V

GENUINE MOTIV TION

JAN 2011 YOUNG CHRISTIAN MAN

MY DIVINE ENCOUNTER
IN MONTANA
Advice from the
GARDEN OF EDEN

IT’S ALL ABOUT GRACE

IS GOD A MICROMANAGER?
YOUNG
CHRISTIAN
MAN
04 Feature Article: It’s all About Grace
Zach Van Dyke

08 On The Couch: Getting the Most out of Love

Randy kosloski

10 Can You Relate: Touching the Mountain:

thom mollohan My Divine Encounter in Montana
12 May God Bless the Hell Out of You: Resolution Solution
The Merry Monk

14 Press On: Amazing Grace

will dole

16 Cornered by Grace: You Name It

ROB BEAMES

16 The Toolbox: Resume Review

Jeffrey Bridgman
 a publication of On My Own now Ministries www.onmyownnow.com
Visit our Archives to View Past Issues of Genuine Motivation

JANUARY2011
Editor In Chief / Rob Beames
Art + Creative Director / MIKE MURO & DANIELA BERMÚDEZ
 IT’S ALL
ABOUT
GRACE
BY ZACH VAN DYKE

The other day a sweet, middle-aged member of the church

where I am the youth pastor said to me with a saccharine and
slightly condescending smile, “Grace is just your thing, isn’t
it? You just can’t get enough of it.”

People say things like that to me a lot and it usually puts the
biggest grin on my face. I love that people associate me with
grace, but shouldn’t that be the case with all Christians? Isn’t
grace our thing? Can any of us ever get enough of it? Doesn’t
it have to be all about grace?!

If it’s not all about grace, then my story just doesn’t make
any sense.

GM : 04
After I graduated from a Christian high school and won the
coveted “Christian of the Year” award, my girlfriend, Kelly, got
a job babysitting the Taylor kids. Mrs. Taylor was one of our
favorite and funniest teachers. She had a reservoir of accents
both legitimate and asinine that spontaneously poured out of
her mouth without warning. We loved her.

But as much as we loved Mrs. Taylor, I hated that my girlfriend

would be tied up babysitting three boys after graduation. I
knew this would definitely cut into our make-out sessions!
And how long could I count on Kelly to remember that she
was dating the “Christian of the Year”? That at least warranted
second base!

Daniel was a teenager and didn’t “need” a babysitter so he

stayed with a friend. Sam, like most pre-adolescent boys,
played video games constantly and no matter what I tried,
he was not interested hanging with me at all. But Jesse, the
three-year-old, couldn’t wait to embark on a new adventure.

He was a blast to play with because everything was extreme.

While playing “trucks” with him, I witnessed some of the
nastiest head-on collisions.

One afternoon, as I was playing, or should I say, trying to

avoid my knuckles getting rammed by speeding hot wheels-I
heard Kelly mention something to a friend on the phone that
I had a different opinion about. I’m not one to let my opinions
go unvoiced, so I immediately rushed into the room where
she was to express my feelings.

IF IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT

GRACE, THEN MY STORY
JUST DOESN’T MAKE
ANY SENSE.

GM : 05
 Some time went by. I can’t really explain it, but I got an
awful feeling in the pit of my stomach. I suddenly felt totally
disrupted and uneasy. I ran back into the other room to check
on Jesse. Empty. Only the scattered, flipped-over trucks and
cars lay on the floor.

I immediately ran out the front door and hollered Jesse’s

name. No answer. I ran back inside, still hollering. No noise.

Kelly was screaming his name too. Silence.

I noticed the glass door to the back porch slightly ajar. I

knew. It’s an indescribable sensation to know something like
that.

I ran through the door and saw a sweet, little boy floating
lifeless, face-down in the pool. I lifted him up. His face was
white. His eyes rolled back in his head. The veins in his face
were exposed, purple and blue. Foam was oozing out of his
mouth.

I shook him. I hollered his name. No reply. No noise. Silence. I SHOOK HIM.
Holding Jesse in my arms, I turned to see Sam standing I HOLLERED HIS
behind me. All I could say to him was, “Run. Go away.” NAME. NO REPLY.
Kelly came to the door and let out a gut-wrenching scream. NO NOISE. SILENCE.
It seemed like hours before the ambulance arrived. It was
only minutes.

As I was driven to the police station in the back of Officer

Drinkwater’s car (obviously I could not or would not make
that up...that was his name), I thought, “Christian of the
Year”?!? God doesn’t allow this to happen to those who love
Him.

Over 1,200 people attended Jesse’s funeral. Kelly and I did

not want to go. Why would we? How could we?

