Methodist and Baptist

I left my first review of Covenant Community unfinished, primarily because I wanted to digest the experience more. I also wanted explain why I am not currently comfortable with the idea of attending a Methodist Church.

The United Methodist Church does a lot of things well. Mama grew up as a Methodist. My boss is a Methodist. I am currently working with and for good and godly Methodist men and women as we work out a master plan for Lake Junaluska. Methodists have always been active in the community (refer to this). I believe that Methodists and Baptists would agree on major doctrine (the character and nature of God, the deity of Christ, justification by faith in Christ, etc.)

My current understanding of Methodist belief and tradition is that Methodists (as a faith) do not believe in the doctrine of biblical inerrancy (refer to this). The Methodist Book of Discipline says that the Bible contains everything necessary for salvation. I agree with that statement. I would go quite a bit further and say that the original autographs of the books of the Bible were divinely inspired and inerrant. (Go here for a better treatment of the subject.) I am in agreement with Augustine, who states, "If we are perplexed by an apparent contradiction in Scripture, it is not allowable to say, 'The author of this book is mistaken'; but either the manuscript is faulty, or the translation is wrong, or you have not understood". (Book XII, Reply to Faustus the Manichean)

Contrast that statement with this, from Bishop Kenneth Carder: "What is the Bible's authority? As I understand it, the Bible's authority does not lie in its verbal inerrancy or even its factual accuracy. " (source) Or this from Rev. H. Neill McFarland: "Ascribing inerrancy to the Bible is actually the ultimate gesture in subverting its real importance. If the function of the Bible is to define and freeze some status quo ante as a divinely prescribed human norm, the Bible is essentially obsolete and irrelevant in certain details." (source)

There is no need to beat this subject to death; there are a variety of books and sermons on the topic, not to mention a host of blogs and forums where people argue the subject. I know where I am, and I am not comfortable with a a denomination that tries to distance itself from the authority of Scripture. I know that I don't live out everything commanded in Scripture. I will agree that I should.

Covenant Community - First Review

LeAnn and I visited Covenant Community this past Sunday. Covenant is a United Methodist Church located off of Rocket Drive at Reynolds High. We had heard good things about it from Carleton and Lisa Metcalf, so we decided to head on over.


They have three services; an 8:30, 9:45, and 11:00. They don't really have adult classes; they push small groups that meet at various times during the week. The kids' classes meet at 9:45 and 11:00. The typical schedule would be to go to worship while your kids were in class and then to go home.


We went to the 9:45 service. This past Sunday was lead by the Youth Group and Youth Pastor, so it wasn't exactly a typical service. We will probably go back next week to get a sense of how the main pastor (Claude Kayler, who has a blog) leads the congregation. I will probably do a full review after seeing a "normal" service.

My initial reactions are mixed. The youth did a great job. I can't remember the last time I saw teenagers that comfortable with themselves and Christ. The church obviously does a lot of things well. I didn't hear anything that I disagreed with theologically (even though they used a Rob Bell clip! just for you, Jon). The youth service had a harder musical edge than a "typical" service. Lily thoroughly enjoyed the music and danced the whole time.

The mixed part comes from not being quite comfortable with Methodist beliefs. I asked LeAnn as we drove away what she would think if it was a Baptist church, and she said it would be very different. I will try to summarize what that means in a fuller post later this week. The distance may play a part as well.

More later, Bryan

How are we? Pretty Good

LeAnn sent the following out in an email, and I thought it made a good post:

Something I have discovered about having a November baby...the holidays make baby announcements near impossible to get into the mail. I did finally get some into the mail, but then other distractions prevented me from ever finishing. So now I have given up and decided to send it all by e-mail. And many people now need updates on what they received in the mail as a lot has happened recently to our family...

