Contemplations

Meaty Messages

2010-02-11T00:18:00.005-06:00

So we're currently in this series on the Book of Hebrews at Pathway Church that I've entitled "Does God Care?" and every week as I pray and prepare to feed the flock I think to myself, "Man, this is meaty stuff! God, please help me share the meat of the Word in a digestable manner, especially to the younger Christ followers."

I've always been something of a Bible nerd, even when I first came to Christ as a 12-year-old and started taking Bible correspondence courses through the mail. Years later during the first week at my first pastorate, shortly before my 21st birthday, I made a desk out of cement blocks and wooden planks in the corner of the church nursery and said to myself, "You mean I get paid ($110 a week at the time - ha!) to study the Word and share it with others?! How cool is this!"

It excites me to study the Word for myself but I also want my friends to get deeper into God's truth because when we apply ourselves to understanding the "deep secrets" of God we are the recipients of truly practical and powerful knowledge! It puzzles me why some waste their time reading a horoscope or having their palms read or consulting with a psychic when God's Word reveals so many positive and factual things for here and hereafter!

I think Scripture itself is the best commentary on my current dilemma of sharing the Word in an understandable fashion.

Paul writes this to the church family at Corinth in chapter two of his first letter to them:

1 Dear brothers and sisters, when I came to you, I did not come preaching God's secret with fancy words or a show of human wisdom. 2 I decided that while I was with you I would forget about everything except Jesus Christ and his death on the cross.3 So when I came to you, I was weak and fearful and trembling.4 My teaching and preaching were not with words of human wisdom that persuade people but with proof of the power that the Spirit gives.5 This was so that your faith would be in God's power and not in human wisdom.

6 However, I speak a wisdom to those who are mature. But this wisdom is not from this world or from the rulers of this world, who are losing their power.7 I speak God's secret wisdom, which he has kept hidden. Before the world began, God planned this wisdom for our glory.8 None of the rulers of this world understood it. If they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But as it is written in the Scriptures: "No one has ever seen this, and no one has ever heard about it. No one has ever imagined what God has prepared for those who love him." — Isaiah 64:4

10 But God has shown us these things through the Spirit. The Spirit searches out all things, even the deep secrets of God.11 Who knows the thoughts that another person has? Only a person's spirit that lives within him knows his thoughts. It is the same with God. No one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.12 Now we did not receive the spirit of the world, but we received the Spirit that is from God so that we can know all that God has given us.13 And we speak about these things, not with words taught us by human wisdom but with words taught us by the Spirit. And so we explain spiritual truths to spiritual people.14 A person who does not have the Spirit does not accept the truths that come from the Spirit of God. That person thinks they are foolish and cannot understand them, because they can only be judged to be true by the Spirit.15 The spiritual person is able to judge all things, but no one can judge him. The Scripture says: 16 "Who has known the mind of the Lord? Who has been able to teach him?" — Isaiah 40:13 But we have the mind of Christ. (New Century Version of the Bible)

I am praying for the church family who listens to the messages in our current series to be spiritually minded. I am asking God to help me avoid human wisdom and rely on heavenly wisdom. I am asking for the mind of Christ.

Wrestling with The Almighty

2009-10-19T06:07:00.010-05:00

After 14 years in exile, Jacob wrestled with someone all night before meeting again with his estranged brother Esau whom he had connived out of a blessing all those years earlier.

Various suggestions have been made as to his opponent. Some teach that it was actually Esau himself wrestling with Jacob, but Jacob concluded that he had seen God "face to face" and his life had been spared. (Genesis 32:40)

Been wrestling myself; several nights. No Esau in my life. No one I have defrauded or stolen a blessing from, just a restless spirit that comes from waiting on God's blessing. For, as you may remember, it was after Jacob "wrestled" with God that he was truly blessed. Spiritual interest that had been promised to him actually started to accrue after that famous confrontation with the Almighty.

Several things come to my mind about wrestling with God.

*A confrontation with the Almighty is tantamount to facing the fact that you are weak. I don't mean by this that God is a bully. He wasn't pushing Jacob around that night; neither does He manhandle us. But before we receive the great blessings that God has for us we do need to update our status as created ones and God as Creator; God the blessor and we the blessees; He as Heaven's Hulk (I won't say Hogan) and we as earth's dust.

*We get ahead spiritually, not by our conniving, but by heaven's blessing. How easy to make Jacob's characteristic mistake of trying to manipulate the circumstances (and others) toward an outcome that casts a good light on us. But God needed to train Jacob into receiving a blessing via prayer - versus his lifelong habit of stealing blessings by human duplicity.

*We need not fear the future if we are walking with God; even if that walk is with a limp. Yes Jacob would have a reminder within him until the day he died of that night God keep him all night - a hip joint out of socket, or something of that sort, that would, with every step he took, remind him of his need to rely upon God instead of himself. It is when we take every step with God that we have true security - and not one moment until then.

I'm anticipating some good blessings of God, not only because I've been wrestling with God, but because I'm limping. But its okay because I'm also still learning.

Don't take this the wrong way, but I hope you're limping too.

"Where You Been Chinquapin?"

2009-09-02T11:21:00.012-05:00

I haven't blogged this past summer. Grandkids Andrew, Caroline and Daniel were here (along with their parents Brooke and Matthew) and I wanted to spend as much time as possible with them. They live in Spain so when they're here time is precious and I put stuff like blogging on the back burner.

Plus, another grandson arrived in Nashville, Isaac, and we wanted to be there for his arrival and back to see him (and his parents Bethany and David) on July 4.

Deb and I are also excited about our grandson Carter's arrival in Indiana probably later this month. We won't have all the grandchildren together until next summer but here are the four that were together this summer.

The title for this blog is a saying I heard as boy in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. A chinquapin is a wild nut that grows on the side of the mountains. It tastes good but is so much smaller than a chestnut, which also grows inside a burr like a chinquapin, that it takes quite a few to make a mouthful. But its worth the work to pick & eat them because they are unique and delicious!

I used to take a lunch bag full of chinquapins to school to snack on. Boy was I country!

For some reason I've always compared some people I know to chinquapins. They take a lot of work to understand and love but when you get past their prickly burrs and spend enough time with them you see their good points.

"Be patient with everyone..." 1 Thessalonians 5:14c (CEV)

Jamie Bush's Testimony

2009-07-22T11:40:00.007-05:00

[Jamie gave the following testimony recently at Pathway Church during a series Deb and I were co-teaching on relationships. She and her husband Thomas are actively involved in Pathway Church, dedicated to helping others find Christ and follow Him.]

I am overwhelmed and humbled by God's generosity and persistence.

Five years ago I was living with a man who was a drug addict, who physically punished me and belittled me daily.

My Aunt Sandy told me she worked with a guy named Thomas who was great, but also in a bad relationship...she was sure if we'd both free ourselves we would be so happy, BUT I was absolutely sure that I was worthless and that pain is what I deserved. EVERYone in my life tried to pull me away and help me, but I wouldn't listen.

God sent 3 friends and several family members to me telling me this would kill me if i didn't leave. I lost my house, my car, my job because I put this man in control of my life and he destroyed it. Finally, I was beaten and scared so much that I left, but when I didn't think I could live without that "love," I attempted suicide. I couldn't believe I survived. Why was God so cruel?

At that point, I really was mad at God. My dad was dead, my sister was dead, and i was absolutely alone. How did he let me go through this? I was a great person until I put all my "faith" in a horrible man.

What I didn't see, is that God had moved me to my mom's house to "recover" my life and be filled with love. God pulled me from that man because I wouldn't remove myself. God put me in court-ordered counseling and I began to realize I did have self worth.

I went to church with my Aunt Sandy from time to time and felt SO pulled to God that I still pushed him away because I wasn't ready to admit my failures. One Sunday I heard "Grace like rain" and it clicked....God did love me! God saved me from the fire I had put myself in! God did have a future for me! God already forgiven me for the horrible things I had yet to admit to him...

Wow...how does that sink in? Slowly...

I started working at the Neighborhood Thrift Store and slowly began dating again....met Pastor Brian and started coming to Pathway....still slipping up and not making great choices with dating, but I knew i wanted a Godly man.

THEN...

my same Aunt Sandy that had taken me to church, finally convinced me to go out with Thomas....

Meanwhile in Thomas' life: painful divorce, living with a woman who took advantage of him financially and emotionally...then he made her leave and went to church one Sunday in February 2007....Thomas asked God to take control of his life again and promised to change his life...

We met the next Friday...three days later I told my mom Thomas would be the man I married.

God worked with me and through me and never let go of my hand...while I thought he'd ignored me, it was me looking away. I am in awe and humbled that God can work such miracles. The peace and love I have with Thomas is a daily blessing, to breathe easier around someone and know they have your best interest at heart is such a love I never imagined, and through God's love and grace, it is a daily reality. What is more amazing...how much greater is the love God has for me? More than I can comprehend. I am not worthy, but I am grateful.

Ken Johnson's Testimony

2009-07-06T15:13:00.002-05:00

[Recently at Pathway Church here in Huntsville, Alabama, Ken Johnson gave this testimony in the midst of my message on "How to Bring out the Best in Your Kids." It took a lot of guts for him to share this but it really spoke to a lot of hearts about the influence, good and bad, that parents exercise over their children. We are all proud of how Ken is growing in Christ.]

On January 9, 1961, a baby boy was born to parents with unresolved issues from their own upbringing. Back in "those days" it was considered taboo to mention anything like alcohol addiction and physical abuse. If you dealt with anything like that in your home, you kept it to yourselves.

Today it’s a much different world. Issues like those are out in the open and people talk about them more. In a "perfect" world things would have been different. But of course the world isn’t perfect and we don’t get to pick our parents or the environment in which we’re raised.

I was in for a rough and bumpy ride as I got older.

As a young skull full of mush growing up I naturally listened to anything my parents told me. Misbehave and you were disciplined. My father, who had unresolved issues of his own, was the enforcer – the one who dealt out anything that was coming to me. I can remember my father telling me, "You were a mistake, I wish you had never been born…you’ll never amount to anything!"

My dad at times would have his way with me, fondling me in unspeakable places. I would go back to my room afterwards and cry into my pillow. I knew if I said anything, I would get anything he was dealing out again.

My mom, who was what’s now called an "enabler," just stood by and watched everything that happened to me, saying nothing. To the best of my knowledge my father never abused my two sisters. If he did it was never while around me.

My mother was a wonderful person, even with everything that was going on. She did the best she could in raising my two sisters and me. She never worked outside the home and she knew that, if she left our dad, or if he left us, she would essentially have nothing.

My mother basically lived her life through her kids and smothered us with love. I can remember her always telling people, "You’ll never see my kids acting up because they’re always with me – which, at the time, was fine and good. But then again, she never pushed us to learn for ourselves. She always did things for us, especially me, always telling me, "Someday I’m not gonna be around so you’re going to have to learn for yourself." But I didn’t get the chance. I still struggle today with basic living skills. Slowly but surely I’m learning. I guess you could say I’m getting by.

Several years ago my mom and I were traveling from Arizona to Alabama in a car pulling a U-Haul trailer. In order to save money, we didn’t spend the nights in motels. Instead we would sleep in the car. One morning near the Oklahoma /Texas border, we were waking up to start the day, when mom got out of the car and fainted. She died in that rest area in Oklahoma, apparently from natural causes.

Losing a parent is one of the greatest disappointments one can have in life. I called my sisters, one in Huntsville, and one in Arizona to tell them that our mother had passed away. That was a devastating task.

When I finally got to Huntsville I was blessed with a great job. Little did I know, however, that I was beginning a downward spiral and quickly lost everything including my job and my apartment. I was even put out of my college classes after three years, because my grades weren’t measuring up. So I moved into the Downtown Rescue Mission. I started doing all right and even worked my way into a supervisory role. But not seeking help for my childhood trauma, plus having been diagnosed with adult ADD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Avoidant Personality Disorder, I developed another problem.

I became addicted to over-the-counter antihistimines, which also led to 3 different arrests for shoplifting. After attending a treatment center, I became aware that I was taking pills to sleep in an attempt to deal with the pain of past issues with my dad. I was afraid to go to sleep as a child for fear of what my dad would do to me. To this day sleep is still a struggle. Many nights I sleep little or not at all.

Sadly, some of the things in my past have left me with scars. There are a lot of things I can’t do, and a lot I have to pay for. But the biggest thing I can say in my life is GOD LOVES ME and I BELIEVE IT!

I gave my life to Christ several years ago at our church when it was meeting on 8th Avenue. Later, while staying at the rescue mission on 9th Avenue, my life was set on fire for God after hearing a man give his testimony at a chapel service. I had backslidden terribly because I didn’t place myself in the position to receive the proper support. Shortly after that, God blessed me with an apartment and an income again, but since I was never properly schooled and disciplined on how to be a proper steward of God’s finances I essentially put myself back into the same hole I was in before.

I was spending money I didn’t have…AND KNEW IT! It was nothing to check my account balance and see a negative $400 balance. I couldn’t eat the way I should. My cable was turned off. I barely paid my rent and my debts snowballed.

Thank God today I’m doing better. I’m surrounding myself with good people – NOT PERFECT PEOPLE – but I read the Bible every day and it helps me make it through the day. I’m a work in progress.
　
Today’s reading is one of the most difficult things I have ever done in my life – all of my deepest, darkest secrets out there for all to see and know. Some of you already knew some of these things, but the coolest thing is, GOD KNOWS ALL OF THIS ABOUT ME AND MORE - AND HE STILL WANTS TO WORK WITH ME, AND IF I DO WHAT HIS WORD TELLS ME TO DO HE WILL CONTINUE TO BLESS ME.

Thank you for the opportunity to share with you. May God bless you.

Star Trek & My Birthday

2009-06-07T20:03:00.010-05:00

The Star Trek movie has been out for a month but Deb and I waited to go with some friends to see it for my birthday. Though I can't really call myself a Trekkie, I enjoyed the original TV series years ago. I like futuristic. I enjoy most adventure stories. When the opening line of the TV series began with, "Space, the final frontier," I would nod my head in agreement. I grew up during the space race so exploring outer space resonated with me for that reason also.

I might be odd, or maybe since it was my birthday, I drew some paralells between the movie and my life up to now. If you haven't seen the movie and plan to, you may not want to read on. In fact, this blog entry won't make much sense to you without first viewing the film.

I do recommend the movie. It's fun as well as futuristic. Seeing it makes me wish that I had done that summer series on movies I thought about doing, because to me, there were some really significant spiritual overtones in this flick.

Here's where Star Trek, the movie, and my life and spiritual journey intersect.

I would love to have the opportunity for the older, wiser version of me to visit the younger. In the movie, a future version of Spock shares insight with himself as a young man. Wishing you could go back in time and talk to yourself to ward off some mistakes, make course corrections, etc., is not a new idea in literature and life. But the quantum physics stuff (the atomic world is nothing like the world we live in) of time travel dealt with in sci-fi means we wouldn't have to travel back in time, but forward in time to have a little chat with ourselves. What would you say to your self if you could travel forward (or backward if you just don't want to blow your mind that much)? My list is too long for here and now. But I do have a list, which I think means that the journey has been worthwhile, bad as well as good, because I've been growing.

Watching Star Trek I also theorized that I shouldn't get so uptight over my conflicted duality of natures. Again, Spock is the character in the movie that experienced a personality crisis that mirrors this point. Half human, half Vulcan, he fights the inner battle between logic and emotion. For Christ followers the inner wrestling match is between the human nature with which we're born, and the spiritual nature received when we make a faith commitment to Christ. Put very simply, our fallen nature doesn't mind breaking the laws that God has enacted for our overall and long term well being. Our new nature on the other hand wants to cooperate with the good things God is trying to do in us and in the world around us. Throughout our lives a duel is waged between these alter egos. But instead of being threatened by this inconvenient result of the fall, we need to adapt to it. Once Spock understood both natures his life became more balanced. The Christ follower knows that his journey will be complete only in heaven, when, and where, two natures will no longer compete. Until then we need to accept the rivalry within as part of our spiritual journey.

Friendship. Spock to Jim Kirk: "I have been, and always will be, your friend." Now it may seem hokey to you that this is one of my favorite cinematic quotes but I gladly own up to it. Having true friends is one of the greatest accomplishments of life. Having long-lasting, even lifetime friends, even more so. Star Trek, the movie, furnishes interesting and well-choreographed prequel information on Kirk, Spock, "Bones," "Scotty," and even the lesser characters that made the TV series a cult classic. To me the TV series as well as the movie is about friendship. The friendship between Kirk and Spock was born of conflict, tempered by crisis, and cemented by common goals. The lives of two tested adventurers intersect and follow a common course, which is a big part of how deep friendships are forged. Superficial frienships are a dime a dozen, or, 50 cents per dozen, accounting for inflation. But you get what you pay for.

Lookout Lodge

2009-05-19T12:08:00.011-05:00

Last week we rented "Lookout Lodge" in the Smoky Mountains and the entire family was able to set aside several days to be together. (I'm in the back row holding our granddaugher Caroline. She is teething - that's why she has her fingers in her mouth.)

Observations:

- The peace and quiet of the mountains created a great atmosphere, not only for family time, but also for time with God. I went out on the deck and talked to my Heavenly Father morning, noon and night. It was spiritually invigorating. I also read quite a bit of Swindoll's biography of the Apostle Paul.

- Deb and I are so pleased with who our children are - and with who they married. Sometimes parents grow weary with the sacrifices they make, but I encourage any young parent to take the long view, especially when you are tired, spent and putting off personal endeavors so that your children can have the right kind of environment in which to grow and learn. When they become healthy, happy, Christ-following adults the satisfaction is unbelievable!

- As you can tell on the front row, our daughter Bethany (blonde) and her husband David are expecting a child, due in August - a boy - Isaac! Bethany will complete her work for her master's degree before Isaac gets here; David already has his master's. Our daughter-in-law Keshia (brunette) and our son Brandon are expecting their first child - also a boy - Carter - in September! Keshia just completed her MBA and Brandon is going back to work on his master's this fall. Brooke and Matthew (on the back row between Deb and I) have their master's degree in parenthood! Andrew (in Matthew's lap) is 2 & a half and the twins are 6 months. They are home from Spain on missionary furlough. When I watch them or the rest of the family with the children I know how blessed Deb and I are to have a family that cherishes life!

- I know why Jesus took vacations. It is great to refresh and replenish the supply in your spiritual well. I am now more focused and energetic than when we left on vacation. Take time off now and then to be alone with God. Take time off now and then to be alone with your family. Deb prefers the beach. So next year, as we do the every-other-year routine, we'll probably be there. But at least we'll realize that the world will go on revolving while we're not working.

Significant Events in My Life

2009-04-20T15:07:00.002-05:00

A friend of mine, Mike Hall, did something similar to this for his blog and I enjoyed the idea and decided to "borrow" it. I have probably blogged some of this info before but it's been a few years back.

I haven't blogged for a while. My excuse is that I have been intensely preoccupied with various and sundry worthwhile activities.

But here are a few significant events in my past.

1. My mother's conversion to Christ, somewhere in late 1965 or early 1966.

Through the invitation of a co-worker mom attended a revival at the New Home Free Will Baptist Church in Piney Creek, North Carolina where we were living at the time. The evangelist was her older sister's brother-in-law, Kermit Childers. Everything changed in our home on that day. A driving force in my life has been to see everything change in other people's homes because of being introduced to Christ. When I remember that day and what it meant to my family, my two older brothers and I coming to Christ after we moved back to Maryland, I work past any hurdles of doing ministry today in order to keep making Christ known to others.

2. The day Christ saved me.

It was the summer of '66, shortly after my 12th birthday, at Mt. Calvary Free Will Baptist Church in Perryman, Maryland. I had only been in a church a few times in my life before then. God's love, as I had already seen demonstrated in my mom's life, compelled me to come to Christ. I'm not a mystic but that was a mystical (rare and mysterious) experience. I've told thousands of people through the years in sharing the good news about Jesus with them, that you don't have to have an emotional upheaval to know you're saved. But I also realize that we're all different. I can be emotional. Besides, that day I stepped into a new world. I examined Christ for myself and saw that He was more than I could have imagined! Following Christ has never grown old!

