Gospel-driven Disciples Has Retired

Ever since I have been given the privilege and honor of teaching at the North Kelso Baptist Church I have had a hard time keeping up with my beloved blog. The deeper we get into the Epistle to the Romans it seems that it takes more time to translate, observe, interpret, apply, prepare, and present the material.

Also, I have re-developed my avid reading practise. I am currently reading three (3) books at the same time in my spare time and am, as Maxwell Smart would say, " And loving every minute!" It takes time to develop a real and intimate walk with our God and Savior Jesus Christ. 

As you can see from the dwindling postings I just have not chosen to make my blog a priority at this time. By the way, I would like to continue and develop the North Kelso Baptist Church blog for our people and anyone who would like to read it.

For the past eighteen (18) months or so I have been talking about or claiming to have retired the Gospel-driven Disciples Blog. Up to this point I haven't been able to do it. I have loved blogging! I have loved this blog. I am humbled and doubly amazed at the influence it has had around the world. I will miss it dearly. I will miss you all dearly. I love everyone of you and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support, kind comments, and prayers.

I will blog at www.northkelsobc.blogspot.com on a semi-regular basis. Some blogs will be directed at the folks of NKBC or the community of Kelso. However, I don't think that would be a detractor or lack of benefit to any of you who "migrate" over to that blog. I hope you do move over. I hope you will put North Kelso Baptist Church Blog in your blog roll and that you will follow it and continue to be blessed.

For those who follow the Sunday in the Pulpit weekly sermon preached at the North Kelso Baptist Church each week, you will need to click on the North Kelso Baptist Church Blog to follow the sermons and studies. I will be posting the weekly study on that site from now on beginning this Sunday, May 22, 2016. Please continue to follow the study in the Epistle to the Romans.

I began blogging on February 19, 2009 on a cold snowy evening in a motel in Bend, OR. I retire today, May 20, 2016 on a cool, rainy day in Vancouver, WA. It has been a blessed ride! Thank you!

How to be Right With God (Part 15)

SERMON               GM16-084

SERIES:              Renewal Through Romans: The Gospel Defined, Explained, and Applied

SETTING:          North Kelso Baptist Church

SERVICE:          Sunday AM (May 15, 2016)

SUBTITLE:        How to Be Right with God (Part 15)

SCRIPTURE:     Romans 5:6-8

SUBJECT:          Justification produces benefits for believers        

SUMMARY:       Since the believer has been declared and is treated by God as righteous, Paul now provides some of the obvious consequences or benefits of having been justified by faith. The consequences resulting from justification have been made possible by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and by placing faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. These benefits or consequences serve as an anchor giving us security and confidence that the believer is safely secure in Christ.

SCHEME:           To provide proof that justification by faith is secured by the absolute & abundant love of God for sinners confirmed by the death of Christ.

SKETCH:          

3A     The Implication of Righteousness (4:23-5:21)

          1B     …it is procurable by all men who believe (4:23-25)

          2B     …it is productive for all men who believe (5:1-5)

                   1C     Peace with God (1)

                   2C     Province of Grace (2)

                   3C     Process of Growth (3-5)   

How To Be Right With God (Part 14)

SERMON               GM16-083

SERIES:              Renewal Through Romans: The Gospel Defined, Explained, and Applied

SETTING:          North Kelso Baptist Church

SERVICE:          Sunday AM (May 8, 2016)

SUBTITLE:        How to Be Right with God (Part 14)

SCRIPTURE:     Romans 5:3-5

SUBJECT:          Justification produces benefits for believers        

SUMMARY:       Since the believer has been declared and is treated by God as righteous, Paul now provides some of the obvious consequences or benefits of having been justified by faith. The consequences resulting from justification have been made possible by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and by placing faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. These benefits or consequences serve as an anchor giving us security and confidence that the believer is safely secure in Christ.

SCHEME:           To provide confidence that justification safely secures the believer from condemnation

SKETCH:          

3A     The Implication of Righteousness (4:23-5:21)

          1B     …it is procurable by all men who believe (4:23-25)

          2B     …it is productive for all men who believe (5:1-5)

                   1C     Peace with God (1)                 

                   2C     Province of Grace (2)

                             1D     Accessibility provided by grace (2a)

                             2D     Dependability projected by grace (2b)

                             3D     Joviality promised by grace (2c) 

A - Z = Great Memories!

(My theme this year was places I have visited or lived)

My good friend Bob over at KC Bob decided to use a similar theme. He also chose to give a recap or summary of his letters and the places he had visited or lived. I thought this was a good idea, so I decided to "steal it." Hope you don't mind Bob!

