Millett Bible Baptist Church

That's Delight?

2010-01-12T14:08:00.003-05:00

Your life was designed to live and enjoy. You are a special creation which is you unique and unlike anyone or anything else this world will ever know. You are the only person who will ever live the life you live, know all the people you know, or go all the places you go. Enjoy life. Delight in life.
Ironically we find that life is delightful at many times, most of which is to our definition of delight. What is God's definition of delight? Is there a divine definition of delight? We seem to define delight as something that is fun, but is that accurate?
When you woke up this morning and brushed your teeth was it delightful? Likely not. So, why did you do it? Because you would rather do it more than get a filling... you delight in the fact that the bigger picture is well worth it. I propose to you that delight comes when we live for something greater than our own selfishness. Our human nature will tell us that we exist for self-preservation; our faith tells us that we live for TRUTH preservation. As followers of Jesus we must delight in seeing truth succeed.
For more on this please take the next 30 minutes to view this session entitled "That's Truth?" If it blesses you in any way please email us and let us know.

The Way of Life

2010-01-05T13:03:00.003-05:00

What is your way of life? What path are you on and where are you heading? Are you going where you want to go? This is the dawn of a new year, when we reach dusk will you have the assurance that this year was all it could be?
There are a few things which are certain to be contained in 2010. Please view this session and consider your life and the way it is heading this year.

Guest Speaker: Jim Jones

2009-12-29T09:25:00.003-05:00

In my absence our church was blessed to have one of its good friends from Rock of Ages Prison Ministry. Jim is an exuberant voice of God who will inspire you to further your walk with Jesus.

Enjoy this session and if you are encouraged by it, please email us to let us know, and share it with a friend.

A Risky Christmas Adventure

2009-12-26T19:49:00.004-05:00

Jesus knew a simple addage: Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
This is Christmastime in 2009 and it seems we all are trying to be safe. Amidst a face smile of good cheer we are only trying to cheaply mask the fear surrounding our national security, personal finances, and shaky relationships. The last thing we are truly experiencing is peace on earth or good will toward men. But, there is hope.
When it was time to bring God in body into the world (Jesus), a message went out of the Messiah's birth but it didn't go out to he high fleutin' politicians in Washington, DC or the religious leaders in the vatican; instead it went out to the plain old working class folks just like you and I. People who have issues, bad days, and are at time insecure are the ones God saw purpose in and it is them that he brought ground breaking news to.
Today that same knews is coming to you, and you have to face the decision of what you are going to do now that you know where Jesus is. Only a fool would know where Jesus is and not run to him.
If you are encouraged by this session please email and let us know and share it with a friend.

Facing Winter

2009-12-08T08:40:00.003-05:00

Death is something most people fear but it is as much a fact of life as is birth. We were are all born and we will all die. This fact should motivate us to seriously consider what happens upon death and determine if we are prepared. If we have recognized the truth of Jesus and put our faith in Him we are prepared for this impending winter which is coming. If we have not seen Jesus for who He is then we are unprepared and standing out in the cold with nothing to protect us from a brutish suffering.
This fact should motivate the Christ follower. We are standing in our prepared state and have all we need to face this winter while others stand unprepared. Some great about Jesus is that when he equips us to face this winter he also gives us everything we need to prepare others. Literally we have the boots, mittens, and coat the everyone needs to be delivered from the impending threat of winter. Sadly, many Christ followers tend to scoff at the ones on the outside and talk about how foolish they are and display their disbelief that anyone would go out in the cold dressed in such a way, instead of sharing the warmth with them.
The last challenge Jesus gave to His followers while on planet earth was for them to share the warm; equip others.
Check out this final session of our "Harvest Before Winter" series. If it blesses you in any way please let us know it and share it with a friend.

Turn Around.

