Make All Things New

Yesterday, my friend and pastor, Rob Burns, and I took our older kids (five in all) to the Franklin Institute so our wives could spend some time getting to know each other better. We had a great time (really we did). The experience brought to mind some things for which I thank Jesus. So in no particular order, here some things I was reminded of yesterday:

1. Gigantic, realistic hearts, bring my two girls to tears. Their fear is healthy, yet misplaced. (Matthew 10:28)
2. You can really spend hours with a good friend, have a good time, glorify God and not speak but a couple of sentences to each other. (1 Corinthians 10:31)
3. The creation which God spoke into existence is truly fascinating (Genesis 1). So fascinating in fact, that it is easy to worship the creation more than the Creator (Romans 1:25) so be on guard.
4. Complementarian gender roles in the home are a huge blessing from God! I really love and appreciate my wife for how she cares for our children while I am at work.

I have been quite busy finishing up my final project for “Call & Assessment” course through LAMPhilly (checkout the new web site my buddy ant and I put together for them) so blogging has been too light. Due to time constraints, I thought I would provide you with my reviews of the books I read for this class in a simple way: visually.

“Dig it!”	“Doan yike it!

With the birth of our fourth child, Nathanael Owen Curcuruto, and his subsequent five day stay in the hospital, I have been away from blogging all month. I have lots of thoughts to share so I plan on taking some time to write this week (and I pray it will be worth your time!).

So, I’ll start back with some good links I have found and go from there.

My seven year old daughter, Ella, had a birthday party today. She and another of her friends celebrated their birthdays together today. The theme was “fancy tea party”. The house was decorated up and Jill had spent hours baking (not bad for a lady nearing the birth of our fourth child – she is spectacular!). All the girls got dressed up and ready to act as adults. It was really a good time for them. And I got to be a part of it!

I took the time to get some father-son time with my two year old boy, Timothy. We had a nice afternoon eating a donut and talking about some things. Not too much that a two year old can talk about (though Timothy is quite a talker!). And I got to be a part of it!

It would be so easy for me to drift out of these important moments. I can see how I would sinfully desire to make excuses for not being at Ella’s party or not taking Timothy out alone for a couple hours. “It’s not that important.” “They’ll never remember me not doing that.” “I could really use this time for me.” On and on the excuses could come. That may be shocking to read (it’s painful to write) but I just know my heart. I would be wickedly selfish if not for God’s continued grace in my life.

So many fathers just walk away. Lots of dads are there in person but absent in spirit. Because of Jesus, I have a chance. I have a chance to count my children more important than myself. (Philippians 2:3) I have a chance to train them up in the way they should go. (Proverbs 22:6) I have a chance to tell them of the great acts of God so that some day they may set their hope in Him. (Psalm 78:5-7)

What an amazing challenge and thrill it is to be a daddy! Thank you Jesus for saving me not only (and ultimately) from God’s wrath but also from my selfishness. Thank you that because of You, I might find joy in the little things.

Last Thursday, I took my very pregnant wife Jill to get an ultrasound. Usually we don’t get ultrasounds during her pregnancies (this will be our fourth child) but there were a couple of reasons to have this done. First, there was some question as to the number of babies in there. I know that may sound strange but we needed to rule in or out the possibility of twins. The second reason was to confirm the baby’s position. It had spent most of its time in what may be a comfortable position for development but not conducive to coming out of the womb. So with these two factors, we thought it necessary to have a look inside.

The Giver of good gifts (Matt. 7:11) has been exceedingly gracious to Jill and I once again. The results show a very healthy baby boy growing inside of Jill. Furthermore, he is in the proper position for delivery, which is encouraging news for all of us. The ultrasound tech was attempting to get a picture of his face but baby boy was not having any of it. So instead, we were given a souvenir picture of his heart.

As the tech apologetically handed me the picture of his heart she said, “I am sorry I couldn’t give you a picture of his face, he just kept his hands in front of it. So, you get a cross-section of his heart instead.”

Rather than being disappointed, I was quite happy for his heart was exactly what I have been praying for and this image was a good reminder! As I glanced down at this black and white digital image of my unborn son’s heart, I thought of the work that God would have to do to rescue him:

“And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.(Ezekiel 36:26)

Yes, I will pray for a change from stone to flesh – from darkness to light. As much as this boy’s physical life is in God’s hands, so too is his soul. I am thankful for this truth and will continue to petition my Father in Heaven to continue to give good gifts. And I know, regardless of what happens with this precious child of mine, He will.

I found this in my journal recently. I had written this about four months ago. Now that we found out yesterday that we are expecting a baby boy in a few weeks, I thought I’d post this as a reminder of God’s sovereignty.

Yesterday, as Jill and I were walking together, she said she felt the baby kick (first time with this pregnancy – our fourth child).  I put my hand on her belly and didn’t feel much until she said, “Push down kind of hard and you’ll get it to move.”  I did and it did. (Referring to my unborn child as “it” never seemed strange until I typed the word.)  A surge of joy filled me as I felt the child move for the first time.  I was struck by how the baby responded to my pushing… my prodding… my provoking it.  I wondered if I was bothering my child.  Surely I was disrupting his or her environment and probably even made it uneasy to some degree.

Then I thought of how our Father in heaven sometimes has to provoke us for us to respond to him.  Unlike me pushing on Jill’s belly, the Father doesn’t need to wonder if he is bothering us or not for all he does is good.  Perhaps he stirs up our environment or bumps us around to remind us he is there and he cares.  Challenging times often remind us to lean on him and trust in his goodness.  Difficult situations don’t always make us comfortable, but they should always bring us comfort.

The Lightlings
By RC Sproul

Now I know that I haven’t spent much time on this blog discussing books about or for children but I have to tell you, I found one I think is worth talking about.

The Lightlings is a simple tale with a profound message. Sproul weaves a short allegorical tale together that is engaging enough for kids to listen and weighty enough for them to profit from it. The story is a brilliant answer to the common childhood concern of fearing the dark. This book has really encouraged me as a father because I now realize what an opportunity I have when my children tell me they’re afraid of the dark. Never before (much to my shame) had I considered their fear as an opportunity to share the redemptive story of the Bible with them. This book, in my opinion, is a wonderful contextualization of the Gospel for young people. Written in way that they will understand and with illustrations they will want to see, The Lightlings is an engaging story of creation, fall, and redemption, that kids will enjoy. The story that is written on their little hearts, is presented in a way that will engage their little eyes and imaginations as well. I am really looking forward to sharing this book with my children and telling other parents about it as well.

Also of note, the book includes 13 questions (with biblical references) to spark conversations and further growth for children. Frankly, this is one of the best short children’s books I have read and I think it is a must-have for kids (and their parents!).