Alumni Testimony, Chapel, Classical Education, Parenting

The Mission of Annapolis: A Grandparent’s Testimony

Sticky Leave a comment

My name is Diane Carter.  I’m a teacher here in the upper schools as a science and Bible teacher and have been for most of the years since the doors opened over 20 years ago.  I’m also a parent here–my four children having passed through the halls of Annapolis with my last one sitting here today, a junior.  I’m also a grandparent with a grandson here in kindergarten.  I’ve been asked to address you this morning to share my heart as to why I have such a deep and long participation as a teacher in Classical and Christian education. I also hope to communicate with you why my husband and I have made such a long-term investment in Annapolis as our choice to help us educate our own children and why our children are now choosing Annapolis for the grandchildren.

Continue reading →

Classical Education

ACA Students Rank #1 in Region on PSAT

Sticky Leave a comment

According to the Texas Education Agency’s latest published data for average SAT scores in South Texas, Annapolis students rank number one in the region, outscoring every public high school by triple digits including top ranked London by 141 points!  Here’s the data:

Continue reading →

Chapel, Christian Living, Classical Education, Early Childhood, Parenting, The Latest

Transcendence

Leave a comment

Anything that is not eternal is eternally out of date.”  C.S. Lewis

Everything in this world is perishing and will expire quickly, so therefore our hope, trust and focus must be in the eternal, transcendent God of all creation.  One of the many attributes of God is his “transcendence.” Transcendence – means to go beyond or above the range of normal experience or (from Latin) of climbing or going beyond.

Synonyms are incomparable, matchless, peerless, unrivaled, beyond compare/comparison, unparalleled, unequaled, without equal, second to none, unsurpassed, unsurpassable and so on…you all get the point.

Philosophers and other thinkers in the modern world have attempted to change “transcendence” or merely water it down.  Their definitions typically involve the ability with our own minds to “transcend” or go beyond. This places the term back into the physical, which is perishing and does not benefit the eternally significant things that we as Christians should be concerned with.  Our goal is to reclaim this Godly attribute for his glory.

Some of you may know of an athlete that has transcended the record book or gone above and beyond in his or her sport.  Michael Jordan would literally jump from beyond the free-throw line and slam dunk the basketball, for example! This was absolutely unheard of in the early 90’s.  Or you may often speak of a particular moment in your life that stands out far above all others. 

How does this term transcendent apply to God, however? In the Godly sense, transcendence is the idea that God is both above and independent from his creation.  There is no other created thing that matches his power. Think about it, if God created everything then how would anything he created be equal to him and his power.  It can’t! Also, nothing else can interfere with his power. He created all things including space, time, energy, and matter. Therefore, he is able to control whatever he pleases.  

We are all searching for knowledge and have a desire for it, however our limited minds are unable to grasp the eternal things that really matter outside of a living, breathing relationship with Jesus Christ who is God.  A theologian named A.W. Tozer calls this “The Knowledge of the Holy,” which to him was attained by a better understanding of the attributes of God (immutability, immanence, omnipresence, transcendence, and so on) which lead us to a better understanding of God and who he is.

We can focus on things that are transcendent, both beyond and not limited by space and time, namely the attributes of God including his “being above” the things of this world or his transcendence.  Catechisms, Scripture memorization, and so on focus on things that which are eternal thus keeping us from being distracted by the temporal (social media, video games, etc.) which do not have value of eternal significance and actually detract from our relationship with God.  Having an eternal perspective is a real challenge, however. It takes discipline and mental focus to channel your efforts on the transcendent things, such as gaining knowledge of God by reading the Bible, reciting catechisms, and redeeming the truth out of a world that is counter-cultural, but once you do it you will be more hungry for it and develop healthy routines of studying God’s word and devoting time each and everyday to better understanding him and who he is.

God is transcendent but he is also immanent in that he is above the physical world and everything in it and he is with us, in us, through us with the power of His Holy Spirit.

. . . one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.  Ephesians 4:6

Let’s now discuss briefly some thoughts on how we want to help you all “go beyond” and “rise above” the basic functions of life.  Classical Christian education has most recently been called “Ancient Future Education” by Davies Owens at the Ambrose School and in his Basecamp series (basecamplive.com).  Ancient and Future really don’t go together and are contrasting terms similarly to “transcendent” and “immanent”, however we often use this description due to the fact that we are using ancient, time-tested methods, such as catechisms, in order to inculcate every aspect of your lives which will prepare you for an uncertain future.  We don’t want you all being Christians in the morning and someone else in the evening. James calls this “double mindedness.” The solution to this double mindedness, which James warns us about is a term called Paidia that Paul speaks of in (Ephesians 6:4). This is what Paul is referring to and what he means by paidia when he says to “bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”  Additionally, ancient future education is focused on “going beyond” the normal limitations of life with a focus on Godly attributes. In our world that God created, just because it’s old doesn’t mean is bad and just because it’s new doesn’t necessarily mean its good. Our goal is to reclaim or take back those ancient ways that were good in order to help us evaluate those things that are new in order to use them for the kingdom of God.  The fact that those who believe in their hearts that Jesus Christ is the son of God and have confessed with their mouths that he is Lord should have a focus on things of eternal significance.

Future education is the educational aspect designed to prepare you for your future or things that are to come.  You students are equipped with the “Tools of Learning” so that you can focus your efforts on evaluating and pulling out the useful aspects of truth in all things present and to come and reclaim them for the glory of God.  We all must evaluate everything on the basis of it’s truth, goodness, and beauty. This will help us make informed decisions that will allow you to lead the way toward a fruitful life of leadership and truly grow the kingdom of God.  

With our focus on “going beyond” we see the need to not settle for the ways of the world, but rather to transcend them or reclaim them for the glory of God in order to advance his kingdom.  We must look at what we do and decide on what the particular thing makes possible and what it makes impossible.  This tool can be used for the past, present, and in the future. Evaluating the things you do and whether or not they make things possible or impossible helps you to determine which items help us “go beyond” things that are short-lived and won’t last forever.  Let’s use the example of family meal time. Latest research shows that lives are saved at the kitchen table. No I don’t mean that for family meal time you go to war and seek victory although some of your family gatherings may seem this way. Families are able to stay connected, discuss and win spiritual victories, and conquer ideas of the flesh all while sitting at the kitchen table eating dinner together.  We see that families that invest in meal time focus more on the eternal, transcendent things in life which produce young people who are more prone to success, so sitting down together at dinner time provides a perfect opportunity for this to happen. Fast food, therefore, can make this impossible thus not providing this valuable time as a family to learn and grow in Christ-likeness. Now I’m the first to jump all over an opportunity to eat Chick-fil-a and honestly when I have some Chick-fil-a I don’t plan on talking to anyone and anyone that tries to talk to me will experience my ability to selectively ignore the entire conversation.  But even Chick-fil-a can be had around a dinner table with a discussion on the issues of life and how to transcend them by becoming more like Christ by focusing on the attributes of God.

