Category Archive: Family
Chicago and Back
Last week was exceptionally busy. On Monday morning, I flew from Grande Prairie, arriving in Chicago late in the afternoon. I’m the chairman of the URCNA‘s Theological Education Committee, and that evening that committee met with the corresponding committee of the Canadian Reformed Churches. For some time, our committees have been discussing what to do about the training of ministers should the two federations unite.
The meeting went fairly well. There was a good brotherly camaraderie throughout the meeting, even though in the end the two committees did not agree on a proposal. Both committees will need to report to the two federations’ upcoming synods.
The committees met at Mid-America Reformed Seminary, my alma mater. I joked that the last time I’d been in the board room, I was being examined. I’ve been to the seminary a couple of times since graduating, but in some ways it feels as if I’ve barely left. It’s hard to believe I graduated eight years ago!
One of the highlights of the trip was the chance to visit with Pete and Diane Smith and their family, and in particular with their son Nick. When I was in seminary, I used to spend a lot of time at the Smith’s home and briefly tutored Nick in Latin. Now Nick is in his final year at Mid-America!
Another highlight was the opportunity I had to sit in on one of Nelson Kloosterman‘s New Testament History classes. Dr. Kloosterman was introducing the book of Acts, and it was hard for me not to raise my hand and answer questions as if I was back in school again. Unfortunately, I could attend only the 8:00 lecture because my meeting started at 9:00.
All of my flights went well, as did the hour-and-a-half bus rides to and from O’Hare. I managed to read about 70 pages of John Milbank’s Theology and Social Theory as well as a good bit of Mark Driscoll‘s enjoyable The Radical Reformission, about which I’ll say more later, and Andrew Greeley‘s first novel, The Magic Cup, a version of an old Irish tale, related to the Arthurian Grail legends.
I arrived back home on Wednesday evening, caught the shuttle bus from the airport to a nearby hotel, and walked the rest of the way home. The weather was considerably colder than it had been in Chicago, but not bad. It was a great joy to be back home with my wife and daughter. This trip was the first time Moriah and I had been apart since our wedding.
The rest of the week was a bit of a scramble as I prepared two sermons and did some other work. On Friday night, we noticed that the temperature in the house kept dropping. Sometime after 1:00 AM, I turned up the thermostat — and nothing happened. I turned it as far as it could go, and still the furnace didn’t come on.
Finally, I called the heating company and a mechanic came over. It didn’t take him long to figure out what had happened. The furnace switch was off. It’s up on the wall behind a door in an area used for storage. That afternoon I had moved a bunch of boxes around and must have bumped the switch. So I paid $96 for him to flip the switch and turn the furnace on again.
On the other hand, he also showed me that the switch was badly mounted and a hazard and he pointed out that because the furnace was used to keep the house warm during construction the blower was full of dry wall dust, to say nothing of a rock an inch in diameter and a plastic bag which made the furnace sound noisy. I’ll have to spend more to get the furnace cleaned, but at least I know about the problem now.
In other news, I tried contacts recently but after a day of being irritated by them and after weighing the cost, I decided to stick to glasses. My old glasses broke while I was washing them and so I got a new pair. It had been seven years since my last eye exam, but my prescription hasn’t changed. That’s good news!
And now I must head off to bed, where I’ll read a bit of Jonathan Kellerman’s Blood Test or Brian McLaren’s The Last Word and the Word After That, the last in his trilogy. Good night!
Happy Birthday, Moriah!
Happy 25th birthday, Moriah! Every year of your life, you grow from glory to glory and it is my great joy to be your man. You are my glory, and I love you!
Conference and Vacation
After two weeks of travelling, Moriah and I are home again!
Our trip began with the Christ Church Ministerial Conference in Moscow, Idaho, where Doug Wilson, Peter Leithart, and Rich Lusk addressed various subjects related to justification. Dale Courtney’s notes of the lectures are available online here and Rich Lusk has posted the full text of his lectures here. Though there wasn’t that much that was new to me, on the whole the conference was quite good, and it was great to be able to visit with family and friends.
After the conference, our vacation began. We travelled to Abbotsford, BC, to visit my grandmother and also saw several friends, including one couple, Peter and Dana Klootwyk, whom I hadn’t seen for about ten years. On Sunday, I preached at Christ Covenant Church (CREC) in Langley, BC, and then returned to my grandmother’s house for a meal with my uncle’s family.
We drove down to Bellingham, Washington, on Monday evening to have supper with Chip and Janet Lind. After supper, Janet took care of Aletheia while Chip took Moriah and me on a tour of Bellingham. We walked along the harbour, drove around downtown, and even wandered the halls of Logos Bible Software, where Chip works. Moriah and I both fell in love with Bellingham that night, I think.
