Contentment

1 Timothy 6:6-10 "Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs."

Godliness with contentment is great gain. This is such a foreign concept to us—or at least to me. I worry so much about money and money-related things. But never once in my life have I gone hungry or had to worry about having clothing to wear.

But this passage goes on to include a warning about not finding contentment. It says that those who seek riches fall into many "harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction." Contentment is obviously the cure for these troubles.

May I continually seek riches in the grace of God and contentment in that which he provides.

God Provides ... and provides ... and provides

To the God who "is able to do above all that we ask or think," I need to give abundant praise.

After sending an e-mail to the church about my need for some help with determining what was wrong with my car (see the post from two days ago, directly below), the e-mails and phone calls began to pour in. Many people offered to give me a car (most of them permanently). One person offered to fix the car for me at no charge after he returns from out of town. Others offered to pay for the car to be fixed. One of the elders in the church who was already preparing to sell fix and then sell one of his cars offered to get the car fixed and then give it to me instead of selling it. Then he offered to fix it and sell it and give me the money he got for the car. What an outpouring of true love.

God had already provided a car (my father-in-law's pickup truck), so I expressed my gratitude to each of these people and told them that God had already provided. But what an amazing show of grace from God and from the people of my church.

My father-in-law's truck has more than 200,000 miles on it, so it's not a long-term commuting vehicle, but it is exactly what I need at this time to get me through however long it takes to get my car fixed.

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow!

Angels on the highway

My car died today. Traveling home from work, my engine began squealing and then emitted white smoke, so I pulled off to the side of the road (high occupancy vehicle, center lanes), got out, and began to wait for roadside assistance.

After 30 minutes of waiting and getting somewhat miffed at the passersby, I bowed my head and prayed that God would provide someone to assist me since I was stuck between northbound and southbound lanes of 80mph traffic and could not go anywhere without help. Within mere minutes of ending that prayer, a truck pulled to the side of the road in the main lanes and offered assistance. After explaining the situation, the truck driver backed up and entered the center lanes, turned on flashing lights, and set out a flare. He then called for towing services for me. This truck driver later told me that he is a member of Bethel Freewill Baptist Church in Springfield, Virginia.

As the truck driver was getting things handled for me, another car pulled to the side of the road in front of my car. The driver got out and headed back to where I was standing. It was my brother in Christ and fellow Occoquan Bible Church member, Dave Ross. Before even asking what the trouble was, Dave told me that his car was at my disposal for the evening and he would see to it that everything was taken care of and would get me home when everything was done. He then called his brother who lives there in the area to ask if I could leave my car at his place until I could take it to a repair shop. This kept me from having to pay a huge amount for towing all the way to my house (44 miles away).

After a long wait (well over an hour), the tow truck showed up and towed the truck to Dave's brother's house. Dave's brother was amazingly accomodating—even moving his car so I could park my car in his driveway for the rest of the week.

After the tow truck driver had finished his work, I approached him to pay for the towing services. He said, "It's already taken care of," and indicated that Dave had made payment already. I asked Dave how much I owed him and he refused to take payment for it. He said that God has blessed him and he wanted to do this for me. I was so moved by this evidence of Christian love and charity that I can't even explain it.

Dave then drove me all the way to my home, many miles past where he lives, at which time he had to turn around and head home—many hours after he would normally have arrived home to spend the evening with his family.

I don't know how people get along in the world outside the family of God. How blessed we are to be counted among God's chosen ones.

Spirits in the Material World

I don't know what to make of this report, but it's interesting.

God is definitely doing something through the recent hurricanes. I'm sure we'll all know in time.

Serious affronts to God

Romans 13:12-13:
Let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.

Often I am just like the Pharisee who prayed and said, "God, I'm glad I'm not like these terrible sinners—I praise you that I'm not like this tax collector ... or this prostitute ... or this homosexual ... or this lazy neighbor ... or this woman who had an abortion." Many of us see ourselves in terms of how much better we are than those around us who participate in obvious sin.

But the weight of various sins is not something we should determine based on cultural and societal standards; we should see sin through God's eyes and be appalled by the things that are an affront to him.

