For all of you (all two of you) eagerly awaiting my first post - or criticizing my delay (Mr Morton!) - here it is.

I find myself in a peculiar set of circumstances in life at the moment. On the one hand, I am entering a new phase of life in which I am fully responsible for not only my actions but for my survival (and arguable my wife's survival). I no longer live in a dormitory where novelties like toilet paper are provided. I no longer receive cookies from my mother or student loan money from the government. I must fulfill my needs myself - and as a result, of course, my wants are now far from view. This has led me to conclude that life post-college is not the fun I believed it would be. I would love to throw responsibility out the window and live for the current moment, but I must always be concerned with how I will provide for tomorrow.

On the other hand, I am working with children and families who live this dream and yet are, at their core, unhappy. They definitely show happiness and laughter on the surface but I observe that this attitude is hollow. These children develop a survival instinct very young. Here a stocked refrigerator is never taken for granted; a full stomach replaces the need for nutrition; they eat until they burst when food is available because there may not be anything to eat tomorrow. Consequently (and other factors are involved) they learn at a young age to live for today. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? You are only responsible for your immediate needs - and possibly the needs of your kin (kin are not necessarily family members).

I'm sure there is a balance between these two extremes: living only for the immediate needs vs. living with constant anxiety about tomorrow. I believe you can support both views with Scripture (Matt 26:19-34 vs 2 Thess3:11-12). Are spiritual fulfillment and happiness to be defined as contentment in poverty or security in tomorrow? The answer is both. This Christian life is truly a paradox!

Currently Reading The Suffering of God: An Old Testament Perspective (Overtures to Biblical Theology) By Terence E. Fretheim see related

I suppose the most fitting entry for my first blog post would be a brief summary of my life at the present moment, so here it is: My wife, Teague, and I live in North Little Rock where we build relationships with inner city youth in order to help them form relationships with God. I am also continuing my endless pursuit of education by working towards a Masters of Divinity degree (equivalent to seminary) with the Harding Graduate School of Religion in Memphis. God has used all three of these situations (marriage, ministry, and education) to affect monumental change in my life and I look forward to discovering where he will lead me next.

I enjoy reading blog posts from my friends abroad. I hope you will enjoy reading this journal-of-sorts. If nothing else, I have found an outlet for my theological and intellectual musings.

Lastly, if you grew up in a traditional Christian background, the following book will the shake the very foundations of your world (and it is a relatively easy read). Though I doubt some of Fretheim's conclusions, this book has revolutionized my faith more than any other book to this point. More on this later.