On February 1, Lily was diagnosed with Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes. She had been drinking excessively and slowly losing weight. I scheduled an appointment with her pediatrician before we got to any danger zones, but a four day hospital stay was still required to bring her blood sugar levels down and to educate Bryan and I on how to care for her at home. Bryan and I had no idea this was a possibility for her as we did not know the symptoms for diabetes and there is no one on either side of our families with type 1. She is doing much much better now, looking and acting more like our little Lily again. She was even still able to have her Princess Birthday Cake when she turned four this week! So now through proper daily insulin treatments and carbohydrate counting, we will be able to keep her well. But as several have asked, she will never outgrow this disease, but she will grow more and more used to managing the disease. Right now we are required a minimum of four "checks" and three "pointies" each day, but as she gets older, insulin pumps and other devices may make it even simpler for her. Bryan and I are just so thankful that we live in a day and age when this health condition can be minimized with proper medical care. And Lily has been a trooper throughout everything.

By now, many also know about Owen's heart murmur. He has a bicuspid valve instead of the normal tricuspid valve. As Granddad so simply explained, this means he should play basketball instead of football. Bicuspid patients are simply encouraged to watch any heavy isometric activities. Owen has a pediatric cardiologist who will monitor him annually to be sure this valve continues to work properly. Occasionally bicuspid patients need these valves replaced in their 50's or 60's if they begin to leak. If Owen were likely to have any problems earlier in life he would have already exhibited symptons. Instead, he is a happy, healthy baby and his doctor still considers his heart to be very healthy. Just watch him scream and turn red all over during bath time and you will know his heart is pumping just fine.

I will not pretend like the last few weeks have been easy. Bryan and I have felt shock, fear, tears, and a new form of exhaustion all at once, but we are still doing OKAY. It just takes awhile to absorb all the changes and to feel confident that you won't ever let your daughter get into any danger zones. God has answered most of our questions best by simply reminding us that it is better for Lily and Owen to have us as parents than another couple who might be unable or unwilling to give their kids proper care. I am a very protective mother anyway, so now I tell myself I have medical excuses. I have realized since losing Mom that the 32 years I had with her were far greater than most daughters get in a lifetime. And now, even though I wish neither of my kids had this to deal with, I feel more than ever that they are the most precious two kids God could have ever given Bryan and me.

We honestly look forward to some days ahead when our family won't have to report so much on how we are doing. We feel our family and friends should have stock in Hallmark by now after all the cards we have received. We thank you so much for caring about us. And many of you have expressed praying for us before you even knew the details of what was happening with Lily-those were deeply felt and kept us going.

Trusting in Him like never before,
Bryan & LeAnn

Sugar Lily

I cannot begin to write all the life we have lived in the past week.

First off, if you don't know what Type 1 (juvenile) diabetes is, go to:

http://www.diabetes.org/type-1-diabetes.jsp
or
http://www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?page_id=103438

LeAnn and I noticed a change in Lily that started shortly after Christmas. At first it seemed that she was moody and pouty. We attributed that to a couple of causes, namely the new baby in the house and the fact that she hadn't seen her "kids" at church in over a month. Then mealtime became a battle as Lily wanted to drink constantly. She would get us up five or six times a night to use the bathroom.

LeAnn and I were in the process of trying to figure out what was going on when I came down with a stomach "bug", which I still haven't gotten rid of after two weeks. We thought at the time Lily had something similar. Lily had started to look and feel a little thin to us, and we thought she was just flushing out all her nutrients with constant drinking.

Owen had his appointment with the pediatrician on January 22, and LeAnn asked the doctor if she should be worried about Lily. As Lily was still in the healthy range (barely) for height and weight, Dr. Hamel said it was probably a stage and not to worry about it.

Lily became more and more listless. Her appetite would vary from ravenous to none. She lost two or three more pounds, and LeAnn was getting upset trying to figure out what was happening. Lily's tongue was coated and dry, and she would talk with a lisp. LeAnn made an appointment with the pediatrician for Friday, Feb. 1st. I promised to go to an urgent care or my doctor that afternoon to try to figure out my stuff.