A = Andrew Hill High School (San Jose, CA) I attended there 1969-1972.

B = Beaufort (SC) I was stationed at the MCAS Beaufort and lived in the community of Beaufort in 1975.

C = Cody (WY) I visited friends and camped in Cody one night when we visited the Yellowstone National Park in 2001.

D = Dripping Springs (TX) We visited my sister and her family when we attended a Metcalf family renuion Christimas of 2001.

E = Eastridge Mall (San Jose, CA) first multi-level indoor shopping Mall in San Jose, CA. We teenagers hung out there frequently.

F = Ft Clatsop (Astoria, OR) the Corps of Discovery, Lewis & Clark and Company wintered here in December 1805 to March 1806

G = Golden Gate Bridge (San Franciso, CA) Crossed many times

H = Herlong (CA) Was called to pastor the Sierra View Baptist Church in this little military community in northern California

I = Idora Park (Ohio) An amusement park we frequented

J = Jacksonville, NC I was stationed here at the MCAS New River in 1973 with HMM 261 & HMH 461 Helicopter Squadrons. I also married my California high school sweet heart here in 1973.

K = Kingdome (Seattle, WA) I attended a number of Mariners games and a Seahawk game here. 

L = Longview, WA We lived here from Feb 2005 to April 2015.

M = Mayfield Lake (WA) fished, boated, and pull many a skier on this lake with our 18 foot open bow Seaswirl.

N = New Moon Chinese Restaurant (Longview, WA) best Chinese food in Cowlitz and Clark County. 

O = Okinawa. Deployed here back in 1974 by the US Marines. 

P = Pompey's Pillar (MT) Huge rock formation see by miles by the Corps of Discover when traveling on the Yellowstone River. Name for Sacajewa's son who was nicked-name Pompey by Captain Clark.

Q = Quisno's Subs (Longview) Ate here once in the Triangle Mall

R = River Walk (San Antonio, TX) magnificent, romantic, refreshing, and charming walk along the river

S = St. Maarten Island (East Carribbean Ocen) great Island visited as a port of call on a Carnival Cruise awarded by a former boss

T = Tony Roma's (Vancouver, WA) Now defunct, but at the time best steak and seafood house anywhere hands down

U = Utah. Have driven through a number of times. Beautiful place!

V = Virginia City (NV) great old west town and cemetery. Tourist!

W = West Covina (CA) lived here in 81 & 82. Two youngest daughters born here while we attended Bible College

X = X-Ray Department of St. John's Hospital. Had an emergency thoracotomy here. Many x-rays in their wonderful department

Y = Yellowstone National Park (MT, WY, ID) greatest national park in the country. Camped there for a week in 2001

Z = Zoos. Have visited a number of famous and fabulous zoos!

There you have it! 2016 A-Z Challenge!

How to be Right With God (Part 13)

SERMON               GM16-082

SERIES:              Renewal Through Romans: The Gospel Defined, Explained, and Applied

SETTING:          North Kelso Baptist Church

SERVICE:          Sunday AM (May 1, 2016)

SUBTITLE:        How to Be Right with God (Part 13)

SCRIPTURE:     Romans 5:2

SUBJECT:          Justification produces benefits for believers        

SUMMARY:       Since the believer has been declared and is treated by God as righteous, Paul now provides some of the obvious consequences or benefits of having been justified by faith. The consequences resulting from justification have been made possible by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and by placing faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. These benefits or consequences serve as an anchor giving us security and confidence that the believer is safely secure in Christ.

SCHEME:           To provide confidence that justification safely secures the believer from condemnation

SKETCH:          

3A     The Implication of Righteousness (4:23-5:21)

          1B     …it is procurable by all men who believe (4:23-25)

          2B     …it is productive for all men who believe (5:1-5)

                   1C     Peace with God (1)

                             1D     The Basis for Peace (1a)

                             2D     The Beauty of Peace (1b)

                   2C     Province of Grace (2)

                             1D     Accessibility provided by grace (2a)

                             2D     Dependability proffered by grace (2b)

                              3D     Joviality promoted by grace (2c)

Zoos

(My theme is places I have visited or lived)

My parents were, and are, wonderful parents. I was fortunate and blessed to come from a good, solid, loving, disciplinarian, and Christian home. They were very conscientious about making sure we kids could enjoy many things such as zoos. They took us to a number of zoos when we were growing up. Of course, I have continued that habit and even as an adult still love to go to a zoo.

I have had the good fortunate of visiting the following zoos:

Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium, Pittsburgh, PA

The Pittsburgh Zoo is one of only six major zoo and aquarium combinations in the United States. It is located in Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania's Highland Park. 