We must evaluate our current practices based on what we want the end result to be.  Do we want to develop traits that transcend this earthly existence and grow us closer and more like our heavenly father or more like the world that is perishing?  Also, how will these practices or won’t they change the world for the better? Will they leave a legacy for future generations? Perhaps harmony is the issue and we have our priorities misordered, but regardless of the reason we must all, as Christians, have a desire to be more like Christ.

There are many other opportunities for us to transcend our current culture and even to focus on the attributes of God including His transcendence, but we must redeem or reclaim the time in our lives in order to make this possible.  Ask yourselves these questions in order to do this: How much time do I spend playing video games vs. having conversation with my parents? How much time to I spend doing things that only benefit me in the present and won’t help me or others in the future?  

So, students remember that this education you are receiving is not just for life but for all eternity so take full advantage of every opportunity to learn and grow because as you do you are becoming more like Christ.  Parents know that this education your children are receiving is so much more than subjects, it’s preparation for all eternity by training your children in the transcendent value of Godliness.

Remember that God is transcendent, that is, he is far above and independent of His creation but He is also immanent — very much involved in that creation. He is over all, through all and in all. What a mighty God we serve and what a blessed opportunity that we have as committed members of Annapolis Christian Academy and the local church community to being brought up in the paideia of God with a focus on things that are transcendent and eternal as opposed to short lived and temporal.   

 

Sources:

Andy Crouch (2010). “Culture Making”, IVP Books

A.W. Tozer (1978). “Knowledge of the Holy”, HarperOne Publishing

basecamplive.com (https://basecamplive.com/old-bad-new-good-way-around-chris-perrin/)

C. S. Lewis (2014). “God in the Dock”, p.12, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing

 

 

Chapel, Christian Living

Blessed are those who mourn

Leave a comment

In 1962, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons released a song called “Big Girls Don’t Cry”.  There is a famous quote of the character Tom Hanks was playing in the movie A League of Their Own, “There’s no crying in baseball.”  I’ve heard that some southern moms may have said to their child, “If you don’t stop crying, I’ll give you something to cry about.”

We live in a world where mourning, which is a deep sadness and sorrow, is something to be avoided.  The world says forget your troubles, do everything you can to avoid them, to not face them. There is another famous song, “Don’t worry, be happy.”  The focus of the world today is on being entertained. In the world’s eyes, those who mourn are the opposite of those who are happy and blessed.

Once again we see the Jesus is talking about living in the kingdom of God and it is completely different from the way the world wants to live.  Now Jesus is not saying that those who cry are better than those who don’t. No, he is talking about an attitude of your heart.

Two weeks ago we talked about the happy ones were the ones who were poor in spirit.  The ones who were humble. The ones who allowed the mirror of God’s Word to show them who they really are and how much they need the grace of Jesus.  Once again we have to face the bad stuff first before we can see the really good stuff. We have to be poor in spirit before we can be filled with the Holy Spirit.  We have to be convicted of sin before we experience joy. If you want to be happy and blessed, you must first mourn. Conviction before conversion. Here are two examples in the Bible of men who were blessed because they mourned.

  1. The apostle Paul.  In Romans 7, he cries out

“O wretched or horrible man that I am, who will save me from myself?”

2. Jesus, He was described as a man of sorrows, familiar with grief and sadness.  The Bible tells us that he wept, he cried, but it never specifically tells us he laughed.  The Bible tells us He was angry, hungry, thirsty, and cried but it never says laughed. I am sure He laughed but He was a man on a mission and there was a seriousness about him.  He did not have a superficial smile and act goofy as nothing mattered except having fun.

Jesus knew that being here on earth is not like being on some all-expense paid vacation.  It is not like being on a luxury cruise liner. Waking up and deciding what fun activity are we going to do today.  Should I do the shuffleboard or the water slides? No, He knew we are at war in a foreign land.

We need to learn from Jesus’ example.  Mourning for sin is not something that you guys are going to do later.  When you get older. Your choices right now and how you deal with your sin today has an impact on the person you will be.  Recently there was a man who was confirmed to become the next supreme court judge. One of the more important jobs here in the United States.  He almost didn’t get that job and you know why? As a 53-year-old man, choices he made in high school, 35 years ago, called into question his character and ability to be a supreme court judge.  Sin is still very bad whether you are 5 years old, 10 years old, 18 years old or 53 years old. Whether I am in Kindergarten, 3rd grade or 6th grade, a teacher, a parent or a principal. Sin is sin.  It is not to be kept around like it’s some kind of pet. We are to mourn when we see sin.

You see to mourn is something that follows being poor in spirit.  I see a holy and awesome God, who created me to do good things, to love and work as He wants me to, then I see myself, I see that I am completely helpless and hopeless to do that and I mourn.  How could I treat someone like that? How could I say those mean and nasty words? How could I think those thoughts? Why did I get so angry? Why was I so lazy? Why do I disobey?

Then you drive down the street and see the homeless.  The broken and lost people of this world. The news is full of violence, people hurting others, people starving, people fighting.  You see the pain and misery of sin. You see it in your own life. You see it in the world around us. In some ways, Christians should be the saddest people on earth.  

The world says, eat, drink and be merry.  A Christian’s attitude should be completely different.  You need to think about your attitude when you get in trouble.  When a teacher tells you that you have been disobedient. When a parent tells you, you have consequences.  Do you argue? Do you roll your eyes? Think its a joke? Storm off to your room? These are not the actions of someone who realizes that they have sinned.  

We must be brought low to see the heights of love.  What is the second half of the beatitude? Blessed are those who mourn, for they what?  They will be comforted. Why is that? Here is the comfort. We see sin, we mourn it in our lives and in the world around us, we repent, which means we turn from it and we turn to Christ.  We see the blood of Christ that covers our sin and failure. We see that Christ will return to eradicate sin in this world and make all things right and new. There will be a day when sin will be no more.  What a comfort that is to a believer. Paul says it this way,

“O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

What do you look to for comfort?  Money? Having a family that buys you stuff?  Having free time to do what you want? Living in a country that has a strong military to protect you?  President Trump? Being at Annapolis? Being a good person? Getting good grades, going to the right college, getting a good job?  Do you look for comfort in these things? In the things around you? The things of this world?