We were seated just before the family entered towards the

front left side. We had a perfect side view of the Taylor family:
Mr. and Mrs. Taylor and their two sons, Daniel and Sam. I
couldn’t cry. I was numb and angry...and even angrier.

As the last hymn was being sung, the Taylor family stood and WITH GREAT
started to walk out of the packed sanctuary. As Mr. and Mrs.
Taylor passed in front of Kelly and me, they stopped, turned
INTENSITY, THEY
and looked down directly at us without any regard to our PULLED BOTH OF
shame. With great intensity, they pulled both of us up out
of our seats and hugged us. In front of all twelve hundred
US UP OUT OF
people and they wouldn’t let go. OUR SEATS AND
A few months later, I received this letter from Mrs. Taylor: HUGGED US.

GM : 06
 Dearest Zachary,
I have missed you as you have been away at college. I hope you are enjoying Florida
State. I know you are having a hard time. I am too. I have a love-hate relationship
with my life. I love the sweet things...Sam, Daniel, ok even Mr. Taylor, but I hate my
thinking. I think about Jesse all the time. I feel his hand in mine, such soft skin and
his breath on my cheek. I can still hear his voice telling me he loves me. This is hard,
Zach. My heart is broken, but you didn’t break it. I struggle with tears constantly, but
they are tears of sorrow and longing. I long to hold my little boy in my arms. I long to
hear him tell me he loves me. I long to see his smile. None of which I will ever have
again in this body. My heart aches constantly. How does one cope with such a loss? I
pray...there is some comfort. If God took all the pain away, would I grow as much? I
don’t think so. Do I want to grow this way? Yes...No...Yes. (Know what I mean?)
Please know from the first second, the very first second, God filled me with compassion
for you and Kelly. I’m a vile sinner, Zach. Corruption lives in me. Yet, the love of
Christ dwells there also. In this I can be totally transparent, truthful and sincere. I love
and care for you. I have so much mercy for you and Kelly. God has allowed me no ill
feelings toward either one of you, not one. We could all “if only” ourselves to death. It
does no good. It changes nothing.
You and I are much alike in that we both take life head-on. We like to “fix” things.
Like you, I have prayed in the past for God to do “whatever” it takes to make me
more dependent upon Him and to know Christ more fully. I never thought He would
choose to work this way in my life. But He did. The greatest tragedy in all of this could
yet come to pass if one of us moves away from our Heavenly Father. God is still in
control, Zach. He is still God. Jesse’s days were numbered from the beginning. There
is a purpose in this. I will continue to pray that you will stay close to God. I know He
has big plans for you. You are a very special young man.
I love you,
Vicki

Jesse died over 11 years ago.

Today I have been married to Kelly for nine years and we
have three kids: Oliver, Atticus and Alice.
Daniel leads my students in worship at youth group every
Sunday night right alongside me.
I am part of a team of five people who plan our church’s

ALL I CAN SAY IS I’M

Sunday morning worship. Vicki is on the team with me.
Just the other day, she told me that when she gets to
SO GLAD IT’S ALL Heaven she used to want to see Jesse first, but now she

ABOUT GRACE. wants to see Jesus first.

All I can say is I’m so glad it’s all about grace.

