March Madness

I needed a link to this photo so I could put it on the ESPN Tournament Challenge, so therefore, here is my lastest post. Maybe I'll post again in another year.

On the Road Again...

We always enjoy spending time with our families during the holiday season. Late Tuesday night we made the trip to Hickory to be with my parents. Wednesday was a fun day for us. We spent time with Mom and Dad. Ava really enjoyed the big wheel they have for her. We also went to my friend, Kellie's house for dinner. Leigh Ann and Davis came to join us. Ava, as always, enjoyed playing with Eli and Davis and I of course, enjoyed every minute I had to spend with my friends. The time we have together is short, but always special.

Ava rode her big wheel up and down the driveway!

Pops and Ava

Granna and Emet

Eli, Ava and Davis

Sweet Kisses

Eli, Ava, Emet and Davis

Kellie, Eli, Leigh, Ava, Emet, Leigh Ann, (Baby Fitzmorris) and Davis

The Meaning of His Name - Emet David

Exodus 33:17-19 17 And the LORD said to Moses, "This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name." 18 Moses said, "Please show me your glory." 19 And he said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name 'The LORD.' And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.

Exodus 34:6-8 6 The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7 keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation." 8 And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped.

Emet is the Hebrew word used in Exodus 34:6 to speak of God’s covenant faithfulness. God’s covenant faithfulness means that we can be certain that he will do what he has promised. His works and his words are faithful; we can totally depend on Him. “Emet” comes from the same root that “amen” comes from which we use in our prayers to express certainty and assurance in the Lord to whom we pray. David is Jon’s middle name but it also has a huge significance in God’s plan of redemption. Long ago, God promised that an offspring would come from a woman and crush the head of Satan (Gen. 3:15). Later God promised that this offspring would be a son of David and not only would he crush the head of Satan, he would be king and establish his kingdom forever (2 Sam. 7; 1 Chron. 17). Jesus, who is from the lineage of David (Matt. 1:1), is this king and he has established his kingdom. Jesus is the ultimate expression of God’s faithfulness, because in Jesus, God has provided salvation for those who repent of their sin, believe that Jesus died and the paid the penalty for their sin, and trust him wholly for their salvation. God’s covenant faithfulness means that we can trust his word and that he will bring his promises to completion. Our hope as believers rests in the very character of God. In light of this, we desire our son to grow up to be a man who first of all trusts in God’s covenant faithfulness but who also displays in his life what God’s faithfulness looks like by being faithful in what he says and in what he does. To God be the glory. AMEN!

Here are some verses that use “emet” or a Hebrew word similar to it:

Deuteronomy 7:9 Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations,

1 Samuel 12:24 Only fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart. For consider what great things he has done for you.

Psalm 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple;

Psalm 86:11 Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name.

Psalm 115:1 Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!

Psalm 117:2 For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!

Lamentations 3:21-23 21 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: 22 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Other Verses: Genesis 15:6; 2 Samuel 7:16, 28; 1 Chronicles 17:23-24; Psalm 40:11; 86:15; 132:11

Emet David Chasteen - Part 3

Leigh, Ava, and Mary Lee with Emet.
Tom. Mary Lee, and Leigh with Emet.
Don, Scarlet, Jon and Leigh with Emet.
Emet is a Tiger (and a Mountaineer)
Emet is a Tiger (and a Mountaineer)

Emet David Chasteen - Part 2

Jon and Leigh with Emet.
Jon, Leigh, and Ava with Emet.
Ava and Nana eagerly watching Emet.
Ava holding Emet with mommy.
Ava being a good big sister and loving on her little brother.

Emet David Chasteen - Part 1

This is Ava checking out mommy's belly before Emet was born.
Jon chowing down before Emet was born.
Jon checking out Emet right after he was born.
Emet getting a bath.
Emet still getting a bath.

Do Hard Things - Part 1

I recently started reading a book called Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations by Alex and Bret Harris. They are only 19 years old and the have their own website and have contributed many articles to the webzine Boundless. They are seeking a "rebelution," a term which they made up, which simply means "a teenage rebellion against low expectations" (11), and this is the starting point for their book. They ask, "Is it possible that our teen years give us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for huge accomplishments--as individuals and as a generation?" (6). There book opens with these thoughts:

"Most people don't expect you to understand what we're going to tell you in this book. And even if you understand, they don't expect you to care. And even if you care, they don't expect you to do anything about it. And even if you do something about it, they don't expect it to last. Well, we do."