3. The day I committed to pastoral ministry - November 10, 1973.

I was 17, and had been thinking for a long time that God's call to preach had graciously been extended to me. That Sunday night I told my church. Interestingly, my wife Deb, whom I had not yet met, was born on November 10. We have two reasons to celebrate this date on the calendar.

I wasn't one of those guys who ran from the idea of being a preacher. In fact, I thought it was cool to preach ever since I came to Christ at age 12. I just take my time in thinking things through. Many nights as a teen I would dream of standing in front of a congregation, proclaiming the Word of God.

4. The day I met my wife.

I don't know the exact date, but we were on a choir bus coming back from being on tour. It was late and we ended up sitting beside one another and talking for several hours. I wouldn't say it was love at first sight but it was, "I want to get to know this girl better at first sight." That was nearly 35 years ago and I am still amazed at God's answer to my prayer for a wife that is so perfect for me.

5. The day Deb and I married - May 14, 1977.

This was about three weeks before I turned 21. Deb would turn 21 in November. We were young and full of love and life. Those were exciting and fun days.

6. The birth of our children, Brooke, Brandon, & Bethany.

Our children are the apple of my eye. They probably won't even realize until their children are grown how much they mean to me.

7. The birth of our grandchildren.

I melt like a popsicle on a July sidewalk when I see the grandchildren -three now and two to arrive this fall.

Lessons Learned from Teaching Kids

2009-03-10T12:25:00.003-05:00

Every once in a while I like to report on my turn on the rotation of teaching kids on Wednesday night. Last week I had my wife Deb lead the adult Bible discussion while I got to learn from the children.

Since we're in 40 Days of Love at Pathway right now, I decided to teach the children on the topic of love from 1 Corinthians 13. I used the Contemporary English Version of the Bible since it is supposed to have an understanding level simple enough for 5th graders.

I had the kids read the verses one by one and we discussed whether or not we were good at showing love the way a particular verse talked about:

Do I take turns patiently without getting upset?
Do I get jealous of a friend's new clothes?
Do I show off or act as if others don't matter?
Am I polite and respectful of my parents and teachers?
Do I let someone else have the biggest piece of cake?
Do I call others names and try to get back at them?
Do I stay angry at someone for what he or she did?
Do I look for good in someone others say is bad?
Do I stand up for someone whom others pick on?
Do I believe that God can change difficult people?
Do I encourage others to do and be their best?
Do I choose to love others even when they disappoint?
Do I refuse to give up on someone, no matter what?

That's a pretty good list for adults to consider, let alone children!

If the children thought they were pretty good at showing love in a particular way, then they got to write their name beside that question. If not, they put a little star beside it to remind them what they needed to work on.

When the Bible was passed around and came to one little girl to read, she said, "I don't know how to read. I read backwards."

In a previous teaching/learning experience with the children I had noticed this same girl was able to put puzzle pieces together more quickly than anyone else in the class so I knew she was intelligent. (I had been using the puzzle as an object lesson about the story of Esther and how God put all of the pieces together in her life to bring out a beautiful result. As we put the puzzle together we talked.)

So, now trying to encourage her to read I said, "Oh, you have dyslexia. Did you know some of the smartest people who ever lived had dyslexia." (Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, etc.)

When I said this her mouth dropped open but she didn't say a word.

We went on reading a few more verses and talking about which areas of showing love that we each needed to work on.

When I asked for the next verse to be read she said, "Give me the Bible. It's my turn to read!" She sounded out the words slowly but with just a little help on a few big words, she was able to complete the reading.

After we discussed that verse the Bible was supposed to be passed on but she said, "Pastor Brian, is it okay if I read the rest of the verses?"

*******

Another humorous incident in this same teaching setting was when I asked, "If you love others, why shouldn't you brag?" One little girl piped up and said, "Because you might hurt yourself!"

Kids are so cool!

"Great" or "Good?"

2009-03-02T18:33:00.011-06:00

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"At the turn of the 20th Century, a disillusioned man who had failed at almost everything he had attempted wrote to his sister, 'When I was young I longed to write a great novel that should win me fame. Now that I am getting old my first book is written to amuse children. For, aside from my evident inability to do anything 'great,' I have learned to regard fame as a will-o-the-wisp...but to please a child is a sweet and lovely thing that warms one's heart.'

"The man was Lyman Frank Baum, and his best-known book began to take form when a group of children, led by his own four boys, waylaid him one evening in his modest Chicago home, demanding a story. After a hard day's work, Baum often turned to fantasy as many men turned to alcohol. Sitting down with the children surrounding him, he began to talk. He gave no thought to what he was saying and later wrote in amazement, 'The characters surprised even me - it was as though they were living people.' Baum told of a little Kansas farm girl named Dorothy who was carried by a cyclone to a strange land where she met a live scarecrow, a man made of tin, and a cowardly lion. One of the children asked, 'What was the name of the land, Mr. Baum?' Stumped, Baum looked around him for inspiration. In the next room were filing cabinets, and one bore the letters O-Z. 'The land of OZ!' exclaimed the storyteller and continued with the tale, unaware that he had added a new word to the English language." (From "The Father of Oz, by Daniel P. Mannix)

It appears to me that L. Frank Baum was finally able to do something "great," but it came out of an effort to do something "good," to entertain little children.

How often, I wonder, do we aspire to greatness when God wants us to aspire to goodness? (And, in turn, greatness becomes the end result?)

Jesus taught us that goodness and faithfulness (loyalty) are the primary characteristics by which we will be evaluated when we stand before Him. (Matthew 25:21) Goodness - not greatness.

One of my favorite new TV shows is "Eleventh Hour," a CBS drama about Dr. Jacob Hood, a biophysicist and special science advisor to the U.S. government. Hood spends his life in "pursuit of those who would abuse and misuse scientific discoveries and breakthroughs for their own gain."

In one episode he hunts and eventually confronts a physician known only as Geppetto, who has cloned several children in order to use them as spare parts to replace her failing organs and save her own life. (Makes one think what dark goals may actually be reached by people of science devoid of conscience and character.)

Anyway, as Dr. Hood confronts the selfish "puppetmaster" (undoubtedly code-named Geppetto for the similarity to the toymaker who created Pinocchio) on her sick bed, an interesting exchange brings the entertainment to a denouement. Geppetto, thinking she is about to receive body parts from the cloned children that will help her regain her health, is instead met by Dr. Hood with the news that the game is up.

Geppetto: "You are good Dr. Hood...but you will never be great."

Dr. Hood: "I can live with that."

And so should every follower of Christ be able to say, "Good...I can live with that."

Church Sign Message Ideas

2009-02-27T14:16:00.005-06:00

Sent out an email to some church family members this afternoon to request any creative ideas on what to put on the church sign message board.

I'm always looking for something catchy that might just arouse the curiosity of an unchurched person; something that would motivate them to be our guest.

Got some serious answers, some humorous. Here's a sampling:

1 - "No snake handling this Sunday." (Now that WOULD get attention!) (By the way, no snake handling ANY Sunday!)

2 - "Our pastor can do the Vulcan greeting." (This is a reference to the fact that I sometimes gesture like Mr. Spock on Star Trek when I'm speaking - the fingers of my hand become separated at the middle. No, I don't do the Vulcan mind meld or immobilize anyone by squeezing their trapezius muscle.)

3 - "Stop in and worship. You ain't doin' nothin' else on Sunday morning."

4 - "Looking for real change? Start by visiting us."

5 - "Visit Pathway Church and see what it's like."

6 - "Come to Pathway this Sunday on Jamie's birthday. Jamie goes to church here." (Or something like that. I erased the email before I thought about making this list but how funny!)

7 - "Satan made someone litter on our parking lot." (Perhaps we should offer a reward?)

8 - "No more room for visitors." (reverse psychology)

9 - "Wish you'd been here last week. It was great!" or "Last week was great. Come in and see the sequel."

10 - "Do you need a spiritual stimulus?" or "Visit Sunday to receive your spiritual stimulus."

I love the people of Pathway! Check the church sign out to see which idea is used. If you have a good suggestion please let me know by leaving a comment on this blog.

Couldn't Have Said it Better

2009-01-23T13:13:00.002-06:00

Check out this post from my son on his blog.

http://www.brandonatwood.blogspot.com/

American Idiot

2009-01-14T17:20:00.009-06:00

Deb and I are big AI fans. We laughed our heads off last night watching the season 8 premiere. One of the reasons I have been a fan since season 1 is the laughter. Deb didn't start watching with me until she heard me laughing from the other end of the house.

Sometimes I wonder if I should laugh at the untalented contestants who make fools of themselves. But I keep watching. I like the competition aspect of the show, and of course the talent, but I think the producers know that "funny" is an essential ingredient to a winning formula. I just hate to see the contestants who've been lied to by family or friends who've told them they have real talent when they stink it up.

Note to all of us: don't lie to people and tell them things about themselves that aren't true. It's good to compliment others - but don't go overboard. They're believing you may lead to embarrassment later in life when the truth surfaces.

I think some of the contestants know they're lousy - they just want recognition or they're pulling a prank. Some may have even lost a bet - I don't know. But I'm sure the tears of some who bomb at the auditions aren't the crocodile kind.

I am trying hard not to think that Jesus is displeased with my laughter at others on this show. I've already given up watching extreme fighting because I don't think the Lord approves. I hope the Holy Spirit doesn't make me give up AI for laughing at people.

Sometimes Procrastination is God's Will

2009-01-10T20:39:00.004-06:00

"Wait on the Lord..."

Psalms 27:14

Psalms 37:34

Proverbs 20:22

Isaiah 40:31

New Personal Trends for '09

2009-01-10T09:23:00.005-06:00

I've already noticed several things going in a new direction for me this New Year.

1. Nothing wrong with enjoying life. I've begun to listen to country music more in '09. There have always been some aspects of country music that I liked and those that were distasteful to me. I don't care for the "honky tonk" twang or the lyrics that uplift beer guzzling and the date-of-the-month mentality. But I do like the sincerity and authenticity of a lot of country music. The ballads are especially mesmerizing sometimes and I enjoy the fun-loving songs too.

Having grown up listening to bluegrass I especially love gifted instrumentation, be it acoustic guitar-picking, fiddle, mandolin, or banjo...and yes, a dobro once in while.

It's just that I've noticed that while I'm in my pickup surfing the radio I linger longer on the country stations than I did before.

2. Stay on solid footing. I have to be sure that my right knee joint connects - especially going up or down stairs. I was going out the back door the other night to get some firewood for the fireplace and suddenly found myself on the patio when I thought I was going to be on the second step down. Hey, I'm over 50.

3. Don't get ahead of God. After crossing the threshold of a New Year I've noticed that God is bigger and I'm calmer. I have always had a BIG, BIG image of God. But I haven't always remembered to apply it every waking moment. One of my worst mistakes being a Christ follower has been to get ahead of God. What happens when you get ahead of someone? You're not together. Man, not walking together with God is a waste of life.

4. It's okay to be me. I've read a lot of articles about how teaching and preaching to the emergent church and the current postmodern culture needs to be more pictures and less structure. Okay, okay, I get it. But I don't give or get as much from pictures as I do structured and sequenced presentations. I will try now and again to teach and preach with more visual and storytelling emphases, but I was made for organizing my thoughts and words in sequence.

I hope you have a great 2009 being the best you that God created you to be!

Where Have You Been Chinquapin?

2009-01-02T22:53:00.004-06:00

I finally completed my books to our three children and that is what has kept me from blogging for a while. The book is one of those fill-in-the pages volumes entitled, "A Father's Legacy - Your Life Story in Your Own Words."

I presented the first copy to our oldest daughter while in Spain to see the newly arrived grandtwins. Then at Christmas I presented copies to our youngest daughter and son while they were visiting us here at home.

Handwriting three copies (it's a limited edition) took some time. I found myself utilizing every free moment for quite a while. It's the kind of thing that isn't fabulous - just some facts about my childhood and life that I want my kids to be familiar with so that they might understand me a little more and understand why I interacted in their lives growing up the way I did. It's the kind of thing I would have liked to have had from my dad but he died young. (Not that I have any premonition of dying anytime soon. I plan to live for a long time on this earth unless Christ returns soon.)

Writing down these thoughts was difficult at times. Some entries brought back tough memories. Some made me feel self-aggrandizing, when all the while I just wanted to communicate some stuff to our three children who are grown and starting families of their own. I hope they see how much I love them. I hope they understand my foibles and I definitely hope we stay close even though the miles separate us.

This adventure made me back up quite a bit on one of my life's crazy dreams - the fantasy of one day writing a book. It's hard work. I knew that already from all the books I've read on writing, but this really opened my eyes. If something this comparatively simple takes so much self-discipline, then I think buckling down and writing an original work must be mind-boggling. The only time I've come close to writing anything, book-wise, has been in the wee early morning hours when I couldn't sleep and there were absolutely no distractions at all.

Seems my imagination is wide open during the witching hours from midnight until 3 am. I've often thought I should keep a pen and pad of paper next to the bed. But I always think it would be unfair to awaken Deb just because I can't sleep. So far I have most often rebelled against getting completely out of bed to write when the thoughts course o'er my mind.

If I ever write a real book it will be via sleep-deprivation.

Relationships Trump Siteseeing

2008-12-08T00:01:00.004-06:00

Last time for me in Spain was four years ago. Unfortunately I wasn't able to return two years ago for the birth of our first grandchild, Andrew, as Deb did.

This time she got to be in Spain for the birth of the grandtwins, Caroline & Daniel, and I arrived a few days after their birth.

Last time in Spain we were able to travel and see some amazing sites: the Roman aqueduct still standing in Segovia; the throne room where Columbus was commissioned at El Escorial (and what a library!); The Valley of the Fallen; Madrid; and much more.

This time we have spent almost the entire time at home with the newborns and instead of sites we have met more of Brooke & Matthew's friends.

We met Raissa, who we'd heard a lot about, Brooke's friend from the Phillipines. They met at language school several years ago. She gave over eight hours of her time on Sunday to take over two hundred family photos and is a very sweet person. Raissa speaks fluent English so that allowed us to get to know her a little better.

We met Orlando and Anyela, immigrants from Columbia who dropped by with traditional Columbian food before leaving Spain to go home to South America for a month. They spoke no English and Deb and I spoke no Spanish, yet through a little interpretation we enjoyed great company.

We met Lannah, from Great Britain, Pastor Jhon Fredy's wife. Pastor Jhon is from Columbia and speaks no English, but Lannah is a Linguistics Major at Cambridge University who speaks English, Spanish and French. One Sunday morning in Villalba she was looking for another evangelical church while visiting Spain and asked Pastor John for directions to it. He told her that he was on his way to his church and she was welcome to attend.

Can you say "providence?" I knew you could.

Lannah came over with Susan, Matthew's mom, while their husbands were in a church council meeting. Her British accent was a pleasure to hear and she was a pleasure to meet.

Rubén and María, with their daughter Maria, almost five, came over on Sunday as well. They are good friends of Brooke and Matthew's that we met before. Once again, not much communication for Deb and I, but it was very enjoyable to listen to the animated Spanish of everyone else. I have a new-found desire to learn the Spanish tongue.

A few other people came over while I was asleep. I hate that I missed them.

Originally I thought nothing could beat the site seeing of my first visit to Spain - but I was wrong. Nothing beats relationships! Being with family and making new friends is a more cherished memory than any castle, museum or architectural wonder could ever be!

Meeting and getting to know Caroline and Daniel, and seeing Brooke, Matthew and Andrew again was best of all of course. And it is always a pleasure to get to visit with Matthew's parents, Jeff and Susan. But meeting more of their friends and getting to know them had a charm for me that reinforces the teachings of God's Word - Love God supremely, then love other people like you love yourself.

It's great to love history, art and architecture, but they can't love you back!

Been Thinkin'

2008-11-25T18:53:00.002-06:00

Haven't blogged in several days - since 40 Days of Hope came to a completion.

Here's what I've been thinking about...

Our church responded exceptionally well to 40 Days of Hope, especially the others-focused hope projects! They gave money to purchase 100 Bibles for children of persecuted Christians around the world; filled 42 shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child, a ministry of Samaritan's Purse; and gave a boatload of coats, sweaters, socks and gloves for First Stop for the Homeless - which were delivered today by church member Carl Roberts!
The church's anniversary celebration Sunday was a good time for the church to celebrate a thanksgiving together. The testimonies about the good things God had done during 40 Days of Hope, the filling of the worship center and the fellowship hall, the guests, and the laughter were all encouraging.
I missed Deb's vocals and her expertise at the keyboards Sunday, especially on Indescribable! I blew it a time or two on vocals and rythym guitar but thankfully Jeff on the bass and Teresa on the drums/vocals covered for me!
BAMA football has been fun this season since they're undefeated and number one in the nation. The Iron Bowl vs. Auburn should be interesting this Saturday and I am going to be watching the game with some friends from the church since Deb is in Spain. This is the first season in 31 years of marriage that Deb has actually sat down and watched complete games with me!
Our son Brandon and his wife Keshia live in Muncie, so I have been watching Ball State from Muncie play football every chance I get. They too (like BAMA) are undefeated and are even on TV beating Western Michigan in the background while I type.
Four different men have approached me for financial help in the last four days. Times are tough but keeping pace with one financially needy man per day will take resources only God can provide and I know that He will.
THE TWINS SHOULD ARRIVE ANY DAY NOW! Our whole family is on super-alert. I wake up every night wondering if perhaps they've been born in Spain. Can't wait to see Brooke and Matthew again after 14 months apart - and meet Carolina and Daniel!!!
I'm ready for a vacation. Haven't taken one this year, except for a few days July 4th weekend. Spain is calling and I'm going to answer!

The Ultimate Hope

2008-11-22T08:27:00.002-06:00

THE FINAL WORD...

DAY THIRTY NINE: Saturday, November 22, 2008

"We are filled with hope, as we wait for the glorious return of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ." Titus 2:13 (CEV)

When we read or listen to the latest news at home and around the world our hope can be severly tried. Terrorism, economic woes, nuclear threats from rogue nations, natural disasters, crime, etc., all test our hope for the future.

Yet the Bible promises that an end to conflict, need, and natural disasters is coming.

The ultimate hope for this world however is not in the efforts of man but in the return of Jesus Christ. When He comes, "Nation will no longer fight against nation, nor will they train for war anymore." (Isaiah 2:4)

The assurance of Christ's return inspires us to live pure lives even in seasons of temptation and trouble. "This hope makes us keep ourselves holy, just as Christ is holy." (1 John 3:3)

As we look forward to Christ's return we are not motivated by guilt and fear, but rather by a sense of expectant anticipation that makes us want to be living a life pleasing to Christ when he returns.

It is this ultimate hoe that energizes us when the headlines have demoralized us. This is the focus that enables us to serve God and one another consistently even when our faith is tested and tried.

Action step for today: Read today's headlines in print or on the Internet, then thank God they aren't the final word!

Character Produces Hope

2008-11-21T05:13:00.003-06:00

DAY THIRTY EIGHT: Friday, November 21, 2008

Read Romans 5

And patience produces character, and character produces hope. Romans 5:4 (NCV)

As we near the end of this 40-day journey of hope, have you noticed that your hope has been put to the test?

The Greek word translated "character" in Romans 5 has to do with the process of "proving."

As a kid I grew up near Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. At the time it was the largest army ordnance center in the world. They would "test" the military's big guns by firing them out over the Chesapeake Bay. Our house would often shake and the windows would rattle during the process. But this was how they "proved" whether or not the weapons were effective.

Likewise, "testing" proves our character.

