I Saw My Gall Bladder Today

"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb... My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth."

Psalm 139:13, 15 (ESV)

I was at St. Patrick's Hospital in Missoula today to get yet another test done on my gall bladder. Some of you know that I had a pretty bad attack that landed me in the ER just before we left Kentucky. I begged my medical care provider to let me take care of it once we moved here to Montana, and so true to my word I am in that process. Of course, the medical care providers here need MORE tests than were done there, so I found myself in diagnostic wing of St. Pat's at 7:45am this morning.

My tech was named Steve (nice young guy, btw), and he explained to me that they would put an IV in my arm and inject me with some radioactive isotopes that would light up my liver, small intestine, and gall bladder, so they could take some pictures of how things were working. To make a long story short, everything finally lit up and there in full color on a Dell monitor was my gall bladder. This might be a shock to some of you, but I hadn't ever seen it before. Neither had Steve (at least not mine).

It struck me as I was looking at it, that even though I had never seen my gall bladder - God had. In fact, He made it, and knows it perfectly. He doesn't need radioactive isotopes and million dollar cameras and full color Dell monitors. He sees ALL of me, even the parts of me that are hidden from human eyes. Beyond even seeing that little "pocket" that is hidden under my liver, God sees something even that camera can't - my heart. No, not the muscle, the invisible center of my being that directs my life. In all honesty, I'm glad He can see it, and not me. Because, if I could, what I see might be pretty discouraging. There is way too much Scott (and all that goes with that) in there, and not enough Jesus.

Thankfully, God's grace is greater than my weakness and failure. Thankfully, God's love continues to draw me forward and change me into the person He wants me to be. Thankfully, when God looks at my heart...He sees His name there, and He keeps hold of it.

I saw my gall bladder today. God sees my heart everyday. I hope I pass that test.

Thankful for God's Steadfastness

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23)

For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you, o children of Jacob, are not consumed. (Mal. 3:6)

I guess it is a little to early to expect it, but I was hoping by now we would have some kind of "routine" going in our lives. I'm thinking that with us being here in Frenchtown less than three weeks that might be a bit premature. I have always thought that I was a kind of easy going, "go with the flow" kind of guy, but I am starting to see otherwise. I like my routines, and I don't like it when things are constantly in flux. I get grouchy. Just ask my family. That is why I am so thankful that even when my life has no real consistancy, God remains faithful and steadfast. Everyday He is still there providing what I need, when I need it, regardless of what is happening and when it is happening. The unplanned and unexpected twists and turns of my day don't derail His mercy and grace. Today, I am reminded that my security does not lie in my routine, but in stability of God's unchanging nature.

Big Changes, New Faces, Same Journey

If you look at the date of my last post, and then the date of this one, you might be wondering where I've been. Yeah, I've been wondering that myself.

It has been over a year since I last posted, and I could give you a thousand (well, maybe more like ten or twenty) reasons why I have been so silent but I won't bore you with them. Trust me when I say that what I would have written probably would not have made much sense. There was a lot going on in my heart and mind - most of it better left there and at the feet of Jesus. Thanks go out to my precious family for deep and constant patience, and to all my friends for their faithful prayers and continued fellowship through my, at times, crazy life. You don't know how much I appreciate you.

As many of you may know, I am now the Sr. Pastor of Frenchtown Community Church in Frenchtown, Montana. We left Kentucky on the first of September, and arrived here - just fifteen miles west of Missoula - on September 5th. The journey that led us here would take too long to recap, but it became evident to us during the last year that our ministry in Kentucky was not bearing the fruit that we had hoped. That is not to say our time there was unfruitful. We made many dear friends, and saw the Lord work through us and around us for His glory. We will have lots of wonderful memories of special people who blessed us in special ways, and we hope that somehow, God was able to bless them through us in the short two years we were there. There will always be a place in our hearts for Deep Creek Baptist Church, and saints who make it up.

Frenchtown Community Church seems very familiar to us in lots of ways. First, it is an non-denominational evangelical church, which is what our first two churches were. Second, we are back in the northwest, where we spent almost ten years prior to moving to Louisville to attend seminary. Third, the people here are so much like the folks we ministered with while living in Alaska and Oregon, that we just feel much more "at home" than we have in a while. We have found a place that - at least from what we have seen so far - appears to "fit." I am hoping that this is where God can plant us for the foreseeable future and we can begin to invest in what He is doing in the lives of this congregation and in this community.

We are excited about the potential ministry experiences and opportunities we will have here. There seems to be a hunger for a deeper knowledge of God's word within the congregation, and a desire to reach out to the people of this area with the gospel of Christ. Those things are evident by the number of Bible studies that are being organized and attended, and the ideas that are already being suggested for outreach to the community. With patience, lots of prayer and steadfast faith in God's ability to work in and through us, I think we will see some awesome things accomplished for the Kingdom.

Let me close this with a benediction that provides all the hope we need.

"Now unto Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations - forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21 (ESV)