Zach Van Dyke is Student Ministries Director at Orangewood Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Maitland, Florida. He and his
family live in Orlando. Zach is also a featured blogger and youth pastors’ forum moderator at PoopedPastors.com.
GM : 07
on
the
couch
GETTING THE MOST OUT OF LOVE
by Randy Kosloski
“IT IS NOT GOOD FOR THE MAN TO BE ALONE.”
When I was only eight years old, I was spellbound over a
seven-year-old girl named Melissa. Her eyes were as blue as
a perfectly chlorinated pool, but she also had horrible teeth.
Nonetheless, as a young boy, I took God’s words to heart, “It
is not good for the man to be alone” (Gen. 2:18). Melissa and
I had a torrid one-month relationship. She ended up moving
out of town and I never really got over her. I have been a
romantic ever since.
Although I was far too young to understand the complexities
of relationships—like it’s ill-advised to notice if a girl looks fat
in a dress—I did understand that our relationship was fairly
innocent. Neither of us took advantage of each other; we were
in it for love. We had no idea what love was but we were open
to discovery.
And that was that. Ever since, the roots of just about every
one of my relationships have been about me. I have found
similar selfish ways in most of my friends, as well as in one
gentleman who came to me for help. We’ll refer to him as
Richard.
Richard was a jigsaw puzzle. He was orphaned as a child, and
raised by a questionable extended family. As a teenager, he
lost his best friend in a car accident and many of his family
members became criminals. Overall, he seemed quite calm
and rational, but his childhood caused him to have issues of
self-worth and belonging, although he tended to downplay
this internal struggle. He came to me because he was having
a hard time dealing the emotional wreck he considered his
girlfriend to be.
Since it seemed that he chose this woman specifically because
of her issues, it was strange that he sought help in dealing
with her. He had a propensity toward high-maintenance
women. Perhaps because their emotional imbalance made
him feel like he had it “together.” In this way, he could play
the role of being a solid rock for his partners, or their knight
in shining armor. As a result he was able to darn a mask
of strength and ability, although underneath feelings of
inadequacy prevailed.
I believed that Richard’s report about his girlfriend, but I could
not help her, since she had not come to me for help. I’m good,
but not that good. Instead, I worked on Richard to try to get
him to see that he was being selfish in his relationship, and
that if he could change his contribution to the relationship, his
partner may change as a consequence. His relationship was
all about him—not about his girlfriend and certainly not about
God.
In The Pilgrim’s Progress, by John Bunyan, Christian’s walk
is made easier with a companion, but Christian’s walk existed
regardless of whether he had a companion. Though Christian
appreciated a companion, he was on his way to the Celestial
City, either way.
In his walk, Richard was trying to focus on the struggles of
his companion while ignoring his own issues. This made for a
happier journey for him. Her stumbling made him feel like a
GENESIS 2:18
mountaineer in comparison. Since I fear he had no eye toward
God’s Celestial City, he was most likely just walking aimlessly.
Perhaps, if he was a character in Bunyan’s classic tale, his
name would have been Egocentric.
Richard was making a common relational mistake for men.
His girlfriend was actually more of an appendage to his life,
or a monument to himself, than a companion. A good partner
can help in times of struggle and make pleasant times even
more enjoyable. A healthy relationship can put both people
on a noticeably higher emotional plane, but if the relationship
becomes more about serving one person, than about serving
each other, everyone suffers, and love gets a bad rap.
In his popular sermon series, Andy Stanley talks about the
importance of placing ourselves in the context of eternity.
He explains that if we fail to do this, we can fall into the trap
of making our lives completely about ourselves. We have
limited days on this earth and we need to use them for God’s
purposes in God’s context of eternity. If we live primarily
focused on ourselves, Stanley points out that we will not be
remembered well. Although our reputation should not be our
foremost goal, what we leave in our wake from this life can
testify as to how we lived. Broken relationships and broken
people do not speak well about us.
According to Denis de Rougement, one of the unspoken ideals
of love is that it will help us as individuals live infinitely more
passionately, and that somehow love can unlock this intense
alter reality of life. But Richard is an example of why this is
not so. Love takes work and if the work is done well then
the wake of your life will reflect a love from heaven. Richard
needed to realize that love is not about enhancing his own life,
but about making more of the time he has, and about making
the world better for sake of Jesus Christ.
“AND SOMEHOW LOVE CAN UNLOCK THIS
INTENSE ALTER REALITY OF LIFE.”
Because Richard was an introspective client—and they are
rare—he apparently was able to make some changes in his
life to better his relationship. He may have been only stroking
my ego, but it seemed that he bought into the idea that he
could create something beautiful with his girlfriend, something
that God would be pleased to see, and something that would
reflect God to anyone who encountered it.
The Bible tells us that we should approach the Living God just
like a small child. It wouldn’t hurt to approach our romantic
relationships in a similar way. Like an eight-year-old child
mesmerized by a girl with beautiful blue eyes and bad teeth
trying to discover what love is. It doesn’t hurt to be open to
direction and correction too, as we try to heed the first piece
of good advice given to humanity: it is not good for man to be
alone.
GM : 09
 TOUCHING THE MOUNTAIN
MY DIVINE ENCOUNTER IN MONTANA

