Made for a Purpose

Jeremiah 1:4-10
(4) Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
(5) "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations."
(6) Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth."
(7) But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a youth'; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.
(8) Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the LORD."
(9) Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the LORD said to me, "Behold, I have put my words in your mouth.
(10) See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant."

When did the Lord know Jeremiah? He knew him before he was even made in the womb. This tells me that God has a plan for everyone. He knows us before we are even born. As a side note, this also seems to speak to the sanctity of life in the womb.

Jeremiah knew that he was not equipped to carry out the task that the Lord gave him. However, the Lord reassured him and put the words in his mouth that he was to say. As we'll see through the coming days, Jeremiah was appointed to a very hard life. I'm not sure what Joel Osteen does with Jeremiah's life, but it would seem that Jeremiah had a deep faith and yet suffered greatly. Such is the lot of some in this world, though not in the next.

This dovetails with something I heard recently on Genesis 6. Children's bibles tend to get the story of Noah wrong. They tend to say that everyone in the world was wicked except Noah, and since he was righteous God liked him. This turns the gospel upside-down. Instead, it says that Noah found grace from the Lord. For some reason God chose Noah. Noah was declared "righteous," yet we know later on he got drunk and passed out naked in his tent. It would seem that he was hardly perfect. Therefore, I take "righteous" to mean that Noah was justified in the eyes of the Lord.

Chew on these truths. If you know Christ it is because God chose you. I don't know why other than it was for you to serve Him for His glory. That was true of Jeremiah and Noah. It's true for anyone who knows Jesus.

Tough Guys

Noah was sitting on the floor tonight and did something different. He wanted something in front of him and somehow managed to fall flat on his face. He normally rolls over and hits the back of his head. He seemed pretty nonplussed by the whole thing, to which Amanda and I made a declaration of his toughness.

It got me thinking about what tough-guy movies I'd like for him to see and why. Off the top of my head:

• Rocky (obvious)
• Rocky II (got to love your wife)
• Rocky III (you can't get soft)
• Rocky IV (general toughness in Siberia)
• Raiders of the Lost Ark (fighting the big German, truck scene)
• Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (tough guys can repent)
• Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (good father-son movie)
• Cool Hand Luke (preparation for the work world)
• Dirty Dozen (team building)

Any other thoughts?

My Little Man

We brought home little Noah yesterday. It's been an exciting couple of days. He hasn't shown a ton of personality yet other than wanting to sleep. However, when he is awake and his eyes are open he seems rather thoughtful. Maybe I'm projecting, but it seems like he is going to be a bit more physical than Lily and it also seems like he is going to be less outgoing.

I think I've been a bit more teary-eyed as I held him in the hospital. I really would have been OK with a boy or a girl, but now I see why everyone thought that I would want a boy. It really is great to have him. I guess some of it is a selfish desire to leave something of a legacy. Another is that I am overwhelmed with the duty to raise him as a man of God as much as I possibly can. I realize that Noah's salvation is up to the Lord, but I'm going to do all I can to talk to him about Jesus.

Of course, I'm also going to talk to him about Indians baseball and Ohio State football. They aren't quite as important, but they will get some play :)