"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it." (Matthew 13:44-46)

On Sunday Nathan talked with us about those things that are available to us when we are in Christ. As we went through the scriptures, we discovered why the passage in Matthew makes sense. Why a man would sell all he had to gain a "hidden treasure" or a "pearl of great value."

Remember the list we generated from the New Testament scriptures we read? What do we gain from our relationship with Christ? Is there anything better than those things on our list? Here is that list, to refresh your memory:

Redemption xxxxx Forgiveness xxxxxEquality
Access to God xxxxx Wisdom xxxxx Understanding
Provision xxxxx Peace xxxxx No shame xxxxx Faith
Hope xxxxx Righteousness xxxxx Freedom
Light xxxxx New creation xxxxx Brought near to God
Confident xxxxx Life xxxxx Love
No condemnation xxxxx Grace xxxxx Mercy
Body of Christ (family) xxxxx Fullness/Completeness

Which of these resonate with you? For which of these are you most thankful? How do these things compare with the temporary things of this world that you value?

Talk to me!

What Should I Do While I'm Waiting for God to Answer?"

On Sunday we talked about waiting for answers to prayer. All of us have experienced that at one time or another. We pray and we wait, and then we pray again. Do you ever wonder if God is just really busy or if He is sleeping? It brings to mind the old Andrae Crouch song

He never sleeps. He never slumbers.
He watches me both night and day.
He never sleeps. He never slumbers.
The reason I know - He told me so.

One thing I hope that you got from my message is that delayed answers to prayer always have a purpose. Let's expand on a couple of the points, shall we?

1) When answers are delayed, consider how God is preparing your life for what He has for you. Ask God what He is trying to say to you or what He wants to change in your life. God always has a plan, and part of His plan is to use things in our lives (including having to wait for an answer to prayer) for good.

He wants to accomplish something, so the best thing you can do is cooperate with that. Start seeking not only answers to your prayers, but answers to the question of what God wants to say to you and what He wants to change in you.

2) When answers are delayed, understand how God speaks in your life. If all you are listening for is the answer to your prayer, you may not hear what else God is saying to you. You will hear God best in the context of worship. If you are living your life as an act of worship to the Lord, you are much more likely to hear Him speak to you.

As a side note, part of our worship involves fellowship with believers, so it is important to be in regular fellowship with others in the body of Christ (i.e. Sunday services, small group, one on one, etc.). Why? Because sometimes God speaks through other people!

3) When answers are delayed, recognize how God evaluates your life. While you're waiting, evaluate your life and spend some time asking God what your life message is. Ask Him to show you opportunities to share His love with others, and ask Him to help you be an example of His grace to those around you.

If you put all of your faith and energy into praying fervently for an answer, you may put your life and your ministry on hold. That would mean a lot of missed opportunities to let God use you in the lives of those around you.

What are your thoughts? How do you respond to delayed answers to prayer? How do you deal with waiting for an answer? Talk to me!

The Branch

Yesterday we focused on Isaiah 11:1-16. It is a passage that is quite often passed over as confusing or hard to understand. The passage refers to Jesus as a shoot from the stump of Jesse. Jesus is also referred to as the branch that comes from that shoot. New life coming from something that is dead.

Isaiah was giving hope to the people of Israel. He was telling them that even in their "deadness," that new life would come from the Messiah.

I remember hearing a story many years ago about a man, who I will call Jack, being given the job of removing a thick growth of ivy from a wall surrounding a large piece of property. He was working hard at the task. This was a job that would not be accomplished in days or even weeks. He hacked and he cut back and then hacked some more. It was slow going.

At some point, a gentleman came by. The man stood and observed Jack working for a few minutes, and then walked over and asked if he could offer some advice. Jack was willing to hear anything that would help.

The man simply said, "Go along the bottom of the wall and cut the roots. Come back in a few days, and you will have dead vines to deal with. They'll come out much easier."

What a concept!

The reason that worked so well is this: If the thick growth of vines was not connected to the roots, they would die. It is much easier to remove dead branches and growth than it is to remove live ones.

The spiritual application is obvious. Stay connected to Jesus, the Vine. If we don't, we will die spiritually. From the Vine, we get life, health, and fruitfulness. Apart from the Vine, we get spiritual frailty and barrenness and, yes, death.

Jesus said it best:

"I am the vine, you are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without me you can do nothing." - John 15:5

Stay connected to the Vine. We literally depend on the Vine for our very lives, and we cannot function without Him.

Prepare the Way of the Lord

"A voice of one calling: 'In the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.'" (Isaiah 40:3-5)

The prophet Isaiah refers, in this passage, to the "desert" and the "wilderness" in which the people were living. As we said on Sunday, the spiritual climate for the nation of Israel was a bumpy one at best. The periods of great revival and faithfulness to their God were generally followed by periods of rebellion and idolatry. They would become so evil in their rebellion that God would allow captivity or bondage or some other hardship to bring them to their senses. They would repent and seek God, for a little while at least!

It seems to me that we are in a desert/wilderness today. Our nation certainly displays signs of that. For a country that perhaps has more Bibles per capita than any nation on earth, we are spiritually destitute. We have abandoned the God of the Bible and chosen instead to become a nation of secular humanists. Divorce is on the rise. Abortion has become the norm. Church attendance is down. Our fellow Americans affirm that there are "many roads to heaven." It reminds me of the days of Noah when everyone was kind of doing as they pleased. If you recall, that didn't turn out very well, did it?

With that in mind, it seems that we are truly to be "different" in such a way that we prepare the way of the Lord by pointing to the Lord.

"But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." (I Peter 2:9)

Are you living your life in such a way that those around you--family, friends, neighbors--see you pointing to the Lord? You may not be running around with a sign that says, "Repent! The end of the world is coming!" but the way you live your life can speak LOUDLY and CLEARLY the message of your life.

Actually, it is probably more correct to say that your life DOES speak loudly and clearly about something. The question is, what does it say? The way you live your life tells those around you what your priorities are, what you value, what you believe, and about your God. They are watching. Don't ever be mistaken about that.

They are noticing

• Where you spend your time and money
• How you treat those around you
• If you live a life of integrity
• If you are walking your talk

Ask the Lord to help you to be the example you need to be in order to prepare the way of the Lord in the lives of those around you. It is a huge responsibility.

So I leave you with the questions I gave you yesterday. How are you preparing the way of the Lord in people's lives? Can you specify how YOUR LIFE is helping someone else to be more open to the ways of the Son of God? How will revival touch this (or that) person because of the influence of the Risen Lord in your life?

Talk to me! I want to hear what your thoughts are!

What Have You Done for me Lately?

On Sunday we talked about the lepers in Luke 17 who Jesus healed of the dreaded disease of leprosy. As you recall, I likened that physical disease of leprosy to our spiritual disease of sin.

As we enter this Thanksgiving week, we all become abundantly aware of our blessings: family, friends, food, job, shelter, material blessings, and more. The list goes on and on. But often we leave out our biggest blessing of all.

Today I am going to borrow a quote from Beverly's e-mail signature (thanks Honey!). You have all seen it before, I am sure, but it is what I want to focus on here:

"When you have nothing left but God, then for the first time you become aware that God is enough." Maude Royden

When it is all said and done, God is all that we need. Years ago, I heard a song at a concert. While I don't remember the words exactly, I absolutely remember the gist of it. Basically, it was reminding us that when God called Himself "I AM" He was basically saying that He is all we need. I like that.

But today, I really want to hone in on our basic need. Our fundamental need in life is for a Savior. The Bible tells us that we were "helpless in our sins" (Romans 5:6) and God, in His mercy and grace, saw our need and our helplessness and sent us the only One who could rescue us from our desperate situation. Jesus Christ--Son of God, King of kings, Lord of lords--came to earth as a lowly impoverished baby, sent for one purpose alone--to rescue us and save us. He bought us and brought us back from the grip of death.