Jesus says there is no lasting comfort in those things.  Your comfort and mine come in when we mourn for the sin that still clings to our hearts and mourn for the sin that is trying to destroy the Kingdom that God created.  These thoughts are not to make us miserable or depressed. But they are to help us see how bad sin really is, how much we need to repent, and how badly we need a savior.  When we turn to Christ, we will find comfort and true happiness.

So the next time your teacher corrects you.  When you parent tells you no. You should mourn in your heart, knowing how far from where God wants you to be you are right now and immediately confess that sin, repent, turn from it, and seek the comfort of Christ.  Can you imagine if everyone in the grammar school, every student, every teacher, every principal did that, what would happen to this school? If we all mourned for the sin in each of our hearts and mourned for the sin we saw in the people around us?  I will tell you what Jesus says will happen. We will be blessings to each other and we will be blessed. If you have the blessing of Christ, you will be happy. This school would be the happiest place on earth. It would be happier than Disney world.

The Latest

Glory and Greatness

Leave a comment

Big Idea

Our innate drive to achieve glory and greatness are good and are met in Christ.  

Definitions

Glory – the state of being considered praiseworthy by other people.

Greatness – to be thought of as having reached the pinnacle of one’s capacity.

Key Passages

“The glory [beauty/splendor] of the young is their strength, the splendor of the aged is the grey head.”  Proverbs 20:29

“To eat honey unto excess is not good, but to search out difficult things [weighty matters] is glorious.”  Proverbs 25:27

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  Philippians 2:5–11 (ESV)

“You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  Mark 10:42–45 (ESV)

Main Points

The primary revelation of Christian faith is the person of Christ. So our concepts should generally be shaped by our understanding of Jesus.  So while we can know from the Old Testament and general observation that human beings tend to seek glory and greatness, it’s crucial that we enlarge our understanding of these with the example and message of Christ.   

Christ redefines the greatness of humanity, not by one’s position or birth, but by one’s measure of service to others.  

Have you made yourself the sort of person who puts service to others ahead of yourself?  In order to do great acts of service for others one must be ready to do them.
How do we prepare ourselves to be good servants?  Here are a few thoughts:

  • Practice serving others in small things.  Start out small by helping someone on their homework, reading to a sibling, cleaning your teachers classroom after class, etc.
  • Find God-glorifying things that take you to the limit of your capabilities and do them!

To perfect yourself in the Christian sense you must examine yourself (physically, socially, spiritually, and intellectually) and challenge yourself (physically, socially, spiritually, and intellectually).

Mindset Shift:  Instead of thinking that school is something you wear on your back each day like a backpack loaded with books, think of school as something you aim to pick up and carry as far as you possibly can without stopping.  

In summary, what makes you truly great is the service that you do for others, which truly establishes your greatness in the kingdom of God.

Chapel, Christian Living

Poor In Spirit

Leave a comment

As an elementary principal in Nebraska, the first school that I worked at was a public school in the middle of the state.  Although many of the families that attended the school were farmers or worked in the agricultural business, several families lived in that community because they could not afford to live in any of the bigger cities in the area.  Big by Nebraska standards, not Texas standards, because, everything is bigger in Texas, right? In a short amount of time, I realized that there were families in the school that did not have enough food to eat. We offered a free breakfast and lunch program and I had students picking up their trays and literally licking the tray clean.  Students were coming to school day after day with the same clothes on. They couldn’t do homework because they didn’t even have colors or a pencil. The staff and I quickly mobilized and started a backpack program so that students could have food over the weekend, and had school supplies donated, among other programs to help students. I knew that people struggled with poverty in big cities but I was surprised that there were poor people out in the rural areas as well.  In some ways, they had it more difficult because they were further away from potential resources. One family had built onto a garage just using sheet metal and was living there with no heater, trying to make it through a harsh winter. Some of you have had the opportunity to do mission work overseas. And as difficult as these people in Nebraska had it, it is even worse for families in some countries. They have even less than the poorest person in America. They live in small shacks.  No bathrooms to speak of. They search for their food among the trash. Terrible living conditions. They have no money. They are truly poor.

I am guessing that you and I have never really experienced true poverty.  Having nothing. Not knowing if you are going to eat again. Having a hopeless future.  It is hard to imagine living in those conditions when we all have so much. Because we have so much stuff, we have a hard time understanding what it means to be poor let alone what it means to be poor in spirit.  Jesus is intentionally using words to paint a picture to help us understand what He is saying.  He is not saying that those who have little to no money are better than those who have a lot of money.  No, what He is saying is poverty of spirit is ultimately yours and my attitude towards ourselves. What we think of ourselves.  Just like the poorest people you can think of, that is a picture of your heart and how much you need the help of Jesus. Perhaps you will find no greater difference between God’s kingdom and the kingdom of self than in this beatitude.  Let me explain. It is very common to hear people say you just need to believe in yourself. Have confidence in you. Think positively about yourself. Rely on our own instincts. Look inside yourself. What kids movie or TV show doesn’t drip with these themes?  It is the idea that you have everything you need inside you, you just need to find it. You are rich and wealthy of heart. This just isn’t true.

You and I are confronted by a completely different reality that we find in the Bible.  The great hymn writer Charles Wesley speaks of this reality in the hymn Jesus, Lover of My Soul.  He wrote in one of the verses,

Just and holy is Thy name

I am all unrighteousness

Vile and full of sin I am

Thou art full of truth and grace     

The good news of the Bible is that it breaks us down before it raises us up.  This beatitude is about bringing us low to better understand who we really are.  Let me give you two examples of what I am talking about. First being poor in the spirit is like standing at the foot of an extremely rugged mountain.  Who has been to the Rocky Mountains? Who has been to Denali National Park in Alaska? This is where the tallest mountain in North America is. It is extremely isolated and rugged and dangerous.  If you have ever stood at the base of a mountain like that, with the cold and snow blowing on the sheer granite and icy side of the mountain. There is no way you are going to climb that. When Jesus talks about being poor in spirit, about seeing your soul in complete spiritual poverty, unrighteous, vile and full of sin, knowing that the call to kingdom living is to be like Jesus, full of obedience, love, joy, kindness, and self-control, you should first think, there is no way I can do that.  There is no way I can live as Jesus wants me to live in His kingdom. It is a mountain that I cannot even attempt to climb. I need help. Jesus said if you have that attitude towards yourself, if you are truly humble, you are blessed. Versus the one who thinks, you know, I think I can scale this, and jump over that 90-foot drop, pull myself up over that cliff. Hang by one hand and reach up to that ice covered rock. I think I can do this.

