Blessings!

We had a wonderful day of celebration yesterday, at worship and then at our annual Reformation party. We have been blessed to have been able to host parties here on the property through the years. Alas, we may be moving within the next year. One thing we are praying about for when the time comes for us to re-locate is having a new home where we could continue to use the gift of hospitality......please add that onto your prayer lists when you think about us!

Enthusiasm alone.......

Late one afternoon, a medieval knight was returning to the castle, and he was a pitiful sight to see. His horse was limping and he was skewgee in the saddle. His armor was dented, his lance was broken and the proud plume on his helmet was crumpled and hung down over his face. The Lord of the castle saw him coming and rushed out to meet him. “What terrible thing has befallen you, Sir Percy?” he asked. “Oh, sire,” he said, “I have been laboring all day in your service, robbing and pillaging your enemies to the West. “You’ve been doing what!!” exclaimed the nobleman. Thinking he was hard of hearing, the knight replied, much louder, “I have been robbing and pillaging your enemies to the West.” “But I haven’t any enemies to the West,” was the horrified reply. “Oh!” said the knight. And then, “Well, I think you do now.” ooooops........pray that we will all have zeal "according to knowledge" (Ro 10:1-5) and be pleasing to the Lord!

ECCLESIA SEMPER REFORMATA

YOU’RE INVITED TO JOIN
TRINITY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
CELEBRATING
OUR REFORMED HERITAGE

ECCLESIA SEMPER REFORMATA --the Church is always reforming



THIS SUNDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2007, 4:00 PM
1868 PATTON CHAPEL ROAD, HOOVER

Gilbert’s Famous Beer-Can Chicken provided!
Bring your lawn chairs, and a side dish, drink or dessert
Children’s Moon Walk, Games, Tug of War, Bon Fire, Special Music
FUN and FELLOWSHIP for ALL Ages

On the Eve of All Saints, Day, October 31, 1517, Augustinian Father Doctor Martin Luther, professor of scripture at the University of Wittenberg, Germany posted an invitation to debate on the door of the Wittenberg Cathedral. The invitation to debate contained ninety-five points, or theses, concerning the sale of indulgences. Luther chose this date for posting his theses because the coming holyday would bring many of the community to services, ensuring that his statements would receive wide exposure.

The Church is in constant need of ongoing renewal. Jeremiah 31:31-34 tells of the coming New Covenant where God will write His law on every human heart. Romans 3:19-28 declares the central tenet of the Reformation, that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. John 8:31-36 enjoins us to be constant in the Word in order to be freed by the One who is Truth.

And since the law is not yet perfectly inscribed on every heart and all are not yet fully devoted to the Word, the task of Reformation is not yet complete. Ecclesia semper Reformata--the Church is always reforming.

Fall at VMI

We went to Lexington, Virginia this past weekend where we attended parent's weeend at VMI...John is a 1st Classman now. This was our last parent's weekend and I admit, I will really miss the trip and event in the future! It has been a lot of fun and has been a blessing to see how the Lord has been maturing our son through the years! Overall, he has had many positive experiences at VMI. We have made good friends with a number of parents of John's classmates and have enjoyed unbelievably good food at the tailgate parties. On Friday, we had a picnic at Goshen's Pass, a lovely place nearby in the Shenandoah Valley. The fall colors were beautiful and we enjoyed climbing on the rocks in the riverbed of the Maury River. Wish you all could have been with us!

..there are no tricks to prayer

Here are some encouraging remarks on prayer: http://www.leithart.com/archives/003369.php This week's Daily Devotional Guide begins with The Gothic Missal: "We beseech Thee, O Lord, mercifully to correct our wanderings, and by the guiding radiance of Thy compassion to bring us to the salutary vision of Thy truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

Cultural commentaries....

...I think this book about Alabama football fanmania might rival the NC/Dukie book PJL writes about as a cultural commentary!!! Roll Tide!

NC Rivalry
Peter J. Leithart, October 15, 2007
Over at the Books & Culture online magazine, Jason Byassee of the Christian Century - and a Duke PhD - lists some of the best lines from Will Blythe's To Hate Like This Is to Be Happy Forever: A Thoroughly Obsessive, Intermittently Uplifting, and Occasionally Unbiased Account of the Duke-North Carolina Basketball Rivalry (HarperCollins, 2006):
"The delight in the book is Blythe's hand as a wordsmith. Interestingly (from this Dukie’s perspective) some of his greatest phrases come in begrudging praise of Duke players past and present. A crucial three-pointer fired in crunch time by Ichabod Crane lookalike Mike Dunleavy brought this delightful curse: 'If the shot didn't fall cleanly through the hoop and stab me in the heart like the sneakiest cheatin’ girlfriend.' Bobby Hurley was a 'New Jersey white kid' who used to 'blaze up and down the court like a Chevy Camaro about to throw a rod.' And more recent Duke great J.J. Redick would weave his 'ceaseless figure eights around the court, rubbing defenders off big men down low, darting for the cover of successive screens like a roach desperately seeking a hiding place' . . . "But Blythe wields a powerful pen praising the Tar Heels as well. Shooter Joe Forte could launch jumpshots that fell 'into the net like groceries plopped into a bag by a pimply checkout boy.' When all-time great Michael Jordan dunked the ball, he would 'throw it down as if punishing it for insubordination.' And when Sean May almost single-handedly defeated Illinois for the national title, he did so by 'fouling out every big man in the state of Illinois, including ones not yet born.' The gentle giant had magnificent hands: 'Watching him shoot was akin to watching a bear dine on salmon with a knife and fork—such unexpected refinement captured one's notice.'"

If there is....

If there is righteousness in the heart, there will be beauty in the character. If there is beauty in the character, there will be harmony in the home. If there is harmony in the home, there will be order in the nation. If there is order in the nation, there will be peace in the world .....So let it be. —Scottish Blessing