CAN YOU RELATE

by THOM MOLLOHAN

GM : 10
In 1990, I spent the summer running children’s programs
for some ranching communities in central Montana. I
had asked to be assigned to Montana due to images in
my mind of tall white-peaked pinnacles of stone, their
knees and feet carpeted with stately forests and icy cold
torrents of frothing water weaving their winding ways
between them.
Instead, I was assigned to the exact middle of the
state, which was a dusty plain sparsely populated by
pronghorns, prairie dogs, sheep and tumbleweeds. The
flat terrain stretched out on every side of me like an
endless tablecloth with purple shadows of mountains
only peeking tauntingly at me from over the edge of the
distant horizon.
Prairie dogs and tumbleweeds are interesting enough,
but even for those who always see their glasses as half
full, the thrill fades pretty fast. I couldn’t help but feel
a bit disappointed. I had had enough of only hearing
about the mountains and I wanted more than to simply
see pictures of them towering majestically over lakes the
color of pure sapphires. Instead, I wanted to ascend the
mountain’s summit and touch its face, so that I would
know from personal experience its glory.
Given the demands on my time, I had almost given up
hope of such an opportunity. But finally, after six or
seven weeks, the opportunity came. Faced unexpectedly
with a free weekend, a few colleagues and I loaded our
backpacks and headed out to the Beartooth Mountains in
the mid-western part of Montana, in spite of the fact that
I was still recovering from sickness.
We trekked 35 miles onto a ridge of mountain peaks that
overlooked a wide lake at the foot of its northwestern
face. We began our climb up a twisting trail marked at
about every quarter mile with small, crude signs roughly
nailed to trees. It was a great climb, but with my fits of
coughing and sneezing, we knew that the only wildlife
we’d possibly see were wolves that might have mistaken
my hacking for an ailing moose. In spite of my sickness
the beauty of the hike was staggering. The sun shone
with its glory undimmed and each step brought us closer
to it. The pine smell was lost on my miserable sinuses,
of course, but the wild evergreen trees stood faithfully
on either side of the pass arching overhead with stoic
solemnity that made me appreciate, ever more deeply,
their tribute to the Creator.
We made our way above the tree line until we reached
some of the year-round snow that adorned the mountain
peak and looked out over the flatlands to the east. Far
below me, I could see the unremarkable terrain stretch
“May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in
his works – he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches
the mountains, and they smoke. I will sing to the LORD all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live”
out until another string of mountains rose again from
the earth as a brown dust devil swirled quietly below
us in the empty plain. The thrill of being caught up in
the mountain’s majesty gripped me and I found myself
singing a song of praise to God.
That night we found a large, sheltered hollow in which a
grove of pine trees had managed to take root and thrive.
We made camp and enjoyed both human companionship
and a sweet fellowship with the stars that seemed to be
near enough to listen in on our conversation.
But later that night, I was awakened by a titanic boom
as a peal of thunder blasted our little dell with an aural
explosion. I was momentarily blinded by the brilliant
flash of accompanied lightning. Suddenly, I found myself
praying furiously, imagining that each pole holding up my
tent was a miniature lightning rod. The wind whipped my
little tent about like it was an newspaper kite. The rain
crashed down like tiny tidal waves, and soon penetrated
my “water-proof” tent, soaking me to the bone. When
it finally turned to sleet, I didn’t mind in the least: at
least sleet couldn’t get in the tent as easily. Only an hour
after the storm passed, the full moon re-emerged and
the stars were again my friends.
IN FACT, THE LONGER WE WALK WITH HIM, EVEN
WHEN SEEKING HIM WITH ALL OUR HEARTS, THE
MORE UNPREDICTABLE WE FIND HIM.
In the days that followed that hike, I realized how much
it was like our relationship with God. We sing, teach,
pray and talk about encounters with God. But encounters
with God don’t always turn out the way we imagine they
will. In fact, the longer we walk with Him, even when
seeking Him with all our hearts (see Jeremiah 29:13), the
more unpredictable we find Him. At times, He shelters us
in small valleys of comfort and protection. Sometimes,
He sparks our wonder with His power and His love.
Occasionally, we are possessed with joy as we glimpse
His majesty and know that, somehow, He has chosen to
love us. And yet…at other times, He thunders into our
lives with His holy voice and we are dumb-founded by
a sense of His omnipotence and holiness. How rich and
wonderful then is our God Who made the heavens and
the earth!
Psalm 104:31-33.
GM : 11
 MAY GOD BLESS THE HELL OUT OF YOU
BY THE MERRY MONK

O N
U TI N
O
ES
OL
U TI
R
S OL
In 2009,
I made a few resolutions and did well. I worked out five to six times a week and
became a vegetarian. My resolution was to become a vegan, but cheese kept
finding its way into my mouth—via veggie pizzas and goldfish crackers. I also ate
an egg. Then there was the mahi-mahi I ate while celebrating my 15th wedding
anniversary... and the lunch meat I tasted while making my kids’ lunch. (Hey, it
could have gone bad. I was throwing myself in front of the salmonella bus to save
the children.) But I digress.
The point is that with all the exercise and my vegetarianism, I lost 50 pounds. I
also quit drinking and sneaking pipe tobacco. I became a Nazarite without the hair.
I even got a life insurance policy with premiums in the basement, in case I lost it
and went on a crazy meat and beer binge, gained all the weight back, and greased
up my blood. Wait, that’s not the point either.
The point is I was living as cleanly as I ever have. On top of that, I started seeing a
counselor to work through my stuff, and to name “my demons” by kissing them on
the mouth in an effort to live in greater degrees of freedom. And on top of that, I
began another master’s degree at Reformed Theological Seminary. The way I was
going, I thought I might get translated straight into heaven like Enoch, although
I was afraid the life insurance policy wouldn’t pay out if they didn’t find a body.
That was a year of personal reformation in just about every area of my life, yet I
discovered God wasn’t happy with me because of those efforts. I went to Him and
said, “Look, Father, I’m finally behaving like a ‘real’ Christian. How about that?”
He replied, “Good for you.” He wasn’t impressed.

