mountainous with some cattle ranches but few farms. I think there must be more cows than people in some of those places. The people were much more connected to the land and aware of their dependence on rain for survival. It was very different from the city or suburbs where I have lived most of my life.

Eastern Washington was basically a desert with huge rivers running through it. Vast irrigation systems have been set up to use river water to turn desert into farm land. It was amazing to me. As I approached Seattle I crossed the immense cascade mountains through the Snoqualmie Pass. The climate in these mountains and west of them was much wetter and evergreen trees were everywhere.

My move to Seattle

Well, I am getting ready to leave my home in the suburbs of Washington, DC to start a new chapter in my life in Seattle. I should arrive there sometime in the first week of August. I look forward to my new church, Mars Hill, where I believe I will have many opportunities to help and be helped by others. There is a great need for Christian witness in that city and with God's help I intend to be devoted to living what I believe and telling others about the Good News of Jesus Christ.

One thing easing the transition is that my good friend Ryan will also be moving there. Another friend, JK, is already planning a visit. Who knows, maybe he will end up there, too.

My Church for the Last 22 Years

I have been a member of Covenant Life Church in Gaithers-burg, Maryland, for the past 22 years. There I have learned to love, give to, and serve God more consistently and joyfully. I have been connected with a network of friends that I will always thank God for. Also, I have learned to love the Bible as the Word of God and to value it far above my own experience.

Last Sunday I was working on the set-up crew, moving furniture in church classrooms to switch between their different uses during the week. I saw Bill Melrose serving in the children's ministry and I remembered meeting him about 15 years ago. He has consistently and diligently served as a volunteer for so many tasks behind the scenes at church. He has several children who have grown up serving along side him. I have seen him reach out to unpopular kids at church and seek to encourage them. He does what he does because he loves God and others, not because he wants power, position, or something for himself.

Our church is filled with people like Bill Melrose!

Why I write this blog

Why am I motivated to write this blog? I see beauty and I want to draw attention to it. C.S. Lewis expresses it better than I can in his book Reflections on the Psalms:

“...all enjoyment spontaneously overflows into praise... lovers praising their mistresses, readers their favorite poet, walkers praising the countryside...I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment.”

There is so much pleasure and beauty in God and in what He does, I am motivated to say something about it!

Those of you who know me will laugh when I say that I am NOT a man of few words. I will work at being brief, though, and I hope some of you will find encouragement and real pleasure in God through these attempts of mine to express what God has let me see. MY EYES HAVE SEEN THE GLORY refers to the glimpses I have seen of the beauty of God's work, mostly in the hearts and lives of people I know.

If anyone is interested, you can see my previous Xanga site that goes back to 2004. About half of what I wrote in that blog was about the band Anapra, which just stopped performing a few weeks ago. I helped the band with all kinds of non-artistic tasks for the last few years. It was a big part of my life and the guys will remain my friends.

My life is in a transition right now so it seems right to end the old blog and start this new one. I have been applying for jobs lately and I am scheduled to have an interview in Seattle this summer. I may end up moving across the country and start over in a whole new job, church, group of friends, and life.