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posted by James on 11/7/08

The end of this month will mark the one year anniversary of my work as an artist in the IBLP Graphic Arts Department. This is hard to believe! As all four seasons have come and gone, so have many monstrous projects, marvelous coworkers and memorable events. One such event happened just last month when the entire Publications Department went to downtown Chicago for the yearly GraphExpo.

GraphExpo is a huge graphic communications exposition; the largest in the Americas! The latest and greatest software and equipment for getting a job printed from start to finish, no matter how sophisticated, is displayed here in utmost elaboration.  It’s an on ramp to the modern marketplace for today’s prepress, offset, and digital printing, finishing, mailing, and fulfillment, package printing, converting, and wide format technologies. Each company, with their newest paraphernalia, is showing off the greatness of their products. For those attending, it is a great way to understand how things work, learn about the progression of technology, and simply be overwhelmed with the magnitude of this profession.

Because I am an artist, I hung around Adobe’s booth where I listened in on live tutorials unfolding the newly released CS4 versions of Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign, not to mention the incredibly enhanced Lightroom 2. The GA quad (Laura, Britton, Mindy and I) also stopped to query Quark’s quirky stuff. I didn’t find it too interesting.

This trip, and many like it, I will remember for a very long time. It has been a rewarding year. Thank you Lord for letting me be a part of your greater work. “Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until the evening. O Lord, how manifold are Thy works! in wisdom has Thou made them all: the earth is full of Thy riches” (Psalm 104:22-23).

1 Comment » | posted in Ministry Reports

posted by James on 11/2/08

It’s hard to believe that election day is so close! Having been in Northwoods for a week (and consequently out of touch with the rest of the world) and then busily catching up on things at work, the long-awaited day snuck up faster than ever I thought possible. I woke up this Saturday morning wishing that there was something more I could have done for the virtue of this crucial election beyond casting my vote.

But there was one encouraging fact: election day was still 3 days away! It hadn’t passed. There was still some time to give some energy and make some sacrifice.

So, with that in mind (and with a long to-do list still sitting on my desk), I jumped on the campaigning trail at the last minute. No, I wasn’t privileged to help out at a Road to Victory rally for McCain; but I was able to volunteer my time to campaign for Illinois Republican Marty Ozinga who is running for Congress. Though I personally can’t vote for him because I’m not from Illinois, I knew that supporting him would be advantageous from the vantage point of the bigger picture.

Between 10:00 and 4:00, our group passed out literature in several northwestern Illinois neighborhoods. In total, we hit at least 1,000 homes, encouraging supporters to talk to their friends, straddlers to consider utilizing their vote, and non-supporters to reexamine their position. It was a lot of fun! I had some good conversations and some not so good ones.It was well worth the sacrifice and I feel that the effort those made out there today will not be in vain.

How many days are left before election day? It will be different for each person reading this post. For some, it might be three, one or even less. For others, it could be 364. Regardless of how many days it is to election day, there is always something more we can do to go beyond just casting our vote!

Of course, prayer is the first thing that comes to mind. Am I taking every opportunity to pray for the Christians of America? Pray on the way to work. Pray on the way home. Pray before going to sleep. Pray when you wake up. Pray without ceasing.  

Another dynamic of prayer is found in praying together with other believers. I have been doing this recently and find it to be very powerful. My next prayer meeting is Tuesday morning. Two are better than one and a three cord cord is not easily broken. “…if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 18:19).

What about fasting? What can I give up to make more time for prayer? “And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: and I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession, and said…” (Daniel 9:3-4).

Then there are the practical things that only the Holy Spirit can prompt us to do. “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver” (II Corinthians 9:7), giving including time, money or energy.

May America bless God, and in turn, may God bless America!

1 Comment » | posted in Ministry Reports, Politics

posted by James on 10/26/08

The early morning frost blanketed the silent landscape surrounding the Northwoods Conference Center. When the sun began to rise at 7:00, I stepped outside to take in the serenity. It was completely different than a normal Tuesday morning at work in Chicago.

Back in September, when I heard that the Life FOCUS group was going on a  Journey To The Heart in late October, I began to seek the Lord’s will about possibly joining them. The work at Headquarters had been increasingly hectic, and a week set apart to seek the Lord and be rejuvenated in Him seemed a worthwhile opportunity. Brother Michael, Joshua and Matthew Wilkes and several other guys I knew well were part of this FOCUS group and I knew the fellowship would be rich and meaningful. I would also have the opportunity to assist Chad Paine in guiding the Journey.

However, I soon had to die to this desire. I was needed more at Headquarters than I was in Life FOCUS. Getting the permission to go would be difficult, if not selfish. Therefore, I gave my desires to the Lord and waited.

A few days before the FOCUS guys arrived, I found that it would be fine with my Department to be gone for the next week. Apprehensively, I asked Mr. Gothard about it. Surprisingly, he said to plan on it! The next morning, I called the Director of FOCUS and, after telling him I had permission to go, said he could definitely use me. Praise the Lord!
 

I have now been enjoying a week of much needed sleep, study, quiet-time, prayer and recreation. It is refreshing to be with a group of people who willingly share struggles, victories, insights and exhortations. It is amazing to see many deepen their love and commitment to the Lord. I’ve also enjoyed preparing for and leading some of the team meetings which helps me understand more fully what we are studying.