2009-12-03T07:59:00.006-05:00

A few years ago I went to a "Revival Meeting". Now, I don't know about you but I always thought that these meetings were intended for current followers of Christ to come and get their spiritual flame to burn a bit brighter. The very work "revival" means to literally revitalize or the rekindle what is already there. So, spiritually it would take the Christ follower who has let their flame die down and bring it a raging inferno again. While I sat in this meeting a seemingly angry man demonstrated to me that he found the intent of these meetings to be strickly evangelistic and aimed toward the non-believer (And, that is fine, we need meeting like this but I would not have called it a revival rather an outreach). As I sat in my seat this angry mans fist repeatedly struck the podium and his voice peaked out the sound system which produce a very unpleasant sound. In this arena I asked myself, "Is this the way Jesus spoke to people when he was trying to show them the truth?" When Jesus spoke the words "I am the way the truth and the life" (John 14.6) was he slapping the Pentatuch against a rock to emphasize each word which he shook a raging finger at the crowd. I don't know about your house when I was growing up when mom and dad acted like that I shook and ran from them instead of running and clinging to them.

Sadly I believe many well intentioned Pastors and Evangelist have missed the point of how Jesus became the days superstar of truth and attracted people from hundereds of miles away to walk days just to see him. Mark 1 relays to us the even of Jesus entering into his adult manhood and calling and also shows us the approach that Jesus took. Verse 15 is the first words Jesus speaks in this book and he says, "Repent and Believe...". Now, these are the same words that the man I saw speak was using but again, I can't picture Jesus, jumping, slapping, and spraying spit onto the crowd. In our society the term "Repent" is associated with a man doing all these things but not Jesus.

"Repent" literally means to turn around. Jesus is inviting people to turn around. Why? Because they won't like the destination they are heading toward. He contines and says "Believe". Jesus is in essence telling them "You won't like where you are heading; believe me on this one, turn around, come back this way... come back to me." That is a bit different that how most soapbox preachers present this verse, isn't it? Repent is not a negative word, it is a positive invitation to a better destination because we believe Jesus.

Have to recognized yet that your natural path is not taking you to the destination you desire to be at? Do you need to turn around, beleive Jesus, and reach the destination your soul longs for?

Watch this session as we learn about this turn around. If it blesses you please let us know and share it with others.

What is Your Life?

2009-11-23T09:39:00.007-05:00

"This is Your Life" was a TV show in years past which highlighted a person's life and reflected on the accomplishments and failures of life. "E! True Hollywood Story" currently gives a glimpse into the lives of celebrities. We seem to have a facination with look at people's lives; it is time you look at our own.
I encourage you to do something today. Ask yourself, "What is my life?". Really, stop and reflect on it. Scripture poses the question "What is your life?" and gives the insite that it is a vapor. It is here and then it is gone. We run our lives like we are the here all and end all. Consumerism is the recipe of the day and we feel life we must reach the standard of living portraid by commercials and celebraties or else we will never be happy. We end up running our lives as if the goal is to acquire wealth, possessions, and build shallow relationship then wonder why the depression rates are at all time highs, insomnia is not explained as normal to tens of millions of people, and relationships are falling apart quicker than my two year old can dismember a pb & j sandwich.
My suggestion is this. As you examine your life and seek to discover your life's meaning you will have to know the intent of your life before you can discover your purpose. This now becomes an origins game. Consider the fact that you were not made my some random accident, rather you were created by a loving God who makes nothing or no reason but makes all things for his enjoyment and ours. From the beginning of life we were created to know God and have a relationship with Him which allows us to get to know him more. You were intended to be connected with God. But, somewhere along the line this connection was broken through our rebellion, since then mankind has been on a path leading us away from our intended purpose.
Mark 1.15 Jesus says, "You're going the wrong way, turn around... you've got to believe me on this one." And asks us all to open our eyes and see what we are doing to ourselves and then look at a far better life he has in store for us. A life free of selfishness, consumerism, and depression.
Enjoy this video session as we explore the idea of answering the question, "What is your life?" If you receive a blessing from this video please take moment to let us know and then pass it along to a friend.

Beautiful World

2009-11-11T11:14:00.003-05:00

To all of you in internet land here is an incredibly fun song we have done for a year or so and I thought you would enjoy it!

The Disease in the Field.

2009-11-10T07:09:00.003-05:00

Look around and you will see there are issues today and some that are unlikely to go away. The world economy has collapsed, crime is on the rise, and some believe life will end in 2012. Every group claims to have a problem to all these issues; politicians, scientists, and psychologists all have theoretical solutions. Jeremiah also had a bit of insight on this but his does not come from observation; his comes from God.