If you dare, I challenge you to read this book. But beware, it may radically transform your life. More thoughts to come later.

Fighting Against Lust

A N T H E M :: Desiring God Christian Resource Library

Distorted Beauty

The following comments are from the Girl Talk blog written by the wife and daughters of C.J. Mahaney.

Consider with me our culture’s physical beauty yardstick--for women then and women now as explained by author David Powlison: A hundred years ago women might have compared themselves with the other ten girls in the village. Today, women compare themselves with pictures of the cream of the worldwide fashion industry. And what ideal image does the worldwide fashion industry put forth as the standard for beauty by which today’s woman is to measure herself? Well, take a look at what a group of professional hair stylists, make-up artists, and photographers in cahoots with computer graphics were able to create (click on the picture to watch the video):


To think that women are striving to look like someone who doesn’t even look like herself. It’s absurd!

The Dove Campaign got it partially right—the fashion industry has certainly contributed to a distorted perception of beauty. And yet, their solution—“every girl deserves to feel beautiful just the way she is”—is well-meaning and yet fundamentally unbiblical.

You see, women believe that physical beauty will make them happy, successful, popular among the women, desirable to the men – so they pursue it with a fury!

Physical beauty, however, does not deliver as advertised. Proverbs 31:30 reveals the falsehood and the futility of this quest for beauty: Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain.

Even if every girl did “feel beautiful just the way she is,” it wouldn’t bring her true joy or lasting happiness or solve even one of her problems.

Truth be told, what we all deserve is not to feel beautiful but rather to be condemned to hell for sinfully seeking to attract the worship of our fellow creatures instead of living to bring glory to God.

God did not send Jesus to this earth to die so that women could get over their self-esteem problem and feel better about themselves. No, He sent his Son to die to rescue us from our sinful, futile quest for physical beauty and to reveal to us the satisfaction that comes from knowing God—whether we are beautiful or not!

What freedom and hope is found in Christ! We don’t need to feel beautiful about ourselves to find happiness! In fact, we’re better off not even thinking about ourselves. Rather, God has offered us in Jesus Christ forgiveness, hope, freedom from sin and a joy that never ends.

So while this little video effectively exposes the false front of beauty presented by our culture, let’s not look to Dove’s advertising executives for the solution to the beauty crisis. Rather, let’s join the campaign to tell others of the true freedom that is found in Christ!

When is abortion ok?

Dr. Albert Mohler just recently posted an article addressing this issue. It is entitled, The View into the Womb is "Extraordinarily Dangerous?" With the capabilities of modern techonology now able to view the unborn fetus in the womb at very early ages, this is causing many to want to lower the number of weeks when an abortion is legal. It is a fascinating article and you all should read it. But, how many number of weeks is ok? Are there certain situations which would make abortion ok as opposed to others? Let me rephrase the question. When is it ok to KILL an unborn fetus? Let's call it what it is. It is murder. Murder is never right. We must also recognize that there is a difference between killing and murder. Whereas we might affirm that a person deserves the death penalty, there is no unborn fetus that deserves death. They have every right to life. In a world that is all about Pro-choice, what about the choice of the baby? It seems that no one is letting this fetus speak. Therefore, we must speak for them. Here is an article by John Piper that is great, Ten Reasons Why it is Wrong to Take the Life of Unborn Children.
I come from the presupposition that God is the creator and giver of life and therefore we have no right to take it. My freedom is limited at the same time by this fetus's freedom. If your freedom of choice hinders this fetus's freedom of choice, you surrender your freedom out of respect for your neighbor. Before I conclude, let me make it clear that abortion (murder) is not the unpardonable sin and that there is forgiveness at the cross. If you are reading this and feeling self-righteous because you have never committed an abortion, let me remind you that you have committed some other sin against God deserving his wrath. We are all in the same boat - we need his grace. So if you are one that has had an abortion, there is grace and mercy at the cross. But if you are one considering abortion, that fetus is a life created by God and he/she deserves life. For other articles and sermons related to abortion, click here.