Second, being someone who is poor in spirit is like a man who looks at his face in the mirror.  The brother of Jesus, James, wrote in James 1, 

For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.  But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.

Being poor in spirit is a humility that when the word of God is spoken and I see something I need to change, I do it.  That word of God may come in the form of reading your Bible, hearing a pastor preaching a sermon, it could be a teacher correcting you, a parent, a coach, even a student here at school.  God uses all these different means as mirrors. Too often we become our own defense lawyers and say “I object. How dare you accuse me of doing anything wrong.” Those people are a mirror, it is showing us that we have dirt and filth all over our face and hair and we’ve got a date with some water, soap and a washcloth.  Too often we see that and think, nah, I’m good.

There is another hymn by another great hymn writer, Isaac Watts. He writes about how Jesus reigns as king over everything but you and I are so quick to try to build our own kingdom where we are kings and queens of our lives.  The reason we do that is that we are not poor in spirit. We think way too highly of ourselves. We think we can climb that treacherous mountain ourselves, we see the ugliness of ourselves in the mirror and think we are fine, even when people are trying to point it out.  Isaac Watts uses another word picture of who we are without the grace of Christ and that is a prisoner. Listen to how a prisoner who is poor in spirit reacts when rescued by the grace of Jesus:

Blessings abound wherever He reigns

The pris’ner leaps to lose his chains

The weary find eternal rest

And all the sons of want are blessed

Your king rules over all of creation and wants desperately to be king of your heart, to rescue you from yourself and the prison of pride that you trap yourself in so that He can bless you.

Just like those children that have no money, looking for scraps of food just to survive, in complete poverty and hopelessness.  We must view ourselves in that humble state. Needing a great king to reign, to rescue and to rule over our heart. The truth is, there is no one in the kingdom of God that is not poor in spirit.  You and I need Jesus as much today as did when we first heard the good news. And in a thousand years in the future, we will still need Him as much as we did on the day we first believed. You see by being in poor in spirit here on earth, Christ, the king says, you will inherit the kingdom of heaven.  That is amazing and it is worth the sacrifice. 

Chapel, Christian Living

War and Peace

Leave a comment

After the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States entered into an almost 4-year war overseas called World War II.  Many young men enlisted or were drafted to fight this war. However, even those left behind in the states made deep sacrifices for the troops.  The government asked families to only use small amounts of certain food items and supplies so that there would be enough for the troops overseas.  Things like meat, butter, sugar, and gasoline, among other things were rationed. The country had just come out of the great depression and now they were being asked to sacrifice again for their country.  I was told stories of people keeping their aluminum foil and reusing it. My grandfather would go fishing in the stream nearby for catfish, hoping to catch some supper. Other countries were doing the same.  For example in England, there was a luxury ocean liner called the Queen Mary.  It carried passengers from New York to England (this was before citizens were traveling on airplanes).  It was transformed into a military troop transport. These luxurious rooms, think of a fancy hotel room, that used to have only three to a room at most now slept twelve soldiers.  The beautiful dining room was now a mess hall. It holds the record for the most troops in one passage, 15,740 on one run in July of 1943. There were changes because of the war. Life didn’t just go on as usual.

Today, we couldn’t imagine keeping used aluminum foil or washing out plastic baggies to use again, or only filling up a half a tank of gas because we want to make sure everyone had enough or making broth and soup so as to not waste the scraps of meat and bone.  We throw things away without even thinking about it. We plop down at our tables expecting a full, several course meal. If we lose something, it is no big deal, we will ask our parents for another one. Why are things so different now than the times I described in the 1940’s?  The difference is our grandparents and great-grandparents had a wartime mentality and today, we have a peacetime mentality. A mentality is a way of thinking, how we view the world around us. The United States got a little taste of that change on September 11th, 2001 but many of you here don’t even have that tragedy as a first-hand experience.  Most of us don’t really have to worry about the sacrifices of war. We have a peacetime mentality.

This week is our warrior week and I want to talk about the dangers of warriors who should be fighting a war, but instead, they are lounging around thinking they are at peace.  No, I’m not talking about a physical war, although we as citizens need to be aware of the realities of the world and the men and women of the military who are helping to keep us safe, no I am talking about a spiritual war.  Here are some things that show if you have a wartime mentality.

The first thing that needs to happen is we need to realize that we are at war.  There are two kingdoms fighting against each other. We have an enemy who is described as a roaring lion, who devours his prey.  Satan is our great enemy. When Christ came to earth as a baby, He didn’t come to give us a holiday so we could great presents, no, He came for war.  He came down to fight. Satan didn’t just say, ok, I’m sorry, you win. No, he fought back and although Christ defeated him through the power of the cross and His resurrection, Satan is still at war.  The question is if you are a Christian, are you? Are you at war with sin, the flesh, and the devil? It’s like a soldier in World War II landing on a Normandy beach and thinking he is here for a French vacation.  No, grab a weapon and go take that bunker. Christian, you are here on this earth to fight for the kingdom of God. And the first battlefield is your heart as you must wage war on your own selfishness and pride.

Next, we are to subdue things.  Genesis 1:26, 28,

“God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness’ … God blessed them; and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule …’”

Another way to think of it is we are gardeners who cultivate and prune so that the potential of those things around us can display their beauty to the glory of God.  Your classmates that God has given you, are you doing things that allow them to grow and flourish or do you hack away and cut them down? Those books you read, those subjects that you study, do you allow those ideas to grow or do you leave them alone to wither up and die?  A soldier wants to learn and grow to be well rounded so he or she will be ready for any situation, and a good soldier never leaves a man behind.

Third, denying yourself shows that Christ is your supreme treasure.

Luke 9:23-25 says

“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?”