In the end, isn't that what matters? All the "stuff" that we count so important in our lives (and I'm not saying that food and shelter isn't important), pales in comparison to the work of the cross on our behalf.

Every year on Thanksgiving, our family has a tradition of going around the table and having everyone say what they're thankful for. Maybe your family does that too.

This year, maybe one of the things on your list will be salvation! Maybe it will be at the top of your list! I hope so!

Talk to me! What are your thoughts about thankfulness for salvation?

Resilience

I’ve been thinking a lot about what Erika shared Sunday morning. She talked about persevering and being content and being grateful. There’s another word that also comes to mind -- resilience.

I received a brochure a while back from a company specializing in "resilient furniture": simple, sturdy, water resistant tables and chairs — not fancy in any way, but built to last. They're not cheap either; a plain white folding chair is about $60. They're not as pretty as the office chairs we could buy at Office Depot or Staples for about the same price, but those chairs don't have a long life-span.

There's something to be said for basic, unadorned resiliency — the ability to get through, get over, and thrive after trauma, trials and tribulations. In this sense, sturdy beats stylish every time.

USA Weekend did a cover story a while back on the subject of resiliency, asking the question, "Why do some people bounce and others break?" The article noted how some people who experience trauma withdraw into a shell, while others facing the same crisis not only bounce back, but bounce back stronger than ever before. It talked about how resiliency is being studied in universities and taught in corporate seminars. Resiliency, the article said, could become the most important skill of the 21st century.

Why do some people break down while others bounce back? Unlike furniture, I don't think it has to do with our design. A chair can only be as strong as it was made to be; it can't decide to be more resilient or less resilient. We, on the other hand, have access to support beyond ourselves. Our "design" — our emotional make-up resulting from parental and societal influences — can be overcome. A person who is naturally weak and easily discouraged doesn't have to stay that way.

There's a verse in Philippians that I shared a couple of weeks ago. Let’s look at it again. Paul is talking about being able to face hard times as well as good times, and he states confidently, "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:13)

Resilience comes down to a decision: whose strength will I draw from — my own, or God's? One of the wonderful truths of the gospel message is that if you will look to God for strength, He will give it to you.

I lift up my eyes to the hills — where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. (Psalm 121:1-2)

What are your thoughts? Talk to me!

Discovering the Secret of Contentment

"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you." Philippians 4:8-9

Paul, in his letter to the church at Philippi, writes to them about the need to THINK about positive things--noble, just, true, pure, lovely, and of good report. He then goes on to talk to them about his own contentment in the midst of not-so-great circumstances, humanly speaking.

Paul learned to be content, he tells us, which kind of implies that he hasn't always known how. Read 4:13, where he says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Christ is his strength, and Christ is his source of contentment.

Paul tells them what to think about, and tells him he has learned to be content, and then tells them that he can do all things through Christ.

That gets me to wondering: What would life be like if I only thought about Jesus Christ? Now that might seem like a tall order, but think about this. What if in every situation where I am tempted to be discontent, I see Jesus in the midst of the situation? What if I think of things to be thankful for in the midst of it? (see 4:6-7)

When I am unsatisfied with my living conditions, what if I focused on thankfulness for having a roof over my head?

When I am unhappy in my job, what if I thanked the Lord that I have a job?

When I want something I can't afford (a new computer, an i-pod, a new car, a room addition, an electronic toy, etc.), what if I were to look around at the abundance that I DO have, and be thankful?

When I don't have enough, according to my own standards, what if I were to be thankful that God supplies what I need (not necessarily what I want)?

What if in my temptation to be discontent, I instead made a choice to be content because Jesus Christ has saved me from my sins and given me eternal life? What if I were to focus on gratitude for that awesome gift? Isn't that really all I need after all?

Being discontent is a choice. Being content is also a choice. Which do you choose?

In This World You Will Have Trouble

John 16:33 "In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world."

Jesus' final talk with His disciples was meant to be an encouragement to them, but it seems like it was also a bit of a reality check. He knew that they were focused on His kingdom coming on earth, and fervently hoped that Jesus would rid them of the yoke of the Roman rule. (See Matthew 18) Even one of the moms got into the act and asked Jesus to make her sons rulers in His kingdom. (See Matthew 20)

These people apparently thought that Jesus had come to set things right in terms of freeing them from the iron rod of the Romans.

Jesus, in John 16, is telling them some things that will help them not give in to discouragement when the hard things come. He is telling them ahead of time, "I want you to know that hard times are ahead, but know that I am with you." I have a sense that some of them didn't "get it," and others didn't really believe it. That is evidenced by the the way they huddled together in Jerusalem after Jesus' death.

When I think of them huddled together, I imagine that there was some processing and praying going on. I have to wonder if one of the disciples didn't remind the others of some of the things that Jesus had said where He had predicted his own death. (Maybe James spoke up and said, "Oh, so that's what He meant!") We'll never know, will we? But I wonder how they felt about Jesus' teachings or their own beliefs about the Kingdom of God--AFTER Jesus died.

I wonder if it was in those three days following His death that they began to understand what He had said about them having trouble. Reality was setting in for sure. Jesus actually meant it when He said they would suffer and die because of Him!

However, Jesus had told them that they would have trouble, but He went on to remind them that when that happened He would be with them.

Here's the thing, folks: We will have trouble in this world. Do we want to have the Lord in our hearts and our lives when we go through it, or do we want to go it alone? I think we would all agree that during dark days of sickness, death, financial ruin, family trouble, war, strife and turmoil, it is a wonderful blessing to have the Lord go through it with us.

God has promised to be present with His people since the beginning. The Old Testament is full of His promises to be an abiding presence in our lives. Here are a couple of examples to get you started.

Joshua 1:5 "I will not leave you nor forsake you."

Isaiah 42:5 "I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, and I will hold Your hand."

So how about you? What do you feel about going through tough times with the Lord in your life? Anyone feel like sharing? Post a comment!

The God Questions (Part IV) "If God is So Good, Why is there So Much Bad in the World?"

(Beverly is my ghost-writer today. Thanks, honey!)

There once was a little boy named Adam who had no home. Adam’s parents had died, and he had no relatives to take him in, so he was put into a foster home. After a year or two, Adam was adopted by a couple who had deeply longed for a child. They were so thrilled to finally have a son, and it was with great joy that they welcomed him into their family.

On that first day, they brought him home and showed him the room they had prepared for him. His eyes got as big as saucers when he saw the wonderful room that was there for him. He had his very own big bed, with a bedspread that had his favorite cartoon figures on it. Curtains to match. There was a TV set with all sorts of DVDs. He looked over by the closet and there was a box of sports equipment balls, bats, helmets, roller blades, and an assortment of other things as well.

His parents had bought every kind of toy imaginable, and there were shelves and shelves of books, puzzles, and games. In the closet he discovered brand new clothes, just his size! He couldn’t remember ever having brand new clothes before! Adam’s parents had thought of everything, that was apparent! This was a bedroom that some kids only dream about!

Adam’s dad told him, "Son, this is all for you. All you have to do is take care of these things, and you’ll be able to enjoy them for a long time."

Adam began to settle into his new home, and in the next few weeks he enjoyed reading the books and playing with the toys he had. He played with them carefully, and always made sure to put them back in their proper place, so as not to lose any of them.

Sadly, eventually, Adam got careless with his belongings. He got into the practice of not putting things away, which brought disastrous results. Game pieces got lost. Puzzle pieces too. Toys were left out, leaving them in someone’s pathway to be tripped over and broken. The sports equipment was all gone, because he had left the things outside where they had been lost or taken by a passer-by. Adam’s parents kept reminding him to take care of his things properly, but he did not heed their warnings.