As soon as the doctor examined Lily and performed the urine test, she took LeAnn in the next room. Dr. Hamel told LeAnn that Lily had Type 1 diabetes and would need a stay of several days in the hospital. LeAnn said they essentially shut down the office as they got Lily and LeAnn ready to go to the hospital. LeAnn called me (roughly 11:45 AM) and told me what was going on. I was already in the exam room of the urgent care, getting ready to have blood tests done. LeAnn, Lily and Owen went on to Mission Hospital.

By the time I got out of the stupid urgent care, it was a little after 2:00. They already had Lily on the pediatric care floor, hooked up to an IV. Her blood sugar was over 800, and she was far along into ketoacidosis.

I pray you will never have to walk into a hospital room to see your three (almost four) year old lying in the bed, hollow eyed, sunken face, white, listless, hooked up to an IV.

The good news is that diabetes is a manageable disease. I can't speak highly enough of the staff of Mission Hospital and Asheville Endocrinology. They took care of Lily quickly, and began to educate LeAnn and I on our new responsibilities. 95% of the care for a child with diabetes lies with the family. We are her pancreas now, and we have to teach her how to take care of herself as she grows older. Mary Beth, our diabetes educator, got us pointed on the path of how to feed and care for our little girl.

As I write this on Wednesday, Feb. 6th, I can hear Lily upstairs dancing and playing as her Mommy washes dishes. God gave our Lily back to us, and has provided us with the means, technology, and professionals to keep her.

We will stay in constant contact with Dr. Speed over the next few weeks as we all try to find Lily's balance of diet and insulin. We are on a current regimen of roughly three shots a day (quite a bit more right now until we get her glucose into the proper range). We call the glucose tests "checks" and the shots "pointy's". We told Lily that we either had to take the pole (IV) or the pointy's home with us to get the medicine into Lily, and she chose the pointy's.

Lily is doing ok with her treatment. She cries every time. But she also will hold out the finger to be pricked as she cries. She dislikes the pointy the most. I am sure she will grow more resistant before she finally accepts things.

LeAnn and I have so much to be thankful for right now. We are thankful that she is well, that they caught it in time. We are thankful that we live in a time and with technology that will help us give her a full and mostly normal life. We are thankful for the medical professionals who have cared for us. We are thankful for our families who love and support us. We are thankful that we are in the position to provide the care Lily needs.

We have always been proud that God trusted us with Lily. We still are.

The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD. Job 1:21

Grace Biltmore, Take Two

I have been under the weather this week (more about that later), so we haven't been posting as much.

LeAnn and I took all the kids for our first foray to a church this morning. We arrived at Grace Biltmore around 9:55, service started about 10:10. We took the kids inside, were greeted at the door, navigated through the slim crowd and found a place to sit. Less people than last time, and none came to talk to us.

I had told LeAnn before that one of my major questions was how they handled salvation and baptism. We got the answer this morning, as two kids, a brother a sister, were sprinkled during service. LeAnn and I shared a look and said we would discuss it later.

We really enjoyed the music, but LeAnn and I both said that we seemed to be the only ones. Most folks stood there and didn't sing at all, they just waited for the music to end to sit down again. During the greeting time, the couple in front of us said hello, but no one introduced themselves, and that was it. The sermon was fine again, although LeAnn didn't get to hear much as she had to take care of Owen once and Lily once during the sermon.

After the sermon and before the final song was finished, we noticed a couple of guys pulling out the chair carts. As soon as they had the final blessing, people picked up their chairs, took them to the carts, and left. We took a little longer than most because we had to get Owen bundled back into his carrier. While I took the chairs up LeAnn said one lady introduced herself and talked about the kids. Then we gathered them up and left.

I was deeply disappointed. Maybe it was because we sat on the side closest to the door (I was on the opposite side last time), but the people were no where near as friendly this time around. LeAnn and I said that for a start up church they could do a better job receiving people. I was also disappointed in the worship atmosphere, as it seemed like the people were just waiting to sit down again instead of enjoying what I thought was a good worship experience.

