Christ Communicator

I was second in line.

I was there only ten minutes.

I wasn’t treated like a third grader.

(Disclaimer: This post was just for fun and I mean no disrespect to all of the friendly license bureau employees found throughout the country!)

We found out yesterday. By God’s grace, we are handling the news okay. Some tears have fallen, of course. One of the first things I told Patty was that Lilly has a great mommy. We were both encouraging one another yesterday with the truth that we have a great Lord Who is wise and knows what He is doing. There are many blessings in all of this, both now and in the future. Some current blessings would include the Lord using this to cause us to trust Him more, already meeting some caring people online who have children with WS, and living in a big city with medical care close to us. We are in some ways relieved to finally know, because we can move forward trusting that the Lord has given us Lilly and designed her just the way she is. At the same time, we will pursue medical treatment for her narrowing arteries (FYI: There is no known cure for WS.) and seek to gain insight as to how to care for her. Please pray that Lilly would develop physically. We will be meeting with a geneticist at some point, and also in the first week of October Lilly’s heart and arteries will be checked again. 

I am a blessed man that Lilly is one of the arrows in my quiver (Psalm 127:5). 

Interestingly, I’ve seen the statistic that anywhere from 1 out of 7,500 to 1 out of 20,000 children have WS. If you are interested in reading about this syndrome, you could check out the following sites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Williams_syndrome  (brief)
www.williams-syndrome.org (lots of info.)

http://www.wsf.org/ (lots of info.) 

Nearly every Tuesday, we are giving away free publications from our ministry, Christian Communicators Worldwide! You can participate by checking www.CCWblog.org each Tuesday (or subscribe to our blog), and following the very simple rules. This week, two individuals received a great book, The Life and Labors of George Muller of Bristol. To see all of our resources at CCW, click here.

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,

15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham.

We still haven’t heard from Lilly’s test (from last week) that will tell us if she has Williams Syndrome or not.  We thought we might hear today, but the “work day” is winding down, and still no word (we have called, but no information).  I thought some of you might be wondering what was the latest, thus this post.  Whatever the result, “The Lord reigns, he is clothed with majesty; The Lord has clothed and girded Himself with strength; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved.” (Psalm 93:1)

This Friday morning, September 19, I will be speaking at the chapel for the elementary students at Faith Christian Academy. Please pray. In light of Katie’s recent infatuation with Moses (think “The Prince of Egypt”), and after spending some time tonight showing Katie and Luke from Hebrews how Jesus is “better than” Moses, I think I’ll talk to the kids about that idea.  I have a neapolitan ice cream illustration that I think will shed some light on the truth that I plan to preach.

I had the privilege of being interviewed today by Chris Arnzen on his radio show “Iron Sharpens Iron.”  The show was an hour, and we discussed the truths from the article I wrote titled, “When Your Preach is Not John Piper.”  I had a really enjoyable time, and sensed that the Lord blessed the broadcast.  By the way, if you listen, the interview doesn’t start until about 5 or 6 minutes into the show.

Click here to listen to the interview.

⁹ But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

¹⁰ For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering.

¹¹ For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers,

¹² saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.”

¹³ And again, “I will put my trust in him.” And again, “Behold, I and the children God has given me.”

at Park U. today, 3 pm (central).

Lilly has a significant heart murmur.  This prompted the doctors to have a look at her heart, and they found out that her pulmonary artery and the arteries leading to her lungs are narrower than they should be.  Actually, one has gotten a bit worse since her check one month ago (we were at the hospital today for another ultrasound).  What does this mean?  Well, she could simpy grow out of this (her mommy had a heart murmur when she was a baby). Or, since she has certain features that suggest this (along with the narrow passageways internally), she may have Williams Syndrome.  Also, things could keep getting narrower, and, well, that would result in surgery. 

Lilly will be going for a chromosome test soon to check for Williams Syndrome.  We’ll keep you updated.

Here’s how a new short article I wrote starts:

“If we had left just five minutes earlier, we wouldn’t be in this predicament,” you mutter to yourself, confident that you are going to arrive after the church meeting has started. You feel your heart racing. You dread the attention you are about to bring upon yourself. You think about how you might sneak in the back, but then you remember that the church building’s squeaky door will announce your arrival. Finally, you are in your pew, your heart rate is back to normal, nobody is staring at you anymore, and all is well. Or is it?

Read this article online – Download (USA) – A4 Download

You can listen to the MP3 of my interview with Chris Arnzen of “Iron Sharpens Iron” here.  I’ve only spoken to him a few times on the phone, but he’s a really good guy who has an excellent radio show. Be sure to check out his website/blog, www.sharpens.org, keep up with his program, and download past interviews. 

This was the first time I’ve ever been interviewed on the radio.  Here are five things I learned:

1.  There is precious little time to say things, and certain thoughts don’t even get completed.  Patty, who majored in broadcasting, will read this and say, “Welcome to radio!”

2.  Related to #1, what takes me five minutes to explain in a teaching or preaching venue has to be narrowed down to just a minute or two on radio. That was difficult (and I’m sure I failed), especially when I heard the music playing indicating a commercial break was coming and I knew I needed to stop talking soon.

3.  Certain questions get asked that are not prepared for, and sometimes at a time that is different than expected. I’m not complaining at all.  It’s just an interesting, and challenging, thing to be hit with something unexpected. I even missed a question Chris asked at the end and he had to say, “Steve, are you there?”

4.  Interviews are humbling. Like after I’ve preached or taught a Bible Study, I’m kicking myself for not saying certain things better or clearer, or not clarifying certain statements. It was a humbling experience, and I’m thankful for that.

5.  I enjoyed being on the radio, and hope to do it again, but I prefer regular preaching and teaching venues.  I guess this wasn’t really something I learned, but I came away especially appreciating guys like Chris Arnzen who are quite gifted to do that kind of show (imagine the vast array of subjects he has to be familiar with!), and remembering that God has made me a preacher.

FYI and FYP (For Your Prayers):  I’ll be on “Iron Sharpens Iron” tomorrow from 2-3 pm central time (3-4 pm eastern time), a radio show in the metropolitan New York City area (1440 AM in NY and CT), and also live on the web (go to http://sharpens.blogspot.com/ and scroll down and look on the right to see how to listen online). The show is hosted by Chris Arnzen, and I’ll be discussing with him “Childhood Conversion: How Children Come to Faith in Christ.”