In a relatively short amount of time, what had been every kid’s dream room became a disaster. There was not one book that wasn’t torn or scribbled in. There wasn’t a game or puzzle with all the pieces. Not one toy still worked as it was designed to work. All because of one boy’s disobedience of the only rule his parents had given him: Take care of these things.

Adam starting whining and complaining that he had nothing to do. He started throwing tantrums and demanding that his parents buy him new toys and books and puzzles. He wanted new sports equipment.

He begged and pleaded and cried for his parents to replace what had been lost or ruined. When his parents didn’t do that and they reminded him that the reason he had no toys to play with was because of his carelessness, that is when things really got ugly. Do you know what he did? He began to blame his parents for the losses, saying that if they would have bought him better things they would have lasted. In other words, this situation was not Adam’s fault. It was his parent’s fault.

This story reminds me a bit of how we blame God for all that is wrong in the world. If God is so good, why are there so many bad things that happen in the world?

God created the world and all that is in it, and pronounced it GOOD. God only gave one rule to Adam and Eve, and all was well until they chose to disobey. When that happened, sin entered the world and all the consequences of sin. Is that God’s fault? Can we blame God for all the bad things in the world?

What do you think?

The God Questions (Part III) "Do All Roads Lead to Heaven?"

On Sunday we did a whirlwind tour, examining the top ten religions in the world.

It is my hope that what emerged for you was an awareness of the ways in which Christianity stands alone, distinct from every other religion or philosophy.

1) The other religions are "me centered." They are about being dependent upon myself to do the right thing, think the right thing and change myself. As Christians, our dependence is upon Christ and His shed blood which saves us from our helpless condition of sin.

2) Some religions offer no eternal reward. Others offer a reward of paradise or nirvana. Those are very "me centered" as well. As Christians, our eternal reward is a continuation of our relationship with Christ, with joy, love, and peace being full and complete.

3) Some religions have many gods. Some have no gods. Some religions make us gods. As Christians, we serve a God who is Three in One, and who is bigger than all things created. I would have a real problem worshipping a God who manifests as a leaf or a snail or a volcano. While all of those things have life or power, our God's power is bigger than all created things combined.

4) Other religions are work centered. Christianity is Jesus-centered. He is the beginning and the end, and our salvation is totally dependent upon He who died to buy our ransom from sin.

I feel grateful to have come into the grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. How about you?

The God Questions (Part II) "Is the Bible True?"

On Sunday, we talked about the Bible and some "facts" about the Bible that some of you may have been surprised about.

I won't take the time to reiterate what was said, but I do want to add one more thing to yesterday's message.

The fact that the Bible has been preserved with integrity is something that, in my mind, can only be a God thing. It seems to me that God wanted His words preserved in a way that they would hold the same meaning to us as they did way back when they were first written. That tells us that His word is important and we should pay attention!

It is so easy for all of us to take the Bible for granted! There are probably only a few bookstores in the United States where you can not pick up a copy of the Bible. If you can't find one in a given bookstore, it is probably because that bookstore is dedicated to a certain philosophy that doesn't value the Bible or it is some kind of bookstore that is focused on technology or science or medicine or some other area of study or expertise. Most every bookstore that sells "general" books would have a Bible, and usually in more than one version (NIV, KJV, etc.).

Because the Bible is so readily available to us, we do take it for granted. I probably own at least two dozen Bibles in various forms and versions.

When Beverly and I took a trip a few years ago, we went to the New Holy Land center in Arkansas. While there, we viewed a documentary about how the Bible came to be translated into English. I did not realize that it wasn't until people like John Wycliffe and William Tyndale came along that the Bible was translated for the common people in the language that they could read and understand.

Many people were persecuted for bringing the Bible to the common people, and some people (like Tyndale) were actually martyred for it.

So this book that we so take for granted is a book that was brought to us by great sacrifice by scores of people.

So the next time you read your Bible, say a prayer of thanks for all those who came before you who sacrificed so that you could hold that book in your hands!

The God Questions (Part I) "Is God Real?"

Remember the example of the Pepsi can this morning? What do we know about Pepsi?

• Someone had an idea for a sweet drink, and created it.
• Someone had an idea for a container, in this case a can, that holds the perfect amount.
• Someone got an idea for a pop top that would eliminate the need for a can opener.
• Someone came up with a logo and the graphic design for the outside of the can.

Would anyone engage in an argument with us about the fact that this Pepsi was designed and then created by a person somewhere, sometime?

What are some of the arguments that they might use?

• You can't possibly know it was created, because you weren't there.
• You don't know that the human that created it really exists because you've never seen him or her.

Well in the case of the first argument, it would be a ridiculous position to take that the Pepsi can and its contents just sort of magically appeared, or that it evolved from some other sort of substance. It used to be a tree and now it is a soda. Seriously.

In the case of the second argument, while it may be true that I've never met the person who invented Pepsi, when I drink from that can I am pretty sure that I am enjoying the fruits of the person's labor. The product he created is proof that he existed.

Psalm 19:1-2 "The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies
display his craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak;
night after night they make him known."

This verse is the crux of what we talked about on Sunday. Look around you. What do you see? You might see things in your home such as a kitchen faucet, a can opener, a lamp, a clock, a piano or guitar, or a thermostat to run your central air and heating. You might see things outside in your yard such as a gas grill, a lawn mower, sprinklers, a patio cover, flower pots, or gardening tools. Go out further, out into nature, and you see tall redwoods, magnificent mountains, and awesome waterfalls.

What all of those things have in common is that they are created things. Some were created by people. Some were not created by people.

We don't have to actually meet the people who created those things in order to know that those people exist. Their inventions testify of their existence on this earth.

It's the same way with God and the things He created. His creations testify of His existence. Just like it is illogical to believe that the Pepsi came into being all by itself, it is even more illogical to believe that the vast universe with the clockwork precision that it runs with was something that just happened by accident.

Faith is not about logic, but the verse in Psalms suggests to me that it is illogical to look around this beautiful world and not see the hand of a Creator God.

Focus, Focus, Focus!

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfector of our faith." Hebrews 12:2

On Sunday, we talked about keeping our eyes on Jesus and we likened it to a game of wiffle ball. What can we learn from wiffle ball that will help us with our faith? Here is the short version:

1) Keep your eyes on the ball. (Keep your eyes on Jesus.)
2) We must go after the ball. (Pursue Jesus.)
3) We must meet the ball. (Come to Jesus.)
4) Be sure to keep on swinging. (Don't give up.)

What are the distractions in your life that keep you from focusing on Jesus? Work? Recreation? Hobbies? Sports? Activities? When it comes to things like that, we must keep in mind our human nature that draws us away from pursuing God and His will. If we keep our eyes on Jesus, on His will, His word, His voice, we will find ourselves living a more abundant life and one that is more pleasing to Him.

If I am focused on God, I am less likely to sin, because Jesus conquered sin. (Romans 6)
If I am focused on God, I am less likely to be fearful, because Jesus is with me. (Matthew 28)
If I am focused on God, I am more likely to do His will, knowing He is in me. (Romans 8)
If I am focused on God, I am more likely to have peace, because Jesus is peace. (Ephesians 2:14)
If I am focused on God, I am less likely to be depressed. because Jesus is hope. (I Timothy 1:1)

What are the distractions in your life? What do you need to do in order to focus on Jesus more? Talk to me!

What to Wear

Colossians 3:12 "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience."

In Sunday's service, we talked about Paul's instructions to the church at Colossae in regards to holy living. It is important that he (in the passage right before verse 12) has been talking about "setting our hearts on things above" and putting to death the old things that come out of our human nature (impurity, lust, greed, rage, slander, and malice, to name a few). Then he goes from that into how we should clothe ourselves.