In Romans 13:12-13, Paul tells us some of the things that are an affront to God. We would agree with these things: orgies and drunkenness (terrible things), sexual immorality and debauchery (just awful, I'm glad I don't do those things), dissension and jealousy.... Hey wait, why are those included in the list?

Webster's Dictionary defines dissension as "discord." Are we sowing discord among the brethren? Do we like to discuss the problems we see in our local churches? Do we talk about the ways other people are letting us down? Do we enjoy poiting out the failures of our government? This sort of activity is placed at the same level of sinfulness as participation in orgies, drunkenness, sexual immorality, and debauchery. As is jealousy, which is another common pitful for me personally and for many of us.

How do we overcome these things if they are every bit as terrible in God's eyes as the other things in this list in Romans 13?

Romans 13:14—Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

It's not easy, but we have to do it. God grant us the grace to live as we should and to see ourselves as we are, not in terms of how we are better than others. And God grant us mercy when we fail to live up to this standard.

Excuses, excuses (excuses)

Why do we blame others when we fall short of the glory of God? Do we think that everyone thinks we're perfect and we may lower their expectations of us?

For my part, everyone knows I'm a bonehead. And everyone knows I'm a sinner. And yet I continually try to shift the blame when my obvious failures rise to the surface and become noticeable.

Genesis 2:12–13 reads: "The man said, 'The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.' Then the LORD God said to the woman, 'What is this you have done?' The woman said, 'The serpent deceived me, and I ate.

It goes all the way back to the beginning. Adam was the expert blameshifter—he blamed Eve and, as he was talking, he saw the opportunity to shift blame again so he jumped on it immediately and proceeded to blame God. "The woman did it, God. Oh and, by the way, you're the One who gave the woman to me, so it's really your fault."

Then Eve followed her husbands sinful lead and said, "The devil made me do it."

Which of these blame-shifting techniques worked best? Well—they both ended up wandering the world outside the garden. They both received the penalty of death. So obviously none of the techniques worked. Blaming others, blaming God, and blaming Satan. They all were inexcusable.

God calls us to repent. Repentance demands knowledge of our sin. We cannot repent when we don't know that we're doing anything wrong. I believe blame shifting is motivated not by our desire to hide our sins from others—they already know we're sinful. I think blame shifting is motivated by our desire to hide our sins from ourselves. To ignore our sins so we don't have to repent and turn away from our sinful behavior.

Praise God that he still loves us in spite of our sinful ways and our rebellion against him.

Calvinistic Synergism

No—it's not an oxymoron. Let me explain.

Romans 6:23

Synergism is the belief that God and man cooperate in the process of salvation. Man contributes his part (faith) and God contributes his (grace). This view of salvation has been condemned as heresy by Church councils dating back to the time of Augustine and Pelagius.

The opposing view, typically called Calvinism, holds to a monergistic salvation, in which God alone performs the actions necessary for the salvation of man. God reveals himself to the sinner, calls the sinner to himself, gives the sinner (dead in trespasses and sins) a new heart that is inclined toward God, grants the sinner faith unto repentance, and seals the new believer in eternal relationship with himself. The latter view is the view I espouse.

However, I was struck with a peculiar notion while reading Romans 6:23:

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This verse shows that man and God both contributed something to the situation. Man sinned, thereby requiring his death to pay the penalty for sin. God gave man the gift of life—something man had already thrown away in the Garden of Eden.

I know this was a weird post, but then again, that's what makes the internet interesting. It lets us know we're not alone in our weirdness.

The Least of My Brethren

The human suffering as a result of Hurricane Katrina boggles the mind. Large areas have suffered entire devastation and hundreds are dead or stranded without a source of food or water. Time is running out.

In the midst of this natural (divine) disaster, the American people are reaching out to help their neighbors. We have seen this happen time and again when times are hard. It's good to know that we still have the capacity to love and care for one another. My Church is collecting donations for the victims of the hurricane. The donations are going to Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse, which is organizing volunteers to clear debris and repair homes of the poorest people hit by the devastation. As they make the repairs and clean up, they work through local churches to see that spiritual needs are being met as well as physical needs. When the work is done they present each family with a bible. An outstanding effort, to be sure.

