September's Ebb

Two blog posts in the same month. I’m breaking all sorts of personal blogging records here…haha

It’s been a big month. School is cranking out the assignments, and it’s been interesting attempting to keep up between work and recreation. Nonetheless, it’s also been a good month. I just want to mention here briefly that I’ve enjoyed meeting with Dave Lewis and listening to Uncle Terry preach the last several weeks, it’s been great hearing God speak through both of them. Of the highlights this past month, one that I find pretty awesome is that, surprisingly, I’ve been able to catch up on the reading of some great books. I’m currently attempting to work through four. Of all those books, one that I’m really enjoying is Jerry Bridges’ book, “Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate”. I bring this book up, because that’s really what’s God’s been speaking to me about lately. Showing me the importance of “Confronting My Sins” not on my own terms of course, but by recognizing them as dealt with via the cross, and reckoning myself as being dead to sin and alive in Christ because of His death and resurrection.

I always find it interesting, that whenever I’m closest to God, I become more perceptive of how I fall so extremely short of God’s standard. I’m thankful that God doesn’t choose to hand out the full punishment that I deserve for the sin I commit on a daily basis. In essence, I’m extremely thankful for God’s grace and mercy! As cliché as that sounds, that is meant in full earnestness. When I look at the section of the Bible where it talks about the evidences of God’s working in a Christian (the fruits of the spirit) and I see that these evidences are, among other things, “love, peace, patient, kindness, gentleness, and self-control” (gal 5:22) it becomes so clear that many times throughout the day, the man I am bears no resemblance to the one that should show forth the witness of God’s work. The times that I am unloving, violent, quarrelsome, impatient, rude, overbearing and uncontrolled throughout the day, whether that manifest itself in my actions or in my spirit, is a vast amount. Paul’s statements that, “Christ came to die for sinners, of whom I am the worst” (I Tim. 1:15) and that he is the “very least of all the Saints” (gal 3:8) are sentiments that I echo in my own life.

What’s sad to me I guess, and this is where the Holy Spirit has been convicting me, has been in those areas of my life that I recognize, or am simply ignorant to, my character falling short and habitually accept it. It really reminds me of my Kidney disease. Whether I recognize it as a problem or simply forget about the problem, if I do not recognize the fact that I have an issue and act accordingly, there will be absolutely no way I can avoid the negative repercussions in my life. Ignorance is not bliss. In the case of sin though, the repercussions are so much more serious. Not only do I incur upon myself negative spiritual and earthly consequences if I do not confront my sin and reckon myself no longer under its authority by standing with Christ, but I miss out on the opportunity to live the fulfilling and satisfying life that only God can provide. Life in Christ is life! Anything else isn’t really living.

I say all this, to point out that this book is one of the things that has encouraged me to really let the Holy Spirit work in my life and convict me of ways that I need to recognize where I need to act like one of the “sons of God’ (jhn 1:12) that I am. It’s just so fundamental to our lives as Christians. Questions I always need to ask myself are, “ Do I hate my sin as much as I hate seeing sin in others?” and “Why do I hate sin? Is it because of a judging nature, or is out of love because it’s robs people of the life God has for them?” It’s the reason I need, everyday, to “look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith” (Heb 12) to have him illuminate my heart and show me where “He must become greater; I must become less” (Jhn 3:33)! One of the quotes I most enjoyed from the book was “I am a great sinner, but I have a great Savior”. That saying absolutely reflects my experience. It’s incredible when one knows that “there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ” (romans 8:1) and will “abide ” (jhn 15:4 KJV) in Jesus Christ!

"But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted." - Luke 18:13-14


Until Next Time

Catching Up (no pun intended)

So my thoughts ran: “A week? Narcissistic. Two weeks? Blasé. Five months?...that’ll do.” So here I am, five months separated from my last blog post. At this rate, my next blog-break will last a year. It got to the point that I almost completely forgot I had a blog - until I saw my mom looking at it a few days ago….haha

So here I am, two weeks into college life after an amazing summer. It was a different summer, from a personal standpoint, notably in the fact that I fished fewer tournaments. Typically, I fish at least eight… This summer, I think I fished two, probably the lowest amount since I was eleven. With that being said, it was one of the most enjoyable fishing summers I’ve ever had! Instead of the trips consisting of just myself, I got the privilege of going out with people I usually don’t get the chance to go with. It was absolutely amazing to spend more time going out on the lake with people, taking the time to dwell upon God’s creation, hear His voice, and share that experience. The sunsets and sunrises were always, and continue to be, close to my heart. The words of the Psalmist always come to mind: “The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or a word; their voice is silent in the skies; yet their message has gone out to all the earth, and their words to all the world”… It’s one of those things were God just continues to remind me that the bottom line is that relationships are all we get to take to heaven.

