Happy 10 Month Birthday, SempRef!

...Okay, so it's been 10 months Semper Reformanda has been up and running. The Pyro has inspired me to take a good look and inventory of how these 10 months have gone.

It all started in February when the winds were blowing and the rain was raining. I was probably inside my warm, cozy home sipping green tea and "surfing" the web when I was supposed to be working on some paper for school. When I ran across Tim Challies' blog and read through it. Here was a guy who knew what he knew and wrote what he knew. If anyone's confused, that last sentence is a good thing. Anyway, through his blog and a few select others, I came across many godly blogs which had a way of focusing my attention on God, His attributes, and the importance of why they are important to be focused on.

Consequently, I felt the urge to have my own little "dwelling" in the suburbs of space. I set out my goals for the blog in my very first post, Why Blog?
They were:

• to help equip the saints
• bring glory to our much worthy God
• to be encouraged by you (the reader and commenter)
• to write down my sheep-like thoughts

I know for sure that my last point has been very successful. On top of this, some unexpected friendships have come out of my blog. Rand has been a huge encouragement to me and my walk towards truth. Micah and I started "Blog the Word" which didn't go too far, but nonetheless, was fun (if you can, add another chapter). Jessica is a wonderful lady my own age who loves theology as well. Frank Martens has a great sense of humor with a brain to back it up (many of us lack the brain). He also gets my sense of humor (I think!). Through Frank, I met his sister, Joanna, and we hit it right off. I don't get to talk to Aron that much, but he has some awesome things to read. I even have a blog friend who attends The Master's College; Adam. He is one lucky fellow.

There are also some non-unexpected friends here as well; my "real" friends. Daniel has been here from the begining giving his appreciated analytical perspective. My cousin, Stephen, is my best guy friend and is a great writer. Brian has been another huge encouragement and influence in my life. His blog is wonderful (when he updates it). Jason and the other Brian have just recently set up their very own blogs, check them out. For some lighter reading, check out Jordan's blog. My ex-co-worker and friend, Ana, also has a blog. Oh, and how could I forget my other cousin, Matador. There are no words to describe his blog. He is isolated from our family because he was shunned from our church (for obvious reasons). He is now serving time on the East Coast. (If you are new to my blog, I apologize now for any sarcastic comments which might escape me). If I fogot any of you, I profusely apologize.

Some amazing things have happened in my life since this blog has been intact. The biggest yet is my three month stint in Bazil on the Amazon River. There I worked on a medical boat, built churches, and worked with children and adolescents. It has been, by far, the best experience of my life. I wrote a bit while I was there in five different posts; Hello from Brasil!, Update, Bom Dia, Another Update, and Tooth Pulling.

I wrote about Calvinism and Arminianism for a school paper, and posted it here. The comments that followed were thought provoking. Incidentally, I met Daniel (different one) who disagreed with my conclusions and shared his views of Molinism. Some other philosophers who visit this blog are: Magnum, Antonio, and Philosapologist.

The post which received the most comments was Inconsistant Theology which was an open forum of different theologies. With 101 comments, there is ample amount of opinions.

In these 10 months, I have never given up an opportunity to brag about my little theologian girl, Ginger. I posted one of her most serious pictures.

Sometimes I wonder where I'd be without my blog. Let's just say that I spend one hour a day either working on my own or looking at others. After 10 months, that's 300 days which means I spent an average of 300 hours on this thing since February. What could have I done in that time? Would it have been more God-glorifying or saint-edifying or more encouraging than this has been? Has this blog been an instrument for God? Could it have been more Christ-centered and God-magnifying? Yes. I believe that even this blog can be semper reformanda, always reforming.

This is where you, my precious readers, come in. In what ways can Semper Reformanda be more intentional and Kingdom-minded?