But Christians are not the only ones reaching out to the victims of Katrina. Satan's crew is in full charity mode, too. Planned Parenthood has offered free abortions and free contraception to those impacted by Hurricane Katrina's wrath. It must gall them to know that people running for their lives are not likely to remember that they have to protect their convenience from the intrusion of a child. Perhaps they could use the slogan: "Hundreds of people have died from Katrina, why not add your child to the list?" What a shame.

Self-defense

Proverbs 2:6-7

For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; he stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk in integrity."

Lord, may I seek the wisdom and knowledge spoken of in these verses. Grant me the understanding and grace to be upright and to walk in integrity, so that you will be my shield.

Early morning meditation

With my whole heart I seek you;
let me not wander from your commandments!
—Psalm 119:10

I find it so easy to fall into the muck of the world's passion for sin. Why am I drawn so desperately to what I know is wrong and repulsive to God? At times I think if I work harder at church-related things, I will have better fellowship with God. Sometimes I force myself to read the Bible (rather than simply enjoying and respecting it because it is God's Word). I do many things that I think will put me in a position of favor with God.

But I know that we can never earn favor with a holy God.

I think this verse in Psalm 119 gives a clue to what needs to be done to maintain a strong fellowship with God Almighty. The psalmist here appeals to God to let me not wander from your commandments. This is the part that so often I miss. Yes, I need to seek God with all my heart, but I must entreat him to grant obedience to me—a desperately sinful man.

Planned Parenthood Cartoon Endorses Violence Against Pro-Lifers

This is disgusting!

For years we have heard the media claims that "anti-choice" advocates are dangerous, hostile, and violent toward women and clinic workers. In 25 years of pro-life advocacy, I have never seen any pro-lifers act violently and have never heard any pro-lifers advocate violence against anyone.

Image from Planned Parenthood cartoon

Planned Parenthood, on the other hand, has shown it's true colors with a new outrageous cartoon that depicts pro-lifers as "uninformed" crackpots and advocates killing (drowning, blowing up) peaceful demonstrators and those who would oppose Planned Parenthood's ideology.

The video, promoting the new Planned Parenthood catchphrase, "Safe is Sexy," was linked on the Planned Parenthood Golden Gate website on Tuesday morning, August 9, at approximately 9:00am. It was removed shortly thereafter, probably because it had attracted the attention of those who disagree with Planned Parenthood's agenda. Believe me, this is not a video Planned Parenthood wants the general public to see.

See it for yourself

• Watch the cartoon WARNING: Vile and disgusting.
• Read a blow-by-blow account of the cartoon
• Write to President Bush about it
• Write to your senator about it
• Write to your representatives about it

This is what REAL pro-life protestors look like. Do you see any violence? These defenders of the Innocents were protesting the Planned Parenthood Clinic in Pittsburgh when I visited that city this past Saturday. These are the people that the cartoon superhero wants to eliminate (kill).

Real Pro-lifers!

Pittsburgh, Pa. - A great city!

We just returned from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where my wife attended a conference run by the North American Council on Adoptable Children. The conference was great and the hotel was wonderful. But the thing that really impressed us was the city of Pittsburgh.

I've heard many people say that Pittsburgh is dirty and grimy. I think the people who said this may well have never visited Pittsburgh and are assuming that it would be dirty because it it's the "Steel Town."

But we found Pittsburgh to be a charming city with a wonderful mixture of new and extremely old architecture, helpful people, and outstanding restaurants. The streets are clean and seemingly very safe. I walked the streets during the morning rush hour and noticed that the people don't acknowledge one another as they pass on the street, which would indicate that they're not friendly. But anytime I had reason to speak to someone in the city, I found them extremely friendly, helpful, and considerate. I never once felt unsafe, even when we walked through the streets after dark.

Another thing I loved was the preponderance of bicyclers in the streets of Pittsburgh. There are steel bike racks in front of most of the buildings, allowing people who work there to lock up their bikes after commuting to work on the gasoline-free, health-improving bicycle. The cars and bicycles share the street without any apparent animosity from either group. In fact, I never once heard a car horn honk at a bicyclist even though there were bikes passing me every few seconds. We saw groups of at least 15 to 20 cyclists quite a few times.

