Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year!

I pray that everyone (those 3 readers that continue to hit this site) has a great New Years Eve!  My wife and I are just enjoying it at home.  My son is doing great.  My brother seems to be doing well, as of the last update.  All is well.

Good night, and I pray the best for you and your’s.

Tim

Update and Proverbs 30

My brother is healing, which is good news.  He and our sister-in-law called on Sunday to wish little Darren a happy birthday.  There I was, talking with Susan on speakerphone; and across the line came my brother’s muffled voice!  It was great!  Thus far, they wired his jaw shut and “fixed” his nose. I’m pretty sure that Susan was expecting him to be less verbose with his jaw wired shut.  Poor girl.  She married my brother, who never had a thought he didn’t enjoy articulating.  A little wire won’t stop that.

There may be reconstructive surgery for one side of his face…or maybe not.  He’s been looking better with the swelling going down, and the doctor said there may be no need.  But, even on Sunday he said that he was in pretty bad pain.  Please continue to pray for him as he heals.

In other news:  I asked my Wednesday night crowd to read through Proverbs during the month of December.  Today is December 30th, so I read Proverbs 30.

Verses 8-9 really caught my attention.

Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.

Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, ‘Who is the LORD ?’
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God.

That speaks to my vocational striving.  Who doesn’t want riches?  I have a family, with a wife that would prefer to stay how with her child.  However, we can’t do that on a single income in our society at the moment.  But, there is danger in riches as well.  For me, I’m sure it would be pride.  My pride in myself, in my self-accomplishment.  That would draw me away from God.  Perhaps just requesting my daily bread is enough.

My Father, who is in heaven.  Holy is your name.  Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.  Give me this day, my daily bread.  Forgive me my trespasses, as I forgive those that have trespassed against me.  Lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil.  For your’s is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory forever.

Amen

Update on my brother…

He came through is first surgery well. To fix his jaw, they had to literally wire it shut. I hear this made is wife shout with great joy. She also said something about limiting calorie intake… You have to know, to understand.
They also fixed his nose. Apparently it was fractured pretty bad as well. Now, we get to wait a week for the overall swelling in his face to go down. Once that happens, he gets to go through reconstructive surgery.

Tim

Brother in Car Wreck…

Please be in prayer.

My brother, Tom, was in a car wreck recently.  It looks like he’s going to be well, but it will be a long recovery.

Thanks,

Tim

A Good Sunday…

Twas the Sunday before Christmas…

And, it was good.

We started out with a baptism.  “What better way is there,” you say?  “There isn’t one,” I reply.  I was afraid that it might not go off.  For some reason, we’ve a water heater that is ornery.  But, with the help of one of our wonderful members, he sat there and nursed it until the water got up to 75 degrees.

It was almost warm…but not quite.

Next was the Choir Christmas Concert.  The music was delightful this year, and our 10 person choir did a wonderful job.  Now, if we could only copy a CD as we play a CD…we’ll have it made!

The sermon was…well…  I’m the preacher, so I won’t comment on it.  All I know is that I tried terribly hard not to cough through the whole thing.  I almost made it…almost.

I’m still coughing and hacking.  Perhaps in another three weeks I’ll be all better.

Here’s to hoping!

Tim

Separation… Lake Worth Independent School District…

This is a request that I voiced at our local School Board meeting tonight.  It turns out that the student I mentor lives on the wrong side of the street.  Technically, he is not in the Lake Worth School District.  I’ve mentored him for about a year and a half now, and I would hate for that to stop.  He’s made wonderful gains; and I’m afraid that this will cause some loss to that.

Well, for those interested, these are the words that I spoke to the School Board.  I’ve taken out the names, and edited a little bit.  I didn’t originally write it to be read, only to be spoken.

My name is Tim Dahl, I live at <address removed>.

I come asking that you might let the <name removed> family continue within the Lake Worth School District.

A little more than a year ago, I met an astounding young man.  Someone that was energetic, yet thoughtful.  Someone kind, yet bereft with attention difficulties.  This young man is Michael <name removed>.  Principal <name removed> offered me a great gift, when he gave me the opportunity to mentor him.  Over the course of a year, a rapport was gained. A relationship was established.  And, combined with the good work of his teacher, skilled diagnosis of ADHD by a physician, and quality time spent; he was able to make a great turn around in grades and conduct.  Where before, he might have been considered a “trouble” student, now he is a wonderful student.
This is all due to the Lake Worth School system, especially the staff at Effie Morris.  Please, don’t allow his family to be moved elsewhere. To much good is happening, to much ground is being covered for it all to be thrown away over an imagined line going down the center of a street.

I know it goes against precedent.  I understand the economics of it.  However, I also understand that we aren’t to live in a world where all that is fair, economical and pragmatic rules.  If we all “got what we deserved”…well, I shudder at the thought.  Instead, we live in a world that is blessed to have both Justice and Mercy moving hand in hand.  Where Grace rolls down like a river, and opportunity is granted by those of us in places of position.

Please, make an exception in this case.  Allow the <name removed> family to remain and participate within the Lake Worth Independent School District.

I had to leave the meeting early to pick my wife up from work.  I received a message from someone there that the request was denied.  The family will not be allowed to have their kids in the Lake Worth Independent School District.

However, I also have word that there was one member that dissented from the rest of the Board.

Any guess on who I’ll be stumping for when it is time for their reelection?

Tim

Just Some Thoughts… Good Words by Vestal.

Even though I’m not officially part of a CBF church, my family has been financially supporting the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship for well over seven years.  One of the things I like to peruse is “CBF Fellowship!”  It isn’t exactly a magazine, and it isn’t quite a newspaper either.  Its to big to be a newsletter, in my opinion; and I enjoy reading it.

…well… Most of it.

No offense to Bro. Vestal; but I don’t usually read your intro piece very often, but I found myself doing it in the November/December 2008 issue (Vol. 18, No.7).

These first two sentences really caught my attention:

Communities of Christian discipleship are the very salt and light that can transform culture.  Churches, as communities of missional practice, are empowered by the Spirit to engage the world so as to transform the world.”

Brother, you speak my language.  Christian Discipleship and Missional Practice.  Now, if we could all just agree to what that means.

Here is another tidbit that kept me reading:

When Christ followers live in authentic community and demonstrate in their shared life a humility, passion and holiness like their Lord’s, nothing is quite so transformative.

That is the kind of Christian I desire to be.  That is the kind of church I so greatly desire for us to be.  “Christ followers that live in authentic community,” sounds almost to good to be true.  “Demonstrating in a shared life,” seems impossible in our age of isolation.  “Humility, passion and holiness;” seem to be anathema in the culture I live in.  Yes, we may banter the words around, but it isn’t anything that we are practicing.

It shows the desperate need of Discipleship that we need, that I need.  The core of Discipleship isn’t learning the Roman Road, or the Four Laws.  It is learning to be like Jesus.  It is doing the things that place us in his presence to be changed by him.

Just some thoughts.

Tim