Because this past month or so has been an intense time of emphasizing hope you have probably gone through some tests to see whether or not you would have an attitude of hope, or if you would give in to despair.

The intent of our journey has been for you to grow in hope. But don't worry if you have failed some tests. We all do. God is gracious enough to allow us to learn from our mistakes.

Action Step for Today: Ask God to forgive you for allowing any despair to overtake you instead of hope. Name the specific times to Him that you've failed, but thank Him that He won't disown you for them.

Scoot Over and Make Room for Hope

2008-11-20T08:22:00.005-06:00

DAY THIRTY SEVEN: Thursday, November 20, 2008

Read James 2:1-12

"If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, "You can't stand over there, or else sit on the floor" - well, doesen't this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives? James 2:3-4 (NLT)

An American minister called to speak in Winnipeg, Canada awoke on Sunday morning to a couple of feet of snow. His host called him and told him that the snowstorm arrived at such a time that, even in Canada, they would have to cancel church. He was directed to a deli inside a buse depot a block and a half from his hotel room for meals.

The place was packed when he arrived but some people moved over and made room for him. Many of them were there only to get in out of the cold. He ordered a bowl of soup and a few minutes later someone opened the door and a shout came from behind the counter, "Hey, shut the door! You're letting all the warm air out." In came a rather unkempt woman. A couple of people made room for her and she sat down.

"What do you want?" the waiter scowled.

"I'll just take a glass of water," she replied.

He sat the water in front of her and said, "Now what do you want?"

She replied, "The water is all."

He said, "Lady, either you're going to have to order something or else get out."

She asked, "Can't I just stay in out of the cold?"

He said, "No, you have to order something or leave."

Slowly she scooted out of her seat and started to leave. But when she did the people on her right and left also got up to leave. Then the people on each side of them got up to leave. Slowly, most everyone else started to leave, and the man in the greasy apron said, "All right, come on back. You can stay."

She sat back down - and the waiter even gave her a bowl of soup.

The out-of-town minister asked, "Who is that lady?" The man next to him replied, "I don't know. But if she's not welcome, I'm not welcome."

Action step for today: Share hope with someone who has been turned away by others.

What Are You Waiting For?

2008-11-19T08:29:00.003-06:00

DAY THIRTY SIX: Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Read Proverbs 13

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life." Proverbs 13:12 (NLT)

It was at Valley Forge, over 200 years ago, that the people of the United States proved that they had the courage to be a nation. Yet even though Valley Forge is known as a turning point in America's War for Independence, it was a time of battling the enemies of hunger, cold and despair.

It was at these plains in Pennsylvania after two disastrous defeats at the hands of the British, that General George Washington led his discouraged troops in retreat for the winter. As the winds blew across the camps, the temperatures dropped far below zero in one of the worst winters in history. Washington himself wrote: "There are men in camp unfit for duty, because they are barefoot and naked."

The soldiers lived in small huts built of logs and clay. Many sat up all night by the fire because there were not enough blankets. There was near famine - men went for weeks without meat. But Washington insisted on strict discipline for strength as he prayed to God to hold the army together and provide future victory.

When spring finally arrived they took count. One third of the army had died and another third had quit and gone home. The remaining third simply marched out and won the Revolutionary War - and the United States of America was born.

Action step for today: Refuse to give up on the hope that God is going to give you victory where you once suffered defeat.

How High Can You Hope?

2008-11-18T08:57:00.003-06:00

DAY THIRTY FIVE: Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Read Ephesians 3:14-21

"Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think." Ephesians 3:20 (NLT)

Chuck Swindoll writes: "Several years ago I met a gentleman who served on one of Walt Disney's original advisory boards. What amazing stories he told! Those early days were tough; but that remarkable, creative visionary refused to give up. I especially appreciated the man's sharing with me how Disney responded to disagreements. He said that Walt would occasionally present some unbelievable, extensive dream he was entertaining. Almost without exception, the members of his board would gulp, blink, and stare back at him in disbelief, resisting even the thought of such a thing.

But unless every member resisted the idea, Disney usually didn't pursue it. Yes, you heard that correctly. The challenge wasn't big enough to merit his time and creative energy unles they were unanimously in disagreement!" (Living Above the Level of Mediocrity, p. 107)

The longer Paul's pen touched the manuscript paper on which he wrote to the Ephesians Christ followers, the more enthused he became! After he had explained God's wonderful plan to create a church that included everybody, in the first part of Ephesians 3, he then prayed that we would all get a grip on God's unlimited resources! If God can create a church made up of diverse individuals He "is able through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think!"

Action step for today: Do something that God wants you to do, that you previously believed you couldn't do.

Hope is an Attitude

2008-11-17T09:11:00.003-06:00

DAY THIRTY FOUR: Monday, November 17,2008

Read Psalms 42:1-11

"Why am I so sad? Why am I so upset? I should put my hope in God and keep praising Him, my Savior and my God." Psalms 42:5 (NCV)

A hospital teacher assigned to help children stay caught up with their assignments was surprised to discover that her newest pupil was a horribly burned young boy in great pain. As she hesitatingly stumbled through the lesson on nouns and pronouns the boy was in so much discomfort that he barely responded. She felt ashamed for putting him through such a senseless exercise.

The next morning a nurse in the burn unit asked her, "What did you do to that boy?" Before the teacher could finish her outburst of apologies, the nurse interupted her: "You don't understand. We've been very worried about him. But ever since you were here yesterday, his whole attitude has changed. He's fighting back; he's responding to treatment. It's as if he's decided to live."

The boy later explained that he had completely given up hope until he met with the teacher. It all changed with a simple realization. With joyful tears, the boy said, "They wouldn't send a teacher to work on nouns and pronouns with a boy who was dying would they?"

"God began doing a good work in you, and I am sure He will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again." Philippians 1:6 (NCV)

Action step for today: Ask God to help you reprogram your attitude about your problems from despair to hope!

Testing 101

2008-11-16T08:42:00.004-06:00

DAY THIRTY THREE: Sunday, November 16, 2008

Read Job 1:6-22

"But what do you think would happen if you reached down and took away everything that is his? He'd curse you right to your face, that's what." Satan - quoted in Job 1:11 (The Message)

The devil is consistently looking for people he can tempt to blame God for their troubles. Thankfully Christ followers are promised that we will not be tested beyond our limitations. (1 Corinthians 10:13) But we will be tested. Our only hope is to embrace the realization that God is enough.

When Job's world fell apart he suffered greatly. But God did not leave him. Hope is a repetitive theme in the book of Job. Even though the main character wrestled with his grueling circumstances, as do we all sometimes, he remained firm in his commitment to place his trust in God.

Job said, "I know the my Savior lives, and at the end He will stand on the earth." Job 19:25 (CEV)

It is not today's trouble but tomorrow's triumph that matters most! And the follower of Christ is assured that at the end Jesus Christ will reign and His followers will reign with Him! (2 Timothy 2:12)

Action step for today: Pass the test God is allowing you to undergo right now in your life by telling Him that you realize that He is with you; that He is enough; that even if you suffer now, you are thankful that you will one day reign with Him since you have placed your hope in Him.

Befriend someone being tested, not by preaching to them, but by providing something they need.

I'm Covered!

2008-11-15T19:38:00.003-06:00

DAY THIRTY TWO: Saturday, November 15, 2008

Read Psalm 91

"He rescues you from the snares of fowlers hoping to destroy you; he covers you with His feathers, and you find shelter underneath His wings. Psalm 91:3 (Jerusalem Bible)

How often have we heard the sad story of someone suffering from a catastrophic illness, requiring expensive medical attention, but they're not covered by health insurance? Or someone experiences the trauma of a fire or flood which destroys not only their home, but deprives them of all of their earthly belongings - but they weren't covered by fire or flood insurance?

The insurance industry is one of the largest in the world. People want the peace of mind of knowing that they're covered in the event of a catastrophe. From auto insurance to life insurance a large chunk of our personal income is spent trying to purchase security from ruin.

The best coverage cannot be purchased from Allstate, Travelers, or any other members of the mob of insurers. It's a free gift from God! The Psalmist used the picture of a mother hen protecting her chicks. "He covers you with His feathers, and you find shelter underneath His wings."

How reassuring to be able to say in the midst of life's uncertainties, "I'm covered!" And this coverage is free to the insured! There are no premiums! No pre-existing conditions can keep you from enrolling! It is found in Christ, by making a personal faith commitment to Him!

Action step for today: If you are a Christ follower breathe a sigh of relief that you're covered! If not, enroll today!

What's Love Got to Do With It?

2008-11-14T08:57:00.003-06:00

DAY THIRTY ONE: Friday, November 14, 2008

Read 1 Corinthians 13

"For now there are faith, hope and love. But of these three, the greatest is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13

Faith, hope and love are intricately woven triplets in the life of the Christ follower - with love being the greatest - but why? Why does the Bible categorize love above faith? Without faith we would not even know God. Why is love greater than hope? Without hope we would give up.

For one thing, love is the greatest because it will last forever. Those going to heaven will no longer need faith and hope once they arrive there because the objects of our faith and hope will have been fulfilled as we experience the immediate presence of God. But in eternity we will go on loving God and one another.

Perhaps love is the greatest because it is an attribute of God Himself. He does not need faith and hope as humans do. And maybe love is greatest because it has an outward focus while hope and faith are inwardly targeted. Faith and hope are for me. Love should be more than just for myself. I was created to love God and others.

No matter whatever reason love is the greatest, it is important for us to apply this principle here and now. Christ's followers are to be people of love. Loving God. Loving others. These are the greatest of God's purposes for our lives. (Matthew 22:37-38)

Action step for today: Show God that you love Him in a tangible way. Show another Christ follower (not a family member) you love him or her. Show and unchurched individual that you love him or her.

What Are You Listening To?

2008-11-13T09:34:00.002-06:00

DAY THIRTY: Thursday, November 13, 2008

Read Colossians 1:1-12

"...what you hope for is kept safe for you in heaven. You first heard about this hope when you believed the true message, which is the good news." Colossians 1:5 (CEV)

Some time ago a man was staying in a cottage in the Swiss Alps. Early one morning he heard what sounded like an earthquake. Hurriedly he got out of bed and ran to the front desk and asked if there was something wrong, if the mountains were breaking up.

The man at the front desk explained, "Sir, we are on the west side of the mountain. As the sun comes up in the east, the snow and ice expand as they begin to warm. The expansion causes a large crashing noise. It's not the end of the world, it's just the beginning of a new day."

Today, news organizations may trumpet the alarm bell of disaster in the financial sectors. Tomorrow, they may report riots in the streets. The day after that, we may all be warned that another terrorist attack of major proportions is in the planning.

But the sky is never falling for the Christ follower.

Even the worst scenario is not enough to shake us from the hope found in Christ! Our hope is kept safe in heaven. Whether large or small, commom or cataclysmic, no noise of doom is loud enough to drown out the promise of God!

Action step for today: Listen to one of your favorite Christian artists and sing along with them the uplifting and positive message found in Christ!

Unshakable Confidence

2008-11-12T08:55:00.005-06:00

DAY TWENTY NINE: Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Read Hebrews 11

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1 (NIV)

Why do some people persevere in spite of disappointment while others are, at worst, discouraged to the point of quitting, or at best, frozen in a state of non-activity, not knowing what to do?

Hope makes the difference. And faith is what fuels our hope.

We believe in God even though we have not seen Him. Yet this kind of faith is not "blind" faith. The evidence of His existence and His work is all around us - in creation, in conscience, and specifically in the written Word of God, the Bible, and the Living Word of God, Jesus, who rose from the dead. (See Romans 1 and 1 Corinthians 15)

Because we know God is real and Jesus is alive, all the promises of God's Word are reliable. When disappointments come our way, as they inevitably will, we don't give up or even falter in our attempts to do what God wants us to do.

We are certain that God is with us. We know for sure that He cares and answers our prayers, heals our hurts and provides for our needs. This unshakable faith and immovable hope enables us to keep going when we're tired, dazed, hurt, searching, lonely and even struggling.

Action step for today: Tell God what discourages you, makes you feel like quitting or has left you inactive. Then begin again a worthwhile activity that you had given up on.

Have You Lamented Lately?

2008-11-11T09:33:00.003-06:00

DAY TWENTY EIGHT: Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Read Jeremiah 17:1-18

"...blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence...You alone are my hope in the day of disaster." Jeremiah 17:7 & 17 (NLT)

Many people misread the book of Jeremiah. They think it is a judgmental book filled with the stern warnings of a harsh prophet. Actually, it is a book of hope from the loving heart of God channeled through the life of a tenderhearted pastor.

Like Jesus, Jeremiah wept for the way people suffered. This spiritual shepherd with a tough job even wrote another book entitled, "Lamentations," because of the magnitude of his tears. To "lament" is to express sorrow or mourning. As "The Weeping Prophet," no one was more troubled over the plight of his fellow man than Jeremiah, and no one showed it more.

Where do we find the strength to enter into the sufferings of others as Jeremiah did? It comes only by making the Lord our "hope and confidence." He alone is our "hope in the day of disaster."

When we roll up our sleeves and open our hearts to the suffering in the world around us we will experience a portion of their pain. We will share in their tears. That is how it should be.

But we cannot continue to serve others without a consistent inflow of hope in God. We will grow tired. We will struggle. We will lose confidence. But we will be blessed when we make the Lord our hope!

Action step for today: Share someone's suffering.

Acting Like People of Hope

2008-11-10T22:18:00.003-06:00

DAY TWENTY SEVEN: Monday, November 10, 2008

Read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

"My friends, we want you to understand how it will be for those followers who have already died. Then you won't grive over them and be like people who don't have any hope." 1 Thessalonians 4:13 (CEV)

Somone was spreading rumors around the First Century church of Thessalonica in Greece. Not complaints about how much time the pastor spent playing golf, but false teaching about the return of Christ and life after death.

Paul the apostle wrote to clear up the misunderstandings that had been propogated. Jesus is coming again! He will bring back with Him the souls of all His followers who died previous to His return. When Christ returns, anyone alive who is committed to Him by faith will meet Him in the air - body and soul - and the bodies of previously deceased Christ followers will be reunited with their souls! What a victory celebration that will bring about! What a reunion!

When First Thessalonians was written the pagan world did not believe in the hope of life after death. Its no wonder their philosophers wrote: "Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow you may die." But God's message to the Christ followers at Thessalonica on the other hand was one of moral purity, upright ethics, and love toward God and others.

That is what hope does. It makes us better citizens of this world who are also citizens of the world to come! We should not live like people who have no hope - aimless, desperate and without a moral compass.

Action step for today: Take a moral inventory of your life - what you're doing right or wrong - and make any needed changes.

International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church

2008-11-09T19:59:00.003-06:00

DAY TWENTY SIX: Sunday, November 9, 2008

Read Hebrews 13:1-9

"Remember those who are in prison as if you were in prison with them. Remember those who are suffering as if you were suffering with them." Hebrews 13:3 (NCV)

ONE HOPE is the thems of this year's observance of the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, which is being observed today by Christ followers all around the world.

In addition to prayer, this year's emphasis is to raise money to purchase Bibles for children in areas of the world where Christ followers are persecuted.

"In many countries, Christian children have no accesss to Bibles or Christian materials. They are fearful of something terrible happening to their parents. They are introduced to the dangers of the world at such a young age, they are no longer innocent children. They feel the pang of worry, isolation, vulnerability, and panic.

"Can you see why we must pray for these vulnerable young believers?

"It only costs $5 to publish and send one Bible to build a child in his or her young faith. And most importantly, you will bring them the ONE HOPE on which they can stand strong!" (From a letter by Open Doors.)

Action step for today: Give $5 per Bible for as many Bibles as you want to purchase for children who need them around the world.

From Hurt to Hope

2008-11-08T08:55:00.002-06:00

DAY TWENTY FIVE: Saturday, November 8, 2008

Read Colossians 1:24-29

"God decided to let his people know this rich and glorious secret which he has for all people. This secret is Christ himself, who is in you. He is our only hope for glory." Colossians 1:27 (NCV)

People all around us are hurting and they're searching for hope. They want to know if there are answers to their questions about life, solutions to their problems, and relief for their pain.

The Bible says that the hope people need is already in you if you are a Christ follower! That hope is Christ Himself!

We needn't share the Good News about Jesus with a sense of meanness. Yes, people need to know that they are sinners but most people already know that about themselves. We need to offer hope! Hope that they can be set free from the hurts, habits and hangups that rule their lives. Hope that they can have peace with God and therefore peace of mind both now and forever. Hope that even though life has ups and downs there is a friend named Jesus who will walk with them through every dark night.

This hope is for everyone! It is not the job of Christ followers to pick and choose who needs to hear the Good News about Jesus. While on earth Jesus offered hope to the most unlikely people: lepers, prostitutes, people possessed by demons, and many more. He is our example.

Action step for today: Share the Good News today with someone not on your usual suspect list. Find someone who is hurting and needs the hope that only Jesus can provide.

Heading in the Right Direction

2008-11-07T08:24:00.003-06:00

DAY TWENTY FOUR: Friday, November 7, 2008

Read Matthew 12:1-21

"And his name (Jesus) will be the hope of all the world." Matthew 12:21 (NLT)

In the classic fairy tale Alice in Wonderland there is a conversation between Alice and the Cheshire Cat. Alice asked, "Would you tell me please, which way I ought to go from here?"

"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the cat.

"I don't care much where," said Alice.

"Then it doesn't matter which way you go," said the cat.

Christ's enemies were constantly trying to interfere with His ministry of healing people's hurts with His words and miracles. But Jesus, God in the flesh, had no trouble turning the tables on them with His superior logic.

The religious hypocrites confronting Jesus were very much like Alice; they didn't give much attention to where they were headed. Therefore it didn't matter which way they went.

But for anyone interested in winding up at the right place in this life - as well as the life to come - following Jesus is the only right way. "His name is the hope of all the world." There is not another way for people in Asia, or people in South America, etc. Jesus is the only way to God and everlasting life for everyone everywhere.

Action step for today: Tell someone about Jesus who has never heard or give so a missionary can tell someone who has never heard about Jesus.

The Encouragement of Discipline

2008-11-06T08:02:00.003-06:00

DAY TWENTY THREE: Thursday, November 6, 2008

Read Hebrews 12:1-13

"But you have forgotten that the Scriptures say to God's children, 'When the Lord punishes you, don't make light of it, and when he corrects you, don't be discouraged.'" Hebrews 12:5 (CEV)

Question: What's the best way to keep from losing hope when God is correcting you?

Answer: Remember that He loves you!

When we're going through the pruning process (See John 15) it is easy to think that God doesn't love us. So the writer of the book of Hebrews gave three proofs that spiritual discipline comes from the heart of a loving Heavenly Father:

1. The Scriptures.

Hebrews 12:5-6 is a quote from Proverbs 3:11-12. Instead of giving in to Satan's whispers to be discouraged or to our own fear that God doesn't love us when we sin (and are consequently disciplined by God), we should read, remember, and rely on the promise of God's Word.

2. Personal Experience.

Hebrews 12:7-11a remind us of our human parents and the experience of being disciplined by them. If they had not cared enough to correct us we would have become so undisciplined that our lives would spin out of control. Our attitude toward testing should be thankfulness that our Heavenly Father cares enough to enter our lives when we're drifting away from a healthy spiritual lifestyle.

3. Good Results.

Hebrews 12:11b-13 points out that God is interested in our long-term happiness more than our short-term pleasure. If we will work with Him, we will be happier and more peaceful after His correction.

Action step for today: Cooperate with God with a good attitude about those needed changes that He's making in your life through the process of spiritual discipline.

Do It Now!

2008-11-05T07:43:00.003-06:00

DAY TWENTY TWO: Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Read 1 Chronicles 29

"...our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no hope or expectation of remaining." 1 Chronicles 29:15 (Amp)

In Scripture, "yesterday" is mentioned 9 times.

"Tomorrow" is mentioned 101 times.