We left Abbotsford on Wednesday and spent that night at the Kicking Horse Farm Bed and Breakfast in Clearwater, BC, where we enjoyed having our own beautiful cabin. We returned home Thursday night.
Happy Birthday, Dad!
Happy birthday, Dad! You’re not quite as old as the guy in the picture above would be today, but we’re grateful for the years God has given you. May He give you many more! We love you!
And here’s a scene you’ll probably recognize more quickly than many other readers of this blog. Look familiar?
Trinity Fest Photo
Moriah, Aletheia, and me at Trinity Fest in Moscow. (Photo courtesy of Daniel Foucachon. Thanks, Daniel!)
Congratulations!
It gives me great joy to announce the engagement of my brother-in-law, Nathanael Boone Phillips, to Miss Naomi Sleadd. Congratulations!
“Houses and wealth are an inheritance from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the Lord” (Prov. 22:14).
Happy Birthday, Mom!
Happy birthday, Mom! May the Lord bless you richly and give you many more years. We love you!
John, Moriah & Aletheia
Happy Anniversary!
Happy anniversary, Mom and Dad!
Moriah and I rejoice with you in the Lord’s faithfulness over your forty years of marriage. Your marriage is an example for us and we love you. May the Lord give you many more years together.
Diapers
And now for something radically different, something you’ve never seen before on this blog, something you may never have expected to see on this blog….
Tim tagged me for a book thing that’s going around the web. Books? Who has time for ’em? Who can afford to buy ’em?
Now diapers ? that’s another matter. And so I’ve made a few changes to the questions Tim asked:
How many diapers do I own?
Good question. I haven’t counted, but I’d say probably about 300, counting both cloth and disposable ones. Mind you, that number changes several times a day. In fact, sometimes that number drops considerably in the course of about five minutes, as what started out to be one diaper change turns into two or three.
What’s the last diaper I bought?
The last ones we bought were a special kind of super-absorbent Pampers.
What’s the last diaper I used?
I can’t recall. The last change involved three diapers. One of them was a Safeway brand diaper. But I think the last one was probably Western Family, a brand we can buy at Save-On Foods.
What are the five brands of diapers that mean the most to me?
I can only assume that this question wants to know which diapers I’ve appreciated the most. That’s a pretty easy question, since I’ve used only five brands so far. So here they are in reverse order, worst to best:
(5) Safeway produces the worst diapers we’ve used. The leg areas are made out of tissue paper and the diaper itself appears to be subject to frequent blow-outs. We won’t be buying these again, and we may even return the ones we bought. The unused ones, of course.
(4) Huggies are okay. The diaper itself doesn’t smell bad (see below), which is an advantage. But the big disadvantage is that the sticky flaps which are supposed to hold the diaper in place don’t adhere to each other. So if there’s any overlap, one flap can’t be on top of the other, which makes them a bit more awkward to use. But they’re okay.
(3) Western Family, a brand we can buy at Save-On Foods, makes decent diapers. They don’t smell particularly bad (see below) and, unlike Huggies, their adhesive flaps do adhere to each other.
(2) Pampers is probably the second best brand we’ve used. But that’s debatable. Unlike Huggies, the adhesive flaps can be overlapped because they do adhere to each other. The diapers fit well, too. The drawback with Pampers is that they have a strong chemical smell. Sometimes it’s hard to tell if the baby has done anything because the only smell is the Pampers smell. Maybe that’s deliberate, but it isn’t pleasant. Perhaps the new Pampers we just bought will be better.
(1) Dry Bottoms is the best brand that Moriah and I have used. Moriah’s mom found them at a very low price at a thrift store and sent them to us. They fit well. They don’t reek of chemicals. And unlike other brands where there’s only one strip of elasticity around the thighs, this brand has two, so that blow-outs are less likely.
From Tim’s blog I see that this game of tag is supposed to be passed on. So … for any of you who have babies, “Tag! You’re it!”
First Anniversary
A year ago today, I married an amazing woman and she has grown in beauty and glory since then. Happy first anniversary, Moriah! Your worth is far above rubies and my heart safely trusts you. Many daughters have done well, but you excel them all (Prov. 31:10, 29).
It’s A Girl!
Announcing the arrival of our daughter, Aletheia Rose Barach.
She was born on Saturday, June 11, 2005 at 9:28AM, weighing 8lbs 3oz and 20″ long. Aletheia and Mom are both doing well and are happy to be home. Moriah will be posting pictures shortly.
We’re very thankful to the Lord for this great blessing. Rejoice with us!
Grandmother’s Day!
Happy Mother’s Day to my mother and to Moriah‘s mom. We’re grateful to God and to you for your example and your love, and we love you both very much! And we’re especially delighted to be able to wish you your first Happy Grandmother’s Day!