As mankind searches for a solution we often come up with ways to calm the effects of an underlying problem and can never deal with the problem because we deny what the real problem is. Jeremiah sought God's take of the situation and God spoke to him with the answer. In Scripture, Jeremiah 17.9 we see God's revelation to Jeremiah was the deep within the heart is the problem; our disconnection with God is the problem. Since society has by-and-large left any recognition of God they have also denied there could be anyway to please or displease God. Without recognizing God one cannot deal with the fact of this disconnecting nor can they do what it takes to reconnect it.

We are currently in a series talking about the parallel God uses about a farm and his followers. Take time to view this session. If it blesses you let us know and share it with friend.

Sleeping During the Harvest

2009-11-03T06:02:00.007-05:00

Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a farmer. Likely they would laugh if you told them I ever worked on a farm. I have no farming experience other than a garden my wife and I had at a previous house. Even though I have no such experience though I do know something about agriculture; you have to make sure everything is done right and on time. If you miss a step early on it will effect the harvest; if you miss the harvest all is lost. Timing is essential and the harvest is what makes it all worth while.

You may be asking now, what does this have to do with anything? Let me explain. Spiritually speaking we live on a field; God's field. We are all one of his plants, something or someone that he has invested seed into. We live our life and grow spiritually and may come to the point that we blossom and are ready to enter a whole new purpose in life. If that harvest doesn't come then we will never grasp that new purpose and will instead fall and rot. The same is true to the physical farmer's field; timing and harvest must be done properly.

God has given his followers the task of manning the fields and making sure all goes well in them; we have the responsibility of tending to the plants and assuring they are harvested. Sadly the vast majority of his followers have lost the commitment to their responsibility and are now curled up inside the farmhouse where it is warm and comfy instead of one the field where they should be. The greatest need in the world today is for Christ's followers to get out of the house and back on the field. The greatest disgrace in the world today is that Christ's followers have let Satan trick them into thinking the church if for those who already know Jesus instead of those who don't.

The video session below is part 1 of a series we began this past week and is designed to motivate you to get out of the farmhouse of comfort and get back onto the field. You may not want to watch this session but you need to! If you enjoy it and are moved please email me at pastor@millettbbc.org and let me know and then pass it along to another person who will be blessed by it.

Faith Takes Action

2009-10-27T10:17:00.005-04:00

I have to admit something. I have a this facebook account and I keep track of a lot of people whom I haven't talked to or seen in years... really cool, right?! This is nothing new, you probably have one too and do the same thing. But do you do something else I do that is really silly? I join these groups and causes for things that are really good things like "Stop Domestic Violence" or "Abortion is Murder". At face value this all sound really good and makes me look like I care, but I don't. Well, not that I don't care about these things, but if joining that group or cause meant I have do send them money (even a one time gift) or show up to work a benefit event once and a while I wouldn't.

Please feel free to judge me for this but immediately following your judgement please go to your facebook page and ask yourself the same thing about all the groups and causes you are a member of. I do find my support for these causes and more are taken care of though other involvement in church or organizations.

My point is this... we like to say we care and are willing to support something but we really don't if we are not willing to take action on it. Our claims are empty and superficial at best. The same is true with our faith if we don't take action upon it. Jesus is often seen as a great philosopher with a get out of hell free card for all who think that way. Jesus never intended for his life and his sacrifice to be viewed in this way. Faith was intended to produce action. The author the book of James said it this way, "Faith without works is dead". Like roadkill on the highway it is there but it also stinks and is viewed as in the way; it is dead.

Your faith is intended to move you forward and others around you also. Check out this session of our service. If you find it inspiring and helpful please pass it along.

Faith Looks Forward

2009-10-20T10:36:00.002-04:00

Did you ever stop to think about the rear view mirror in your car? Man, that has to be one of the greatest safety devices known to the auto industry! I use that thing all the time and would encourage everyone to use it. Oh, the great things it has to reveal; it tells you where you are coming from, what your are coming out of, who is about to pass you, the cop is coming up on you fast, or what the kids are yelling about this time. We have all been the person who had to slam on their breaks just in time and then immediately check the rearview mirror to make sure the person behind us has stopped. This small, rectangular device is a must have for all vehicles or we would continually be taking our eyes far from the road ahead to turn around and look out the back window; since I drive on a regular basis, I'll thank you ahead of time for not doing this.