He tells us to clothe ourselves in a certain way because we are God's chosen people, and not only chosen but holy and dearly loved. So, he tells the Colossians, "dress the part!" Clothe yourselves with things that clearly come from the Holy Spirit within you. The Holy Spirit in on the INSIDE, so wear Him on the outside as well! So now we have the Holy Spirit inside and outside. Be who you are, or better yet, be who God sees you to be.

So let's review the character traits from this verse briefly:

Compassion - Compassion is love in action. You see a need and feel moved to help.

Kindness - Kindness is love that is sometimes undeserved. You are loving no matter what.

Humility - Humility is thinking of others as better than or above you. You love others more than yourself.

Gentleness - Gentleness is softness, kindness, or mildness. Whether it is correction or comfort that is needed, it is expressed in a kind and soft way.

Patience - Patience is being willing to wait. Love cannot be in a hurry!

Interesting that Paul goes on to say what binds it all together:

Colossians 3:14 "And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."

Love is what keeps it together. When I think about that, I think in practical terms. We can act in a compassionate way with a heart that feels resentment about helping. We can show kindness to a person while feeling angry on the inside. We can show humility while having a lot of pride in our hearts. We can act in a gentle way and at the same time feel frustrated and have a hard heart. We can be patient and be screaming "hurry up" on the inside.

When our good behavior isn't matched in our hearts, then at best we are demonstrating self-control. Not a bad thing, by the way. But how long can I really keep that up? If compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience are not coming out of a loving heart, eventually the facade is going to crack and the "real deal" is going to come out.

So, yes, we must work on our behavior, but our real prayer should be that God fills us with love for Him that spills out into love for others. Our prayer should be that we are filled with the Holy Spirit so that the "clothes" of Colossians 3, are honest fruits of our relationship with God. Our desire should be that our love for others is so deep, that our clothing is an outcome of that love.

So what are you wearing this week? Talk to me!

Just Do It!

Sunday we talked about obedience. Our verse for the day was "I will hasten and not delay to obey Your commands." (Psalm 119:60)

We briefly looked at the story of Jonah's disobedience. God told him to go to Nineveh, and Jonah had a "better" idea, or so he thought, and ended up running away on a ship going the opposite direction. God didn't stop him from going. He let him buy the ticket. He let him board the ship. He let him get part of the way, until he was in the middle of the sea with no possible chance of escape. Then God did what He does with all of us when we disobey--He disciplined Jonah.

We used three assertions that I want to remind you of as you go through this week and meditate on what you learned. Meditate and apply it as you "hasten to obey!" The first one is, "Delayed obedience is disobedience." The second is, "Obedience demonstrates our love." The third one is, "Just do it!"

Delayed obedience is disobedience. - This is a pretty practical assertion. Think about Jonah and what he did. After God gives him clear instructions of what to do and where to go, Jonah turns and runs the opposite direction of what God told him to do. He was walking in total disobedience to God. After landing in the belly of a big fish, he ends up doing what he absolutely should have done all along. So I suppose it could be said that after some period of time (we don't know how long, except we know he was in the big fish's belly for three days) he decides to obey God. But he kind of got backed into a corner, didn't he?

Now I don't know how God looks at it, but if I were God, I would have not counted that as obedience, but instead repentance. I would have said, "Hey man, this hardly puts a star in your crown. I gave you no choice on this one." Thankfully for Jonah, I'm not God. After the word of the Lord came to Jonah (again), "Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh." (Jonah 3:3) So apparently God did what He does, and gave Jonah a second chance and Jonah got that counted as obedience.

Obedience demonstrates our love. Jesus said, "If you love me, you will obey my commandments." (John 14:15) We are demonstrating our love in choosing who we obey. If we give into our own will instead of doing what God says, we are demonstrating love of self more than love of God. If we give into the pressure of others who want us to do opposite of what God tells us to do, we are choosing love for others over love for God.

God wants us to obey Him, and if we love Him we will. Deuteronomy 6:5 says, "Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." Jesus even went so far as to call that commandment "the greatest commandment." It is kind of interesting that not only does obeying God's commands demonstrate our love for Him, but also that by loving our God we are obeying His command. It is kind of a "what came first, the chicken or the egg" question. By obeying, we love God, and by loving God, we are obeying. I'm gonna have to think about that one!

Just do it! - When God tells you to do something or when you know of a command in the Bible, don't hesitate! Just do it! When you hear God's command (or read His command), don't take the time to decide if you want to, or if you will, or if it "feels" like the best thing for you and your plans and your will. Just do it!

Remember God never tells you to do anything that is not for your good. Just do it! God always provide the strength to do what He says. Just do it! When you obey God, you are avoiding unpleasant discipline. Just do it! When God commands you to do something it is because it fits with a larger plan that you might totally miss if you disobey. Just do it! If He tells you to do something, remember that He is asking you to demonstrate your love for Him. Just do it!

So what is it that causes you to hesitate to obey His commands? What are your thoughts about demonstrating your love for God by obeying Him? How would your life be different if you were to decide to obey God quickly and without delay?

Talk to me! I look forward to hearing what you think!

How (NOT) to Invite People to Church

In working on Sunday's message, I came across this YouTube video that was hilarious, so I thought I would start off today's blog with it. Watch the video (turn up your sound) and then let me share with you my thoughts. As funny as the video is, there are nuggets contained in there that reflect tactics used by well-meaning Christians. Take a look!

Okay, so here are my thoughts about what you just watched and what the word of God says. Let's take the "talking points" of the video one by one.

1) Motivate - The guy in the video used a tactic of sneaking up and leaving a little unwanted "gift" along with a note that was intended to motivate the homeowner to come to church to find out who left the unwanted gift. While I have never personally known anyone who has resorted to extreme tactics like that, I have known people who have motivated people in ways that aren't wise or gracious. Be careful, for the word of God tells us to "be wise in the way you act toward outsiders." (Colossians 4:5)

2) Exaggerate - The woman in the video told the other lady that all of her problems would go away if she would just come to church! How many people do you know that make big promises about what it will be like to serve the Lord? I have known several people who have "won people to the Lord" by implying that all of the person's problems would subside if they would only become a Christian. Big problem there, folks! First of all, it isn't true. Second of all, even Jesus said that in this world we would have tribulation.

Watch what you say in inviting people to church or sharing your faith. God tells us , "Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." (Colossians 4:6) Make sure you are sharing truth with people, and TRUE hope, not false hope!

3) Use a Variety of Methods - The video suggested "Quick Draw" (throwing invitations at people), "Wallpaper" (inundating people with invitations over and over until they have no room for anything else), and "Reverse Psychology" (telling people they would not want to come or telling them they would be bored). The method we use needs to be born of the Holy Spirit, because what one person will respond to may be different than what the next person will respond to, and who knows that better than God Himself? God's word tells us "Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. " (Colossians 4:2-3) Watch for opportunities and respond to the open doors He brings your way.

4) Learn to Negotiate - The man in the video was basically holding a report due to his boss as a ransom to get the guy to come to church. Hmmm, well the guy may come to church, but I doubt seriously if it will be because he is interested in church. Worse yet, the Christian will be seen in a way that is not glorifying to God

We must behave in ways that will validate our testimony. God's word says, " But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander." (I Peter 3:15-16)

5) Intimidation - The guy in the video had his friend backed up against a wall and was threatening and intimidating into coming to church. I've never seen anyone go that far, but I have seen people threaten to withdraw friendship or to do other sorts of "consequence" behaviors if their friend or family member doesn't come to church. Just like the previous method ("Learn to Negotiate"), your friend may come to church, but not for the right reasons.

I Peter 3:15 tells us to share our faith "with gentleness and respect." Intimidation just doesn't fall into either category!

6) Name Dropping - Name dropping is problematic for many reasons. Do we really want people to come to church because some big name person is going to be there? Seriously? I've never seen anyone in our church do that, but we need to be careful the words we use in inviting people to church and sharing the faith.