Why is it you have no problem staying up late playing Minecraft or Fortnite but grumble and argue when your parents tell you it’s time to get up so you can go to church?  Those moments, if you pay attention, tell you where your treasure is. Soldiers at war make sacrifices. They sacrifice time, energy, and even themselves for the greater good.  We are Christian soldiers and we are asked to deny ourselves, take up our cross every day, and follow Christ. That is the wartime mentality.

Last, fighting the fight brings you true joy

“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” (Matthew 13:44).  

When I was playing volleyball, one thing my coach knew would really get me fired up is when he thought I wasn’t practicing well, he would move me to the other side of the net which was the junior varsity side.  Now, these players were working hard but they did not have the skill or experience that the starters had. Now I had a choice. I could stay on the JV side of the net and things would have been a lot easier since I was a more experienced player but would I have joy in what I was doing?  No, the enjoyment came when I gave great effort and made plays that allowed me to earn my spot back on the starters side of the net. When I had the self-satisfaction that I was doing all I could do to get better and I was making plays to help the team that I experienced joy. How much more for a christian who is engaged in the battle for the kingdom of God versus one who is sitting on the sideline just watching it?  The joy goes to the one who is in the fight.

We are at war.  We are called to subdue, to grow our hearts and minds to reach our potential as humans.  We are called to deny ourselves and make sacrifices to keep our focus on what should be our #1 treasure, and that is Jesus.  Last, being in the battle, being a man or woman of action, brings joy. Sitting around and waiting, letting the game go by, brings regret and misery.

So, as Ms. Watson would say, let’s warrior up.  Let’s remember that we are not at peace, we are at war, so

“put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.”

Classical Education, College Guidance, Parenting, Teaching, The Latest

STEM and a Liberal Arts Education

Leave a comment
“STEM“. Those four letters are rampant in education these days. It has become one of the most talked about components of modern-day schooling similar to  what “gluten free” and “non GMO” have become to the food industry. It’s everywhere! Just like trends in the food industry, there are trends in education as well, and some trends can be good.  To better understand our role in the current trend we have to ask the question, what is STEM? According to www.weareteachers.com, “STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and math. STEM curriculum blends those subjects in order to teach “21st-century skills,” or tools students need to have if they wish to succeed in the workplace of the “future.” The idea is that in order to be prepared for jobs and compete with students from different parts of the world, students here in the US need to be able to solve problems, find and use evidence, collaborate on projects, and think critically.” Since a Liberal Arts, and especially a Classical Christian, education already focuses on developing those skills in our students, STEM in a Liberal Arts environment is a very powerful thing.
Recently there have been numerous articles and studies done to back up this idea that classically trained students will perform better in the areas of STEM because the requirement of those skills are part of student’s daily expectations in the classroom. In 2017 the article Liberal Arts is the Foundation for Professional Success in the 21st Century appeared in Huffington Post.  An excerpt from the article states:  “Tomorrow’s job markets demand creative, collaborative workers to reinvigorate and reshape our social and educational structures as well as our business models. To do so, graduates need open minds and rich, diverse educational experiences from which to draw. The fundamental values of a liberal arts education, with their emphasis on a general education and creating well-rounded graduates, expand students’ abilities to think through various challenges, contradictions, and tensions by design.”  The same article notes that the “2016 Job Outlook survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers found that hiring personnel increasingly value and prioritize the skills developed in liberal arts institutions and others, including the World Economic Forum, have made similar claims, citing a need for skills like: complex problem-solving, creativity, coordinating with others, cognitive flexibility, boundless curiosity, and deep generalism.”
“Knowing how to think empowers you far beyond those who know only what to think.”
How do our students perform when it comes to STEM programs? Very well! Classical Christian education at its core focuses on asking children to rise to a higher standard. The fundamental skills in a liberal arts environment are learning to think critically and to solve problems by accessing and analyzing information. This challenges them to think creatively and adapt to various circumstances and tasks. The training and education they receive can be rigorous but the preparation they receive is unlike any other main stream education. For this reason, ACA students possess the skills they need to keep up with educational trends.  Students that are well read and are taught to effectively communicate through writing and speaking, are naturally good thinkers.  They are able to teach and equip themselves and are prepared for the growing trends in an ever changing market.  Most importantly, ACA students are grounded in a biblical worldview that, when coupled with the ability to “think”, provides the ultimate framework for success in all of life. The bottom line is students who have been educated in a liberal arts environment are receiving the tools they need to be successful leaders in science, technology, engineering, math, and anything else they may decide to pursue!

Other Articles on This Topic:
Chapel, Christian Living

Introduction to the beatitudes

Leave a comment

And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him.  Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn,

For they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,

For they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

For they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful,

For they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart,

For they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

For they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

This portion of scripture is a part of a wonderful sermon that Jesus preached called the sermon on the mount (mount is a shortened way to say mountain).  This part of the sermon is called the beatitudes. Beatitude means blessing. When Jesus used the word “blessed”, He literally meant “happy”. Happy are the poor in spirit, happy are those who mourn, happy are the meek, and so on.  What Jesus was talking about was this is what living in the kingdom of God is all about.

We have been talking in chapel about what the kingdom of God is, it is where God reigns as king.  We have talked about what it is not, it is not where you and I try to reign as king or queen over our life.  It is a kingdom that is made up of Christians, not non-christians. Starting in two weeks, we will start looking at the specific beatitudes, of how each and every Christian is called to live in the kingdom of God.  Today we are going to introduce the beatitudes and look at them as a whole.

First, the beatitudes talk about being happy.  The word that Jesus uses, “blessed,” means “happy”.  Everyone wants to be happy. God has created us to seek after things that will make us happy.  He did that so that we would seek Him because it is only when we truly delight in God, are we happy.  Psalm 1 said a blessed person’s delight is in the law of the Lord. In meditating on God’s Word. Day and night.  The problem is that we chase after things that we think will make us happy but produce misery. What happens when you eat too much candy?  What happens when you stay up too late watching movies or playing video games? What happens when you play instead of doing your homework? What you and I think will make us happy only gives us a few minutes of pleasure but it ends in misery.  Why is that? It is because we are chasing after earthly things to make us happy instead of seeking after God and obeying Him. What we will find is that Jesus tells us in the beatitudes how to be happy. And it is shocking. Be poor in spirit? be mournful? be meek? hunger and thirst for righteousness? be merciful? be pure in heart? be peacemakers?  These are the characteristics of happy people? Jesus says yes!