The rearview mirror is great, but do you know why it is small; smaller than the windshield; why all the seats don't just face backward so we can clearly see behind us? Because cars were made to go forward. So are you.

It is true that best predicter of the future is the past, but we must not live life constantly looking backward. You cannot safely move forward while looking backwards. Sadly, many people are doing this today. Past relationships, heart break, past successes, and past failures are just a brief touch on things that hold people from looking through the clear window of where they are headings. Since they are looking backward they can never direct thier lives to a place which they want to go.

This concept is sad but true. In the Old Testament Biblical times some of the founders of what lead to the Christian faith did something very cool. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph all did something very bold on their death beds to ensure that their contemporaries and generations to come would have hope and peace. Each one of them shared the root of their success; they shared their faith. They shared that all they had in life was a tribute to God and the way he kept the promise he had given to them, but it had to face forward. Faith is not effective if it stands still or looks backward; but when facing forward, there is not force that can stop faith.

You have been designed to reach great heights and fulfill great purpose. You were designed to make a difference the same way the founding leaders of faith did... through faith. Are you ready to stop staring at the rear view mirror and do whatever it takes to move forward toward what God created you for? Watch this session and let it change your life. If you enjoy it let us know and pass it along to a friend. enjoy.

Faith Gives Vision

2009-10-15T10:47:00.003-04:00

You cannot have faith and not see something bigger or better that now.

In scripture Abraham is recorded in "The Hall of Faith" in Hebrews 11 for the very reason that he had faith and he had vision. His faith directed his vision. His faith equiped him to take steps toward a greater future for him or his family than he could achieve on his own. Abraham left his land, his job, and his family behind to journey to a land he would never settle in but knew God would provide it for his kids. Abraham's faith gave him a vision that directed his actions to be about someone other than himself.

What is your vision in life? Are you all about you? Are you so settled on your own opinions that you don't have time to listen to an eternal God who created you with a far bigger purpose than to sit around and be a junk food disposal?

If we are only one planet earth for a brief 80 years and it is all over, what's the point? God had a greater vision for you in mind; have God in mind when you set your vision.

To clarify more on this idea I encourage you to spend the next 30 minutes viewing this session. If you like it pass it on and let us know about it.

Faith Through Disaster.

2009-10-06T07:46:00.004-04:00

Life happens, but so does blessing.

God never intended for you to face a day without the hope of brightness at the end. No, there is no promise that all will go your way or that you will be rich or famous. While some promise you can get rich quick and make your body sexy by Monday, God offers no such things; but he does offer hope. Hope that you will make it through. Hope that your life is worth living. Hope that disasters can become blessings.

Recently I have been reminded of the way God's Hope works. I have a tendency to see anything that inconveniences me as a curse from God and often ask the question "WHY!" right before a curse word flies through my mind and I want to throw something at the next person I see. It is at these times that I do not want some religious lunatic telling me that there is a loving God that has it all in control. (Frankly, throwing something at the moron who is doing 35 in the 55mph zone sounds like a much better way to handle my irritation.) It is after the whole thing settles down that I sit back and think to myself... "man, that was stupid... you got that upset about... blah, blah, blah... What's wrong with you?" Now, I know what you are thinking right now; "This guys is a Pastor and he does that too?!" Yes, it is a normal instinct to get ticked off from time to time and later regret it or realize how foolish it was.

The important thing for us at that point in time is that we stop are think about things and purpose in our heart to let our Faith take control the next time we begin to act and think selfishly. It may seem like a disaster at the time, or at least a major inconvenience, but you don't know what God is planning at that moment; you are not the only person alive and God may be working some divine intervention at that moment. The person 2 cars in front of your 3 cars behind you may have been killed in a fatal accident if God hadn't put the 83 year old grandma in the front of the pack to slow them down. Maybe it is you who is spared a fatal accident.

The point is this: disasters will come to your life; how will you handle them? God gives us great insight in scripture of how to listen to His way of working, and follow his warnings before we later regret it. Noah is a great example of this. Think about it, Noah was an old man when God told him to build the ark; the last thing this old guy wanted to do is build a boat miles from water to be made fun of and thought of as the town idiot... but he did it! Why? Because long before he was asked to build a boat he had placed his faith in God and purpose in his heart that God was a better choice to follow than his own selfish desires and ambitions.