It seems to me that when we do the name dropping of any kind, we are muddying up the message of the gospel, where Paul tells us, "Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should." (Colossians 4:4)

So go out and invite your friends and family! Pray for an opportunity. Watch for the doors God opens for you. Be clear and respectful and gentle. And most important, with those words "seasoned with salt," give them something that will leave them thirsting for more!

Okay, feedback time! Tell me what your thoughts, your fears, your concerns, your hopes, and your prayers are regarding this! I want to know!

Put On Your Armor

What a wonderful job the children did on Sunday as they shared with the congregation what they have learned in the past year. It is so encouraging to hear them not only explain the concepts, but also tell how they apply those concepts to their lives in real life situations.

It's really pretty simple, and yet so profound!

If the worship service did anything for us, it should have pointed us in the direction of applying the word of God to our daily lives.

Ephesians 6:11-18 "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."

How many of our daily struggles are more difficult because we forget to put on our armor?

Without the belt of truth, we are much more likely to succumb to the lies of the enemy. We must combat lies with the truth of the Word of God.

Without the breastplate of righteousness, we are more likely to be timid in our battle with the enemy. We may not see ourselves clothed in His righteousness and it may make us vulnerable and weak.

The shield of faith protects us from the fiery darts of the enemy. When our faith is solid (like the Roman soldier shield) no fiery dart can penetrate it. In fact, the shield extinguishes the fiery dart.

The helmet of salvation is what protects our very lives. A severe head wound can be a mortal blow. With our helmet of salvation, we know we are secure in Christ. It can add to our confidence in battling the enemy who would like to deal the mortal blow.

While the shield of faith is our defensive weapon, the sword of the Spirit is both an offensive and defensive weapon. With the sword, we can defend ourselves, but also deal some blows to the enemy. Wouldn't it be a nice thought that through the Holy Spirit we can do some damage to the enemy?

That's really all I have this week. The kids said a lot and gave us much to think about. What are your thoughts? What did you hear from our little ones?

What's in Your Backpack?

I was moved anew on Sunday morning as I watched the DVD, "Going Home: The Journey of Kim Jones." For those who missed the service, it was a wonderful message, packaged in a very simple story about a young woman who loved Jesus. I encourage you to rent the DVD from your local video store.

In the story, Kim likened our lives to a journey where we are all carrying backpacks while anticipating going home. I like that a lot.

As I watched, I had so many thoughts, some of which were shared during the discussion time. I'll just throw them out here, and ask you to share what your thoughts were.

1) Life is a journey, and we are all carrying backpacks. Hopefully we have packed our backpacks with things we actually need. How do we know what we need? God knows, so ask Him!

2) Anything in the backpack we don't actually have need of will be unnecessary weight that will ultimately burden us and drag us down. Decide to make your journey easier and your burden lighter by ridding yourselves of what is not absolutely necessary to the completion of the journey. Ask God what your encumbrances are. If your burden seems heavy, then you may very well be carrying something in your backpack that God does not desire for you.

Hebrews 12:1 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us."

3) We all need to keep our eyes focused on Jesus and remember moment by moment that this life is a temporary thing. We are here to glorify God and serve Him. We do that in different ways, but we must keep in mind that our PRIMARY purpose is all about eternity and many of the things that we worry about have little to do with anything eternal.

Matthew 6:19-21 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

My pastor's heart for all of you is to rid yourselves of encumbrances and to remember that this life is just temporary. My prayer is that you are all storing up treasures in heaven.

So what is in your backpack? Does it feel heavy? Are the things in it useful? Necessary? Do you need to make changes in the contents? Do you have a hard time remembering that life is just a journey, a temporary one? What do you need to do to keep your focus on eternity on a daily basis?

Let's get practical this week. Talk to me. What are your thoughts about this?

Be Faithful

I Thessalonians 5:19-22 "Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil."

We continue our discussion of Paul's instructions to a church that was anticipating the return of Christ. I find it fascinating that the church at Thessalonica may have been experiencing the same issues that we grapple with today.

On Sunday, for comparison, I noted that Paul had been concerned about the worship that was occurring in Corinth. This is evidenced in I Corinthians 11:17 where he told them "In the following directives [those where he talked about the Lord's supper and the spiritual gifts, among other things] I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good."

Wow! Some pretty strong words. The church at Corinth was into the "free flow of the gifts of the Spirit" to the point where it had become unedifying and disorderly. He was telling them to do things in an orderly manner and rein it in a bit. Their meetings were not edifying the members and were downright disrespectful of some. They were out of control in "doing whatever they felt like doing."

Yet in I Thessalonians 5:19 Paul instructs the church, "Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt." So which is it? He appears to be telling one group to rein it in, and another one to allow the Spirit to flow.

Perhaps it is best understood in light of his next words of instruction. Verse 20 says, "Test everything." Maybe the problem in Corinth was that the things that were happening in their meetings had not been "tested" to see if they were truly born of the Spirit. When we read the first letter to the Corinthians, it is pretty apparent that the church meetings were out of control. I have to believe that things that are truly of the Spirit of God will be orderly and not chaos-ridden.

So if we examine his exhortation to "not put out the Spirit's fire" and to "test everything," we must conclude that he is not suggesting that they have a "free-for-all" worship style where everyone is doing his thing and promoting himself. He is saying to let the Spirit flow, but make sure that it is of the Spirit and not of the flesh.

We tend to put out the Spirit's fire when we decide for ourselves what is okay and not okay, with no biblical basis. Often it is decided based on our traditions or our comfort zone. What Paul is encouraging is for us to allow the Spirit to do what the Spirit will, making sure that whatever is occurring lines up with the scripture.

A pastor whom I greatly admire once said, "God is God and He can do what He wants." I absolutely agree with that, but with a caution that let's make sure it is born of God; that is, test everything.

Paul's next instruction is so practical, it is almost one of those "no-brainers," yet we human beings somehow manage to mess up even the most basic things, so Paul takes the opportunity once again to remind the church. Verse 21a and 22 say, "Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil."

Like I said, a no-brainer, right? But seriously, when we examine our lives, are we holding on to the good? How many times each week do we make a choice not to hold on to the good, but instead to follow the lies of satan and compromise that which we say we believe? We must be settled and firm in our faith, and then adhere to it when going through our day. When we give in to temptation, we have (even if momentarily) let go of that which is good.

If we are holding on to the good, it is the best way that I know of to avoid every kind of evil. The two go hand in hand, don't they?

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this! Please feel free to post a comment!

Be Thankful

I Thessalonians 5:18 "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

Thankfulness is clearly a command and expectation of the Apostle Paul in his letter to the church at Thessalonica. These words are written in the group of exhortations of how exactly we should live in the "last days" as we anticipate Jesus Christ's return. "Watch and wait." "Be mindful of relationships with believers." "Be joyful always." "Pray continually." As I said in an earlier post, it would seem that Paul believes that minding our hearts, our relationships, our choices, our attitudes, and our behavior is going to contribute largely to the way we deal with end times. Interesting.

But back to thankfulness...

Thankful for everything? Seriously? It kind of reminds me of the Peanuts comic in today's paper. We can think of some reasons to be thankful, but then it interferes with the bottom line, and that is how we want things to be. So we may be thankful for a moment or two, but then remember, "Oh yeah, this isn't the way I want things to be," so we revert back to unthankfulness...again.

We often say around here, "God is good, and if He is good then His plan is good." If we remember that, then thankfulness could come easier. Let's get practical with how that would work, shall we?

My car breaks down. What am I thankful for? "Thank You, Lord, that I have the money to fix it. Thank You, Lord, that I wasn't on the freeway when the car broke down. Thank You, Lord, that you sent someone to help me. Thank You, Lord, that my joy does not depend on my car running well."