But "now" is mentioned 1,321 times!

Before King David died he bequeathed a large part of his royal and personal fortunes to build a temple for God. His magnanimous spirit of worship spread through the worshipping community and many other gifts were donated to build God's house.

This act of worship is notable for many reasons, the least of which is not, that David participated in acts of worship as long as he was consciously able. He knew that "there is no hope or expectation of remaining" alive on this earth, so he did what he could while he still could.

Whatever we plan on doing for God we should not put off until tomorrow because we have no promise of tomorrow here on earth. We can do something today. We can do something "now" for God.

Action step for today: Do something for God today that you have been putting off. Tell that someone you've been meaning to tell the Good News about Jesus to. Give that gift to God's work that you've been planning on giving. Help that person you've been led by the Holy Spirit to help. Don't put it off another day.

There's Still Hope!

2008-11-04T03:19:00.005-06:00

DAY TWENTY ONE: Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Read Ruth 1:1-22

"Even if I thought there was still hope for me..." Ruth 1:12 (NIV)

Naomi was a bitter woman. The death of her husband and two sons left her dazed and alone...except for two foreign daughters-in-law. She thought perhaps if she headed back to her homeland in Judah she could die in peace. Her daughters-in-law headed out with her, but she tried to get them to go back. One did. But Ruth stayed with her and they both wound up in Bethlehem. (Does that small town sound familiar?)

If you read the rest of Ruth's story, one of Naomi's daughters-in-law, you see that she falls in love again, marries once more and gives birth to a son. Her child becomes one of Christ's human ancestors! (Matthew 1:5)

God always has a plan! Even when we think there is no hope - God is at work! His ways are so remarkable that we can't comprehend them. In going back to Judah Naomi was expressing some hope in God, however feeble it may have been. In showing love to her daughter-in-law Ruth, she was instrumental in laying the groundwork for Ruth to become part of Christ's family.

Through Ruth and her inclusion in the family tree of Jesus, God was showing that His intention has always been for people everywhere to know Him, Gentiles as well as Jews.

Action step for today: Make a list. On one side put all the major life hurdles you've faced. On the other side put all the ways God has brought good out of those difficulties AND all the things you imagine God may yet do to make something bad turn out good.

To Vote or Not to Vote

2008-11-03T08:49:00.004-06:00

DAY TWENTY: Monday, November 3, 2008

Read Psalm 33.

"Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord, for our hope is in you alone." Psalm 33:22 (NLT)

Will my vote in tomorrow's election make a difference?

A Tennessee woman thinks so, because she was elected constable by voting for herself. According to an Auguts 8 AP story, 32-year-old Angela Tuttle said her father encouraged her to run as a write-in candidate because no one else was vying for one of the positions in Hancock County, which is in northeastern Tennessee.

Tuttle said her husband initially didn't even realize she was running. "I finally told him about a month before the election," she explained. Her husband didn't think she would win, but now he "just grins at her."

Hancock County election officials said 131 voters of the 674 registered in the 3rd District voted. Tuttle's vote was the only one cast in the constable race. She will be sworn in December 1.

The certified nursing assistant and mother of a 10-year-old son will help serve warrants and patrol neighborhoods in her district. She said her father, a longtime constable who won his own re-election in another district, will "show her the ropes."

Since the Psalmist says our hope is in God alone, why should we vote? We vote because God created government and elected officials are His servants. (Romans 13:1-7)

Action step for today: Prepare today to vote tomorrow.

A Partner in Prayer When Facing Despair

2008-11-02T07:20:00.003-06:00

DAY NINETEEN: Sunday, November 2, 2008

Read Romans 8

"But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." Romans 8:25 (NIV)

There is an oft-repeated scene in movies of a desperate man climbing out on a ledge preparing to end it all. Police are leaning out a nearby window to talk him out of it while rescue workers on the ground spread nets in case he leaps. Camera crews film the crowd gathered to watch the tragedy play out. Then someone in the crowd yells, "Jump!"

How could anyone be so cruel?

Perhaps the person on the ground is experiencing desperation similar to the poor soul on the ledge. Our culture is saturated with the idea that nothing really matters anyway - so why not go ahead and jump?

Lif is hard on all of us sometimes. Yet even though we may be tempted to despair - to lose hope - there is an alternative - waiting patiently for God to fulfill His promises.

Romans 8 wrestles particularly with the despondency associated with the weaknesses of our fallen nature - the human tendency to break God's laws even though we love Him. We're still susceptible to envy, greed, bias, insincere worship, lust, gossip, pride, and a garrison of other sins.

The key to overcoming despair is to partner with the Holy Spirit in our prayers. He helps us wait on God. Our despair then gives way to hope, as it becomes clear to us that today's clouds cannot prevent tomorrow's sunlight.

Action step for today: Thank God for the Holy Spirit.

Relationships Restore Hope

2008-11-01T08:58:00.003-05:00

DAY EIGHTTEEN: Saturday, November 1, 2008

Read 1 Corinthians 16

"I hope to spend some time with you." 1 Corinthians 16:7b (NIV)

David Bruce, host of the web site HollywoodJesus.com, a church leader and author with a love of church and film says, "The top 100 films of all time have just one thing in common. They are all about relationship. The same is true of pop music, country and western, novels, and television shows. People respond to relationships. It's what we seek most.

"The church can furnish positive and caring relationships and help people come to a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. In fact that is what the church is all about. Instead of throwing rocks at the culture, as the church often does, it needs to build a bridge to a hurting world in need of a healing relationship with God." ("Radical Reformission" by Mark Driscoll, page 43.)

One of the keys to the missional success of the Apostle Paul was his huge emphasis on relationships. It shines clearly here in the closing words of his first letter to the Church at Corinth. He hoped to spend time with them, buse as he was. In this chapter you can also see that he had friends everywhere in the Roman Empire because he placed such great emphasis on relationships.

Paul caught this from God. God knows that when we aren't isolated our hope grows from being around others, spending time with them.

Action step for today: Spend some time with someone with the intent of growing your relationship.

Serving While Suffering

2008-10-31T03:02:00.003-05:00

DAY SEVENTEEN: Friday, October 31, 2008

Read 1 Corinthians 15:12-28

"If our hope in Christ is for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone else in the world." 1 Corinthians 15:19 (NCV)

Those of us who follow Christ without persecution, suffering or deprivation are basically in the minority when the global Christian population is taken into consideration. Millions serve Jesus all the while knowing that they are risking their liberties and in some cases even their lives.

The same was true for Paul. He suffered many harsh experiences simply because he was wholly dedicated to the spread of the Good News about Jesus. (See 2 Corinthians 11:23-29) That may be part of the reason that he said, "If our hope in Christ is for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone else in the world."

One of the things that enabled Paul to endure persecution, hardship and personal sacrifice was the future hope he had of eternal life established by His resurrected Savior, Jesus. He knew that this life was not all there is. And acting on that knowledge was a huge part of what made him god on serving while suffering.

Action step(s) for today:

1) Say "no" to any self-pity for the difficulties you've faced for being a Christ follower who is trying to advance the cause of Jesus.

2) Thank God for the certain hope you have of eternal life in Christ because of your faith commitment to Him.

3) Set aside money for Bibles for children in countries where the Good News about Jesus is outlawed. Give your gift on November 9, "The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church."

Our Only Hope of Forgiveness

2008-10-30T07:59:00.003-05:00

DAY SIXTEEN: Thursday, October 30, 2008

Read Psalm 130

"I am counting on the Lord; yes, I am counting on him. I have put my hope in his word." Psalm 130:5 (NLT)

A pastor finished his message early one Sunday, and he wanted to check his congregation's understanding. So he asked, "Can anyone tell me what you must do before you can obtain forgiveness of sin?" There was a short pause and then, from the back of the room, a small boy spoke up, "You have to sin."

The thing the author of the 130th Psalm was counting on God for most was forgiveness. In verses 3 & 4 he sang, "Lord, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? But you offer forgiveness, that we might learn to fear you." He knew his only hope of forgiveness was God's promise of mercy - not his own track record of good deeds versus bad deeds.

We too can take God at His word that He will hear our requests for forgiveness. We do not have to punish ourselves to be forgiven, nor do a certain number of good deeds to atone for our bad ones. Forgiveness is based solely and squarely on God's willingness to wipe our slate clean, because of His forgiving nature when we ask for pardon.

Our past sins need not be brought up again, and when Satan does, we can remind ourselves of our certain hope in God's Word that we are forgiven.

Action step for today: If you feel condemned over a sin, write it down on a piece of paper, ask God's forgiveness, then cut the paper into little pieces and throw them away.

You're the Potter, I'm the Clay

2008-10-29T09:07:00.003-05:00

DAY FIFTEEN: Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Read Jeremiah 18:1-12

"And they said, 'That is hopeless!' So we will walk according to our own plans, and we will every one obey the dictates of his evil heart." Jeremiaha 18:12 (NKJV)

The German philosopher and lifelong rebel against Christianity (even though his father was a Lutheran pastor), Friedrich Nietzsche once said, "Hope is the worst of evils, for it prolongs the torments of man."

That is precisely what the citizens of ancient Israel were thinking when they refused God's offer to reshaped them like a potter would a marred piece of clay. They would rather "walk according to their own evil plans, and...every one obey the dictates of his evil heart," than place their hope in God.

Why on earth would any of us make the foolish choice of refusing God's generous offer of help, only to walk in our own wisdom and strength alone?

That is what hopelessness does. All strength to trust God and walk according to His good plans for our life is exchanged for hope in our selves alone.

What is the end result when we reject hope in God for our way? For Israel it was national collapse within and without. And Nietsche? He suffered from mental illness the last decade of his life, brought on from syphillis, a sexually transmitted disease.

Action step for today: Offer up any and every part of your self to God, your mind, your emotions, or your body, that has been marred by sin and selfishness, for reshaping into hope by God.

Something Better

2008-10-28T08:23:00.003-05:00

DAY FOURTEEN: Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Read 1 Thessalonians 1

"...patience of hope..." 1 Thessalonians 1:3

Years ago, growing up, a little boy felt like he had the ugliest bicycle known to man. It was a hand-me-down made from the parts of other bicycles. It was so ugly it didn't even have handlebar grips. He was always complaining that his hands would slip off the slick handlebars. He pestered his dad to buy him some handlebar grips but his dad kept refusing.

One day his dad took him to the Western Auto hardware store. Near the front door there were some new handlebar grips for sale. They were plastic and had long streamers hanging down from the ends. He said, "Daddy, daddy, I've just got to have these handlebar grips! Please daddy!" His dad looked at him and said, "No, son, you don't need those grips. Now come with me to the back of the store."

As he followed his dad he was bitter and frustrated. Under his breath he was muttering, "I never get anything. It's just a lousy three dollars! My dad sure is mean!"

When they got back to the back of the store the owner wheeled out a shiny, brand new bicycle - complete with handlebar grips with plastic streamers. The father said, "Here son, it's an early birthday present. I wouldn't buy you any handlebar grips because I ordered you this new bicycle."

The little boy was ecstatic! As he wheeled his new bike out the front door he never even gave those handlebar grips a glance!

Action step for today: Wait on something better from God.

The Hope Chest

2008-10-27T09:05:00.002-05:00

DAY THIRTEEN: Monday, October 27, 2008

Read Romans 15:1-6

"Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us. The Scriptures give us patience and encouragement so that we can have hope." Romans 15:4 (NCV)

The Bible is unique among "holy books;" it is rooted and intertwined with actual human history. As God's Word it reveals the meaning to life and the responsibility of humans to their Creator.

One of the most distinctive qualities of the Bible is that it is a "living book." (Hebrews 4:12) Its truths have penetrated the perplexities of billions of people's lives by offering immense encouragment, producing great hope when its precepts are studied and applied.

In bygone generations a tradition existed of providing a "hope chest." for an adolescent child, especially young ladies, which would gradually be supplied with items that the owner would need upon leaving home an venturing out into adulthood. The treasures in the "hope chest" might include items such as handcrafted items like quilts or linens, family photos, or perhaps even items needed to set up housekeeping like silverware or books.

Although this is an outdated method of the example of storing items for future use when needed, it is reminiscent of the Bible. God has stowed away tremendous treasures in this miraculous book for the needs of our life journey.

Action step for today: Re-read one of your favorite Bible stories or passages that lifts you up, encourages you, and gives you hope.

Operation Christmas Child

2008-10-26T07:42:00.004-05:00

DAY TWELVE: Sunday, October 26, 2008

Read Psalm 9.

"The poor and homeless won't always be forgotten and without hope." Psalm 9:18 (CEV)

1. Find and empty shoebox. You can wrap the box (lid separately), but wrapping is not required.

2. Determine whether your gift will be for a boy or girl, and the child's age category: 2-4, 5-9, 10-14. Remove the appropriated boy/girl label from a brochure or download off the Samaritan's Purse Web site. Mark the correct age on the label and attach the label to the top of your box.

3. Fill your shoe box with a variety of gifts:

School supplies: pens, pencils and sharpener, crayons or markers, stamps and ink pad sets, coloring books, chalk, writing pads or paper, etc.
Toys: small cars, balls, dolls, stuffed animals, kazoos, harmonicas, yo-yos, small Etch A Sketch, toys that light up or make noise, etc.
Hygiene items: toothbrush, toothpaste, mild bar soap in a plastic bag, comb, washcloth, etc.
Candy: hard candy in a plastic bag, lollipos, mints and gum are all acceptable.
Other: sunglasses, flashlights with extra batteries, ball caps, socks, T-shirts, toy jewelry, hair clips, watches, small picture books, etc.
You may also enclose a note to the child and a photo of yourself or your family. (If you include your name and address, the child who receives your box may write you back.)

Make sure your shoebox gets turned it to a distribution center by the appropriate time. Enclose a check to Samaritan's Purse for $7.00 to cover shipping and handling.

Your Word is My Only Hope

2008-10-25T09:08:00.002-05:00

DAY ELEVEN: Saturday, October 25, 2008

Read: Psalms 119:105-120

"You are my place of safety and my shield. Your word is my only hope. All of you worthless people get away from me! I am determined to obey the commands of my God. Be true to your word LORD. Keep me alive and strong; don't let me be ashamed because of my hope." Psalm 11(;114-116 (CEV)

Six words are used in the 119th Psalm, the longest chapter in the Bible, to tell how God's Word brings hope:

LAWS: This reminds us that God's truth must be obeyed.

TEACHINGS: This word conveys the idea that God's Word provides us with insight for every aspect of our lives.

COMMANDS: This word reinforces the concept that God's Word is to be obeyed.

PROMISES: Since God's Word is true, He can be trusted completely to do what He says He will do.

WORD(S): This indicates that God is a communicative God. He speaks to us through His Word(s).

DECISIONS: We make good choices through God's Word.

Our hope in life is directly tied to reading, hearing, memorizing and following God's Word.

Action step for today: Firmly establish a daily time to read, think about and insert God's Word into your life...ten minutes before work, 1/2 an hour before bedtime...whatever works for you, but ingest a daily dose of God's Word if you want to maintain hope in life.

Hope for Homeowners

2008-10-24T15:42:00.003-05:00

DAY TEN: Friday, October 24, 2008

Read Matthew 6:22-34

"Seek first God's kingdom and what God wants. Then all your other needs will be met as well." Matthew 6:33 (NCV)

Traditionally, the government and most lenders consider a homeowner who spends 30% or more of his or her income on housing costs to be financially burdened. But that definition now applies to almost 38% of U.S. homeowners with a mortgage - 19 million of them. Another 7.5 million homeowners spend at least half of their income on housing. (Source: U.S. Census Bureau)

One of the government's recent efforts to deal with the mortgage crisis bore the name: Hope for Homeowners. While good people disagree on how involved the federal bureaucracy should be in this crisis - one thing we need to remember - God is already involved!

When Christ encouraged us not to worry about our material possessions the reason was clear: God knows and promises to meet the needs of His children. Obviously He doesn't always meet them in the manner and time we dictate. Usually He has something better for us and He leads us on a journey we may not have expected - but one that eventually leads to His ample provision for all of our needs - including our need for housing.

What is the key? Jesus put it succinctly: "Seek first God's kingdom and what God wants. Then all your needs will be met as well."

Action step for today: Put the kingdom of God first in all that you do today, then trust Him to meet your needs.

Hope Authenticated

2008-10-23T08:21:00.002-05:00

DAY NINE: Thursday, October 23, 2008

Read Acts 23:1-11

"Paul realized that some of the members of the high council were Sadducees and some were Pharisees, so he shouted, 'Brothers, I am a Pharisee, as were my ancestors! And I am on trial because my hope is in the resurection of the dead!'" ACts 23:6 (NLT)

U.S. Treasury Secretary Michael Blumenthal found himself in an embarrassing situation in Beethoven's, an expensive San Francisco restaurant in 1979. Blumenthal was confronted with a sizable dinner bill, and expired VISA card, and a waiter who wanted proof of signature to back up an out-of-town check. Blumenthal thought for a minute, and solved his predicament the only way he knew how: he produced a dollar bill and pointed to his signature, W. M. Blumenthal, in the bottom right-hand corner. The signature matched, and Blumenthal's personal check was accepted.

In Acts 23 Paul stood before two brands of religious hypocrites: 1) The Pharisees, Jewish ritualists of Paul's heritage - people who knew truth but had no personal relationship with God and therefore couldn't share in His love; and 2) Saducees, rationalists who ignored God's truth to follow their own way apart from God. Both groups were far from God and didn't share in the hope that true Christ followers have - the hope of the resurrection of the dead!

We know the hope of eternal in Christ is true because Christ authenticated life after death by His own resurrection! He signed the check by His sacrificial death and then proved it was payment enought for our sin by raising from the dead!

Action step for today: Thank God for the sure and certain hope that Christ followers have of living forever! Ask Him to cleanse you from the bad traits of Pharisees (adding to God's laws) and Saducees (ignoring God's laws.)

Keeping Hope Afloat

2008-10-22T07:44:00.003-05:00

DAY EIGHT: Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Read Hebrews 6:13-20

"So God has given both His promise and His oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie." Hebrews 6:18 (NLT)

On July 4, 1952, Florence Chadwick waded into the Pacific Ocean off Catalina Island. Her goal? Swim to the Californian coast. The fog was so thick she could barely see the boats accompanying her. After fifteen hours she gave up, despite her trainer telling her she was close to the coastline. But all she could see was fog, and she quit - only a half-mile from her goal.

Later she said, "I'm not excusing myself, but if I could have seen the land, I might have made it." Two months later, on a day with no fog, she did.

When God promised to give Abraham inumerable descendants there was a lot of "fog" in the way of believing God's guarantee. To begin with, Abraham and his wife Sarah didn't have any children. Secondly, they were too old to have kids. Nonetheless, "Abraham waited patiently and he received what God had promised." (Hebrews 6:15)

How did Abraham see through the fog and keep his hope afloat? How could he "see" land? His land was the promise of God. (See also, Hebrews 11:9-10) And since God cannot lie, His Word is as firm as anything in the universe!

Action step for today: Find a promise in the Bible (there are hundreds of them) and memorize it. Pick one that will especially help you to see through whatever fog is tempting you to lose hope.

The Source of Hope

2008-10-21T08:11:00.004-05:00

DAY SEVEN: Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Read Romans 15:7-13

"I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13 (NLT)

As we come to the end of our first week of 40 Days of Hope we need a solid foundation for further journeying together.

Where does hope originate? Do I wish upon a star? Does positive thinking assure my dreams will come true? Can I work myself into an emotionally frenetic state or go to the other extreme and practice transcendentalism and achieve a level of consciousness where I am one with the universe, thereby filled with hope?

No.

God is the source of hope! In order to experience hope, joy, and inner peace, I must trust in Him.

As we continue our journey of hope we will be looking at various uplifting and courage-inspiring promises from God. When we trust in these promises and believe that God is going to keep His Word our hope gauge reads "full" instead of "empty." We can experience confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit when we trust the Word of God.