Second, the beatitudes are for all Christians, not just super Christians or pastors and priests.  Back in the medieval times where there were kings and castles, knights and ladies, there were also common people, farmers, and peasants.  One of the things that people thought back then was that only priests, monks, and pastors were the real Christians. This way of thinking is still around today.  We hear that Christians are supposed to be meek, merciful, pure in heart and we think only super Christians can do that. Only the Captain America of Christians can have those qualities.  Not true. In fact, the beatitudes is something that Jesus doesn’t suggest, but requires us to strive for as part of the kingdom of God. Even more than that, we are not called to have some of the beatitudes but to be striving to grow in all of them.  We can’t just be peacemakers but not care about being poor in spirit.  In God’s kingdom, there is no such thing as proud peacemakers. We can’t hunger and thirst for righteousness and not be merciful.  A truly righteous person is not going to withhold mercy and kindness to others. All these work together. You cannot separate them out.  It is something that if you are a christian, you are called to strive after all of them.

Third, living out the beatitudes is not natural.  It is not something that comes naturally. The beatitudes are not about being a nice person.  It is not about working hard to be a good person. To be a person everyone likes. It is about the actions and attitudes that can only come from a heart that has been saved by grace.  That has been changed through the power of the holy spirit.

Last, the beatitudes are about being like Christ and the more we are like Christ, the less we are like the world around us.  This is a very difficult idea to swallow. It is very tempting to want to try to fit in to what is going on around us. To talk like everyone else.  Watch what everyone else watches. Listen to music that is popular. Do what everyone else does. But we also want to have our christianity too. The lines between what marks a christian and what marks a non-christian are blurred.  It is so hard to tell because christians have tried to fit into the world around them. I fear that even here at Annapolis, there are times we want what to do what every other school does just because everyone else is doing it.

Growing up, my family always had horses.  We had several acres of land that we fenced off for pasture.  We noticed that the wooden fence around our corral was not looking right.  It was leaning forward. One day I saw why. We had a horse that was this beautiful tall, strong horse and she was pressing her chest against the fence to reach out and eat the grass on the other side.  The fence was there for her protection because the grass on the other side was really rich and green and she was eating too much of it and was getting sick and starting to founder (if you don’t know what that is talk to Avery Hensley or Ms. Williams).  How often are we like that horse, we press our faces so close to the fence that is meant to protect us from temptations and sin that we have an imprint on them. God says thou shall not but we get as close as we can to it instead of being like Joseph when offered a chance for momentary pleasure in Potiphar’s house he ran away.  

Here is a way to test your heart.  What do you admire? Who do you look up to?  There should be a distinct difference between what a christians admires and what a non-christian admires.  The athletes that we look up to. The singers who we have posters of. The TV and movie actors and actresses that we can’t wait to watch.  The cartoon and video game characters that we pretend to be. Are these people poor in spirit or are they full of themselves? Boastful? Do they hunger and thirst for righteousness?  Or do they want power and money?

I enjoyed watching football growing up and there was a time I admired one of the best defensive backs in professional football, Deion Sanders, who played for the Cowboys for a time.  He was very good and when he would run in for a touchdown, he would showboat by high stepping into the end zone. He would look back and taunt the other team. He was one of the first players to have an elaborate end zone dance.  His nickname was “primetime” and he thought he was the show. I eventually got sick of watching him make it all about himself, plus he was from Florida State. In contrast, this last football season, Carson Wentz was the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback.  He was having a career year until he was hit in the knee and suffered a season ending injury. His back-up Nick Foles, stepped in. Both Carson and Nick are christians and they had been helping each other get better, one as the starter and the other as a back-up.  Nick was cheering on Carson as the starter and now the injured Carson was in the role as the cheerleader. As many of you know, Nick Foles lead the Eagles to the Super Bowl and eventually outlasted the Patriots for a Super Bowl victory. Both quarterbacks were quick to praise each other, their teammates and to give glory to God.  Men in the NFL living out a true christian faith look and sound so different than most of the other men in the NFL. The same is true for you and me. Our hearts desire should be more and more like Jesus and the more we become like Him, the more unlike we will be to those who are following their own path.

What are you looking to to make you happy?  Who or what do you admire? Who do you want to be like?  Are you OK with being more like Jesus and less like the world?  These are not easy questions to answer. It is a daily struggle.  The beatitudes will help teach us how we are to live for the kingdom of God.  Which direction are you moving closer to? Are you moving closer to that fence that says “keep out” or are you growing in your obedience to God and His word.  The hard part is that it may cost you friends. You may not ever see that movie that everyone is talking about. You may not be able to play that video game that all the kids are going crazy over.  If by walking away from those things, you are moving closer in your relationship with Christ, it is worth it. It is worth it every single time. No matter what anyone says. It is only by staying on Jehovah, staying means remaining firm, solid, in one place, that will you find the peace and rest your heart is longing for.  Another way of saying that is you will be blessed and happy.

Chapel, Christian Living

Whose is the kingdom of God?

Leave a comment

I have always wanted to have a backstage pass.  A special card that lets you go back behind the stage at a concert to meet the singer and musicians.  Or a field pass that lets you go down on the sideline of a game. I haven’t experienced a VIP treatment very often but I did a little bit when I was still playing volleyball as an adult. My team was playing in the national championship tournament and my wife was with me.  We walked into this massive convention center for this week-long tournament. We walked down this ramp and a man stopped us. He said do you have your pass? I pulled my player pass out and he waved me through but my wife had to turn back and go up and around to sit in the stands.  I now could go anywhere I wanted to. There were numerous courts, carts of volleyballs, booths, sport medicine clinics, and extremely tall human beings everywhere. And I had access to all of it. My wife, on the other hand, could only watch from a distance.

We have been talking about the kingdom of God.  It is where God reigns as king. It is not the kingdom of self, where I reign as king.  We also talked about the kingdom of God being this big, huge place where love for God and love for my neighbor are the most important things.  Today we are going to talk about who is in the kingdom of God and who can only look at it from a distance.

What do you think would happen if anyone could walk on the floor of that volleyball tournament.  You didn’t need a pass, didn’t have to be wearing athletic clothes, no jersey, didn’t need to be on a team.  Anyone could wander around. What would happen to that tournament? It couldn’t happen. People would be everywhere, and there would be no benefit to being a part of a team.

The same is true about the kingdom of God.  Not just anyone can be a part of it. To be a part of this kingdom, you must see God as your king and realize that your sin keeps you from being a part of his kingdom and that Jesus took your sin, changed your heart, and now you can be adopted into God’s kingdom.  I had a players pass that allowed me access to the playing courts but your pass into the kingdom of God is your heart. One that has been radically changed by the grace of Jesus. We call someone like that, a Christian.