This doesn't mean I don't get the car towed to the mechanic. Doesn't mean I don't try to get it fixed. I do the practical things, but with a thankful heart.

I go to the ER because I have a terrible pain in my stomach. What am I thankful for? "I thank You, Lord, for doctors. I thank You, Lord, that You are with me even when I am sick. I thank You, Lord, for medical insurance...(or even) I thank You that even though I have no insurance You will meet the need."

This doesn't mean you must enjoy the pain. It only means that in the midst of the pain, you are thankful, if for no other reason, for God's presence with you.

My children are being rebellious. What am I thankful for? "Thank You, Lord, for the strength you will provide me to get through this. I thank You that you are giving me wisdom to deal with the situation. I thank You that you are going to bring good out of this. I thank You that You are at work in our family. I thank You, Lord, that you love my children even more than I do and that You in Your wisdom can draw them back to You."

Yes, you might still cry and you will probably not enjoy their rebellion, but you can be thankful in the midst of all of it because you know that God is sustaining you and giving you wisdom.

Remember the Veggie Tales song? The chorus goes something like this:

A thankful heart is a happy heart!
I'm glad for what I have. Thats an easy way to start!
For the love that He shares,
'Cause He listens to my prayers,
That's why I say thanks every day!

Thankfulness focuses on God. When we focus on God, we become intensely aware of His power and His love for us. That may bring immense peace and joy in our lives, which causes even further thankfulness.

Food for thought!

Tell me what you think. How's it working for you this week? Post a comment. (If you don't know how, call me and I'll walk you through it!)

Glorify God

On Sunday, we talked about glorifying God and some of the ways we can do that. Of course, we couldn't possibly cover all of the ways in the course of one worship service, but we highlighted a few.

At the end of the service, I challenged all of you to think about how you could glorify God as you go through your week. I have some further thoughts on that, centered around the "ways" we talked about Sunday.

Worshipping - We glorify God by worshipping Him. Not showing up on Sunday and singing a few songs and hearing a few testimonies. We worship God with our lives. Everything we do can be an act of worshipping God, because the Bible tells us to do everything "heartily as unto the Lord." (Colossians 3:23) So worshipping has something to do with our attitudes as we go through the week. Are you doing your life as an act of worship to the Lord or are you doing it begrudgingly and with an attitude?

Loving - We glorify God by loving others. Jesus told us (John 13:35) that it was by our love for one another that men would know that we are His disciples. By our love, the world sees Christ in us, and that glorifies Him. Anyone can love someone who is kind and thoughtful, but Jesus expects us to love those who are difficult to love. (See Matthew 5) When we do that, we are doing it out of the strength and power of the Holy Spirit. What better way to glorify God than to do something that is impossible to do without Him?

So love that cranky neighbor. Be kind to the lady who cuts in front of you at the bank. Respond in kindness to a boss that does nothing but criticize you. Show patience with the clerk in the store who seems to be taking her sweet time when you're in a hurry. Respond in those situations in a way that glorifies God!

Become Like Christ - When we allow God to change us more and more into His image, we are glorifying Him by reflecting Him. Paul writes, in II Corinthians 3:18, that we reflect the Lord's glory when we are transformed into His likeness. So that would mean that allowing God to work in the deep places of our hearts is a way to glorify Him, because more and more when people look at us, they will see Christ.

So as you go through the week, listen to the Lord and see what it is He wants to change in you. Is He changing an attitude or a habit? Is He stretching you out of your comfort zone in a certain area? Is he changing the way you think or the way you feel? Or your behavior? The more you change to be conformed to His image, the more you glorify God!

Serve Others - God sends us opportunities to serve others, and (going back to our lives being worship) when we take those opportunities to serve, we glorify God. Christ Himself came to be a servant (Mark 10:45), so if we want to glorify Him we need to follow His example and find ways to serve.

So this week, keep your eyes open (and hearts tuned) to find ways to serve others. Can you mow your elderly neighbor's lawn? Can you take a meal to a family with a new baby? Do you know someone who needs a ride? Is there someone that needs a job done that you have the skill to do? Serve others, and it will point to Christ in you because the recipients of your service may very well scratch their heads and wonder "why," and you'll be able to tell them! That brings me to my final point!

Tell Others - When we share the good news of the gospel and the grace that we have received, we glorify God. II Corinthians 4:15 tells us that the grace reaching more and more people may cause "thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God."

So in your kindnesses and your service this week, look for opportunities to verbally point to Jesus as the source! Yes, our light shines. Yes, we reflect His glory. But let's not forget that He also gave us WORDS that can share Christ with others, and glorify God in the process!

Ready, get set, go! Glorify God this week!

So tell me what you're thinking! I love to see your comments. Wish there were more! :)

Pray Continually

On Sunday we talked about the importance of prayer and Paul's admonition to "Pray continually." I Thessalonians 5:17

Sometimes we think of prayer as a formal thing, with lots of "rules." We think we must do it "right" in order for our prayers to be acceptable to God. In some ways, we must do it "right" in the sense of coming with a thankful heart, coming in faith, etc. But there are no rules about proper words or grammar or physical posture. God just wants us to pray.

I like to think of prayer as a conversation with God. If we are to pray continually, have a continual conversation with God, that is much easier if we continually walk with God.

Beverly and I will be driving over to to Ft. Bragg this week for a few days of rest. During the drive over, we will be spending time together in the car. Close proximity to each other. It is a natural outcome of that for us to engage in conversation. We can talk about deep things that are on our hearts, or we can simply make comments about the things we see on the drive. We may talk about ideas or we may laugh together about things that we see. We will be together, and conversation will come naturally.

If we drive together for very long without talking, it would feel like something is not quite right. It is a natural thing for us to share whatever is going through our minds at the moment.

It is the same with God. If we are walking with Him each and every moment of the day, then conversation with Him will just happen. We may ask Him for guidance. We may ask for protection. We may ask Him what He thinks about a situation we are facing. He's there, so we naturally communicate, just as if He was physically sitting across the lunch table from us or sitting in the passenger seat of our car.

But COMMUNICATE is the operative word here. Remember that communication is not just about talking. It is also about listening. So when you pray, take time to listen to what God says. It would be rude to call a friend for a chat, share everything you have to say, ask for whatever favors you need, and then hang up without finding out what your friend has to say. Remember that in your conversations with God.

Talk to me! I want to know what you have to say, so post a comment!

Let God Lead and Do What He Says

Sunday we had a special speaker. She is an old friend of ours from our days at Vanguard University. She is on her way (in a couple of weeks) to Kurdistan (a section of Iraq) to start a Bible School to teach and train the Christians over there.

She gave us a lot of information about the political climate over there that I found encouraging. It, for all of us, was a call to pray like we never have before for that region of the world. Not only for the lost but for the Christians who are being persecuted. Sharon (our speaker) has always been a passionate person, and that certainly came through loud and clear.

But there were two important things that she said that I want to really underscore today. This will be a short post, but important.

First she talked about letting God lead instead of trying to lead Him. It sounds like a "no-brainer" but I have to ask how many of us have been guilty of trying to lead the Lord along towards OUR plan or OUR will or OUR vision? Too many of us, I am sure.

We get these ideas of what we want to do with our life (job, career, life partner, retirement, etc.) and we then pray that God will make it happen. What would happen if we all were to make those kinds of decisions based on what God is showing us and leading us to? What difference would that make in our lives and our ministries?

Sometimes we do things that are not God's will. Period. It doesn't mean they are BAD things or SINFUL things, but if they aren't God's best then we are missing out on being right in the center of God's will. We have great ideas and plans, but we need to find out if those ideas or plans are from the heart of God, or from our own heads.

When you are making big decisions about such things as career, college, or life partner you will be wise to pray seriously about it and NOT ACT until you hear from the Lord on the matter. You will also be wise to get some Godly counsel on it. (Oh, have Beverly and I learned this the hard way!)

