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What does tertiary mean anyway?

After nine months of study and filling no less than six hand written journals, today I have completed a spiritual journey.

 

Long ago, I decided to study the book of Romans with more depth than I ever studied a single book. It’s been a blessed, frustrated, beautiful, agonizing endeavor (and, no, I am not being dramatic).

 

But, here, even on the last day as I pour through Paul’s concluding remarks, I am smacked in the face by a lesson I can’t wait to preach. So, let’s blog it!

 

In his 27 verse long conclusion (he sounds like some preachers, I know, I know, yuk yuk), Paul sends his greetings to 26 individuals, two families and three house churches. But, one greeting stands out in an amazing way!

 

Romans 16:22 I Tertius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord.

 

Tertius was a scribe (a secretary if you will) who wrote down the letter as Paul dictated it. For this one brief verse he breaks form and speaks in the first person, to say “Hi” to all the believers in Rome.

 

This is so amazing because Romans is so amazingly Continue reading “What does tertiary mean anyway?”

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Merry Christmas

Thanks to everyone who attended our Christmas Eve Celebration. This year we tied the whole service together with some poorly written poetry that told a version of the Christmas/salvation story, and I can say poorly written… because I wrote it.

I’ve been a asked a couple of times where to get it, so, I thought I’d make it available here at the CrossEyedLife.

It comes in five sections as a progressive story and many thanks to Sam Wilk who narrated for us… great job!

THE NEED

 Dark and barren, a formless void
Our universe an empty nothing
No light, no warmth, no life to be enjoyed Continue reading “Merry Christmas”

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Thanks for nothin’ ?

As a pastor of a decade and a half now, I have sat through some pretty rough family counseling sessions.

You’d be amazed at the harsh things people can say to each other… or, maybe you wouldn’t be. I guess that’s even sadder.

Some of the barbs that get thrown include:

  • If you cared about me at all…
  • I don’t think I can love you anymore…
  • You’re an idiot…
  • I just wish I was as important to you as your sister is…
  • It’s me or the XBOX (seriously, I’ve heard this one)…
  • I can’t stand to be around you anymore…

Ouch! After a few of those, it’s a little awkward trying to schedule the next meeting. I never know if they are planning on being together in a week, or if I’ll have to visit one of them in the county clink where they now reside for stabbing their mate. Continue reading “Thanks for nothin’ ?”

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An Open letter to Kathy

This is an open letter to my wife on our 15th wedding anniversay. She means more to me than words can say…

Dear Kathy,

On our 15th wedding anniversary, I find that today is an example like so many days in the last 15 years that show an inexplicable love and devotion that I neither deserve nor understand. But, nonetheless, it’s this relationship with you that I treasure more than almost anything in my world.100_2777
For the last 15 years I have been a youth pastor and/or camp speaker with a July wedding anniversary. So, only once or twice in our years together have we actually spent these precious camp dates together. When we did, they were days shared with others, like today.
Today, for our 15th wedding anniversary you drove yourself and our boys all the way to central Texas to spend 3 days with me and about 700 third through sixth graders. Then on this big day you celebrated by:

• getting up early
• packing for two boys, a husband and yourself
• doing most of the heavy lifting because my head was hurting again
• listening to me preach for the 1 billionth time
• working the product table and making change out of campers wet lake water money
• driving a second car 8.5 hours home
• making your anniversary dinner a burger, fries and peanut buster parfait from Dairy Queen at a truck stop in nowhere Oklahoma
• finally, making the late night unload at the church of all the tech equipment and junk we’d been hauling

Most impressive of all Mrs. Addis was the fact that everytime I saw you today you smiled and hugged and looked for a kiss. Even though many others would whine and complain about their lot in life, you showed joy and love.
It was a day you could rightfully claim as your own, even if you had given up so many others. Surely, the 15th should be special. But, you put your God, your husband and the cause before yourself.
You’ve never looked more beautiful to me. Continue reading “An Open letter to Kathy”