We could get past both of those things; LeAnn and I could be the people singing and making sure to make a beeline to visitors. But we both had trouble with sprinkling, and we both had trouble with a brother and sister being "saved" at the same time. I know it happens, but it felt formulaic to me.

Baptism by immersion is an important ordinance to me. I think it is funny that Baptists insist on full immersion by pointing to the example of Christ and the disciples, but then turn their noses up to wine and bread for the Lord's Supper and say it is only a symbol anyway. I do think that baptism by immersion is important. I understand that I could insist on having my kids baptized, but LeAnn and I don't want to be "the Baptists" in the congregation. The pastor even said after the baptism that he used a lot of water "for our Baptist friends with us today".

Grace Biltmore isn't out of the picture yet. If I were serious about the church I would make a point of introducing myself, and if I were serious about the church I would expect God to show us places where we could plug in and make it better. LeAnn and I said that the crowd probably varied from week to week, and it would be difficult to know who was a visitor and who was not. However, introducing yourself and welcoming someone has nothing to do with whether or not they are a visitor, and everything to do with intentionally wanting to engage people for Christ.

We are looking at our options for next week; stay tuned.

You know, I just had a thought. At some point we will probably join one of these churches, and my brutally honest evaluations will at some point be read by a member or staff. If and when that happens, I just hope and pray they can take criticism in a constructive manner.

Bryan

Bicuspid Valve

Background: When Owen was born, one of his nurses picked up a slight heart murmur. The pedetrician from Mountain Area Pediatrics checked him out and ordered a visit from the pediatric cardiologist, an EKG and an ultrasound of his heart. Dr. McGovern, his cardiologist, told us after all the tests that he had a small hole in his heart, leakage on the low pressure side, and an aortic bicuspid valve. He said the small hole and leakage would probably go away, but that we would have to monitor the bicuspid valve and scheduled an appointment for two months. They said everything looked ok, that his pressure, rate, etc. were fine.

We went to Dr. McGovern, the pediatric cardiologist today. They weighed him (12 lbs, 4 oz.), took blood pressure, listened, did an EKG. Dr. McGovern said that the murmur is so slight now that he wouldn't find it unless he was looking. He said he looked great, was very healthy, and Dr. McGovern wasn't worried about him.

Now for the rest of the story. He has the bicuspid valve, and always will.

http://www.heart-valve-surgery.com/bicuspid-aortic-valve-symptoms.php
http://www.med.yale.edu/intmed/cardio/chd/e_as/index.html
http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=991

Dr. McGovern said it was a condition we would monitor over the years. We will go back next year, do an ultrasound, and see where we stand. If there is little to no leakage, we will come back in 2-3 years at a time. Dr. McGovern said that these conditions don't ever surprise you, and he said that Owen's condition is such that it shouldn't cause much of a problem. He probably won't ever need surgery, even into his 70's and 80's.

I asked about athletics, and Dr. McGovern said that he (Dr. McGovern) would be fine with things like basketball or track, but not football or wrestling. He said those types of isometric activities, like weighlifting, would spike your blood pressure and put high stress on the valve. While it might not be a problem, it also might cause a higher rate of leakage.

To be honest, I am a little concerned. I know that we have a long way to go, and that he can do pretty much anything he will want to be able to do, but I still hate to hear he already has limits. I wonder if the "no weightlifting" restriction applies to hauling firewood, or moving furniture, or pretty much any kind of physical labor.

We will just take it a day at a time, and wait and see how things turn out. What we do know is that he is strong and big for his age, and that God is in control.

Bryan

Snow Day

We had about 5 inches when I woke up this morning. It is doing the icy/freezing rain thing now, so I don't know how much playing we will be able to do.

My first thought when I woke up at 4:00 - We don't have a sled!