GM : 12
There’s something in us that wants to make God happy,
but we can’t. Trying to make God happy is like collecting
waves on the beach in a child’s bucket and pouring the
water back into the surf to get the ocean wet. God is
already happy and nothing we do can add to or subtract
from that.
“This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased”
(Matt. 3:17). Those words from our Father became the
air Jesus breathed. He did only what He saw the Father
doing, and God the Father was constantly happy with
God the Son. “Because of the cross,” are the Father’s
words to us, too. If we listen to that still small voice
that’s almost drowned out by self-condemnation and the
accusations of our enemy, we’ll hear the words like a cool
breeze in the heat of the day, “You’re My beloved child
and I’m happy with you.”
Not only is the Father happy with us because we’re part
of the body of His beloved Son, the fact is...He’s just plain
happy. It comes along with being the eternally blessed
source of all goodness.
In Genesis, He says a few words and everything that
exists springs into a good and pleasant existence. He
didn’t create because of any need on His part. The Trinity
was enough. Instead, He shared His image with dust
simply to bless us with the overflow of His happiness. And
then, almost instantly after we shattered that image and
ran from His blessing, He chased us to cover our shame.
Romans 11:35 reveals God’s overflowing blessedness
saying, “Who has ever given to God, that God should
repay them?” He doesn’t need anything or owe anyone.
He’s the very definition of satisfied.
“WHO HAS EVER GIVEN TO GOD, THAT GOD
SHOULD REPAY THEM?” HE DOESN’T NEED
ANYTHING OR OWE ANYONE.
The Old Testament is filled with commands to rest and
celebrate in God’s goodness. We’re so uptight He had to
order us to share in His happiness. Those feast days were
not solemn occasions. Check out the spirit of the law in
Deuteronomy 14:22-26, “Be sure to set aside a tenth of
all that your fields produce each year. Eat the tithe of
your grain...and the firstborn of your herds and flocks...
in the presence of the LORD your God and rejoice.” Ever
hear those verses preached on tithing?
In the New Testament we see God the Son frequenting
so many parties He’s accused of being a drunk. Later
He will return for the biggest wedding celebration ever.
Everyone’s invited and there’s an open bar, “The Spirit
and the bride say, ‘Come!’ ...and let the one who wishes
take the free gift of the water of life” (Revelation 22:17).
Luke 12:32 shows He delights in sharing His abundance
with His children, “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your
Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”
There’s that word again, “pleasure.” God is pleased and
it’s His pleasure to share the happiness of His abundance.
Even so, it’s absolutely comical that we try to make God
happy. We have the same arrogance that motivated
Adam and Eve to cover themselves with leaves instead of
going to God for clothes.
That is what’s so dangerous about commitment in general
and New Year’s resolutions in particular. Our efforts to be
good can blind us to the only real righteousness there is.
Do you want to know what gave me the juice to get my
act together in 2009? A life insurance policy with low
premiums...and grace. It is true that the only people who
get any better are those who know that if they don’t get
any better, God will still be happy with them anyway.
When I first heard that message, I started smoking,
drinking and rebuilding the CD collection I threw out when
I first became a Christian, because I really believed in
the imputed righteousness of Christ. I was sure God was
happy, but here’s the kicker...I was absolutely miserable.
Sometimes we don’t realize God’s already happy and He
doesn’t need us to finish the job. Sometimes we don’t get
it until we get drunk and miserably stumble home. That
is the upside of sinning. If we belong to God, it makes us
sick. If we keep it up, we’ll get more and more miserable,
and consequently, increasingly more determined to stop.
Eventually, we’ll look around at the pigs sharing our
dinner and remember the celebrations at the Father’s
house. We’ll remember that He’s happy, that He has
plenty, and if we go home, we’ll be happy too.
I didn’t get my act together that year to make God happy.
I did it to make me happy and that’s why I did so well.
Hear these words from Nehemiah 8:9-10, “...the people
had been weeping as they listened to the words of the
Law. Nehemiah said, ‘Go and enjoy choice food and
sweet drinks...Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD
is your strength.’”
We can remember those words when we find ourselves
feeling fat and undisciplined after all the holiday parties.
As we haul that last garbage bag of torn up wrapping
paper to the curb and start thinking about making some
resolutions, we don’t want to forget that God’s joy is our
strength.
There’s no use in resolving to be good to make God
happy. Instead, if we enjoy His happiness, we just might
be surprised by our faithfulness. Even if we don’t get any
better, it’s the best chance we have at having a Happy
New Year.
GM : 13
PRESS ON
by WILL DOLE