The second thing that struck me was when she talked about the qualifications for doing what God tells us to do. The qualifications such as education (college and seminary) and accreditation and such is a construct of man. The Apostle Peter was a fisherman. Never went to college. Had no credentials (unless you consider a boat full of fish a credential) and yet he was one of the greatest Apostles ever.

Don't buy into the view that you must get training and education to do God's bidding. God may very well call you to get training before doing His bidding. If so, then do it! But if He doesn't tell you to get training, it may very well be that He wants you, upon hearing His call, to just go do what He said. Just do it!

Don't be intimidated by what you don't know or what you don't have. You have the Holy Spirit, and if He is telling you to do something, He will enable you to do it. One of my professors at Vanguard University used to say, "God's calling is also His enabling." True statement, folks!

So talk to me! What do you think about following God's lead as opposed to pulling God along in the way YOU want to go? What are your thoughts about "just do it?" I want to hear from you guys!

Be Joyful Always

On Sunday, we talked about I Thessalonians 5:16. Paul writes, "Be joyful always." That is one fully packed sentence, isn't it?

BE - This is a continual state of being, not because the circumstances we find ourselves in are pleasant, but because we know that God brings good out of evil, blessings out of curses. We trust Him, and therefore, we can BE joyful!

JOYFUL - We are in Christ, and when we abide in Christ. we have joy that is constantly being renewed. In Christ we have hope and we have salvation, and we know that the best is yet to come!

John 16:22, "Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy."

ALWAYS - If we understand that having joy is not based on our circumstances but rather on our hope and our relationship with Christ, we can have joy ALWAYS.

This concept must have been pretty important in Paul's heart and mind, because he wrote a whole book about it (Philippians). In fact he repeated it twice in one verse! In Philippians 4:4, Paul writes, "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!"

If you were present on Sunday, you will remember that I talked about trials and tribulations and difficult things not being able to rob us of joy. You also know that I often talk about "preaching to myself." Well guess what, folks? I had an opportunity to practice just hours after preaching that message.

After church we went to a wonderful gathering for newcomers. Being in a hurry to get there, I quickly gathered up all of my sermon props (remember the baking powder, egg yolk, vanilla, etc.?) and put it into a little box and set it in the back seat along with some jump drives for the computer.

We arrived at the gathering and had a delightful time talking with all the new folks and getting to know them a little better. (What a blessing they are to us! If you haven't had an opportunity to meet them and chat with them, I encourage you to do so!)

We finished up there and went over to the gas station, filled our tank with gas and then as we were pulling out a monstrous 4 x 4 pickup backed right into our driver's side door. It is fairly extensive damage, and I feel pretty certain that we will need a new door. I got all the driver's information. He implied that it was my fault (what? for being there?) and I came away praying that he actually does have the insurance he said he did because his insurance card was expired.

Joy? Yep, still have it!

Went on down the road and suddenly hear a "clunk" in the back seat. Pull over to the side to investigate. Sure enough, the box with the egg yolk has turned over on the seat, the gooey egg yolk is staining the seat and it has oozed all over my jump drives.

I'm not having fun, but I do another check. Joy? Yep, still there.

You see, it doesn't matter if I have a dent in my car door. It doesn't matter if the guy has insurance or not. It doesn't matter if there is a stain on my car seat or if my jump drives are ruined. (Okay, well maybe that matters a little bit because that is the place where I store my "brain!") :) The point is that I still have joy. It is just "stuff," as they say. My real "stuff" is eternal. As long as I am obeying God and I abide in His love, I have joy.

John 15:10-11 "If you obey My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have obeyed My Father's commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete."

A dented door can't steal my joy. A stain on my seat can't steal it either. Satan can work me and come at me from another angle, but my joy is located in Jesus Christ and if I am in Him, I am in His joy.

What steals your joy? What steps do you need to take to remind yourself of the "big picture" so that you don't lose your joy?

Talk to me! I love to read the comments, and I feel encouraged by every one!

Be Mindful

On Sunday we talked about some directives that Paul gave to the Thessalonian church.

I Thessalonians 5:14-15 "And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else."

So what is the context of that passage? In chapter 4, Paul gives instruction to the Church about holy living. He then launches into talking about the second coming of Jesus Christ. Immediately after that, in the sermon text, he gives the instructions to the church as to how they should conduct themselves, especially in their relationships with one another.

It appears that Paul thought that relationships within the body of Christ were important in the Church in dealing with the end times. We don't know exactly what his reasons were but I think it is safe to say that Paul believed that healthy, Godly relationships would be important to the unity of the Body, and that unity of the Body would be important in dealing with the end times and waiting for Christ's return. A theme that runs throughout Paul's writings is love and unity within the Church family.

So I would like to just reiterate some of the points of the sermon from Sunday. 1) Be mindful of family dynamics. 2) Be willing to bring loving correction as needed. 3) Be willing to spontaneously comfort those who are in need of it. 4) Be committed to godliness in your church community/family. 5) Forgiveness is the rule, which may involve overlooking offenses. 6) Be compassionate.

So how are you doing with all that? Are you willing to confront when necessary? Are you so committed to your church community/family that forgiveness is more of a priority than being right? Are you compassionate?

It is important to remember that we must look at our relationships here on earth with an eye towards eternity. If we do that, we will find ourselves behaving in the ways that Paul talked about:

1) Desire the best for your brothers and sisters in Christ. If you do that, then you will have that in mind in any conflict. It will not be about your pride or your need to win, it will be about what is best for the other person. "Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another."

2) Model godliness for your brothers and sisters in Christ. Are you setting an example of Godliness? Paul, in I Corinthians 11:1, wrote "Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ." Can you say that with confidence to those around you?

3) Seek resolutions to conflict and don't add fuel to the fire. That kind of speaks for itself, doesn't it? Paul writes in Romans 12:18, "If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men."

4) Listen to the Lord in all your interactions with others. I Corinthians 2:13 says, "This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words."

5) Focus on eternity in the lives of your brothers and sisters in Christ. II Corinthians 3:18 says, "And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." You are reflecting something. Are you reflecting Christ, and are you helping (by your behavior) your brothers and sisters be transformed into Christ's likeness?

6) Have pure motivations in your dealings with others. This is an outcome of Point One (desiring the best). If you desire the best for them, then you will probably be much more likely to have pure motivations and not hidden agendas or selfish intentions.

7) Lovingly confront bad behavior. Love your brother and sister enough to correct them when they are off course. Is this easy? Not at all! But if we love others more than our comfort, we will confront them when they need it, because we want the best for them!

Tell me what you think! Relationships in church are such an important topic, I want to know your response to Sunday's sermon and to this post! Talk to me!

Men Behaving Godly

Sunday's message was directed at fathers, of course. Hopefully you felt challenged and encouraged to be the man/husband/father that God has designed and is calling you to be!

While the sermon was basically about men, it may have spoke to everyone--men and women alike, to take a look at your relationships and your family and see an area that you can work on. Beverly and I have been married for 38 years and have led marriage groups and taught marriage classes for many of those years, and I will tell you that I am still learning. I continue to be challenged as God shines the light in my heart and exposes attitudes and beliefs and thoughts that are not in keeping with His design for me. I'm still learning, folks!

Interestingly on the way home from church, as we discussed the sermon, Beverly and I began talking about the things that we have learned (and are still learning) in our years together. We both realize that we wish we "knew then what we know (or are learning) now" in terms of how to be the husband and wife/father and mother that God wants us to be. We talked about how the modeling we had as kids led us to wrong conclusions about what our roles would be in our family as adults.

What we learned by watching our parents in their roles as spouses and parents, set the course for our marriage. Oh, if we could only rewind which, of course, we can't. We can determine, through the grace of God, to change the things that He convicts us of, and we have seen changes happen over the past many years. We still have a long ways to go.