No action step today. Your pastor has prayed for you today just as Paul prayed for the Christ followers in Rome. I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Quick Route from Hopelessness to Hope

2008-10-20T07:40:00.005-05:00

DAY SIX: Monday, October 20, 2008

Read Psalm 39:1-13

"So Lord, what hope do I have? You are my hope." Psalm 39:7

Former heavyweight boxer James (Quick) Tillis was a cowboy from Oklahoma who fought out of Chicago in the early 1980's. Years later, he still remembers his first day in the Windy City after his arrival from Tulsa.

"I got off the bus with two cardboard suitcases under my arms in downtown Chicago and stopped in front of the Sears Tower. I put my suitcases down and looked up at the Sears Tower and said to myself, "I'm going to conquer Chicago."

"When I looked down, my suitcases were gone."

David was having one of those days when he penned the 39th Psalm. In reference to hard times he asks God, "What hope do I have?" And quickly he answered his own question by declaring to God, "You are my hope!"

The 39th Psalm represents an intense struggle going on inside David's heart. He was transparent with God about how badly he felt about life's disappointments. He was wrestling with the issues we all confront. And he didn't try to bury his feelings.

It's okay for us to be transparent with God and admit that sometimes we struggle with maintaining a sense of hope. Sometimes we face disappointment at the very time we thought we would be experiencing great success and the fulfillment of our dreams. Our emotions tell us to give up. It's then that the quickest route to regaining hope is to go to God.

Action step for today: Tell God what makes you sad.

Hope Instead of Fear

2008-10-19T08:26:00.004-05:00

DAY FIVE: Sunday, October 19, 2008

Read: Psalm 31

"So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!" Psalm 31:24 (NLT)

David began composing the 31st Psalm as a very stressed out individual. He doesn't say why his stomach is in knots and his mind dizzied, but his emotional torment is very real.

We've all been there, living with uncertainty because our troubles have demoralized us and left us feeling stranded and insecure.

Where do you go when you don't know what to do next; when you've already done all you know to do and it isn't enough?

David begins this Psalm: "Oh Lord, I have come to you..."

By the time David has poured out his heart to God and prayed for God to be vindicated through the resolution of his predicament, he concludes confidently! His problems and dangers have not changed - but his attitude has!

David concludes, "So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!" Psalm 31:24 (NLT)

Trouble is not a time for the Christ follower to cower in fear. It is not a time for us to lose our way and to be overcome by complications and vulnerabilities. It is not a time to worry and yield to feelings of anxiety and woe. Hope in the Lord can actually make this a time of strength and courage!

Action step for today: Pray the 31st Psalm. Actually read and say these words out loud to God from your heart to His.

"Account for the Hope That is In You"

2008-10-18T07:41:00.001-05:00

DAY FOUR: Saturday, October 18, 2008

Please read 1 Peter 3:8-17

"Always be ready to give a logical defense to anyone who asks you to account for the hope that is in you, but do it courteously and respectfully." 1 Peter 3:15b (Amplified Bible)

Hope is an impossible attitude to hide! Those around you will see your hopeful attitude in the midst of the struggles of life and wonder where it originates. They will look to you for answers about your confident perspective.

Being ready to logically share our hope when someone is wrestling with life's mysteries is a vital part of making others aware of the Good News about Christ. In fact, this is one of the most favorable times that Christ followers can share hope with others.

How do you "account for the hope that is in you?" How did you come to hope in Christ? What factors led you to turn to Christ for the answers to life's inescapable questions?

The answer to these questions will help construct a solid foundation for someone else to have hope in Christ. You have a unique story to tell that will give hope to others.

But you must be ready to share it.

"Always be ready," the Bible says. Are you ready?

Action step for today: Write down the story of how you came to have hope in Christ; practice sharing it; and look for opportunities to share your hope with others as they ask you to "account for the hope that is in you."

Prisoners of Hope

2008-10-16T20:57:00.004-05:00

DAY THREE: Friday, October 17, 2008

Please read Zechariah chapter nine before reading the rest of this blog entry.

"Come back to the place of safety, all you prisoners who still have hope! I promise this very day that I will repay two blessings for each of your troubles." Zechariah 9:12 (NLT)

How could two young, middle class American women in Afghanistan serving the poor, survive imprisonment by the Taliban during the height of tensions after September 11, 2001? Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer have only one explanation: hope! "We believed God could do the impossible." (Page 234, Prisoners of Hope)

In their personal account of the ordeal they describe how God led them to minister to the women and children of one of the poorest nations on earth before they were accused of the crime of sharing their faith in Christ and subsequently imprisoned. Though tempted to despair, they consistently worshipped and hoped in God's Word!

Zechariah chapter nine also speaks about prisoner of hope. The Jews, recently back from Babylonian Captivity, were discouraged that the work of rebuilding God's house wasn't possible given their meager supplies and difficult circumstances. Overcome with feelings of insecurity, they lost hope.

Through Zechariah, God was encouraging them to be prisoners of hope, rather than prisoners of fear, insecurity, self-doubt, and shame.

Action Step for Today: Jot down one big problem that has imprisoned you with feelings of inadequacy:

Now, exchange being a prisoner to inadequacy to being a prisoner of hope by trusting in God's promises to you.

Journey to Joy

2008-10-15T16:06:00.010-05:00

DAY TWO: Thursday, October 16, 2008

Reading Psalm 85 before reading the rest of this blog entry will drastically enhance the benefit you derive from it.

"Now restore us again, O God of our salvation. Put aside your anger against us once more. Will you be angry with us always? Will you prolong your wrath to all generations? Won't you revive us again, so your people can rejoice in your? Show us your unfailing love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation." Psalms 85:4-6

Restoration. Revival. Rejoicing. These three themes of the 85th Psalm represent the hope of the people of God after returning from their captivity in Babylon (the subject of yesterday's Scripture reading.)

Our ultimate hope in life should be that our relationship to God is what it ought to be. If this is not our predominant priority during 40 Days of Hope then our focus is blurred and the results of this spiritual journey together will be hollow.

Above everything, we should hope for:

The restoration of our relationship with God to the nearest and dearest that it has ever been.

A revival of interest in spiritual things.

Rejoicing "in God."

Action steps for Today:

1. Take inventory. Ask yourself, "Am I as close to God as I have ever been?"

2. If not, repent and move closer to God. (See James 4:8)

3. Commit to one spiritual activity that you've been neglecting.

When It's Dark Enough - You Can See the Stars

2008-10-15T05:30:00.018-05:00

DAY ONE: Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Read Jeremiah 29 before reading the rest of this blog entry.

According to dictionary.com the word "hope" means: "The feeling of what is wanted can be had, or that events will turn out for the best."

That definition is very similar to what God says to us in His Word.

"I know what I am planning for you," says the Lord. "I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future." Jeremiah 29:11 (NCV)

Jeremiah, and more specifically, God, wanted His people to know that their current situation of hardship would get better as they grew in their reliance upon Him. God had a good future planned for His people.

If you are God's child you may rest assured that God has good plans mapped out for you no matter what unfavorable circumstances you currently face. You may live expectantly rather than being depressed, angry, anxious, or disappointed.

However, there is something that God asks of you, while you are waiting for the things you hope for to come true."

"...do good things for the city where I sent you... Pray to the Lord for the city where you are living, because if good things happen in the city, good things will happen to you also." Jeremiah 29:7 (NCV)

Instead of doubting, complaining, or rebelling, God tells us to: 1) Do good things, and 2) Pray for the city in which we reside.

Action Step for 40 Days of Hope: (Note: the remainder of the Action Steps in this journey will be daily in scope. These first two action steps are things to do throughout the entire 40 Days campaign as the opportunity arises.)

1) Pray for the city where you are living, as God commanded His people in Jeremiah's day.

2) Share hope with someone else by doing good things as God commanded His people in Jeremiah's day.

Suggestions:

1) Provide food for a hungry person. (They may be hungry for friendship, not just food.) (See Luke 14:13; Romans 12:13; 1 Peter 4:9)

2) Supply something for someone going on a trip. (See Ezra 1:6)

3) Give something away to someone who needs it - especially something you have more than enough of. (See Leviticus 19:9-10)

4) Make a donation to a charity that cares for orphans, or better yet, get directly involved in the life of an orphaned child you know personally. (See Psalms 82:3)

5) Help an elderly widow who doesn't have family to care for her needs. (See Job 29:16; 1 Timothy 5:3-16)

6) Provide assistance to someone who has been victimized, or has become disabled. (See Luke 10:30-37)

7) If any need in someone else's life comes to your attention and you are able to help with it - just do it. (See 1 John 3:17)

40 Days of Hope Begins Oct. 15

2008-10-14T13:04:00.005-05:00

For the next forty days, beginning tomorrow, I will be blogging the daily entries of the current Spiritual Growth Campaign among our church family. I have written forty entries on the theme of hope in order to emphasize what the Bible teaches on the topic so that we may apply it to our lives. Everyone in our church family will be "on the same page" for forty days.

The number 40 has a high profile in Scripture. The early Christ followers awaited the coming of the Holy Spirit for 40 days until Pentecost. It rained for 40 days and nights in the days of Noah. Moses was on the mount for 40 days, the spies spent 40 days in Canaan, Jesus was tempted by Satan after 40 days of prayer and fasting, etc.

It seems that God has used this amount of time to incorporate important change in the lives of His people. Consequently our church family is once again going to take this period of time to ask God to help us make positive changes in our midst. In this case we are seeking to grow in hope. Amidst the pessimism and defeatism of our culture Christ followers need to exemplify the confidence that comes from relying upon God's promises! Hope is sorely needed not only in our lives but also in the environment around us.

During His earthly ministry Jesus changed people's lives by offering hope - we want to do the same. No one has more reason to hope than those who are firmly placing their trust in God!

If you care to join us please check back daily for the next 40 days - especially if you or someone you know could use an influx of hope in his or her life. Each day this blog will recommend a passage of Scripture to read. Reading that passage BEFORE reading the day's blog entry will magnify the hope experience greatly.

After reading the recommended Scripture there will be a few brief paragraphs on a selected perspective on hope. Finally there will be an ACTION STEP for the participant to take. By accepting this ACTION STEP challenge the 40 Days of Hope participant will become a "doer of the Word" and not just a reader. (James 1:23) You will experience much more hope by doing than just by reading or hearing alone.

At any day during the 40 Days of Hope campaign I would love to hear from you about what God is doing in your life, either by leaving a comment on this blog, or by emailing me at pastoratwood@knology.net.

About the Games...

2008-08-20T18:12:00.003-05:00

Been planning on waiting until the Olympics were over to post some thoughts but today I replied to another bloggers remarks and thought I'd repeat my observations now.

I have been impressed more with the Bejing Olympics than the Atlanta or Athens games. The coverage has been great and I heard today that the channels not covering the games (like Fox) have seen a drastic drop in ratings. I have the coverage on almost every night while working at my computer.

Miscellaneous observations on the games in Bejing:

Why do the Jamaicans run so fast? Is there something in the water there?

I hate to say it but my favorite part of the gymnastics is when they mess up. Saw a Chinese girl fall on the balance beam last night and I relished the replays. I must be sick. She wasn't hurt and I admired her courage and determination to get back up and continue her routine.

I would have been amazed if a dude with the wingspan and huge hands and feet of Phelps had NOT won 8 gold medals.

One story that hasn't been reported in the mainstream media is worth noting. The Chinese would NOT allow foreign Christian chaplains to lead worship in the facilities on site. Many of the Christian athletes from around the world were very disappointed at this act of communistic censorship.

China is still a totalitarian regime no matter how much spin they hope to gain from this Olympic games. Choosing one little Chinese girl's voice and then choosing another girl to lipsync her song because the first little girl with the great voice was chubby and therefore did not present the image they wanted to present was just one of many examples of how hypocritical they are as a nation.When are they going to admit that capitalism is the only thing that is making them surge forward as a nation?

When There's Not a Toy in Your Cereal Box

2008-08-13T14:27:00.004-05:00

After thinking and praying for weeks and weeks I began today writing the 40 Days campaign for the church this fall. I think God has changed my mind from what I had originally planned and now I will write on 40 Days of Hope. I'll be sharing these thoughts on this blog each day beginning the middle of October and going through late November. There will be a verse or passage of Scripture, a devotional thought, and an action step for each day. Our church family will be on the "same page" for over a month - which is one of the things that makes the effort worthwhile.

There are several reasons God has led me to emphasize hope. One big one is that, for the last several weeks and months the trustees and I have been looking for a new location for the church in earnest. Got the letter in the mail today from the landlord where we're at now, reminding us of the date we already knew about - the date we need to leave since we don't plan to re-sign our lease. We need to invest our building fund in a permanent home.

So far our offers on one interesting property for relocation have been unsuccessful. Only God knows if we can come to buying terms with the owner. Please pray about this.

So...God is re-educating me on the topic of hope. I know God will come through. He always makes a way. It's just that I am one of the world's worst at wanting to know the way He plans to make, and, I want to know right now.

Last night Deb and I went to a screening of the new movie Fireproof that will open in September. (Plan to go see it - I'll tell you more about why in a future blog.) One of the soundtrack songs of the movie talked about worshipping while we wait. I leaned over to Deb and said, "That's what I'm not always good at." (Like she didn't already know.) I love to worship, but when I'm waiting on the answer to a big need, I'm tempted to freeze and lose momentum. "Hope" helps compensate for this weakness.

The New Testament Greek word for hope is based on the verb, "elpo," which means, "to anticipate, usually with pleasure; expectation (abstractly or concretely) or confidence:--faith, hope." (From Strong's Concordance)

Instead of fear and anxiety when we're waiting on God to do something big in our lives - hope provides expectation and confidence.

Simple Church or 7-Day-a-Week Church?

2008-07-29T12:16:00.009-05:00

Just finished re-reading Simple Church by Rainer and Geiger. (Broadman & Holman Publishers, A Division of Lifeway, 2006)

The sub title? Returning to God's Process for Making Disciples.

"Simple Church calls Christians to make a clear return to the simple gospel-sharing methods of Jesus. No elaborate, multi-level outreach strategies required."

"Based on new case studies of four hundred American churches..."

The premise of the book is precisely focused on a major need of most churches - so many programs vying for volunteers, promotion and money - that many of those programs fail to achieve their desired results.

The answer, according to the authors, is to find "Clarity - Movement - Alignment - Focus," in that order.

Intuitively I was drawn to the book's premise and was sold on it before I even read the examples of churches given as proof texts.

You'll have to read the book to get their arguments but they basically hover around three facts:

1) Jesus used a simple model.
2) Our culture needs simple due to its complexities.
3) Too much going on in the church strains the resources of the people - time, money, talents, etc.

I think if most churches would major on solid weekend worship gatherings, small groups and community service/outreach, doing those things right would be enough to occupy an entire church family and its resources.

Years ago a popular book on church programs was Lyle E. Schaller's "Seven-Day-a-Week Church." (Abingdon Press, 1992) Here are a few things he said...

"The Sunday morning church has been succeeded by the seven-day-a-week parish. To be more specific, the number of Protestant churchgoers who are satisfied with the Sunday morning church has been decreasing. Concurrently the number of people seeking the quality of ministry and the range of choices offered by the full-service program church with a seven-day-a-week schedule has been increasing at a remarkably rapid pace. ...grow younger and larger by becoming a full-service church." (Page 43)

"The vast majority of new members born before 1930 reply that their first visit was on a Sunday morning. The majority of those born after 1950 look back to a weekday or weeknight even as the occasion for their first visit. (A long list of events follows) In simple terms, the principal entry point for prospective future members in large churches has moved from Sunday morning to seven mornings, seven afternoons, and seven evenings every week." (Page 44)

I won't critique Schaller extensively. He makes some good points about how Sunday morning is not the only time for people to become acquainted with the body of Christ. But I think a lot of people got burnt and burnt-out by his model.

I don't mean to sound any more spiritually haughty than Rainer and Geiger did by their sub-title, but I'm going to "return to God's process for making disciples."

"Not-so Blessings"

2008-07-23T15:22:00.003-05:00

Recently I was taking another turn teaching the children on Wednesday night.

After opening with some conversation with the kids about what was going on in their lives I asked for any prayer requests. One girl asked that we pray for her because school would soon start and she was going to a new school this year. Another that we pray for her family's health needs. A boy requested prayer for a friend, etc.

Then one girl asked that we pray for her family because they recently suffered the loss of an extended family member and also of a close friend of the family. She mentioned how she had already been to one funeral with her grandmother and was going to go to another the next day.

When I asked for a volunteer to pray the same girl that had the requests for her bereaved family raised her hand. As she began she said, "God, thank you for all these blessings...," then she hesitated before continuing..."and all these not-so blessings."

Is it a sin for a pastor to laugh during prayer?

She had her theology correct though.

God doesn't just want us to be thankful for the blessings but also for the "not-so blessings."

"In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." (1 Thessalonians 5:18

I've been using that little girl's words and the associated Scriptural principle quite a bit lately. I trust that God knows what He's doing even when the "not-so blessings" occur.

Difficult to Blog in Summer

2008-07-19T17:47:00.004-05:00

More reasons for not blogging consistently in the summer time:

- I helped chaperone a group of teens and young adults whitewater rafting. That's me trying to get up on the front edge so that I can "ride the bull" on our raft. The guide in the back is trying to jump up and bounce me out but he didn't succeed - although he was tossed from the raft.

- Also had company a couple of times recently. Deb's cousin Angie and her daughter from Tuscaloosa (checking out UAH as a potential college), and my cousin Jason from Maryland. Enjoyed their visits but forgot to take pictures!

- Yard work is killing me. When the shrubs around this house need trimming its all at once - and there are bushes on all four sides of the house. I came home almost every evening for a while and stayed in the yard for some time working on trimming. I love yard work - but not all at once!

- The trustees of the church and I have been looking around town for a possible new location for the church since the owner of the building we are currently leasing wants to raise his rent when our current lease is up in October. Our ideal answered prayer is to have a building of our own, but nothing has come to our attention so far that will work for us. Please pray with us about this matter.

- Summer is also leisure reading time. Nothing good is usually on TV and it's often too hot to recreate outside - unless you're in the water - and Deb and I only dream about having a pool in the back yard. So there's reading - and I have been reading too many different books to mention but enjoying it immensely.

- Lastly, I'm praying and giving a lot of thought and writing to our fall spiritual and numerical growth campaign. It will be one of those 40 days things, beginning in mid-October and going to the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Right now I'm calling it, A Season of Surrender. So many great things happen in our lives when we surrender to God.

Blogger Vacation

2008-07-07T23:00:00.010-05:00

Been a couple of weeks since I've posted. Took a little vacation from blogging.

Have you heard the new term, "staycation?" Since gasoline is so expensive and plane tickets so high, more folks are staying home for vacation.

But Deb and I took a little mini-vacation over the 4th of July to go visit our son Brandon and his wife Keshia in Muncie, Indiana.

Here's a pic of them in Kesh's parents' back yard where we had a cookout on the 4th.

We split the gas cost with Bethany and David by stopping in Nashville and teaming up with them. We have such a great time being with our kids and their spouses.

Ever played "Cornhole?" We did at the July 4th cookout.

Here's Deb and Bethany standing by one of the "cornholes." The idea of the game is to toss bags filled with corn into little holes on wooden platforms.

It sounds "corny" I know but it turned out to be a lot of fun.

Bethany and I teamed up and did pretty well. But a local couple who were friends of Brandon & Keshia were the champions.

Went to see fireworks at a local park that night.

The weather was so cool that the ladies were wearing sweaters!

I'm standing here between Deb and Keshia's dad Tim. He and I both like to tell corny jokes and believe it to be a part of the job description for fathers. Good guy.

I haven't been to see fireworks in years. Always hate to fight the traffic and the crowds. But everyone else wanted to go so I went.

We also spent time during the weekend watching 7 episodes of the mini-series that originally aired on HBO about John Adams.