AMAZING
G R AC E

GM : 14
Hey, did you know we have something in common? If
you’re reading this, (and even if you’re not), you’re a
sinner—and so am I! By virtue of our humanity, we are
creatures who commit sin. Romans 3:23 states, “…for all
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We all
know that sin is bad and some of us might even readily
acknowledge that it leads to spiritual death and eternal
damnation. But why is this so? Additionally, why do some
seemingly small sins carry with them the same punishment
as those we would consider large and heinous?
As a preface to further discussion, let’s consider some
things about God. Generally speaking, we have some
correct ideas about God, but nonetheless fail to give God
the credit, awe, amazement, fear, worship, contemplation
and praise He so greatly deserves. Therefore, our ideas
of God are only partially correct and vastly insufficient.
Indeed, any attempt to define the infinite through the
eyes of the finite is doomed to fail.
I bet that if we asked people what words they use to
describe God, we would probably get responses such as,
creator, love, grace, mercy, savior, judge and holy. These
words are appropriate and relatively easy to understand
in their Biblical sense—all, that is, except for the word
“holy.” We might not have any trouble using “holy” in a
sentence, but to provide a working definition of the word
is more difficult. What does it mean? What is holy?
In trying to define “holy,” we might use the words “pure,”
“undefiled,” “perfect,” “flawless,” “sacred,” etc. All these
words describe the concept of holiness, but one word
we might not think to use is “transcendent.” Dictionary.
com defines it like this: transcesnding the universe, time,
etc.  To begin to understand God’s holiness, we must
also consider that His perfection corresponds to His
transcendence. He transcends our finite minds because
He is infinite. He is not bound by the ills that we are.
He is not constrained by that which constrains us. He
does not work within the framework of time and space.
All the words we use in relations to God’s character are
descriptive, but not constrictive of God. The first step to
understanding God is to understand that He exceeds our
ability to understand. Our ideas and our ideas of what He
has said are restrictive of Him. We’re better off, then, if
we get rid of our preconceived notions of God. God will
do what God chooses. The only thing that constrains God
is God.
Now that we have established that God is the only holy,
transcendent being, let’s combine this with the fact that
He is our creator. We see through the Genesis narrative
that God is the creator of the universe, and all that is
within it. We also see in Genesis 1:26-28 that God gives
man a special place in this creation, as the bearer of
His image. Mankind was created to mirror God. Our
thoughts, words and actions ought to be an expression of
a faithful relationship with the Creator. God, who is holy,
YO U A R E A
SINNER
transcendent, eternally existing, creates man to mirror
Him, to love Him, to commune with Him and to worship
Him.
But we know what comes next, don’t we? In the third
chapter of Genesis, Adam and Eve sin. They disobey
the one command that God gives them, and they die
spiritually. They are separated from God—a condition that
is transferred to all mankind from that minute forward.
All over one little fruit? This seems kind of harsh, doesn’t
it?
Shouldn’t the punishment fit the crime? This concept of
a fitting punishment is actually God’s idea (see Exodus
21:24). If this is the case, how can God be so hard on
Adam and Eve for simply eating from a tree? Spiritual
death seems a bit harsh for this crime. So what’s up? Is
God unjust? It might seem so with our finite understanding
of justice. Yet in God’s transcendence, Adam and Eve’s
act has greater significance than simple disobedience.
Instead of worshiping God, Adam and Eve question God.
They no longer believe that He is their perfect provider;
rather they think He is holding out on them. They believe
the fruit will make them wise, and they shift their worship
from God Almighty, to themselves. They commit what
author and theologian R.C. Sproul refers to as “cosmic
treason.” D.A. Carson refers to this as the “de-godding
of God.”
This is what happens when finite man questions the
infinite and holy God. Questions breed doubt and doubt
turns us away from God and toward ourselves. If we
then choose to serve ourselves, this act of rebellion is
treason toward the Creator. Our sin is not merely actions
or words, it’s not even an “attitude problem.” At its root,
it is rebellion against God. And this is why it must be
punished. The penalty is so high, because in light of
God’s beauty and perfection He could not tolerate this
vile aberration in His sight. It had to be punished.
This, my friends, is what makes the cross so amazing.
The more we contemplate the holiness of God, the better
we understand the putrid stench that our sin—all sin—is
to Him. And yet, instead of giving us justice, God sent His
Son to pay the great price in our stead. That is amazing
grace!
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 you
name
it
CORNERED BY GRACE
by ROB BEAMES
The first interactions between two parties often reveal
much about the future of the relationship. That’s one
reason why the creation account is often revisited. We
learn and remember God’s unchangeable attributes by
understanding how He has dealt with us in the past.
As many times as this historical report has been told,
we’re probably pretty familiar with the part about how
God chose to name the animals. But have we gleaned
everything God is telling us about Himself in this passage?
After God created land and sea, plants and animals, He
culminates His creative exhibition with the creation of
mankind who bears His own image. But then history takes
a surprising turn. Almighty God takes off His creative hat
and allows His pride and joy to make a few decisions:
“Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all
the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought
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them to the man to see what he would name them; and
whatever the man called each living creature, that was
its name” Genesis 2:19.
Isn’t it interesting that the One who, according to Psalm
147:4, “determines the number of the stars and calls
them each by name,” doesn’t do this with His carefully
created animal life? Instead, He brings each of them to
His dear friend, Adam, and gives him the task of naming
them.
Most teaching on this passage is fairly similar. One
explanation is that God does this to set the foundation for
the commission He would later give to the first couple: to
be in charge of the earth. The other instruction from this
passage usually indicates that God used it to demonstrate
to Adam that he was unique and required a unique
companion, which the rest of creation could not supply. It
is commonly thought this was a living illustration to help
Adam appreciate his new mate as the gift from God that
she was. Both of these points are entirely appropriate,
given the context of the passage, and certainly capture
the essence of the event. But what does it tell us about
the nature of the relationship between God and man in