The zoo sits on 77 acres of park land where it exhibits more than 4,000 animals representing 475 species, including 20 threatened or endangered species.

Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, WA

Woodland Park Zoo is a zoological garden located in the Phinney Ridge neighborhood of Seattle, Washington.

Occupying the western half of Woodland Park, the zoo began as a small menagerie on the estate of Guy C. Phinney, a Canadian-born lumber mill owner and real estate developer.

Six years after Phinney's death, on December 28, 1899, Phinney's wife sold the 188-acre (76 ha) Woodland Park to the city for $5,000 in cash and the assumption of a $95,000mortgage. The sum was so large that the Seattle mayor (W. D. Wood) vetoed the acquisition, only to be later overruled by the city council. In 1902, the Olmsted Brothers firm of Boston was hired to design the city's parks, including Woodland Park, and the next year the collection of the private Leschi Park menagerie was moved to Phinney Ridge.

As of the summer of 2010, the zoo includes 92 acres of exhibits and public spaces. It is open to the public daily.  Its collection includes:

1,090 animal specimens

300 animal species

35 endangered and 5 threatened animal species

7,000 trees

50,000+ shrubs and herbs

1,000+ plant species

           

The Oregon Zoo, Portland, OR

The Oregon Zoo, formerly the Washington Park Zoo, is a zoo in Portland, the largest city in the U.S. state ofOregon. Located 2 miles southwest of Downtown Portland, the zoo is inside Portland's Washington Park, and includes the 2 ft 6 in narrow gauge Washington Park & Zoo Railway that connects to the International Rose Test Garden inside the park.

 Opened in 1888 after a private animal collector donated his animals to the City of Portland, the 64-acre zoo is now owned by the regional Metro government.

A member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, it has species survival plans for twenty-one endangered/threatened species, among which are successful breeding programs for endangered California condors,Asian elephants, and in recent times, African lions too. (The latter was under recommendation by the AZA).

The zoo also boasts an extensive plant collection throughout its animal exhibits and specialized gardens. During the summer it is host to a concert series, and in the winter produces Zoo Lights, a holiday light show. The Oregon Zoo is Oregon's largest paid and arguably most popular attraction, with more than 1.6 million visitors in 2008 to 2009

Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Gardens, Oklahoma City, OK

The Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden is a zoo and botanical garden located in Oklahoma City's Adventure District in northeast Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The zoo covers 119 acres and is home to more than 1,900 animals.

Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, IL

Lincoln Park Zoo is a free 35-acre zoo located in Lincoln Park in Chicago, Illinois. The zoo was founded in 1868, making it one of the oldest zoos in the U.S. It is also one of a few free admission zoos in the United States

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Gregg Metcalf has served as the Teaching Pastor of Surprise Valley Baptist Church (Cedarville, CA) and the Mirror Lake Baptist Church (Federal Way, WA.) He graduated from Shasta Bible College in 1989. He is currently a teaching elder of the North Kelso Baptist Church of Kelso, WA. Gregg is married to Irene and the Lord has blessed them with four daughters and four grandchildren, with two more on the way. Gregg invites your comments and interaction concerning his posts and this blog! Gregg enjoys reading, boating, song-poem writing, and his family.

Yellowstone National Park

(My theme is places I have visited or lived)

Yellowstone National Park

What can I say about Yellowstone? This is probably my second or third most favorite place on this planet. God has been so good and gracious to me by allowing me to see so much of his creation. I have gloried God much by experiencing so much joy by His creation.

I have been to approximately 45 states. I have been to and enjoyed His mountains, rivers, oceans, deserts, valleys, beaches, lakes. I have traveled and slept in vehicles, pop-up trailers, travel, trailers, and motels across the north, south, east, and west portions of this great country. I have been to Canada, Mexico, Japan, Okinawa, and the Philippines.

God has allowed me to hunt in his mountains, fish his lakes and rivers, boat on his lakes, camp in and explore His deserts. I have seen the Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, the Petrified Forest, the Modoc National Park, both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, the Rocky Mountains, the Great Continental Divide, the Lo Lo Mountains, great parts of the Lewis and Clark trail, Death Valley, the Mojave Desert, Niagara Falls, the Appalachian Mountain Range, Custer's Battle Ground and Monument, Pompey's Pillar, Chief Seattle's grave, the OK Corral, Boot Hill in Virginia City and in Tuscon, Gettysburg, The White House (from outside) the Ponderosa, the Alamo, Ft.Clatsop, St Maarten, St Thomas, and Puerto Rico and Seattle Mariners games and the Seattle Seahawks. 