David and Kim, just before we headed home

I'm really hoping that we can return to Pittsburgh to visit again shortly. I'd love to have the time to just enjoy the city without having to worry about being at the various conference sessions at a certain time. Kudos to you, Pittsburgh! You're a great place to visit. And I bet you're a great place to live as well.

Pool of Siloam Found

As reported in an August 9, 2005, heading on the Drudge Report, the Pool of Siloam mentioned by the apostle John has been unearthed by archeologists.

Pool of Siloam (John 9)

I recall hearing of these sorts of archeological verifications of scripture when I was a child. My father subscribed to Biblical Archeology Magazine and quite often pointed out that biblical places that had been derided as false by anti-bible scholars were discovered every generation or so, giving a new generation great proof of the validity and historicity of scripture. The new generation has now been given another one of these proofs.

Isn't it great to be on the side of fact and truth rather than on the side of fantasy and dishonesty?

Words mean things--so do grammar, culture, and context

The need for proper biblical hermeneutics

James White of Alpha & Omega Ministries has posted an article on the need for consistent Protestant biblical hermeneutics. Written by White's friend, Pastor John Samson, emphasizes the absolute necessity of proper biblical interpretation, not only for pastors, but also for all "lay" persons:

We would be horrified to hear of a surgeon who had just two weeks of training operating on someone's brain. As important as brain surgery is, I believe the job of the Gospel preacher is far more important. Eternal souls hang in the balance, and great care and attention is needed to ensure that a teaching is sound, healthy and accurate. A teacher of the Bible needs rigorous training in the science of biblical interpretation (hermeneutics). But that's not just true for the preacher; everyone of us needs to know how to gain an accurate knowledge of the Word of God.

Some people think that if God wants you to know something about the Bible, He will just reveal it to you supernaturally. Unfortunately, that's how a lot of cults get started. 1 Tim 5:17 says, "Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine." Correct interpretation requires work; sometimes, a great deal of hard work...."

Read the complete article.

The beginning of wisdom...

I'm so glad that God has blessed me with a church (Occoquan Bible Church) that teaches its people well. Last quarter I co-taught an adult Christian education class (Sunday School) on Protestant Biblical Hermeneutics. It wasn't an easy class (for the students or the teachers), but it was a chock-full of information vital to all Christians.

When you find the time to read an excellent book on biblical interpretation, in between your reading of the new Harry Potter book and the most recent 40 Days of [Insert Target Here], get a copy of How to Read the Bible For All Its Worth. It's an outstanding book that you can understand even if, like me, you have no extended education.

May God bless your reading of His Word.

God has blessed and protected!

Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.
—Psalm 50:15

When God shows his grace and mercy to us, we should praise him publicly for what he has done. God has shown me a great deal of grace and mercy recently of which I have not yet spoken, so here it is:

Outsourced

In 2004, the company I work for told my department that it was preparing to outsource our services to India. For the next year we waited to hear more and finally on June 6 the hammer fell. A representative from our headquarters came to our local office and told us that September 6 would be our last day. In the local region, covering three states and about a dozen offices, all the people in my department would be layed off except for two ... my boss and me.

I know that I have not earned this place on my own. I've done my job and offered to help wherever I could. But so have others. I've tried to be an exemplary employee. But so have others. But God graciously chose to maintain my employment for the time being. This has removed a huge burden from my shoulders and has caused me to revel in God's mercy to undeserving sinners like me.

What a great God we serve!

Dave Hunt reviles the gospel again

Dave Hunt

Dave Hunt of The Berean Call has spent the past half decade railing against Calvinism. Although there are legitimate debates on this topic, Dave Hunt has shown a lack of scholarship and honesty in his campaign that boggles the mind. James White, founder and head of Alpha & Omega Ministries, has posted a short response to Hunt's newest book, A Calvinist's Honest Doubts Resolved by Reason and God's Amazing Grace.

If you're going to read this book (or Hunt's earlier travesty, What Love Is This?) be sure to also read The Potter's Freedom by James White. Keep checking Alpha & Omega Ministries' web site for further updates to this developing situation. I'm sure James will provide adequate response to Hunt's arguments. Arguments that bring shame and dishonor to the name of Christ.