As I think about modeling, I would like to add a postscript to Sunday's message and that is this:

Fathers, your sons are learning from you what a godly father and husband looks like. Your sons are watching you in your interaction with your wife, and they are making mental notes about how to behave as husbands. If they see you yelling or being critical or angry, they will grow up thinking that that's the way that men treat women. They are also experiencing you as a father, and learning the way "it is supposed to be," right or wrong. Someday, when you look at your son in his own family, chances are pretty good you will see a reflection of who and what you are.

Fathers, you are also modeling for your daughters what a godly father and husband looks like. Your daughters are learning from you how a husband should treat his wife, and therefore, how she should "expect" to be treated by her future husband. If she sees you criticizing or being unkind or demanding with your wife, she will probably end up with someone who treats her the same way. If she marries someone like that, how good of a father will he be to your grandchildren? (If you don't believe me, ask Beverly how often that pattern occurs in her counseling practice.)

So when you consider Sunday's message and think and pray about making some positive changes, perhaps one thing to keep in mind is that you are creating the family climate for the generations that will come after you--your children and their children. You have the opportunity to give your children a great start for their own families, and you can start today!

Talk to me! Post a comment! I love to read them!

Being Respectful

On Sunday, we talked about being respectful in our relationships. I want to focus in today's post on our relationships within the body of Christ. Psalm 133:1 tells us "How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!" Hebrews 12:14 tells us "Make every effort to live at peace with all men and to be holy."

Living in unity and living at peace with all men seems like a tall order, doesn't it? I wonder what the church would be like if we all were actually in unity and were living at peace with all men. We certainly have been given the directive, but sometimes walking it out is a tough assignment. Why is that? Why are there "issues" that divide and cause rifts in relationships?

Well, of course the obvious answer is that we are people who have wants and desires and our own ideas of what is the right way to do any given thing. We have different giftings, and we have our passions and our visions that are different from others. Unfortunately, sometimes our wants and desires are contrary to those of others. When we are dealing with people who are inherently different from us we have to work hard at living at peace and in unity with them.

Different is the key word. People are different from us, but that doesn't make them wrong. The key to living in harmony is learning to appreciate those differences. Remember that every time you deal with a person who is different from you, it is an opportunity to learn something. When we can appreciate someone who is different from us, we can begin to see the strengths in their personality or viewpoint. Taking the time to listen to someone who sees a situation differently than you do is the first step towards unity.

It is my personal belief that one of the important things that God does in our relationships with fellow believers is that He brings to light things in us that need to change. That is, in part, one aspect of sanctification, specifically the process of becoming conformed to the image of Christ. As we walk with the Lord, we are to become more like Him. II Corinthians 3:18 says, "And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit."

So when we are at odds with someone in the body of Christ (or outside the body as well, however here I am focusing on Body Life), we should seek to resolve the issue in a way to be in unity as the psalmist wrote, but also to live at peace with that person as Paul instructed. Resolve the issue. Find a way to live at peace with him/her.

It is important to remember that we are not talking about simply putting on a happy face with a "grin and bear it" mentality. Inside many happy appearances reside heart issues that are only known to God and ourselves. It is those hidden heart issues that eventually come out and destroy relationships and, yes, even entire churches.

But even more importantly when we are struggling to accept a person or his/her views, we should ask God to show us what is in our hearts that needs to be changed. (Notice I didn't say to ask God what is in the other person's heart!) What is there in your heart that is contributing to the relationship issue you are dealing with? Bitterness? Pride? Unforgiveness? Selfishness? Anger? Resentment? Arrogance? Seek God, and then seek to rid yourselves of whatever it is that gets in the way of unity and peace in relationships.

If we all were to do that, if we were to look inward for the problem instead of pointing fingers at others, we would be well on our way to unity and peace, and the Church would be an example to the world in ways that can only testify of God's transforming power in our lives.

Ephesians 4:1 says, "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love."

I Peter 2:17 says, "Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king."

Romans 12:10 says, "Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves."

The message is clear. We are to prefer the desires and needs of others over those of ourselves. Whenever we are insisting on our way or angry when we don't get it, we are clearly in violation of scripture and we have a heart issue to deal with.

Talk to me! Post a comment! I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Waiting and Watching

"When the next generation looks back on our lives, will they see servants of the Lord that have been faithfully watching, or will they see adults who were waiting for the Lord while passing time doing a thousand different things?"

I don't know about you, but that is a question that stops me short in my tracks. I have long said that one of the things that is most important to me is that when I am gone I leave "tracks" that my children and grandchildren can confidently follow in their quest to honor the Lord. I want them to be able to say that their dad (or grandpa or great-grandpa) honored God and served Him well.

I taught my boys to play baseball. We taught all three kids to drive a car. Beverly taught them to cook and do laundry. We helped them with their school work and we participated in their school events and extra-curricular activities. All good things.

But those things are not the things that really mattered in the scheme of things. We also taught them other things of more importance and value. Be a person of character. Tell the truth. Respect other people. Keep your word. Help people. Be kind. Treat people the way you would like to be treated.

The most important thing we taught them was about living with a view towards eternity. I suppose that could be called watchfulness.

Mental Watchfulness

I Thessalonians 5:6 tells us to be sober and alert. We taught our children to not be taken in by the enemy's tactics, but to watch out for those that would try to draw them away from their faith.

Being drawn away from our faith sometimes happens when we start running with the wrong crowd and start drinking or partying or whatever. But, unfortunately, most of the time it happens in a much more subtle way. We start THINKING like those outside of Christ. We start trying to FIT IN with their lifestyle and choices.

Red Flag Warning: If we start feeling like we fit in very well with our non-Christian friends in ways that do not honor Christ, we are not being "Mentally Watchful."

Moral Watchfulness

II Timothy lists some characteristics of people in the last days before Christ returns: 1) lovers of self, 2) lovers of money, 3) boastful, 4) arrogant, 5) revilers (verbally abusive), 6) being disobedient to parents, 7) ungrateful, 8) unholy, 9) unloving, 10) being gossipers, 11) having no self-control, 12) being brutal, 13) being haters of good, 14) treacherous, 15) reckless, 16) conceited, 17) lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.

It is really quite a list, isn't it? I would imagine that most of us look at the list and think, "Well, that doesn't really describe me, so I'm safe." Really?

I would have to say that as a general rule I am not boastful or arrogant or ungrateful or unloving. But are there times when I boast? Or are there times when I am arrogant or ungrateful? Am I sometimes unloving? The answer to that is "yes."

But here's the thing: If I ask the Holy Spirit to convict me of any behaviors like those mentioned above, and if I REPENT and seek to CHANGE, then I am much less likely to exhibit those characteristics until they become who I am. If I am boastful often I am becoming a boaster. If I am ungrateful often, then I am becoming ungrateful. Repentance is the key, and a willingness to be changed by a work of the Spirit.

Red Flag Warning: If I notice a particular characteristic in my life that is becoming a pattern then I am probably losing my Moral Watchfulness. I will most likely only notice this pattern if I am listening to the Holy Spirit. I must repent repent and change, or I will be lulled into a pattern of ungodly attitudes and behaviors.

I Thessalonians 5:8-9 says "But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Proverbs 4:23 tells us "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life."

As I mentioned on Sunday, it is often the LITTLE sins (not that God thinks they're little) that do the most damage in our lives. We must be watchful for any of those little things (bad attitudes, resentment, bitterness, etc.) creeping into our lives. The world considers those things "normal," but they must never be normal to us, because if we allow those things into our lives we are letting down our guard.

Talk to me. What are your thoughts? Which is the most difficult do you think, the MENTAL watchfulness or the MORAL watchfulness?

Write a comment! I'd love to read it!