For more on this topic watch this sermon from the "Hall of Faith" series. If it blesses you, share it with a friend.

Seeking God's Approval

2009-09-22T08:21:00.005-04:00

It is a basic human need to have the approval of someone. Mankind uses this basic need to motivate us into action. Some may seek the approval of everyone and some may only seek their own approval; but why did God create us with this need?

As we continue through Hebrews 11, the Hall of Faith, we find a guy who is known for little more than events which revolve around one thing... he pleased God. Enoch is the guys name and he found the approval of God. How? Join us as we discover the answer to than questions and pay close attention to how you can live a life with God's approval.

Smash My Ride - Episodes 3 and 4

2009-09-22T07:13:00.004-04:00

If you look below you will find out first and second episodes of our now famous "Smash My Ride" promo for Smash Bash. The event has come and gone but you can keep reliving the fun by checking out the rest of the show.
Here are episodes 3 and 4.

Smash My Ride - 3 of 4:

Smash My Ride - 4 of 4:

A Dead Guy Talks.

2009-09-15T07:14:00.004-04:00

There is a lot we can learn when we listen to people; including the dead.

Okay, so before I freak you out I should likely explain that statement: We will all leave a legacy; something we are known for after we kick the bucket. Once you die it is nearly guaranteed that you will be talked about the next time the family is together feasting over a warm Thanksgiving bird; what will they say? When your kids tell your grandkids about you what will they say? What they say reflects your legacy. Through you legacy you will speak to generations to come... you will be talking dead man (or woman).
In our look through Hebrews 11, or better known as the "Hall of Faith", we will find several dead people whose legacies speak to us. Today we look at Abel. Abel lived at the dawn of time and we know very little about him. However, Hebrews 11 says that he was a man of faith and faith drove him to seek excellence. His legacy is one of faith, sacrfice, and excellence; what is yours?

The Hall of Faith and You

2009-09-09T14:01:00.004-04:00

The Hall of Faith and You.

Sermon from Sunday, September 6, 2009

When someone is really good at what they do we place them onto a pedistal. This pedistal is not always that of idolatry, rather recognition for the superb job they do. In theory, when someone is born they have the same opportunity to be recorded in a Hall of Fame as anyone else. What makes the difference? According to people who have been inducted into one of the numerous Halls, a key to their success was beginning when they were young. The older we are, the harder it is to develop into what will leave a legacy. You may get good, but a legacy isn't likely to follow. The same is try spiritually.

When someone comes to Jesus, it is very important that they begin right away learning how to develop that life as a Christ Follower. Hebrews 11 is full of people whom have left a legacy for Jesus Christ but it didn't come because they woke up one day and decided to do something great; their legact comes from continued devotion to following God... but it all started somewhere.

You can leave a legacy, but it needs to begin asap. Today is the day to begin living a devoted life. You are already leaving a legacy; is it the one you want to leave? Enjoy this service as we talk about your opportunity to be named in the Hall of Faith. What will people be saying about you after you pass on? You can decide, you can begin. Today.

Smash My Ride - Smash Bash 2009

2009-09-08T07:50:00.003-04:00

This year we have once again been invited to attend Smash Bash, hosted by Lakeview Church in Camden, MI. Smash Bash is a human powered demo derby with events such as a drag race, pit stop challenge, and demolition derby. Teams are made up of teenagers, and they push a car which they have gutted and painted. Prizes are given for best paint, and the best of each event. A traveling trophy is given to the car which performs the best in the demo derby.

This year we decided to take a very fun approach to promoting this event and make 4 espisodes mimicking MTV's Pimp My Ride. We created "Smash My Ride". Each episode has a creative fun twist and shows the progress of our car, as well as calling people to action.

Smash Bash is September 19th at 12n. Come out and bring the family for a day of fun!

Up Your Thanks.