Let’s talk about what that means, to be a Christian.  1) A Christian is very concerned about keeping and living God’s law.  Not because that is what saves the heart but that is how we glorify God and enjoy Him and enjoy His blessings.  Obedience is the best way to show your love for God. We get to practice that here on earth when we obey the adults that God has put over us.  When we obey, all the way, right away, with a happy heart, we actually are practicing for when we are asked by God to obey his law. 2) A Christian always realizes that he or she is constantly in God’s presence.  Every thought, every word, and every deed is done knowing that God knows everything we think, hears every word and sees every deed. A Christian wants all of those things to be well pleasing to God. A non-christian has a completely different view of life.  They are worried about what they will eat or drink, what they will wear, what their friends will think of them. They depend on themselves and they are anxious, worried because they know deep down, there is something missing in their life. A Christian is completely the opposite.  They don’t worry because they know they are in the presence of God and He provides those things to His children because He loves them. 3) A Christian lives their life in the fear of the Lord. Godly fear is not being scared but it is properly worshiping God, showing reverence to God.  A Christian knows that they are not under God’s eternal judgment but at the same time they know they must appear before God to give an account of what they have done with their time, talent and abilities. Their life shows this understanding of how they live their life each day and how they treat others.  It clearly shows that they love God and they love their neighbor.

This all leads to one big question.  Are you a Christian? Are you a part of the kingdom of God or do you just look at it from a distance?  Your heart must be changed otherwise everything that I will talk about for the rest of this year will not make any sense nor will you be able to do it.  The beatitudes is how to live in God’s kingdom which means your heart’s desire is to love God as your king. Only a Christian can do that. What we are going to find with the beatitudes is that Jesus is calling all of his followers, all Christians to radical self-sacrifice.  Radical humility. And a radical call to serve other people, to your own hurt and loss. This is not what you see on TV. This is not what popular songs are about. In fact, it is the exact opposite. They tell you to live for right now. Live for yourself.

It is easy to think, oh yes, I am a Christian so I am fine, I can live my life, however, I want right now because I’m saved.  You need to understand that as much as you needed Jesus’ saving grace when you believed in Him, you need Him just as much today, and tomorrow, and the rest of your life.  The reason you need him is that you and I still fight against sin and temptation. In a minute, we are going to have a special song called Come Ye Sinners. When you listen to the song, don’t think, if it is about sinners, they must be singing about my brother or sister.  They are the sinners. Or think about someone else who you think is a really bad sinner. This song is written to you and to me. 

Come, ye sinners, poor and needy

Weak and wounded, sick and sore

 

That describes you and me.  Sin makes us poor, needy, weak, it wounds us, makes us sick and sore.  When we try to follow our own heart, do our own thing, seek after our own pleasure, which we all do all the time, sin crushes us and breaks us.  Makes us hurt and lonely. Listen to what the answer is:

Jesus ready, stands to save you

Full of pity, love and power

 

I will arise and go to Jesus

He will embrace me in His arms

In the arms of my dear Savior

Oh, there are ten thousand charms

 

Come, ye weary, heavy-laden

Lost and ruined by the fall

If you tarry ’til you’re better

You will never come at all

Don’t wait until you think you are good enough or worthy enough for God, because you will never come.  Here is what to do instead:

I will arise and go to Jesus

He will embrace me in His arms

In the arms of my dear Savior

Oh, there are ten thousand charms

We need to arise, get up and run to our savior.  Run to His embrace, his hug. Run to His forgiveness.  It is there that we find charms, those great delights. As the music team comes forward, I want you to listen and think about how this song is a call for you and for me to arise, get up, and go to Jesus.

What the fall destroyed, Jesus comes to save and make new again.  You and I can be a part of that by being a part of God’s kingdom but you must enter through the narrow gate.  You must enter by way of the cross. It is only there do you find peace of mind and peace in your soul. No more anxiety or worry about things you can’t control.  Only peace. The last song we sing today is about God’s perfect peace being like a glorious river. The chorus of the hymn is

Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blest

Finding, as He promised, perfect peace and rest.

If you are a Christian, you can claim that promise today and every day of your life.

The Latest
Leave a comment

So what’s the big idea?  The goal in a Christian community is perfection!

 

Christian perfection  can be defined as maturity of character that recognizes God’s standard for human excellence, seeks to understand that standard, and pursues that standard, while recognizing where one falls short.

Not that I have already obtained this [the full likeness of Christ and participation in his being] nor have I yet been perfected, but I hasten to grab hold of it, because Christ Jesus has grasped hold of me.  Dear family, I do not consider that I have a hold on it.  But one thing I do:  forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.  Let those of us who are perfect think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.  Nevertheless, let us keep up with the position to which we have obtained [don’t backslide in your mindset or character].  Become my co-emulators [of Christ], brothers, and contemplate those who walk by the example you have in us.

The Nature of Christian Perfection
  1.  It is defined most clearly in the life of Christ (Php 2:5-11).
  2. Other expressions of Christian perfection can be seen in the lives of God’s people (Scripture, history, living examples, etc.).
  3. It is a designation of an unattained ideal (Php 3:12).
  4. It is a way of speaking about those who pursue the ideal while admitting they have not obtained it (Php 3:15).
  5. It is the goal for citizens of God’s kingdom, not the standard for entry (Php 3:9).

What should the pursuit of Christian perfection look like?   Well, it’s “the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  When you fail, acknowledge the failure and move on, ‘the righteous may fall seven times, but he gets back up…’ (Prov 24:16).   Also, see Luke 5:1-11.  You are more use to the Lord and other repenting rather than groveling.

We must acknowledge that this race is a team sport and see how you may help your neighbor.  Hint:  You help your neighbor by methods other than condemnation (Matthew 7:1-4, Philippians 3:15, etc.)

Application to School:  Educational Excellence

The school has a vision of education.  We offer to help you glorify God and enjoy him forever, impact lives, to dare to be wise, to serve the city by upholding truth, goodness, and beauty, and to celebrate diversity of godly practices among the Christian communities of the world.

We must model this correctly!

What would being this kind of person look like to you?  What does it look like in your favorite people?

When you fail to meet the standard, confess that it is so and move forward.