Becoming more conservative?

Rush Limbaugh

Yahoo! Financial News reports that Rush Limbaugh is the most-listened-to radio talkshow host in New York.

Good news for Christians?

So does this news bode well for the United States? Many evangelicals will answer that question with a hearty "yes," but many evangelicals are looking for the wrong answer.

Holding to basically conservative politics, I'm pleased that conservatism has become accepted by more young people. I enjoy listening to Rush and Sean Hannity. I especially enjoy watching liberals blow a gasket when they try to debate an issue with Ann Coulter. But this is entertainment, not an answer to what troubles our nation today.

It's still the cross

Don't be fooled by the swing toward conservatism. Conservatism does not equal Christianity. The devil is subtle and can throw the unsuspecting Christian off his guard. And that is what is happening right now. Many evangelicals are kicking back, smiling, and saying, "We did it. We voted the right man into office. We're getting a new conservative Supreme Court justice. Life is good." But conservatism in politics is not the reason Jesus died. He died to save sinners. And we have been set apart for God's kingdom with the mandate to tell the world the good news of Christ's shed blood for the remission of sins.

For some reason, I hear many evangelical and fundamentalist preachers decrying the moral terpitude of our nation and encouraging their congregations to "get out the vote." But I don't hear many eschewing politics and running hard after evangelism.

A church that has taken a strong stand on the gospel message and is de-emphasizing political things exists right in our nation's capitol. Capitol Hill Baptist Church has even removed the American flag from their platform because patriotism is not the point of a gathering of believers for worship. Would to God that more churches would take the gospel seriously and call their communities to repentance rather than encouraging activism in politics.

Marketing for ItchingEaritis

Phil Johnson (PyroManiac Blog) has posted an important observation regarding the church growth fad. His rejection of such popular church growth books as The Purpose Driven Church is sound and not laced with the emotionalism of many such rejections.

Johnson also takes issue with George Barna's book Marketing the Church, regarding which he asks:

Do you think [the apostle Paul] would have agreed with Barna, who said we must adapt our message to the preferences of the audience, or risk having them reject the message?

We evangelicals need to wake up to this problem. The “religious right” derided the Clinton administration for its dependence on polling data when determining its course of action, but we fall prey to the polling data of our own congregations when determining what programs we should offer and what should be randomly taught from the contents of holy scripture. It's a travesty.

How free is your freedom?

R.C. Sproul writes an outstanding article about the current state of evangelicalism in the realm of evangelistic outreach. He takes issue with the acceptance of the semi-pelagian view that man must exercise his free will to accept Christ.

Give it a read. It's worth your time.

Proof text messaging

The delightful Sacred Sandwich, a Reformed Christian satirical e-newsletter has a deliciously funny piece about text messaging with cell phones.

Serving or being served?

We Christians are told regularly that we need to serve God, whether it is our vocation or "volunteer."

Allow me to challenge the accepted view of this. We should serve God, but in the way that God demands. The thing missing from this, however, is that we need to let God serve us. The Son of Man came not to be served (Mark 10:45). The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by man, nor is he served by human hands as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all men life and breath and everything (Acts 17:24-25).

How do we let God get the glory of serving us even in activities in which we are serving God? We pray and acknowledge the fact that we can do nothing without Christ. We ask for God's help when we need it (always). We ask God to use us to further His kingdom and to give us the competance to successfully accomplish the task at hand. This brings glory to God and keeps us from thinking that we have something to offer to God.

To God be the glory in heaven and earth forever.

If you are interested in pursuing this concept further, read chapter 6 of Desiring God by John Piper.

Our God Is In Control

M

y father is co-authoring a book on evanglism. He has honored me by asking that I edit his portion of the manuscript. What I've read so far is excellent. I look forward to seeing the finished product.

What really jumps out at the contemporary reader from this manual is the solid theology needed for a true evangelistic outreach. Postmodern man vilifies those he disagrees with. In the arena of evangelism, this has mainly been done by those who reject God's total sovereignty over his creation. The line goes that Calvinists don’t believe in evangelism because they think God is going to handle everything and man doesn't have a choice. Not only is this wrong, but it is a complete misrepresentation of Calvinistic belief.

