Baptism Party!

Last night, we had a baptism party. What I love about baptisms is that they are a picture of the change God has made in people's lives. When a person is baptized, he/she is saying to the world: "I'm surrendering my life to Christ. There's no looking back. I'm done with living life my own way. I'm living life God's way from now on!" The Bible says in Romans 6:4 (NLT):

For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.

Here are a few pictures from last night...

Family Ties

I ran across an article today that caught my attention. The article is based on a recent study done by The University of Virginia. The study's main point...

Men who attend religious services regularly are more likely to have happy and stable marriages, more likely to be involved with their children and less likely to divorce.

Here are a few statistics from the study:

• 70 percent of husbands "who attend church regularly report they are 'very happy' in their marriages," compared to "59 percent of husbands who rarely or never attend church."
• Men and women who attended religious services several times a month or more "were approximately 35 percent less likely to divorce between 1988 and 1993, compared to their married peers who rarely or never attended religious services."
• Fathers who attend church several times a month or more "devote at least two hours a week more in youth-related activities," "are significantly more likely to engage in one-on-one activities with their school-age children" and "are also at least 65 percent more likely to report praising and hugging their children very often" compared to fathers who don't any religious affiliation.
• Mothers "who attend church weekly or more are about half as likely to have a child outside of wedlock, compared to mothers who attend church less often or never."

What do we do with this research? How do we respond to this information? For me personally, I have experienced how church involvement has made my marriage and my relationships more healthy. Of course, let me also say that THE secret to a healthy, long-lasting marriage is not church attendance. THE secret is a growing relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ changes the hearts of husbands and wives and families so that the focus of our hearts shifts to loving God and loving others. So that's THE secret. However, according to the recent research, "A" secret to a healthy marriage is a commitment to the local church.

A few questions to consider:

• How healthy is your marriage?
• Do you have a growing relationship with Jesus Christ?
• Are you involved in a local church?
• If not, why not? Don't you care about your marriage and your family?

Riding My Son to Sleep

Usually we rock our son to sleep, but Silas' mom (my lovely bride) is out of town tonight. So after I gave him a bath (about 8 p.m.), I put Silas in the car, and we went to go get me something to eat for supper. He seemed so tired, and I thought he would go to sleep pretty quickly. It took some time, however, so I decided to drive around Goodlettsville, TN for a little while. In fact, I decided to drive down my old neighborhood where I spent the first 10 years of my childhood. Surprisingly, the neighborhood and the house have not changed much since 1987.

While I was driving around, country radio played a recent Brad Paisley hit called "Letter to Me." It's a creative, unique, and thought-provoking song about a grown man in his 30s who imagines what he would tell himself if he could write a letter to himself at 17 years old. Follow me?

Anyway, it got me to thinking. I'm in my 30s. What if I could write a letter to myself at 17 years old? As an older Michael, what would I say to Michael O'Neal, the teenager? What do I wish I knew then that I know now? Here are a few things I'd say in a letter to that 17 year-old kid...

• Michael, first and foremost, surrender your life completely to Jesus Christ. Love God, treasure God, and make it your greatest ambition to know God more and more every day. Don't ever get over the amazing grace God gives to you. View yourself as Jesus Christ's slave.
• Michael, commit yourself to a church, especially as you go off to college. Don't view church as a social club or as an institution that exists to meet your needs. Instead, learn to love God's family, and learn to serve in God's family. Church is not about you! Church is about fulfilling God's purposes with other Christ-followers.
• Michael, pursue a life of holiness and purity. God uses holy and pure people.
• Michael, fall in love with the Word of God. It is true, trustworthy, and without error. Read it, read it, read it--daily! Why would you not want God to speak to you every day?!?!
• Michael, pray about everything. Don't wait until you're 21 until you realize that you can do absolutely nothing without Jesus Christ (John 15:5). Memorize and mediate on John 15:5 right now! (John 15:5 is a verse in the Bible that quotes Jesus: "Apart from me you can do nothing.")
• Michael, last (but certainly not least), make it your priority to focus on the greatest cause in the world: showing and sharing the love of Jesus Christ with those who are not yet followers of Christ. If you fail to make this a priority, you will waste the next few years of your life. Don't waste your 20s! Don't waste your life!

Alright, that's my "letter to me." Who knew riding my son to sleep would lead to such serious reflection?!?!

Proud to Be an American

My little tribute to America and my 51 seconds of fame :)