Encourage your classmates to pursue Christian perfection or educational excellence without condemning or a superior attitude.

 

Chapel, Christian Living

What the kingdom of God is…not

Leave a comment

In CS Lewis’ book The Last Battle, which is the seventh and last book in the Chronicles of Narnia series, towards the end of that book he writes about a garden that Aslan, the lion, leads Lucy and her friend Mr. Tumnus to.  He writes:

The further up and further in you go, the bigger everything gets. The inside is larger than the outside.  Lucy looked hard at the garden and saw that it was not really a garden at all but a whole world, with its own rivers and woods and sea and mountains. But they were not strange: she knew them all.  “I see,” she said, “this is still Narnia, and more real and more beautiful than the Narnia down below. … I see…world within world, Narnia within Narnia.” “Yes,” said Mr. Tumnus, “like an onion: except that as you continue to go in and in, each circle is larger than the last.

“World within world, Narnia within Narnia.”

This is CS Lewis’ poetic description of the new heaven and the new earth.  The kingdom of heaven. The kingdom of God. This kingdom started all the way back when time began in the garden of Eden.  The place where God, nature, and mankind had perfect harmony. We have an idea of what this kingdom looked like at the beginning.  We have a faint idea of what it will look like in the future. Last week we talked about the kingdom of God today is anywhere where God reigns as king.  We want Him to reign here at Annapolis. We want his kingdom to come here so that His will can be done here on earth just like his will is being done in heaven.  Today we are going to talk about what the kingdom of God is, not.

You and I were created to be a part of something big.  In fact, we are a part of something huge. If we look back to Genesis 1 and 2, Adam and Eve were created to do more than take care of themselves.  To just survive. They were given amazing intelligence and abilities, unlike any human. They were told to name the animals, tend the garden, and multiply.  To do anything less would have been, well, inhuman.

You and I, we were created to do more than just drag ourselves to school.  Survive the time we are here. Do enough work to not get in trouble by our teachers and parents.  Waiting until we get a chance to do what we really want. To do those things that entertain us. Give us pleasure.  Like watching TV. Playing video games. Getting on our phone or tablet. Play with our toys. To do the things we want to do.

We know that there is a kingdom of God but there is another kingdom that is not the kingdom of God.  You know whose kingdom it is by seeing who is king or queen over it. Who is at the center of it. In Narnia, for a good part of the first book, Narnia is under a spell of winter because who was reigning over Narnia as its queen?  The white witch was at the center of Narnia. It was her cold kingdom because she was queen. Let me tell you a story and you tell me who is at the center of this kingdom.

I was talking to some parents and their child.  As I was talking to the adults, the boy kept interrupting.  His mom would tell him to go play, and he would say “No!” Over and over it was happening.  The parent would say, do you want a toy? No! Why don’t you go play? No! It finally got so bad that when he said no, he then stomped on the foot of his parent’s foot.  Now tell me, who is the king of this kingdom? Who is at the center? That boy. So what kingdom is he living for at that moment? The kingdom of God? No. The kingdom of me.  The kingdom of self. It is easy to see a young child throwing a tantrum and see what I am talking about but it is much harder to realize that we all struggle with which kingdom we are living for.     

You see we were never meant to be queens and kings of our own little kingdoms where the population of that kingdom is us.  Population of one. But when we focus on ourselves, we close out the world around us and our world gets tighter and tighter into ourselves.  How many of you have bought a toy that was covered in shrink wrap? You know that clear plastic that the manufacturer puts on a package and then heats it up so it literally shrinks and tightly wraps around the object.  This is what the kingdom of self is. It is focused on my needs, my wants, my desires. Me, me, me. And you get shrink-wrapped into your kingdom of self.

As you and I start putting our needs, our wants, and our desires above all else we literally close in the huge world that God has created into a smaller and smaller world.  When we think about ourselves first. When I try to get out of chores. When I don’t give my best at something because it is easier. When I choose to do what I want to do, not do what I am asked to do.  When I spend time playing video games instead of helping around the house. When I fight with my parents to do homework. All these little decisions don’t seem like a big deal but each one makes your life smaller and smaller.  

When we live for the kingdom of self, our world is small.  We really are not fully human.  It is only when we live for a much bigger kingdom, the kingdom of God do we start to become fully human, as God created.  

One thing they don’t have in Nebraska is an ocean.  There is a sea of red but that is something completely different.  (You knew I wouldn’t be able to make it very long without a husker reference).  One of the things that I love about living here is going to the beach and seeing all that water.  That huge sky. Perhaps to those that have lived here for a while, it’s not that big of a deal, but I still pause to look out because it is so awesome.  I love the water not only because I love to fish but because you can’t help but feel small compared to it. I think it is a good reminder of how the kingdom of God is.  It is this awesome, huge kingdom, like looking out over the ocean on a beautiful day with a massive amount of sky everywhere. We are called to live in that kingdom. A world within world, Narnia within Narnia.  It just keeps going on and on.

So how do we do that?  How do we live for God’s kingdom and not for the kingdom of self?  The biggest thing that needs to happen is that we need to stop thinking about ourselves.  Stop trying to do things because it is what you want to do. Instead, serve. Serve God. Serve others.  Hustle…to help out. The apostle Paul put it this way:

Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests but also for the interests of others.

Paul wrote that nothing should be done through selfish ambition.  Selfish ambition is the motivation, the reason why you do something, is to put yourself first, your interests first, me first.  That’s selfish ambition. You see it when you have two people stepping through a narrow door at the same time, instead of one stopping and holding the door.  You see it when someone picks up a toy and someone else rips it out of their hands. You see it when a teacher asks the class to do their work and someone has to turn around one more time to say one last thing.

All these little decisions are one more wrap of plastic around your tiny life.  This all leads to this question. Which kingdom are you daily living for? Is it the kingdom of self where it is all about you in this small, shrinking world.  Just like being wrapped up in plastic wrap. Or are you living for the kingdom of God? Where God reigns in this huge, expansive kingdom where truth, beauty, and goodness are the foundation.  Love for God and love for neighbors are the most important things. This kingdom grows and gets bigger the more you explore it. You see people, not in the way of your happiness, but as God sees them.  As my neighbor. And your desire is to think highly of them and to serve them in love. Is Annapolis a place where there are 143 little kingdoms all doing their own thing? Or are we all working to be a part of one big kingdom where God reigns?  We must get to know this great king and to know how to serve Him. We do that by turning to the wonderful words of life.