the beginning, and what does it tell us about God?
God could have named His animal kingdom in a different
manner. He didn’t have to involve Adam in the process,
but He did. This tells us that God was either planning
to be intimately connected with mankind, was already
personally involved, or both. This is confirmed later in
Genesis 3:8 where we read that God routinely walked in
the garden where Adam and Eve lived. So common was
this occurrence that immediately after the couple sinned,
God still expected to meet with them, and their absence
caused Him to go on a search for them. It is clear that
God is intentional with the way He personally relates to
the first couple.
The way God engages Adam to name the animals
demonstrates His sensitivity to Adam’s need for creative
expression. God was probably eager to hear the names
Adam would create and to enjoy the ingenuity of His
friend. We can’t ignore the Creator/creation relationship
which was there by default, but we don’t want to overlook
the friendship being established between God and man
displayed in events like this.
God was probably eager to hear
the names Adam would create
and to enjoy the ingenuity of His
friend.
Although this passage doesn’t provide many details, we
have enough information to know that God didn’t simply
round up all of the animals, trap them in a pen, instruct
Adam to go name them and report back to Him when he
was finished. It is more likely that God brought to Adam
each new creature one by one, stood nearby watching
Adam observe the amazing abilities of each animal,
and then reacted joyfully at each creative label Adam
provided. There must have been some hearty chuckles
at some of them.
Since we are made in the image of God, perhaps many
of the things we enjoy are things that God enjoys as He
interacts with us. For example, when a child tells us what
they named a toy, or a pet, we may think, “Yeah, that
makes sense,” and it often brings a smile to our face.
God experiences a similar joy in His creation. Due to our
absolute forgiveness through Jesus, He continues to take
pleasure in what we do today.
God is perfect, but that doesn’t preclude Him enjoying
watching His children use their cognitive prowess. God
is all-powerful, but that doesn’t preclude His interaction
with us as friends. Exodus 33:11 says, “The LORD would
speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend.”
This means that from the beginning, not just after Jesus
came to Earth, God has wanted a relationship with us,
even if we do keep trying to screw it up.
There’s another thing we can learn about God’s
character through this one exchange with Adam. Notice
that whatever name Adam concocted, it became the
animal’s name. God must have been pleased with each
name because they all stuck. It seems Adam could do
no wrong in this process. God’s control of the universe
never wavered, although He allowed Adam to call some
shots. It may seem trivial, since we are only talking about
naming animals, but we can learn from this that despite
God’s sovereignty, He may involve us in His work. That’s
what friends do.
We may be hesitant to think of God as our friend because
we are afraid of disrespecting Him, or we may feel it
makes it easier to take advantage of His grace. But God
has not chosen to be distant with us, but to interact with
us personally as a friend. This close relationship doesn’t
cause us to run away; His purpose is to draw us closer.
Who would be drawn to a lord spewing commands from
a distant throne, micromanaging how we comply with
them and threatening punishment for our failures? In
contrast, when our God gives us a task, and comes along
side us to take joy in the way we execute it, we are
deeply motivated. God is awesome, even frightening, but
He’s not distant. His is intimately engaged in our lives,
influencing us to use our abilities to positively impact His
world. He doesn’t need us to do this. He was doing just
fine before we came along, but He created us for this
purpose. He doesn’t have to interact with us in this way,
but He does, and it gives Him great joy!
(I believe He wanted me to remind you of this!)
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THE RESUME
TOOL
REVIEW
BOX
Are you resolved to find a new job in 2011? If so, a
resume review is in your future. Vamping or revamping
a resume is somewhat like writing a persuasive essay or
making a good speech. We have to present ourselves
in a way that will convince potential employers that we
would make good employees. This one-page summary
of who we are and why the company should hire us
needs to clearly and concisely communicate why we are
a good match for the open position. It’s the resume that
determines if we get an interview, and the interview, the
job.
The first thing to know about resumes is that it is not
necessary to hire a professional to put one together.
Even if we’re clueless on such matters, chances are
we know someone who will help. Barter a homemade
dinner or night at the movies in exchange for a friend
or relative’s time in helping craft your resume. With the
many sample and real resumes that can be found online
now, it’s easy to find a style and tone that fits our needs.
BestSampleResume.com has resumes from about 50
categories of employment, as well as many resume-
writing helps.
With a few good samples at the ready, the next thing to
do is collect all the info we will need to put the resume
together. With this in hand, the resume can come
together quickly—in about an hour.
INFO YOU NEED
Name and contact information—obviously.
Name, contact info and dates attended for all schools
and training. If you have a college degree, no need to
list high school, unless you attended a particular school
that might get you brownie points with your perspective
employer, such as a hoity-toity private school or military
school.
GM : 18
Name, contact info and dates for all significant past
employment.
Titles and dates of any awards, publications or
presentations that are relevant to the job search.
Dated List of volunteer activities (and names of
organizations).
ELEMENTS OF THE RESUME
Now that we have the basic ingredients for a good
resume, we should craft a basic resume, and then we
may need to tailor our resume to specific job openings.
The objective statement is one of the easiest places to
customize a resume for a specific opening. Although
these statements aren’t necessary, they can help clarify
career goals. The statement should be a good match
with the company we want to work for and should be
substantive. Say something more than “I want to work
for you” in so many words. Tell the prospective employer
about your goals and how working for this company can
help you achieve them.
What comes next depends on our strengths. If we are
a recent grad without much experience, list education
next. If we have some professional accomplishments
that are relevant to our new job search, list experience
next. Either way, list work and education in reverse
chronological order—most recent first.
For education info, include GPA and class rank only if
impressive. Include honor societies, study abroad, and
of course, the certificate/degree/diploma earned and
either the date earned or the date by which we anticipate
earning it.
 BY JEFFREY BRIDGMAN