I, Brandon, and David had read the book "John Adams" by David McCullough and had enjoyed it immensely. So we thought the series would be good. It didn't disappoint - and such fitting viewing for Independence Day.

We watched a few episodes per night, a few in the mornings, and even had to squeeze one in around the Wimbledon men's final tennis match.

Did you see the great match between Nadal and Federer?! Wow! We pulled for Nadal since he is from Spain and he finally won after a gruelling contest.

Kids Say the Coolest Things

2008-06-19T12:44:00.004-05:00

I get a kick out of taking a turn teaching the elementary kids on Wednesday nights.

The last two times I've taught them I decided to give them a little Bible survey. Nothing complicated, but an idea of what every book in the Bible is about with some spiritual applications.

To add some fun I played Bible Bingo with them, had some prizes for the winners.

Last month we surveyed the 29 books of the New Testament; last night, the 39 books of the Old Testament.

When the name of a book of the Bible was pulled out of the hat, they looked on their card to see if they had that book. I would give a quick spiritual lesson on what the book was about, then ask them a question. They had to answer the question to get a chip on that spot. The questions weren't difficult, just things to get them to think about application of the Word of God, or share something about themselves.

Here are just some of the books of the Bible we talked about, the questions I gave and their responses, which tickled me and sometimes impressed me with their depth of understanding:

Luke: Jesus, the Son of Man. After I briefly talked about Jesus being a human being just like us I asked "How would you spend one hour with Jesus if you could?" Answers: One boy said, "Playing." Another said, "Praying," and a third child said, "Video Games!"
Romans: How to know God. I reminded them that the most important thing in life is to know God. Question: Why do you think some people don't know God? Answers: "Some people don't have the guts or they think it's boring to know God." "Some people have never heard."
Colossians: Jesus is boss (Lord). When do you like to receive instructions? "When I'm learning something new, like how to swim." "When I'm trying to put something together."
2 Timothy: The pastor. What do you think is the most enjoyable part of the pastor's job? "Telling people about God." "Seeing people change."
3 John: Being humble instead of being proud. How can we show our humility? "Admit when we've done wrong." "Serve others."

Some of the Old Testament questions and answers:

Genesis: Beginnings. Tell when and where you were born. "It was at the hospital and I think it was on my birthday."
Joshua: A general leading God's people in battle. If you were in the military, would you rather be in the army, navy, air force, or marines. "I'd rather be a marine because I like the beach."
1 Kings: King Solomon. If you were rich, name one thing you would do. "Buy a big house with a pool." "I would change the prices on everything."
2 Chronicles: History review. Name one historical fact that you know. "We watched a video on Tiger Woods in Social Studies."
Esther: The Queen saves her people. Name one thing we can do to help others. "I watched a Veggie Tales movie about Esther." "Help the elderly cross the street." "Give food to the hungry."
Ezekiel: The exciting future of God's people. What do you most look forward to as an adult? "I got nothin'."
Habakkuk: God's patience. Do you like to go fast or slow and why? "Fast, so I can get things done." "Fast, 'cause I like it!"

Kids say the coolest things.

Four Decades Following Christ

2008-06-18T12:21:00.003-05:00

40 years ago this month I began following Christ as a 12-year-old.

Here are some miscellaneous thoughts about the trip so far...

Jesus is a much better leader than I am a follower. Overall I've trusted Christ without dissent these past 40 years, but at times my impatience and insubordination have gotten the best of me. He's totally trustworthy, I can testify to that. I've been consistent but far from perfect.
Unfortunately, at times I've tried to make following Him more complicated that it actually is. Most of the stuff Jesus taught and how He lived while on earth is really pretty easy to emulate. I blame some of my misunderstandings of the Christian life on the organized church and part of it on me. I'm all for the organized church - I've just learned to be careful about equating man's methods and ideas with those of God. Sometimes I'll be reading a Christian book and have to say to myself, "That author has his religious underwear on too tight!" The longer I follow Christ the more I just want it to be out of simple love and obedience to His teachings.
It's getting easier...and harder. There are a lot of things I don't wrestle with any more. I don't mean I'm not tempted any more. Stuff like the temptation to envy, or be intemperate, or fear, etc. will always be there. But one of the good things about being a mid-life believer is that you know how to lick these things without a big struggle; most of the time anyway. But some things have gotten harder. Putting up with people who should be further along in their spiritual progress than they are, for instance. I have become less and less tolerant with high maintenance/low impact Christ followers. People like me, who have been following Christ for decades, yet still behave like spiritual infants, turn me off big time. I don't devote as much effort on them as I once did. I want to invest what God has taught me into the lives of believers who want to grow and learn to do God's will!
God wants me to follow Him because He loves me and wants the friendship, not because of what I can "do" for Him. Results-oriented people must be closely guarded. We tend to get so caught up in the outcome of what we're working on that we can be easily distracted from the relationships. The longer I follow Christ the more emphasis I place on relationships and the less I worry about results. I will always struggle with it but I've grown a lot. I love God, my family, my church family, my friends, but I have to make an effort sometimes to not put the cart before the horse.
The Scriptures are a gold mine! Almost every day for the last 40 years I've read the Bible. I am more amazed now at the wisdom of the Word of God than I was at age 12, and I was mesmerized then! I own a couple of dozen different translations and paraphrases of the Bible, from a facimilie of the 1611 King James Version to The Message. I love books but I love THE BOOK most of all! When I read and study the Bible I sometimes laugh, sometimes I cry, and sometimes I even stand up and shout in my study over the amazing insights in God's Word!

Favorite Movie Quotes

2008-05-31T23:16:00.003-05:00

Here are some movie quotes that have stuck with me because they made me think, inspired me, made me laugh, or I just thought they were clever.

They're in no particular order...

On becoming a man...
"I am Jaguar Paw. This is my forest. I am not afraid." -- Apocalypto

On facing tough situations...
"Failure is not an option." -- Apollo 13

On bravery...
"Very dangerous. You go first." -- Raiders of the Lost Ark

On having a year-round Christmas spirit...
"Mortal, we spirits of Christmas do not live only one day of the year, we live the whole 365. So it is true of the child born in Bethlehem." -- A Christmas Carol

On getting priorities straight...
"A prayer's as good as bayonet on a day like this. -- Zulu

On using your head...
"I know you can fight. But, it's our wits that make us men." -- Braveheart

On knowing when to fight...
"A shepherd must tend his flock... And at times, fight off the wolves." -- The Patriot

On knowing true success in life...
"Remember, George: no man is a failure who has friends." -- It's a Wonderful Life

On the impact Christ makes...
"Almost at the moment He died, I heard Him say, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do...And I felt his voice take the sword out of my hand." -- Ben Hur

On marriage...
"I dunno, she's got gaps, I got gaps, together we fill gaps." -- Rocky

Quotable Quotes - Part II

2008-05-29T12:52:00.003-05:00

"Whenever you fall - pick something up." (Anonymous)

"The most meaningless statistic in a ball game is the score at halftime." (Anon)

"The real glory is being knocked to your knees and then coming back. That's real glory. That's the essence of it." (Vince Lombardi)

"One mark of wisdom is being able to distinguish a setback from a defeat." (Anon)

"Winning is the science of being totally prepared." (Anon)

"If you don't release those who have hurt you, you will begin to resemble them." (Anon)

"The two most important tools of parenting are: TIME & TOUCH." (Gary Smalley)

"The philosophy of education in one generation is the philosophy of government in the next." (Abraham Lincoln)

"Adam failed; Jesus nailed; grace prevailed." (Patrick Morley)

"42.7% of all statistics are made up on the spot." (Steven Wright)

"To steal ideas from one person is plagarism; to steal from many is research." (Steven Wright)

Quotable Quotes

2008-05-28T17:04:00.004-05:00

Besides all the fantastic and familiar things said in the Bible I have found a few things other people said that bear repeating. Some are inspiring, some thought-provoking, some humorous, others just plain interesting.

"You do not test the resources of God until you try the impossible!" (F. B. Meyer)

"Care more than others think wise.
Risk more than others think safe.
Dream more than others think practical.
Expect more than others think possible." (Anonymous)

"Rules without relationships lead to rebellion." (Josh McDowell)

"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have one single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me!" (Erma Bombeck)

"Carve your name on hearts, not on marble." (Charles Spurgeon)

"Lord, I crawled across the barrenness to You with my cup empty, uncertain in asking any small drop of refreshment. If only I had known you better, I'd have come running with a bucket!" (Nancy Speigleberg in Billy Graham's "Decision" Magazine, November, 1974)

"Went to church today and was not greatly depressed." (Robert Louis Stevenson)

"The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn't being said." (Peter Drucker)

"Don't worry that children never listen to you. Worry that they are always watching you." (Robert Fulghum)

"Life is like pizza. Even when it's bad it's good." (Paula Devico in TV Guide)

"I was going to buy a copy of The Power of Positive Thinking and then I thought, 'What good would that do?'" (Ronnie Shanken)

"An optimist is a man who, finding himself in hot water, decides he needs a bath anyway." (Anonymous)

"Faith is not the opposite of reason. Faith rests squarely upon reason but with the added component of revelation." (Famed geneticist Francis Collins, TIME magazine, November 13, 2006)

"People aren't looking for information about God. They want to experience God, himself." (Mark Tabb, Mission to Oz)

"Jesus promised those who would follow Him only three things...that they would be absurdly happy, entirely fearless, and always in trouble." (Gregg Levoy, Christian Career Center Newsletter, November 12, 2003)

"What must die in every pastor is the subconscious desire to please people. What must not die is the will to love. There's the risk." (David Hansen, The Art of Pastoring)

Perhaps some more tomorrow...

Signs of the Times

2008-05-27T15:17:00.021-05:00

Been thinking and praying again today over what new message to put on the church sign. (Above is a sampling from last fall.)

The process of changing the sign challenged me, then flustered me, and finally excited me to think of unique ways to communicate a brief thought-provoking message to passers-by, especially potential first-time guests.

I will sleep on the decision I made and see if it still excites me in the morning.

For now, the changeable message area of our church sign is blank. I wonder if anyone will notice?

I have had several comments from first-time guests who visited because of the sign, from people in the neighborhood, and even from regular attenders about previous messages. All have been positive except for one guy who wants me to change the message every week. (I usually only change the message once a month because I don't get along well enough with the telescopic letter-changing-pole to change it weekly!) He said most churches change their messages every week and I had to agree with him. I also challenged him to volunteer to come change the message every week if and when I decide to follow his suggestion. He just grinned.

Of course I realize some reactions to our church sign are probably negative but I haven't heard them yet. I am open to suggestions. Although I will tell you I am opinionated about church sign messages.

There's a church down the street from where Deb and I reside that misspells words all the time. Holy cow! Doesn't someone in the church notice? How uncouth, and what does this say to the community - "Church is only for the uneducated?" (To top it off, the church borders a University campus.)

I'm not knocking spelling errors in general (we all make them; I do) or dyslexia, or even smart people who aren't good at spelling - but if you're going to put a message out for public perusal, for heaven's sake at least check your spelling. Yes, church is for the uneducated, especially the spiritually uneducated, but extra effort should be taken to make a good impression with the community.

Then there's another church close to our residence that also makes me cringe when I read the messages on their sign. Their message last Sunday was - "Conflict at Corinth." As my maternal grandma used to say, "My lands!" How in the world is this supposed to challenge the unchurched - or even the churched for that matter - to attend? Is someone actually supposed to say, "Let's go to the church down the street and learn about conflict at Corinth"? (Couldn't they have said something more helpful like, "Come Learn How to Solve Conflict"?)

Someone should have taken the time to think of something that prompted curiosity, something that promised to meet a need, or something that was relational and good news!

I saw a picture of a church sign online today that I thought was pretty good. The message read, "The answers to life's biggest questions aren't found on Google." Now that's catchy, up-to-date, and might make someone smile. (Or is it corny to you? Sometimes I wonder about corniness. Is "corniness" even a word? If so, is it misspelled?)

I did think it would have been better if they'd had more room to say something about how the answers to life's biggest questions are found in the message of the church, but that's one of the challenges of church sign messages - being succinct. A lot of times I second-guess myself on what will get people's attention - especially in few words.

Most of the time I also try to tie the church sign message to the current series I'm teaching.

This month I'm teaching on "THE SEARCH, Solomon's Secrets to a Happy and Successful Life," or, "THE SEARCH," for short.

Okay, so I'll go ahead and tell you what I'm thinking for the message board of the church sign:

"THE SEARCH"
BEGINS JUNE 1

Your opinion and input? Will that stimulate curiosity or is it too vague? Does it not give enough information?

If you ever have any suggestions about good ideas for church sign messages please pass them along and I promise that I will carefully consider them. But please check your spelling. (Just teasing.)

If you think I was too harsh with this posting please let me know that too. I do want to be kind as well as open and honest.

Chronicles of N, Take Two

2008-05-17T22:47:00.012-05:00

Would C. S. Lewis have ever imagined Disney making a movie of his Chronicles of Narnia - an imagineer organization profiteering off the offerings of Christian allegory by an earlier visionary? I pondered that yesterday as Deb and I went out to celebrate our anniversary a few days late via dinner and a movie.

Figured the sequel of the Narnian Chronicles of Lewis in flick form, "Prince Caspian," would be worthwhile, just didn't know if it would make a good anniversary date movie. It passed. Deb and I both enjoyed it and discussed it over dinner at O'Charley's.

Deb commented right away that she knew that I appreciated the action - there were several battle scenes - I guess that is what brought about the PG rating. But there was also the allegory.

I am not the world's best at interpreting allegory. I am actually way down on the scale. I generally don't like stories you have to work to understand. I don't like Shakespeare all that much for the same reason - just speak English. (Sorry my dear daughter Bethany - just teasing.)

Exhibit A: I used to be non-plussed about all the fuss over Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, one of the most published and praised Christian allegories in the history of books, while at the same time I was spellbound by several bios of "the tinker and thinker," John Bunyan.

Exhibit B: When I read the Chronicles of N to the children growing up I doubt I did a good job because of my lack of allegorical interpretation.

But put the Chronicles on the big screen and it's a different twist for me - which is hard for me to believe - because I am usually a firm believer in the old adage, "the book is always better than the movie."

What I liked and how I sifted Prince Caspian:

[NOTE: You may not want to read further if you haven't already seen this movie and plan to do so. Or...you may want to read it in order to make fun of me when you do view the movie because I may have gotten it all wrong. Either way, it's okay. I'm honestly content in my world of relative obscurity.]

The movie (based on the book) is about HOPE - even when the hour is dark and God seems to be distant. Peter, Edmond, Susan and Lucy Pevensie end up back in the fabled land of Narnia after centuries of the passage of time (in Narnia at least), but under dire conditions which require action. Peter decides to take action and it seems as if Aslan the lion, the deity character, is not interested in their plight. Lucy, the youngest of the siblings remains hopeful. Am I too "easy" to say I was inspired to greater hope about several perplexities in my own life by watching the movie? I am easily touched by themes of hope.

It's also about WAITING ON GOD and not taking matters into your own hands - which reverberates in my spirit because this has been the biggest hurdle in my life - waiting on God - actually, waiting on anyone and anything has been difficult for me.

You Type B readers (perhaps 2 out of the 5 people who read this blog - well, perhaps there are more readers from time to time, considering a guy showing a movie at the Cannes film festival recently emailed me to say that he had "Googled" the title to his movie and the first thing to come up was a blog entry of mine from a year ago) won't get this point, but if you live anywhere within a few blocks of Type A-ville you know how much we high-strung individuals like to have our finger on the pulse of what's happening - NOW!

Problem is, most of life involves waiting, which I am gradually mellowing out to realize as I enter the second half-century of my life.

I won't bore you with rehearsing the myriad of instances in which I have NOT waited on God and started off doing something because I felt it necessary to at least look like I was busy doing something. Besides, the list is too long and I would slouch into a fit of depression - and I'm not one prone to depression (perhaps because I seldom rehearse depressing scenarios).

I've learned that waiting on God produces better results - because God can ALWAYS do better than mortals can - at providing a need, solving a problem, etc. And I've learned that waiting draws me closer to God, which, it has occurred to me thousands of times now, is God's main aim. He doesn't want the successful completion of my pet projects - he wants me.

Actually it's good to be wanted by God. I can't fathom why He would want to spend time with us but He does. And a lot of the time we are busy with stuff He wants us to be focused on our friendship with Him.

The movie is probably about a lot of things...allegorical things to interpret...but I'll stop my musings with one more: CHILDLIKE FAITH. Lucy has it. She doesn't see how things can work out right - but she knows they will because she believes in Aslan and his love and power. As I said earlier, Aslan the lion is the deity character. God cares and wants us to exercise faith in Him. Not blind faith, but trust born of knowing God's nature and His track record.

When the movie climaxes with the river scene it wasn't just a Disney movie anymore. It was spiritual truth.

2008-05-10T13:03:00.003-05:00

A couple of blogs ago I said that I would save the money and forego seeing Ironman. Then one of the moms of the preschoolers that Deb taught this past year gave her an end of the year gift of movie tickets. Deb called me at the church and asked me on a date to see Ironman with her free tickets. Very thoughtful.

Deb even enjoyed this movie, which is unusual for an action film.

Stay Away from Things that Hurt You

2008-05-08T22:39:00.010-05:00

This past week seems like a blur. Some allergic reaction caused swelling in my face, my eyes were especially puffy, and I've felt weak. The over-the-counter medicine Deb got me at the drugstore - some generic brand of pills with benadryl in them - has helped me recover but it makes me drowsy. I fell asleep during American Idol the other night - which I didn't want to do - because I had just taken two tablets. It has helped the swelling go down, but when I walk I lean to the right. My right leg muscles are sore because of this. My reading has been off and I've had a difficult time concentrating.

I chuckle at myself thinking about how crazy this past week has been but it's a good lesson in staying away from things that hurt you. My suspicion is the allergic reaction was to pine tree pollen. I spent late Saturday afternoon scooping up a ton of stuff from the pine trees that border the church parking lot. I won't do that next spring!

If you have something in your life that you ought to stay away from - envy, materialism, anger, that extra piece of cake, whatever - try to remember the consequences of your foolish behavior. The outcome to foolish behavior is always the same. It weakens you and requires time and often healing medicine to recover your strength.

Sunday Night Mind Sweeping

2008-05-04T23:01:00.003-05:00

Miscellaneous thoughts that have been bumping into one another in my brain lately...

Deb is asleep in bed and I'm checking the blogs of family and friends. I'm thinking, "How did I unwind after Sundays of bearing my soul to my people in preaching in those early years of pastoring when the Internet didn't even exist?" Of course I have always enjoyed reading for leisure. Today I've been reading for hours and hours...even skipped my normal Sunday afternoon nap... I've been rotating between several volumes...a book on the planets filled with scientific babble about evolutionary forces and the big bang and all that nonsense, but interesting enough to sift through the misinformation to marvel at God's creation...a book on the Panama Canal written by one of my favorite history authors, David McCullough...a book about the prophet Elijah written by one of my favorite devotional authors, Chuck Swindoll...and a book about a guy who read through the Encyclopedia Brittanica. Yeah, reading is a great way to detox the mind. But so too is writing. That's why I like blogging.

Today we ate lunch after church at a Mexican restaurant with a few friends from the church. Eating with folks from the church after Sunday worship is normal. Today a friend was showing Deb and me her new phone. She took a picture of me and I looked at it and was amazed at how I thought I resembled my grandfather Atwood. I had my hair cut shorter this past week and its starting to get more gray in it, but that wasn't the thing. It was how my chin seemed to be poking out more than I'd ever noticed before. Grandpa Atwood had a kind of a pointed chin. Maybe mine just looked more pointed on the screen of her phone, because when she sent it to our home computer it didn't stand out as much. What a relief. I loved my grandpa but he was a "codger" (used affectionately to refer to an eccentric but amusing old man).