I have been so blessed and fortunate as to have had a boat, travel trailer, motorcycles, and trucks in order to enjoy God's creation by lake, river, highway, and off-road. I have enjoyed (Fishing Bridge RV Park)                            God's creation!

But there is nothing that I have seen (in my own opinion) that comes close to the Yellowstone National Park. In 2001 we took our nineteen foot (19) Aljo Travel Trailer and drove from Federal Way, WA to Yellowstone National Park. We camped in the Fishing Bridge Campground in Yellowstone for seven (7) glorious days. On three of those days Irene woke me up at 4:00 AM so we could drive to a location frequented by bears. She wanted to see a bear.

We saw ducks, geese, moose, elk, deer, buffalo, and I don't know what else. The one thing she (we) did not get to see was a bear. We did see the boiling sulfur pots, Old Faithful, wilderness, wildlife, and all the flora and fauna you can enjoy.

I am telling you, that at least once in your life time, especially if you have children between the ages of seven (7-100) to one hundred, you need, you should, and you must spend at least one (1) week at the Yellowstone National Park.

It was "discovered" by John Coulter of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. People didn't believe him when he talked about boiling water, geysers, and such. They thought he was talking "foolishness." They began calling that area of wilderness, "Coulter's Hell."

Yellowstone National Park is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. Yellowstone, the first National Park in the U.S. and widely held to be the first national park in the world, is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features, especially Old Faithful Geyser, one of the most popular features in the park. It has many types of ecosystems, but the subalpine forest is the most abundant. It is part of the South Central Rockies forests ecoregion.

X-Ray Department of St Johns Hospital

(My theme is places I have visited or lived)

Around four (4) AM one morning I woke up in severe pain and breathing with great difficulty. The pain increased and my breathing was becoming more labored. I moved to the couch and found a place somewhere between sitting up, slouching, and laying down that hurt the least. I stayed in that position until around 7:00 AM. I sat there and hurt and was barely able to breathe.

At eight (8) AM I had Irene call work to tell them I was sick and not coming in. I thought I might get better if I rested and kind of laid, sat, and slouched in a position that didn't hurt as bad as any other. But I wasn't getting better. I was a hurtin' unit." (Marine Corps slang)

Around 3:00 PM I told my wife I need to go to the hospital. She said, being as practical a gal as one can have, "You need a shower first." So I painfully climbed in the bathtub and dutifully passed out. Somehow she was able to get me out of tub, semi-dry me off, and into a T-Shirt and sweat pants. It was obvious I was in grave danger, so she called my daughter Stacy to drive me to the hospital. (I was not going to pay no $1,000.00 or more for an ambulance ride)

 They took me into the emergency room and began immediately to work on me. They got me in the X-Ray Department ASAP .It began to sound like I was going to be admitted into the hospital. 

I thought, "Dude, that ain't gonna work!" I was in the middle of closing three (3) mortgage transactions. I had clients depending on me to get escrow closed so they could get their keys and move into their new houses. I had loan officers depending on me to get escrow closed so that they could get paid. I had the office counting on me to get those deals done so that the office got paid.

So, through labored breathing, huffing and gasping for breath, I said to the ER Doc, "Let me have a couple of hours to close these deals and I will come back and you can do whatever you want." He took my wife aside and said, "If we let him go, and if we don't operate now, he may not have the next ten (10) minutes. He is not going anywhere."

Operate they did. Immediately. I had severe pneumonia and a collapsed lung. The staff had to do an emergency thoracotomy. They had to scrape "gunk" out of my lungs and re-inflate my lung. I spent eight (8) days in the hospital and a number of more days on my back recovering. St Johns and the excellent X-Ray department saved my life. Here is a description of a thoracotomy:

A thoracotomy is an incision into the pleural space of the chest. It is performed by surgeons (or emergency physicians under certain circumstances) to gain access to the thoracic organs, most commonly the heart, the lungs, or the esophagus, or for access to the thoracic aorta or the anterior spine (the latter may be necessary to access tumors in the spine).

Thoracotomy is a major surgical maneuver—it is the first step in many thoracic surgeries including lobectomy or pneumonectomy for lung cancer—and as such requires general anesthesia with endotracheal tube insertion and mechanical ventilation.

Thoracotomies are thought to be one of the most difficult surgical incisions to deal with post-operatively, because they are extremely painful and the pain can prevent the patient from breathing effectively, leading to atelectasis or pneumonia.

I was told by my doctors that it is more invasive and dangerous than open heart surgery. It was painful! But, alas, for good or bad, I am still here - praise God our gracious Father!