We Calvinists believe that man has a choice—he has always had a choice. The problem is that man will choose the wrong thing every time. Only when God has removed man's “heart of stone” and replaced it with a “heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 11:19) will man seek fellowship with God through repentance of his sins and trust in the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross. (Notice I didn't say the potential saving work—Jesus’ death on the cross did not create a potential for salvation; it completely paid the penalty for the sins of those who would believe.)

I am very proud of my father and of his strong stand on the truth of God’s Word. My father is the most evangelistic man I know and he is a 5-point Calvinist. In fact, by John Piper’s definition, my father is a 7-point Calvinist. The straw man is exposed and has been burned up by the pragmatic proof. If we believe that God is in complete control of his creation, not only will we share the gospel to all, but we can rest in the assurance that he will draw to him those for whom Christ has shed his blood. Our part: evangelize the world. God’s part: save the elect. We don’t need to do God’s part, nor can we. But we must do ours.

Words mean things!

Watching the UK-based coverage of the suicide (read "homicide") bombings has been frustrating and frightening. On the day the attacks were perpetrated, the reporters freely used the word "terrorists" to describe the attackers. Since then the word has been pointedly absent from their reporting. Is this some sort of bizarro political correctness run rampant?

If our world doesn't wake up to what sort of enemy we face, we are in for serious trouble. This is a fight for our lives and we're busy trying to give our attacker a positive self-image.

J. Vernon M^cGee pointed out more than a decade ago that most theologians don't see the United States anywhere in End Times prophecy. That means that either the US will cease to exist or, at the very least, will no longer be a superpower. I'm hoping for the latter, because I love this country and want to see it perpetuated. But I fear the former if we go the route of the BBC reporters, which we are doing to a great degree. Our enemy is radical Islam. I think we should be very clear on the fact that this is not a faction of the normally peaceful religion—it is the orthodox (if that word can be used in this setting) version of Islam. Those who follow Muslim teachings strictly are the ones we consider "radical." And this religion is spreading like wildfire. And, like wildfire, it is destroying everything in its path.

It's time to recognize the wildfire and put it out. As Smokey the Bear says: Only you can prevent wildfires.

God of wonders!

Natural Bridge, Virginia

My family spent this past weekend at Natural Bridge, Virginia. What a wonderful place. We were there for a family retreat and seminar, but the local sights were what wowed us.

Creation

The park makes an awe-inspiring presentation each day during the warmer months. It's called simply "Creation." The audience is seated under the Natural Bridge and listens to an orator read the biblical account of the six days of creation from Genesis. Each day of creation is depicted by a classical music piece and a light show. The lights are directed at and around the bridge and the effect is stunning.

The immense size of the bridge contributes to the effectiveness of this amazing presentation. In the photo above, you can see two small white dots at the bottom left of the bridge. Those are the shirts of two people walking the path under the bridge. It is gargantuan.

The show is introduced not by a vague reference to the "theory" of creation or by saying that this is something written in the Bible and some folks believe it, but by the statement, "The world was created in six days. This presentation is a musical and visual depiction of the biblical account of that creation."

Natural Bridge during a presentation of "Creation"

If you're able to see this show, make a point not to miss it. It is wonderful.

One year down - and still losing

Today is my 1-year checkup ... 1 year since my weight loss surgery. I have lost 271 pounds and feel great. Some people have even said I look great, although I think they're just buttering me up. God has been gracious and brought me through this in an amazing way. Now I need to stay on top of things so I don't regain any weight. In fact, I'd like to lose another 30 pounds or so. We'll see what the doctor says today.

I'd like to thank God for:

• Dr. Halmi, the best surgeon in history
• Dr. Halmi's amazingly wonderful staff
• Occoquan Bible Church
• My wife Kim (pictured with me at the top right side of this page)
• My son David (who took the above mentioned profile picture)
• My extended family and friends who have provided great support

Without these people this would have been a very difficult process, but with these people it has been an exciting and mostly enjoyable road. Thanks to all of you.