For only the third time in my life I've had an allergic reaction to poison ivy. I thought at first I got it from cleaning out some brush beside a thrift store at which I volunteer. But another guy in the church who was helping me with stump removal (see my earlier blog, "The Stump") said today after worship that he had some poison ivy too. So that may be how I picked it up. Anyway it's an aggravation. I would laugh at my two older brothers when they had allergic reactions to it growing up. I guess the chickens have come home to roost. I have a small spot on my left arm, and on my left shin. But I have scratched around my eyes so much that my face is puffy. Deb got me some medicine this afternoon. It makes it not itch for an hour or two but then...I'm scratching like a hen in a barnyard. Poison ivy must be part of the curse from the fall of man in the Garden of Eden.

Started the series, "No Perfect Families Allowed" today. Like any church, Pathway has struggling families, stressed families, and good families striving to be even better...but we don't have any perfect families. Deb and I will celebrate 31 years of marriage this month and we have a great family - but we have not been perfect even though our kids are more perfect than their dad and mom. In this series we're looking at some of the families in the Bible and how we can make imperfect human relationships work by God's grace. Today I spoke on "Surviving Family Flaws." The message was on the first family - Adam, Eve, Cain and Abel. Several people commented afterwards that God showed them some important stuff.

Wanted to go see the movie "Ironman" this weekend but Deb and I are saving our nickels and dimes to go to Spain for the birth of our twin granchildren late fall or winter. Several guys in the church who saw it (one saw it twice) said it was awesome. Hmmm... can I hold out when "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" comes out? Sure. I've seen plenty of movies before.

TWINS!

2008-04-29T20:11:00.000-05:00

Today we found out that our daughter in Spain is going to have twins!

Deb and I are both still smiling and laughing. We are looking forward to all the grandchildren we can possibly get - but two at once is beyond our expectations.

More on Miller's book

2008-04-29T08:17:00.000-05:00

This morning I'm reading chapter 3 of Donald Miller's book Searching for God Knows What.

P. 38 - "One of the reasons I came to trust the God of the Bible was because He was big enough to explain the imposters. In Scripture, God never gets confused about who is who isn't representing Him. Imposters represent a small god, a vapor in the imagination of a child, a god we would all do well to renounce."

Miller says this after he mentions Shirley McClain swirling around on some beach somewhere saying, "I'm god, I'm god, I'm god." But he also rips Jerry Falwell for his remarks after 9/11. Since Falwell was a great guy in many ways, that was hard to swallow. But Miller's right. Sometimes we preachers get on our high horses and act like we represent God when we don't.

We're as guilty as Shirley McClaine sometimes. Ouch.

Oh I know Shirley doesn't know God (bless her heart... that's what they say here in the south, "bless her heart," and I say that because I feel sorry for anyone who doesn't know God) and Jerry knew Him well, but it is good to evaluate ourselves sometimes on how we represent God to a world that doesn't know Him. Our hope is that we will be salt and light. (See what Jesus said in Matthew 5:13-16) Yes, sometimes salt burns and light surprises, but being salt and light should be that about us Christ followers that attract others to know God as we know Him.

Sometimes it's difficult to not speak for God from my own humanity. But I find more peace and joy when I leave the pronouncements of judgment to God. I find more balance when I point people to Him and not to my opinions.

I don't think this means that we shortchange God's truth. Much of it is very hard for people to swallow until they get to know where God is coming from.

I interpret that to be the point Miller makes in this chapter.

Pp. 46-47 - "When I saw myself in heaven...I imagined myself off behind some mountain range doing some fishing and writing a good detective novel. But if the gospel of Jesus is relational; that is, if our brokenness will be fixed, not by our understanding of theology, but by God telling us who we are, then this would require a kind of intimacy of which only heaven knows. Imagine, a Being with a mind as great as God's, with feet like trees and a voice like rushing wind, telling you that you are His cherished creation. It's kind of exciting if you think about it. Earthly love, I mean the stuff I was trying to get by sounding smart, is temporal and slight so that it has to be given again and again in order for us to feel any sense of security; but God's love, God voice and presence, would instill our souls with such affirmation we would need nothing more and would cause us to love other people so much we would be willing to die for them."

Blogging as I read...

2008-04-27T16:55:00.000-05:00

I read the first chapter after church and after Deb and I had Sunday dinner at Olive Garden with my oldest brother Richard, his wife Sandy, and their only daughter Rachel who were visiting from Nashville. Then I took a nap.

Began reading chapter two of this book after my respite and wanted to jot a few thoughts down for future reference...then I thought...I will blog some of the stuff that I want to remember.

You will remember Miller for his best-seller Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality. I laughed and cried through that one. Then I read his Through Painted Deserts, which was actually his first book, and To Own a Dragon; all pretty good stuff.

Searching was published in 2004, but I just found a copy last week at the thrift store. Our son Brandon will get this copy in Indiana when I'm through because when I asked him what volumes I could find at the thrift stores among other things he said he wanted to read anything by Donald Miller.

Quote, P. 17 - "...we would rather have a formula religion than a relational religion. If I could, I probably would have formula friends because they would be safe. I have this suspicion...that if we are going to get to know God, it is going to be a little more like getting to know a person than practicing voodoo. And I suppose that means we are going to have to get over this fear of intimacy..."

Why that hits me at this point in time - As a pastor I do church in my mind and heart every day of the year, not just on 52 Sundays. One of the huge obstacles to reaching and growing people in Christ is fear of intimacy. That is one of the lures of formal religion. In formalistic religions you can be surface-deep and get by. Yet it is only relational religion - a personal relationship with God through His Son Jesus, and growing relationships with other Christ followers - that meets the need of the human heart and mind. It's tough going sometimes - this relational religion whereby we open up to God and to one another and show our warts and blemishes and hurts and habits and hangups - but it is wise although arduous. I long for people to do church with their hands, arms and hearts open to God and one another.

Quote, P. 19 - "I realize a lot of people don't like Jesus, or just ignore Him or have no use for Him, but I think the best thing a person can do is to read through the Gospels in the Bible and really look at Jesus, because if a person does this, they will realize that the Jesus they learned about in Sunday school or the Jesus they hear jokes about or the skinny, Gandhi Jesus that exists in their imaginations isn't anything like the real Jesus at all."

WTHMATPIT - That's good stuff. I won't tell you what he says about Santa Claus in this chapter. You'll have to find a copy of the book and read that for yourself. I cracked up. It was a little like the wry humor of a Janet Evanovich novel. (Yes I read her first novel. Just like I read one Louis Lamour novel and one Stephen King novel...actually I think I've read 3 of his.) Miller does a good job of showing how God is not an imposter even though some televangelists muddy the waters with their half-truths about God in order to fleece people of their money.

At this point Miller begins to get honest about his personal struggle with God's existence because of the misrepresentations of God he witnessed as a younger man.

More later...

The Stump

2008-04-23T16:05:00.000-05:00

Ever since we moved into the present building we're leasing in which to "do" church, I have been perplexed by an old stump at the very back corner of the parking lot. Most folks probably never even noticed it.

I did for two reasons.

One: I'm a neat freak about church parking lots and grounds. I just don't ever want someone to drive by our facility or into our parking lot and think, "These people must not take their worship very seriously because, if they did, this area would look neater and cleaner." I realize they may not say those exact words to themselves, but that might be the impression they get. And with an impression like that they may never want to meet the great God we serve and the great people with whom we worship.

Two: I hate it when someone doesn't finish what they start. A tree stump is a classic case of not finishing what was begun. Someone cut the tree down and didn't want to to go the trouble and the hard part of removing the unsightly stump.

So ever since we moved in I have been strategizing about its removal. It was encased in a mound of dirt with two large roots protruding off the sides. I didn't want to rent a stump grinder because I'm thrifty. So I've put off doing anything about it until recently. I got out the shovel and little by little took away the dirt. My plan was to have Jeff from the church bring his chain saw and cut it out.

But when I got to the subterranean portion of the stump this afternoon, I was in for a surprise. After years of being left to its ugliness - the stump was rotten below the surface. I applied some torque with my shovel and voila - the stump and its roots were broken into three large pieces and thrown into the dumpster!

My observation about this event is that we often obsess in life about problems that aren't as difficult as we perceived them to be. There's a rottenness to most difficulties in life that make commitment and perserverance pay off. We're often faced with the pleasant surprise that the only thing lacking in overcoming the stumps in our lives is commitment to roll up our sleeves and go to work.

Recent Pics of Grandson Andrew in Spain

2008-04-13T20:35:00.000-05:00

Heartbeat

2008-04-03T22:00:00.000-05:00

So what would we say to the people we love who have preceded us in death if we were able to go back and talk to them with the benefit of our present understanding?

Eli Stone is a new TV series that weighs whether the main character is hallucinating or is a prophet. "Heartbeat" is the title of the April 3 episode in which Eli returned to the past and tells his father goodbye; something he was not around to do when it actually happened ten years previous. His father's health was ruined via alcoholism. His addiction is exacerbated by the fact that he too had a brain aneurysm which may have led to his drinking while at the same time giving him the same sort of extra sensory perception he passed on to his son Eli.

As a dramatic reach its untenable of course, but the underlying premise holds oceans of water.

When we're young we don't understand, and consequently struggle with being able to forgive, the foibles of our forebears. At this stage in his life, and bearing the same physical/psychological/spiritual malady as his father, Eli Stone better understands and forgives his father's battle with the bottle.

My personal identification with the story line of this episode:

1) My father was an alcholic. I grew up broken-hearted and riddled with inner anger over his inability or unwillingness to stop drinking. Later, as I understood more about life's stresses and my father's upbringing I gave up more and more anger and wished so badly so many times I had an opportunity as a mature man to talk to him again.

When we began Celebrate Recovery at Pathway a few months back I began to appreciate the opportunity to talk with men with hurts, habits and hangups not only because it gave me a chance to share healing Scriptural truths with them, but also because I was able to continue my own ongoing process toward recovery from anger and hurt.

2) May my children look on me with understanding. May all children forgive the imperfections of their parents and empathize with the circumstances surrounding their early lives.

Any Given Sunday

2008-03-30T19:17:00.000-05:00

Today a lady visited the church. She came in late so I didn't get to talk to her until after the worship gathering. Turns out she was there to ask me to conduct her funeral. I conducted her husband's funeral about a dozen years ago. She has a terminal disease and not long to live. I wondered why her eyes were closed during the entire sermon. Apparently she is on heavy medication and in a lot of pain.

I debated putting this in my blog but I think people need to know the stories behind the stories - what's going on in the hearts and lives of people sitting beside them on any given Sunday.

As I preached from 1 John chapter five I saw smiles and frowns, heads nodding in agreement as well as some looking as though they might not be so sure of the validity of what I was saying. Its good to have seekers in the house along with the committed core.

One young man about 30 years of age told me that he had been thinking about it for a while and decided to make a faith commitment to Christ. That was good news. He's been prayed for quite a while. Now we pray for his growth in Christ.

Out in the parking lot before the worship gathering began I was talking with a teen guy in the church about landscaping. I want him to help me on a Faith in Action project next month since he had recently told me he wanted to go into landscaping when he got out of high school. As we were in front of the church a guy in the neighborhood who had visited us several times but hadn't been back in a few weeks drove by. He didn't notice me but I noticed him. He was looking at all of the cars in the parking lot and it almost seemed he was wanting to pull in but drove on by. My heart went out to him. I'll try to call him this week.

May God remind us that others are hurting, seeking, lost and lonely. And we may come in contact with them, not only on any given Sunday, but any given day of the week.

Will you be a Fust, Schoffer, or Gutenberg?

2008-03-23T22:28:00.000-05:00

Familiar with the names Fust and Schoffer? Probably not unless you're a history nerd.

Fust was the man who sued Gutenberg in court and took from him the printing establishment used to mass produce the first book - the Gutenberg Bible. Schoffer was Fust's son-in-law who worked in and became rich taking over the family business after Fust's death.

Their names do not come close to the fame of Gutenberg's. But they reaped the benefits of what he began.

Just finished "Gutenberg, How One Man Remade the World with Words," by John Man. It was my Easter weekend read.

Fascinating that Gutenberg, the man who invented movable type printing - and used the Bible as his first mass-produced best seller - underwent such a roller coaster of success and failure during his lifetime.

Not only did he have difficulty with his primary partner in business, Fust, but he also lived in the midst of almost total societal chaos. The Catholic Church was rife with internal schism, including one time period where there were three popes - simultaneously! The Turks were threatening the stability of Europe after the fall of Constantinople (Byzantium) in the east, and many towns and cities fell prey to financial and military overthrow stemming from the constant bickering of would-be bishops, cardinals, popes and strife between economic classes.

But the fete Gutenberg accomplished - lauded by many as the most important event of the last millenium - was monumental. Books were no longer the result of the painstakingly long drawn out process of being hand-written by scribes (manuscripts) or stamped with wooden blocks. Moveable type printing was one of those really BIG innovations that caused a quantum shift in world history.

Maybe it's a mid-life thing for me, but the story of Guttenberg made me think about the important things in life. It's not about wealth and fame. It's about legacy.

Postscript(s): The invention of printing - Gutenberg style - was extremely influential in the Protestant Reformation. Men like Luther, Tyndale, Wycliffe, etc., were now able to translate and mass produce Bibles in the simple language of their people.

Luther said of printing that it was, "God's highest and extremest act of grace, whereby the business of the Gospel is driven forward." John Foxe put it this way in his "Book of Martyrs," (Published in 1563 - and, on a personal note, one of my top ten favorite books of all time. Read it as a teenager.) "The Lord began to work for His Church not with sword and target to subdue His exalted adversary, but with printing, writing and reading... Either the Pope must abolish knowledge and printing or printing must at length root him out."

One of Rome's major "counter-Reformation" tactics was to ban, burn and effectively attempt to eradicate all printed matter that did not support their point of view. Ha! Can you say "backfire?" For instance, if copies of Tyndale's Bible were burned by the thousands by the Pope and his minions, they were reprinted by the tens of thousands and sold like wildfire.

Fust and Schoffer may have become wealthy in their day by capitalizing on Gutenberg's creation. But Johnny Gutenberg is the man we all immortalize.

Mind Sweeping

2008-03-13T23:01:00.000-05:00

I was thinking about eschatology today - the study of the end times - the second coming of Christ, etc. Wonder why we call it the end times? When Jesus returns it won't be the end - it will just be the beginning. I often wonder if I think enough about heaven and eternity.

My wife begins her Spring break from pre-school teaching tomorrow. Wonder why all adults don't get a Spring break?
The NCAA basketball tournament is upon us and it looks wide open to me. I'm pulling for my home state of Maryland and the state in which our three children were born - Indiana. Alabama isn't that well known for it's basketball but one of the guys told me at church last night that Spring practice for football began today. BAMA had the best recruiting class in the nation this year. ROLL TIDE!
Finished a book by Lee Strobel today called "The Case for the Real Jesus," which invesigates the current attacks on the identity of Jesus. Strobel's previous works include, "The Case for Christ," "The Case for Easter," "The Case for Faith," "The Case for a Creator," and perhaps some other "Case for" book. I not sure how many are in this series. This volume was timely for me because I'm teaching through the Apostle John's first letter where he rallies the church against Gnosticism, the first century attack on the identity of Jesus. Much of the book was repeat apologetics for me, but still, very timely stuff for our friends in postmodern American culture. The evidence for Jesus as God's Son is overwhelming to any person without serious presuppositions to the contrary.
Found John Grisham's newest novel in the thrift store today! "The Appeal," first edition, 2008. Moved it to the top of the stack of readables.
I know several people to whom God is speaking. Hope the Easter season brings new spiritual life to them in the risen Christ. Praying to that end.

It's Official - I'm an Eli Stone Fan

2008-03-06T22:00:00.000-06:00

Yes, yes I realize this quirky Thursday night TV show's idea of the supernatural and deity is not totally Christian. (The acupuncturist who serves as a counselor to the star of the series mixes mention of biblical prophets like Moses with a sprinkling from a Mayan legend, etc.) And I realize some of the causes the young lawyer Eli Stone represents are of the "politically correct" variety. But sometimes (sometimes) politically correct is also biblically correct. The two are not always mutually exclusive.

Christ followers can identify with this new show because it speaks of the human need of realizing that there is a plan for each of our lives that is higher than what we can comprehend without Divine guidance. I'm also impressed with the court cases Stone now takes after his brain aneurysm. Instead of being concerned solely about being a "rainmaker" (courting the cases that bring in the big bucks for his firm) Stone is now interested in helping the underdog because of the visions he receives.

To me, this show, which appeared as a mid-season replacement right after the return episode of LOST, entertains in a way that also makes a point - a worthwhile point.

It's touching that Stone looks back and understands his father's idiosyncrasies better now that he is a man grappling with the vagaries of life himself.

Like all TV series that stand out, this show mixes exceptionally creative writing, stories from the headlines, and interactive characters that represent people we all work with.

And, oh yeah, I dig the songs and the wacky way music is used to introduce important (and spiritual) truth to Stone.

Mind Sweeping

2008-02-07T15:46:00.000-06:00

Here are several thoughts bumping into one another in my head...

* In last night's small group one of the newest members of our church family mentioned how he felt like he felt a sense of "belonging" at Pathway, and another said that this is one of the best things our church has going for it. The first guy said that he spent two years at another church before coming to Pathway and never felt the sense of belonging he feels here. Inside, I was thanking God that one of our primary goals is being reached - the desire to be a "No Perfect People Allowed/Come As You Are" church! You don't have to wear a mask around here for people to love you. The longer I follow Christ the more I see the need for authenticity. My wife Deb shares a deep desire for authenticity with me - she is one of the most "real" relational people I know.

* It's good not to have to fight innovation battles any more. This is one of the many things I like about Pathway Church right now. No one is going to feel uncomfortable with a video in the middle of a sermon or a contemporary song with a syncopated beat, or changing something to make it more effective, etc., just because, "We never did it that way before."

* Celebrate Recovery has begun on Saturday nights at 6:30! The potential for this program to help people is astronomical! Funny thing was, we had our first meeting on the same weekend that the National Alcoholics Anonymous convention was in town! Hilarious! Who Knew? Well apparently most of the people who were supposed to attend our first meeting knew - because they went to the big dance instead. But those of us who got the program off the ground felt a unique presence of God in our small group!

* "Faith in Action," not just "Faith in Advertising": People at Pathway get excited about service. We had such a spiritual lift last fall observing "Faith in Action Sunday" that we're going to do it again this spring! On the last Sunday of April we'll cancel the morning worship gathering and go out into the community performing acts of service instead.

* When I mentioned to some of the young couples in the church that Deb and I recently went to see the movie "Cloverfield" they said, "Really?" I know its a teen and twenty-something movie but I like to watch what the young adults are watching - besides - I have always liked amusement. The word amusement comes from the word "muse" that means, "to think," and the prefix "a" which means, "not." Therefore amusement is something you can do that doesn't require thinking. That's why I like amusement parks. Most of my work week is spent thinking - and I like thinking - but if I "don't think" sometimes, I blow fuses.

Unbeatables Beaten

2008-02-04T19:57:00.000-06:00

New York Giants upset New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, 17-14.

Several of us watched the game together in the church fellowship hall. Getting together and eating and talking and listening is always fun. I guess I had more fun because I was rooting for the Giants to upset the previously unbeaten Pats. When the underdog wins, especially in the dramatic fashion of this year's big contest, it reminds us all to never accept defeat as a given.

I won't try to reflect on the highlights but one play stands out. When Giants quarterback Eli Manning miraculously scrambled to escape several defenders who looked like they had him cornered - and on top of that got the ball downfield to a spectacular leaping, behind the helmet catch by David Tyree - the "upset" chill bumps started gathering on the back of my neck. Tyree, who had not caught a touchdown pass since '06, had just caught one from Manning at the beginning of the 4th quarter, before making this unbelievable, highlights-reel catch, to keep the game-winning drive alive.