When listing work experience, visually and verbally
focus attention on things that demonstrate initiative,
responsibility, leadership and achievements. Explain
how well you did the job, as opposed to what the
job consisted of. Also important, but not the primary
focus, should be company, job title and dates worked.
Exceptions here will include high profile companies
or easily recognized titles, such as Time Warner and
Executive Director, President or Founder. Bury titles like
“intern” and “customer service rep.”
Particularly important for those in technical fields is a
skills section. Examples include programming languages
and software packages. These can also be packaged as
“Competencies” and expanded to list soft skills such as
typing speed, familiarity with office equipment, foreign
language fluency, etc.
Finally, honors, awards and activities, including
volunteer work, hobbies and significant travel,
demonstrate your dedication and involvement, as well
as giving you an on-paper personality. This is more
important when lacking much work experience.
TIPS
Stats are that your resume gets just seconds of
consideration before the interviewer either trashes it or
reads further. Keep it to one page, but if you have to
use two, put the meat up front and center on page one.
Use bullet points, which are quicker to read and scan.
Use a good balance of white space, keeping the design
consistent, professional and simple.
Be honest. If you land a job based on exaggerated
qualities or skills, it will be obvious that someone lied on
their resume, and that’s not the way you want to start
out your new professional relationship.
Resumes don’t have to tell everything. A well-written
cover letter will add more depth to our resume and we
can tell the rest in the interview.
Of extreme importance, have someone else who has
not worked on the resume proofread it and critique it.
Colleges have a career development centers and in high
school, use the guidance counselor to proof and critique.
Print the resume on good quality paper, in white, crème
or other very light shade. Best bet is to take it to a local
copy shop and ask for a laser print-out on a good linen
paper.
This may sound like a lot to consider, but when we bite
the bullet and sit down in front of the computer, it’s
fairly painless and over quickly. Being thorough and
respecting the necessity of a professional resume are
two concrete steps toward the job of our dreams.

Use standard serif fonts (san serif is okay for headers).

Don’t try to be unconventional with design, unless this
the job has something to do with artistic ability. Keep
things organized and visually grouped together.

GM : 19