It has been good to come apart into a wilderness place and rest a while and seek the Lord. I could spend the rest of my life just reading, seeking and sharing the character of God as described in His Word. But life must go on and there is much work to be accomplished. By God’s grace, I will continue the Journey and carry the application of abiding in Christ into the daily schedules of the future.

6 Comments » | posted in Ministry Reports

posted by James on 10/9/08

With so many different versions of the Bible in the world today it becomes very important to ask: which Bible can we trust? After all, the Bible is the written Word of God, every Word of God is true, and thus it is the key for understanding doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness (II Timothy 3:16). Last week, Robert and I had the opportunity to hear a message by Mr. Les Garrett from Australia. He is an authority on the subject, having studied Bible history for decades and spoken in many countries on almost every continent of the world. His passion for truth was contagious! Here are some points, some of which he covered in his message, that might help in a quest for knowing which Bible to trust.

1. Choose a Bible that is closest to the original Hebrew and Greek. Learning these languages would be the best way to read the Bible, but, obviously, that is not always possible.
2. The translations of today are based either on the “Textus Receptus” (Received Text) or the Revised Text. The Revised Text originated in the Catechetical School of Alexandria which held an “allegorical interpretation of Scripture” (to quote Wikipedia). In contrast, the Received Text was upheld by the School of Antioch who “held a more literal and … typological exegesis.” This was one of many differences between the two major centers of theological study of the ancient world, and a fact that the modern world has largely ignored.
3. Received Text versions include the Wycliffe, Tyndale, Geneva, and Authorized (or KJV) Bibles. Revised versions include the Vatican, Revised Standard Version, The Living Bible, New Living Translation, and New World Translation (Jehovah’s Witness) Bibles. Straddling the fence, or versions attracting less controversy, include the NIV, NAS, and NKJV.
4. The Revised Version of 1881, predecessor of most modern translations today, was published by F.J.A. Hort and B.F. Westcott. They departed from the Textus Receptus, basing their translation on the Alexandrian corruptions of the ancient Vatican and Sinaitic manuscripts. The views of the translators are clearly seen in their attempts to subtly obscure or omit the deity, pre-existence, virgin birth, and atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
5. Many important words and often whole verses are missing in Revised Text versions of today. The amount of departures between the 1611 KJV and the 1881 Revised Version was over thirty-six thousand! Close examination and study of the missing portions reveal an astonishing trend toward promoting unitarian, Arianistic, humanistic and nontrinitarian beliefs.

“For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward” (II John 1:7-8).

5 Comments » | posted in Historical Glimpses, Ministry Reports

posted by James on 09/25/08

Did you know that skunks are very confident but not very courageous?

The night was warm for September. The singing chorus of crickets and dew-covered grass helped to muffle the sound my footsteps. Cautiously, I moved from the shadows of the forest into the moon-lit field, scanning for any signs of occupation. A few minutes of searching… and there it was! About 25 feet in front of me a skunk was browsing contentedly. It was easily identified as a stripped skunk by the white stripes running the length of it’s back. It was only about the size of a house cat, weighing less than 10 pounds.

Largely a nocturnal creature, the skunk sleeps during the day and hunts at night. It will often travel six miles in one night, homeless until the winter months when it finds a place to hibernate. On that particular night, I was able to find the skunk so easily because I had bumped into it earlier on my way back from work. This was the first and only time I had seen it in this location, so I ran home to grab my camera to see if I could photograph it.

As I got my camera ready, he didn’t seem to mind. He must have found himself a good place for dinner with lots of insects, grasshoppers or potato beetles to feast on. Or maybe he was after a shrew or mouse.

Of course, shooting in the dark is kind of hard. Try holding a flashlight in the right direction while looking through the viewfinder of an SLR with a 300mm lens using manual focus without a tripod! It’s very difficult to get the focus just right; and you can tell in the pictures below. But eventually I found a way to do it and started shooting.

The powerful flashes from my speedlite kept up at a steady rate. I didn’t have to worry about it spraying me because I knew I was a safe distance away. The skunk wasn’t stamping its feet, the first sign of danger, or raising its tail or clicking its teeth. Along with growling, these signs would be tale-tell warnings that I was too close. It never even stopped to look up. It’s eye-stinging, clothes-stinking spray is accurate up to 15 feet so because I was farther away than that, I felt very safe.

So, why is a skunk confident but not courageous? If you think about it, the answer is actually very simple. Because of it’s powerful and accurate weapon of self-defense, it can go just about anywhere without fear. And that is one of the reasons why it is such a docile creature; it is confident. It is confident in it’s ability to control what goes on around him. However, because of it’s confidence, it will go anywhere. Like into the middle of the street. Or, more seriously, into a cage. Skunks are easily ensnared because they are not wary of traps.

In contrast, courage is doing confident things with wisdom. Courage is foreseeing what is ahead and acting in a way that prevents a worse thing from happening. The prudent man foresees the evil, and hides himself: but the simple pass on are punished. (See Proverbs 22:3.) Thus, a courageous person will stand up for what is right even when nobody else does. A courageous person thinks of others before himself. Sometimes, courage ends in death. Courage welcomes suffering that comes from doing right. So, let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap if we faint not. (See Galatians 6:9).

9 Comments » | posted in Photography, Politics, Possessing the Land, Tidbits