Just goes to show you - the majority may say your team can't win and you may not have contributed any game-winning plays lately, but never underestimate the power of perseverance.

"With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don't hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort." 1 Corinthians 15:58 (From "The Message")

How to Handle Blue Monday

2008-01-21T13:05:00.000-06:00

"Blue Monday" is a name given to a date calculated to be the most depressing day of the year.

This date was calculated by Dr Cliff Arnall, at the time a researcher/tutor at the University of Cardiff's Center for Lifelong learning, and has been quoted in the popular press. However, Guardian columnist Dr Ben Goldacre stated: "the fact is that Cliff Arnall's equations are stupid, and some fail even to make mathematical sense on their own terms.

The Guardian later printed a statement from Cardiff University distancing themselves from Dr Arnall: "Cardiff University has asked us to point out that Dr Cliff Arnall... was a former part-time tutor at the university."

The date was calculated to be January 24th in 2005, January 23rd in 2006, January 22nd in 2007, and January 21st in 2008.

The date was calculated by using many factors, including: weather conditions, debt level (the difference between debt accumulated and our ability to pay), time since Christmas, time since failing our new year’s resolutions, low motivational levels and feeling of a need to take action. This date typically falls on the Monday of the last full week of January.

While I don't know about the "mathematical sense" of Arnall's calculations I do have to admit that we do allow some of these factors to affect our moods sometimes. But I also take joy in the fact that followers of Christ do not have to be subject to outward circumstances for our attitude.

In the 22nd Psalm, which is a Messianic Psalm (because it prophecies of Christ, the Messiah) David writes and sings about his "Blue Monday."

He felt:

*Abandoned and helpless
*Ignored
*Despised and rejected
*Ridiculed for his faith
*Taunted by his enemies
*Drained and on the verge of death
*Surrounded by a murderous mob

But, as was often the case, as David sang out his emotions in his prayer-song to God, his defeat turned to victory, his depression turned into praise!

Psalm 22:23 You who fear the LORD, praise him!
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!
Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!

24 For he has not despised or disdained
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.

If today or any other day is "blue" for you then do what David did - cry out to God. He will hear you and will lift up your spirit as you wait on Him!

Nephew Makes it to Hollywood on AI

2008-01-16T12:35:00.000-06:00

Deb's youngest brother's oldest son, Jonathan Baines was on American Idol last night. He received a "golden ticket" to audition in Hollywood.

Here's the clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSo5WgxXsUc

My "Bucket List"

2008-01-13T22:43:00.000-06:00

Deb and I went to see this movie Friday night. She still had some free movie tickets left over from Christmas gifts and I will soon have my Friday nights taken up with "Celebrate Recovery," so we went out on a date while we had the chance.

I won't talk much about the movie in case you haven't seen it yet. We enjoyed it even though, of course, Hollywood loves profanity and we don't. I just want to talk about the obvious premise of the movie. The "bucket list" is a list of all the things you want to do before you "kick the bucket."

I also just finished reading the January 2008 issue of Smithsonian and its cover article, "28 Places to See Before You Die." So far I've only seen one of these places (the Grand Canyon) and I only got to see it for ten minutes back when I was in college and traveling with a quartet, singing and preaching in different churches each night. We drove 100 miles out of our way and broke the speed limit in Arizona and California in order to get to our next meeting on time. But that's another story.

The movie and the magazine article have caused me to ponder. What do I want to do and see before I die?

Hmmm...

I'd like to take Deb on a cruise to Hawaii. She's always wanted to go on a cruise and always wanted to go to Hawaii - so I could kill two fowls with one rock. [I myself would prefer going on a cruise to Alaska or Antartica. I like cold and isolated places. Don't try to psychoanalyze that - you'll spoil the fun.]

Touring Europe with the family is also a goal. Since Brooke, Matthew and Andrew are in Spain, we can branch out from there together when we go to see them on future trips. I already thoroughly enjoyed seeing parts of Spain on our last trip. Segovia was my favorite. I still marvel at the adqueduct built by the Romans 2 millenia ago - a breathtaking feat of architecture.

I can hardly wait for Brandon and Keshia and Bethany and David to have children - and Brooke and Matthew to have more. I really get excited at the prospect of our kids having kids and seeing what they look like and how they act. I'm a family guy for sure. A big part of my bucket list is to continue to enjoy our family.

Like in the movie, I'd like to skydive.

Being on a game show like "Jeopardy" or "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," sometimes sound fun to me. If they just stuck to history and geography questions and such, I might try out for a show like these. But there are too many zany categories for me to seriously consider it.

In addition I'd like to see: Israel; the Parthenon and Coliseum in Rome; The Great Pyramids; The Great Wall of China; The jungles of Africa; the Austrailian Outback; any great mountains; the windmills of the Netherlands; the Nile; the Amazon; the aurora borealis; etc.

Other activities on my bucket list (no particular order): hang glide; learn Spanish; write a book; write worship songs for my church to sing; spend a week in a mountain cabin all alone; spend a couple of weeks with the whole family in a mountain cabin; retire and open a used book store - spending my days buying and selling books, talking to other book lovers and READING...

More than anything of course, and I'm trying to be honest and not super-spiritual, I'd like to know God better and share His love with others more effectively.

That's part of my "bucket list." How about yours?

Happiness with a "Y"

2008-01-11T20:51:00.000-06:00

I've done no blogging for a while. Too many excuses to list.

But I just finished a book I have to talk about, "The Pursuit of HappYness," by Chris Gardner. The movie came out a while back, starring Will Smith, and Deb and I liked it so much I read the book.

WARNING: Not good reading for Pharisees or other legalists since it is peppered with profanity, several adult situations, some unfinished and unbiblical conclusions about spirituality, etc., but several threads of the most heart-rending and soul-searching truth race like a torrent through this volume. I caught myself with my face in my hands several times tearfully calling out to Jesus to help me care more for the hurting and the homeless.

Gardner spent most of his life without knowing his father and living under the abuse and tyranny of an illiterate step-father. Consequently he promised himself he would never be an absentee in the life of his son. His tenacity to his commitment to fatherhood and his resourcefulness in the face of circumstances beyond his control (as well as some self-inflicted wounds) resonate waves of respect for men like him who don't abandon their children for childish and selfish reasons. Never mind he's now rich and influential. The success I admire is his fortitude to be a good father even if it meant swallowing his pride or juggling his schedule. Millions of men need to get a grip on this ideal.

I like for my reading to include elements outside the boundaries of often-tread Christian works. As a pastor I'm constantly trying to understand what makes people tick. I want to walk in their shoes, know what they're thinking, and identify with their loneliness and suffering because I think Jesus did that. Books like this help keep my heart tender.

I could be blogging about the 944-page work on Abraham Lincoln I read over the holidays entitled, "Team of Rivals," by Doris Kearns Goodwin, that deals with the political genius of our 16th president. That was an enjoyable read and very well-written. But this 302-page autobiographical work by Gardner was one of those books that spoke to my soul. (Not that history doesn't speak to my soul - but in a different way.)

There have been plenty of times the Holy Spirit has imparted the lessons of empathy and impartiality to my heart and mind, including those times when I have been the recipient of judgmentalism because others did not know and understand my personal history. These experiences have moved me to work harder at trying to understand others. But this book was a repeat and reemphasis of God's instruction to me. It was a fresh "wake up call" to compassion.

I ask myself, "Do I know and care about the sad plight of some of the children and men and women of my own city? Do I understand their sense of hopelessness and why they behave in anti-social ways?"

I want to know. I want to care. I want to do something about it.

No Pictures?

2007-11-17T07:41:00.000-06:00

What's wrong with me?

Yesterday Deb and I went with the "Trailblazers" (folks in our church 55 and older) to Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding House in Lynchburg, Tennessee, and no one took any pictures!

I can't believe it. I never have been in the habit of taking along a camera and I often regret it. But at least I sometimes remember to ask someone else to take some pictures of church activities.

The food wasn't as good as last time Deb and I were there but I was glad to have a chance to spend more time with these great folks. I think I ate enough catfish to grow gills. Everyone was making fun of me but for some reason I couldn't eat enough. I think it was the sauce that was provided that made the fish taste so good. (And no, the hostess assured me there wasn't any of the "special ingredient" in the sauce. Jack Daniels distillery owns the place. Ha! There wasn't any "sauce" in the sauce. But they did put some on the baked apples. How terrible would it have been for the pastor and his wife to return to church with the senior saints tipsy!)

It's takes about an hour to drive from Huntsville north to Lynchburg and the day was nice and sunny and with the leaves changing colors this time of year the drive through rural south central Tennessee with rolling hills and farms was relaxing.

My only regret is that I did not plant a hidden microphone in the van with six ladies inside.

That's My Story & It's Sticking To Me

2007-11-05T04:30:00.000-06:00

This blog was originally intended to be about several things, and one major topic was to be my thoughts about books I've been reading.

But instead of just reading, lately I've been trying to finish writing a book for our three children. (So it's not going to be a best-seller; not even a seller at all actually. It is going to be a gift. Will I make it by Christmas...?)

I've mentioned writing this book before in my blog - and how it is a much more daunting task than I thought it would be. In fact, I took a hiatus for several months because it is so difficult. But lately I have been at it again and that's where my thoughts have been recorded - instead of in my blog.

Actually, its one of those books where you fill in the answers to questions about your life so that your children will have a better idea of your personal history. I have often wished, even as I grow older, that I knew more about my father's life and thoughts.

Our fathers certainly play a defining role in shaping who we are - not only because of the genes they pass on to us - but also because of their personal legacies. I want our three grown children, now with families of their own - to be able to share in their roots - to know a little bit more about where they came from so that they'll be able to better chart where they're going.

That's my story and it's sticking to me.

FIA a Big Sucess!

2007-10-31T15:11:00.000-05:00

Faith in Action was a big success. There was a tremendous amount of satisfaction among the participants and they felt that they had done something worthwhile. Many also want to keep on doing things like the community service projects in which they were involved.

We had seven Faith in Action projects on October 14 during the time period that we would normally have had our morning worship.

1- Yard sale on the church parking lot for families seeking "financial peace" (Dave Ramsey term). I got at the church at 6 A.M. and others arrived shortly thereafter and helped set up and sell items.

We had several team members from the church as well as three or four families who came to set up, sell their stuff, and keep the cash for their own needs. One lady that set up next to those of us from the church, was selling stuff to help another family that had lost everything in a fire so we gave her some of the proceeds from the stuff we were selling that church people had donated.

2 - A dozen or more of the folks from Pathway went to Hearthstone Assisted Living Center which is located about a mile from the church and worshipped with about a dozen of the residents there. We carted in the electronic piano from the church, took hymnbooks, sang about 7 songs, and I brought a brief message. The residents touched all of our hearts and thanked us for coming. Several of our members want to do this once a month now. The activities director there even wants to bring some of the folks to one of our worship gatherings some Sunday morning soon.

3 - Several Pathway members took a meal to the homeless camp underneath the Interstate bridge. They shared of how God touched their hearts in this ministry during the celebration worship gathering on Sunday night.

4 - Another team went to do yardwork for a single mom who has visited Pathway several times. They came back with smiles on their faces talking about how good it felt to help someone.

5 - One team began the process of making repairs on the mobile home of a seasoned citizen. The work will be completed soon.

6 - Several members set up a table in front of the south Wal-Mart to receive contributions for clean water in developing countries.

7 - The Student Ministry was at the same location receiving donations of non-perishable food items for our holiday food box drive.

The celebration worship gathering on the Sunday night of Faith in Action saw almost a full house. (I ashamed to say I was worried that a good crowd would return.) Several great testimonies of what God had done through Faith in Action were given, the testimony time culminating with two boys, Calvin Bush (age 9), and Kent Richardson (age 11), standing up and saying that they were going to continue at their schools to try to get funds for clean drinking water in developing countries. (A Samaritan's Purse program). I lost it then, with tears welling up in my eyes, as well as a lot of other people's eyes in the church, and I even forgot that Candace Atwood had made a great slide show with pictures taken from most of the projects. (Which we showed at the end of the worship gathering.)

The suggested celebration service theme for the message from the pastor was from Luke 10 where Jesus said to the 72 disciples returning from their mission, "I saw Satan fall like lighting from heaven."

During Faith in Action I too saw Satan fall like lightning.

Twice Family

2007-10-08T18:54:00.000-05:00

My first cousin from Pennsylvania, Kevin Childers, and his wife Debbie, visited us in Alabama recently.

He's in the middle, between me and my older brother Mark.

Kevin is blood kin (our mothers were sisters) but he is also spiritually related by faith in Christ.

We share a great love for teaching the Word of God and for contemporary Christian music.

It was great to spend time together.

Faith in Act!on

2007-09-28T03:32:00.000-05:00

Pathway Church is currently involved in a Faith in Act!on campaign. This intensified month-long emphasis is not just about going to church, but about "being" the church. It will culminate on October 14 with our observance of "Faith in Act!on Sunday."

On this day we're asking everyone in the church family to be involved in at least one act of community service. In fact we're going to take what seems like a radical step to some and cancel the morning worship gathering on that day in order to perform these acts of serving others.

I've noticed down through the years that a lot of people who have followed Jesus have been fearful of doing something radically different from what they've always done.

But my thinking is the opposite. I'm afraid of always doing the same thing. I'm afraid of apathy and complacency setting in, about Christ followers becoming cold and indifferent to being the "salt" and the "light" that Jesus left us here to be. I'm afraid we might become too inwardly focused that we forget that there are those outside the church family who are in dire need of the love of Christ.

So in our daily devotions and small groups and in my weekly messages to the church we have been piling on the teachings of Jesus about putting our faith in action. Already I've noticed a rumbling underneath the surface of things that I hope will turn into a full fledged earthquake of caring for others that Jesus intended the church to experience.

It's time to not do church as usual. It's time to put our faith in act!on!

The Last Jihad

2007-09-27T22:39:00.001-05:00

"The Last Jihad" is the first novel in Joel C. Rosenberg's unravelling of end time scenarios that are eerily close to actual events in the world as relating to the middle east and prophecy. (See my blog entry immediately previous to this one.) I read this one quickly so that I can move on to books 2 and 3.

This was interesting - reading the first book that develops the author's main characters - after having read the fourth book in a progression of ideas that fit together as a whole. "The Last Jihad" was published in 2002 and I first read "The Copper Scroll" by the same author, published in 2006. Actually, Rosenberg wrote "Jihad" before 2002 - and before 9-11! The book begins with middle eastern terrorists in the cockpit of a plane headed to do harm in America. It also depicts the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein being toppled. Hmmm...pretty prescient stuff!

His political slant is conservative but, like his emphasis on Christianity, not blatantly aggressive. I like that. It's smart and it gives room for people who differ with the author's evangelical Christianity and right leaning ways to discover different views through a riveting story line.

Scroll This

2007-09-23T20:23:00.000-05:00

Part end-times fiction, part archeological intrigue, and part fast paced page turner, "The Copper Scroll" by Joel C. Rosenberg, published in 2006, kept me up past midnight last night. That's not an easy task on Saturday night because I usually like to get plenty of rest before Sunday's pastoral duties.

There actually is a copper scroll. It was found along with the rest of the Dead Sea Scrolls and has been studied by archeologists, historians, linguists and religionists for the past 50 years. Rosenberg's book suggests a possible futuristic scenario of how the scroll fits into the building of the third Jewish Temple. That's all I'm going to say about the plot. If you liked "Raiders of the Lost Ark" or the "Left Behind" series by Lahaye and Jenkins you should love this best-seller.

Rosenberg is an evangelical Christian Jew and his belief in biblical prophecy clearly shines through in this, his fourth work of fiction. His desire to spread the Good News about Jesus is also evident, but not with any type of "in your face" evangelistic style.

Having previously been a communications strategist for the likes of guys like Rush Limbaugh, Steve Forbes and former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Rosenberg began his best selling fiction trend with "The Last Jihad" in 2002.

I've been meaning to read his books for some time but my interest in end-times fiction reading goes in cycles. I'm in one of those cycles now. I am sure I will backtrack and read his first three novels and also his work of non-fiction, "Epicenter: Why Current Rumblings in the Middle East Will Change Your Future," published a year ago.

I am not one of those preachers who tries to sensationalize the Second Coming of Christ and related end time events. By that I mean that I don't try to act like I have inside information that indicates that I know the precise time that Jesus is coming back and so, "you'd better listen to me and follow me," as if I were some kind of cult guru.

That's exagerating it a bit but I just don't want folks to get the idea that Bible prophecy is self-serving or incredulous because of the way I teach it. My desire is for the people to whom I minister to be able to see that when the Bible deals with the end of time it is reliable and part of God's overall plan that is quite practical.

I don't want to neglect the teaching of Scriptures that deal with apocalyptic themes either. It is entirely fascinating the way many Bible prophecies have already been fulfilled. No doubt, one of best evidences for believing the Bible is God's Word is the way God's prophets of the past have had their predictions come true so accurately.

So I need to be aware of what God wants me to know about the future. And I need to spread the Word, even if others scoff.

Truth is, not everyone is poking fun of what the Bible has to say about the end of time. There are actually a lot of people interested in hearing what the Bible has to say about the future. Maybe it's because of terrorism and the uncertainty of world stability. I don't know.

One thing that's quite interesting - Christian fiction has proven to be an effective way of communicating God's message in turbulent times - perhaps even the "end" times.

Roll Tide!

2007-09-18T20:49:00.000-05:00

Grandson Andrew is going to be a BAMA football fan from Spain but I have a feeling that soccer will become a more familiar sport to him there. At least we got to show our colors when he was here.

I look forward to being able to throw the football or kick the soccer ball with him now and then in the future.

LEAVE NOTHING

2007-09-12T16:19:00.000-05:00

The first week of the NFL season is over and I have to say I'll be watching more this year than usual due to the fantasy league of our church.

I usually watch the games while simultaneously surfing the web. When a commercial comes on I often turn my back to the tube and check my email or chat with the other league members.

One of the times I turned away from the TV screen and back to the computer screen for a commercial my attention was arrested because I heard music from the soundtrack to one of my all-time favorite movies - "The Last of the Mohicans," starring Daniel Day-Lewis.

http://ballhype.com/story/shawne_merriman_steven_jackson_nike_ad/

The song Nike uses for their new ad is a Celtic sounding tune that plays in the movie when Chingachgook is running to fight Magua. My heart races and emotions soar everytime I hear that score and see those mountains and know that good is going to prevail over evil! (If you've seen the movie you know what I'm talking about, and I wont get sidetracked into the movie right now or I would write several pages.)

I believe the commerical, directed by Michael Mann, has NFL players like Shawne Merriman and Steven Jackson in it but I'm not sure. But at the end of the commercial after these guys have run up and down the football field, braving their opponents AND the elements, two words flash on the screen...

"LEAVE NOTHING"

WOW! I do not normally respond positively to TV commercials but this one was an exception.

This is one of the good things about sports. I know there is a lot of garbage with Michael Vick and dogfights, Barry Bonds and steroids, Bill Belichick and cheating, etc. But athletic competition represents quite a few principles about life that really matter.

And this is one of them.

I want it to be said when my soul leaves this planet that I left nothing! I may have been tackled for losses, intercepted, injured and even lost a lot of games. But at least I can say I gave it my all.

If that sounds sappy to you and you don't understand the paralell between sports and life then find the atmosphere that helps you breathe and go live in it. I'm going to keep enjoying sports like the Apostle Paul did.

Long time no blog

2007-09-07T20:24:00.001-05:00

Our oldest daughter Brooke, son-in-law Matthew, and grandson Andrew have been with us this past month and we have been spending all the free time we could with them since they minister in Spain.

Labor Day weekend our son Brandon and his wife Keshia, our youngest daughter Bethany and her husband David were also here.

Deb and I are trying to get back to our regular schedule now, which, for me, will include blogging more.