2009-08-26T08:17:00.004-04:00

Did you know that your abundance and spiritual growth is determined in part by your level of thanks? It's true! That is what we discuss in our series "Step Up" in the installment called "Up Your Thanks".
Think of this; if you are not thankful for what you have you are focused on what you don't have. If you are focused on what you don't have your are coveting which is a sin (Exodus 20.17), and you are festering a life of greed. There are differernt kinds of thanks to offer: Natural Thanks, and Pure Thanks. There are likely more, but this is what we will look at today. Natural thanks is simply recognizing something was done for you and you say thanks. Sometimes it is empty or sometimes it is with an alterior motive... trying to flatter the giver so they will return often and with more. Pure thanks is totally different; it responds to generosity with acts of love. Pure love never says "thank you, but...".
When it comes to our faith we are to have Pure Thanks for what Jesus has done for us. I Thessalonians 5.18 gives us insight into the seemingly elusive will of God which we are all seek, and tells us that giving thanks is part of the glue that holds it all together. You reaching your full potential of abundance and greatness in Jesus Christ is determined by your level and purity of thanks.
Please take the next half hour to sit back and reflect on your life as you view this challenging installment called "Up Your Thanks." Share it with a friend and then write us and let us know how it changed your life.

What About Jesus' Momma?

2009-05-12T07:12:00.003-04:00

Our apologies to our regular web viewers who faithfully watch our services via this blog, due to technical difficulties we are unable to post this weeks service. However, it will be available at a later date when we have this "Finding Answer.Together." complete dvd set available in July.

On Mother's Day we were able to keep a good think going but continuing our series as well as be themed around Mother's. Specifically we talked about Jesus' Momma. Did you know that Mary contains the second most controversial topic in all scripture?! Yes, our little old, innocent Mary packs quite a bombshell in her role of scripture. The virgin birth makes here a hot topic. Now, some of you reading this just thought "Really, what is there to wonder about?" while others thought, "Isn't that the truth... who made that one up?".

The Bible is very clear that Mary was a virgin when Jesus was both conceived and born. Some groups believe she even remained a virgin the rest of her life. With all of this controversy, lets take a look at what the Bible does and does not say about Mary and then try to weigh out what stance we should take on Mary. Cue the lights and music because here we go...

Mary is first mentioned all the way back in Genesis. Genesis 3.15 to be specific when God is talking to the dreaded serpent and says he will put enmity between him and the woman. Ask any lady and she'll admit that to be true of her and snakes! However, this "woman" is not "women" but Mary. "How so?" you ask. See, the verse goes on to speak of the "seed" of this woman, and that her seed will be at direct odds with the product of the snake (Satan). Knowing that this is the only time of scripture where a child is spoken to have been born from the lineage of a woman and not the father, this is a special occasion. Galatians 4.4 again speaks of a special child born of a "woman"... Jesus, and Mary. Today we would think nothing special would be meant if we said a child was born of a woman but in Biblical days this was big stuff. Okay, so being born of a woman is one thing we know about Jesus' momma, but we also know that she was a virgin... or do we?

Isaiah 7.14 says that a virgin will conceive. We all know that is impossible! Actually the Hebrew text says that an "almah" will conceive, and "almah" is literally translated "young woman". The appropriate Hebrew word for virgin is "bethulah", but that is not what Isaiah 7.14 says. Could it really mean that Mary had been knocking boots with Joseph after all and the virgin birth this was just a fun twist to lead us on? Maybe Isaiah was talking about his own son who was born just a short while after 7.14 was written? Let's dig deeper because we know that just because someone is a young woman it does not mean they are not a virgin also. If we look at the life of Rebekah in Genesis 24.16 we see that she was a maiden (Bethulah), and then a couple chapters later she is an "almah" (24.43). See, Rebekah is a "young virgin woman." Is that too what Mary was? About 2 centuries after Isaiah wrote these words the Jewish community showed that they knew exactly what an "almah" was when they translated it as "parthenos" when penning the Septuagent (Hebrew Bible translated to Greek), and "parthenos" is undoubtedly a virgin. So, yes, Mary was a virgin.

Looking at scripture we can know exactly who Mary was, but how can there be so much controversy around her if things seem so cut and dry? Controversy comes into the equation when people try to add or subtract from what is recorded in the Bible. Lets take a few moments and look at what the Bible does not say about Mary.

1. Mary had a c-section. Some people believe that somehow God miraculously removed Jesus from her uterus. They feel there is some shame cast upon Jesus and or Mary to have travelled down the birth canal and through private areas of the female anatomy. This is a ridiculous claim, it is like telling a butterfly that it is worthless because it had to struggle its way out of the cocoon. Micah 5.3 is talking about Mary and says she "travaileth" or labors. If God did a supernatural c-section there would be no laboring.