The other notable event in my summer, and in my current life, has been enjoying time with my siblings. Especially at this time in my life, being able to see Christina continue to grow, develop her personality, discover the world around her, and interact with the rest of my sibs, has undoubtedly been one of the biggest blessings I’ve experienced. The same can be said with my bros. Being able to spend time with them either playing basketball or being in the outdoors, meanwhile getting the chance to watch them become the Godly men that, in many ways I strive to be, has been incredible. I’ve never realized until the last couple years how much I do, and always will, cherish that experience.

So yeah, I think whoever wants to be caught up with my life, should now know my basic highlights. I’ll leave what I’ve been going through, exegetically speaking, for another time….. a good thing about a blog, is that I can be as (to quote olbermann) “dictatorial” as I desire…haha…until next time.

God bless,

Wayne Hartsburg

Living by Faith

Blogspot, take II. It's been a little over a month. Apparently I make a pretty sub par blog-ite....haha...I'll have to work on posting more. See how that works for me. : )

But yeah, my life over the past month...At the risk of sounding cliche' I think it has gone well. The change of weather and the transitioning of the seasons in itself has really served to lift my spirits. Of course, Fishing has also commenced, so as per usual, so has the renewed focus on life that comes along with that...maybe that's why I'm not catching them too well....yeah, I'll go with that. haha..Easter has also come and gone and, like a lot of folks, I found it to be really nice time to be able to catch up with people and see what God's been doing in their lives on one of the most important commemorative Holidays of the year.

As far as God's word, I've been reading through Romans lately, trying to really take my time to dwell on the words spoken by the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul. A lot of good stuff there. It's caused me to ponder things - really analyze myself through the prismatic view of the mature Christian man that the Apostle Paul speaks of: A man, so steeped in faith, so convinced in the power of the resurrected Lord, so yearning for a more fulfilling life, that he offers his life - his everyday, nose to the grindstone work life, home life, thought life - to the Lord as a sacrifice.. How I want to be that man!..I feel that, in so many ways, my life is such an imperfect sacrifice - Many times ignoring the advice that Paul gave in II Timothy, I get caught up in this temporal life, not paying attention to the real life that has so much more to offer. I am so thankful that God doesn't give up on me, that He pursues me, longs for my heart, desires that my life be a sacrifice to Him even though that sacrifice is, at best, so far from perfection.....So yes, it's been a real encouragement and impetus for me to continually give heart my to God, submit my will to His, live by faith, and walk by the Spirit on a daily basis...It's been an great book to really go through and study - if u get the chance it's something I'd definitely recommend. At any rate, I'll leave you with one of my favorite passages - Romans 8:9-17

You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation--but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, ""Abba," Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Have a good one!

God bless,

Wayne H

Paradox

Yeah, my first blog. Ownership of the "W". haha... Though I've considered having a blog for a longtime now, It's been just recently that I decided to actually make one. As I think about it, my only desired outcome of this blog is that, through sharing what God's doing in my life, I am able to bring glory to God to the best that my brokenness will allow. Hopefully to some extent, both you and I will be drawn closer to him in the process. We'll see how this goes. : )

Here recently, I've been reading a lot of John Piper, and have been really encouraged with how (amongst other things) he speaks with such enthusiasm about our greatest fulfillment and happiness in life being found through glorifying God. It's just such an amazing correlation in my mind, and one that strikes me as one of life's biggest paradoxes. Looking back on what little amount of time I've been apart of this world I asked myself this question; "When am I happiest?". It seems to be a constant theme that when life's trials, and the hurts, pains, and sorrows associated with it, invade my life it is there that I most clearly see God's love at work the most. How amazing! I can never comprehend in my limited human comprehension why a God that is infinitely more glorious than anything that can be imagined would look down from His throne in heaven, with the angels, cherubim, and all the saints singing the praises that He fully deserves, and take such a personal involvement in the life of such a imperfect creation such as myself. Furthermore, not only does he take me out of the emotional abyss I find myself in, but He lifts me up to a plateau of emotion I do not deserve to be on. And this He does by the mere passing revelation of Himself - a glimpse of His glory!...The underlining point in all of this is that I was encouraged to be reminded of the fact that God has a plan, and that he works in and through pain in a way that can be hard to see during the times we are experiencing it. Not that Christians don't struggle humanly in our states of emotional down times during trials - we do! A look at the life of David reveals that clearly. But what is also clear in the life of David is that during these times life's greatest joy, the joy that God brings, is also right there in the midst of our struggles - the ultimate paradox. Like I said before, I was challenged and encouraged to embrace these trials that come as a way to further see God working through me... A perception that can be so hard to hold! I have a hunch it is a lesson I will always need to be reminded of - and have needed to be, many times.

I leave you with the words the Holy Spirit spoke through the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 4:5-18

For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence.All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.


Amen..I hope you all have a good week. God bless!