2. Mary was a virgin her whole life. I can't believe the Council of Constantinople actually came to this conclusion! Major religious leaders on both sides of the Protestant and Catholic borders believe this! Think of this realistically. God designed marriage to have a physical union and Paul even speaks of neglecting that union as being a sin that leads to more sin. Matthew 1.25 says that Joseph didn't have sex with Mary until after the child was born, implying they had sex after that. Also, Mary had other kids! Since God only had one child and didn't not impregnate anyone else via the Holy Spirit we know Mary and Joseph must have made babies just like everyone else; dim the lights, put on some love songs, get some oil...

3. The virgin birth was taken from mythology. Nice try but look at the facts, the OT prophecies were nearly all written before mythology.

4. Believing in the virgin birth means you have salvation. Mary's virgin birth does not prove anything for you along the lines of salvation. Romans 10.9 says how one is rescued/saved and it mentions nothing about the virgin birth. Several groups believe in the virgin birth but also believe Jesus is an archangel or simply a prophet and that certainly won't rescue you from the curse upon humanity.

5. Sin nature comes through the father. Yes, some believe that the reason that Jesus didn't have a sin nature is because his father was God and not a man and it then means that it is the male genes that cast sin upon the next generation. Speaking of genes; if you believe that, get your head out of your jeans and read Romans 3.23 "For ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Nice try feminist-man-haters but you aren't perfect either. Mary herself referenced her need of a savior in Luke 1.46-47.

6. God had sex with Mary. People do believe that. In High School a kid told me this and I about laughed out loud. "If God had sex with her than she wouldn't be a virgin." I told him. He went to his church and came back this this reply, "They said if you have sex with God it doesn't count." LOL! Luke 1.35 says, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee...". I may be wrong but the Holy Ghost is not the body of God but the every present active force of God, right? Since he does not have a body he cannot have penetrating sex, right? Furthermore, the only way for God to have sex with Mary is to have the body part of him do it which is Jesus. So, Jesus would have been sent by the father to sleep with Mary to get her pregnant with Himself. Go ahead, read that again and you'll still be scratching your head. Of course, this view is only held by people who do not hold the trinity.

7. The virgin birth is not important. I'll admit there are some who put way to much emphasis on Mary and the virgin birth, but my view does NOT mean this is not important. Some wonder "Can you be a true Christian and not believe in the virgin birth?" My answer is "NO!" To that some of you just moved your mouse to the back button and this I just turned into a radical right-wing legalistic holy-rolling Christian. Hear me out. When we put our faith in Jesus Christ we are putting our faith in all that he has done for us. Past. Present. Future. We commit to him and have faith in him. Sure, we certainly don't know everything about him when we are a new Christian but our faith says that we will accept Him and everything about him as we crawl out from under the shadow of ignorance. Now, if we start picking and choosing which parts of Jesus we follow we are only having "conditional faith" and conditional faith does not produce salvation. The truth is that every part of Jesus' life is important and it all weaves together to produce the Jesus of our salvation.

All of this being said, what should we think of Mary. We know that she was a young virgin woman whom God used as the human vessel to bring his Son into the world, but is the she most holy female to ever live?

Mary is an incredible woman. Luke 1.30 tells us that God had found favor with her. However, she is not the only woman God ever found favor with. Mary happened to be the woman he found favor with to execute this part of his redemptive plan. Throughout history God has found favor with many, many men and women used them to work out his plan. Mary was one of these women at the point of history when he would send his body, Jesus Christ, to enter the world. Mary is an example of what God can do with someone who is willing to be used by him.

Mary is an example to follow, not an object to worship. Her example can teach us all something. God new that this was a bold move to have her be pregnant before marriage but it had to be so. Her life was one which carried shame and reproach from the outside world but it was still part of God's plan. Mary stepped up the the plate and hit a home run. She didn't back down. Mary loved God. Mary kept herself pure before marriage. Mary was faithful to her man. Mary was a good mother. Bottom line; Mary was not perfect, but she serves as a great example to us. Just like there were some struggles which came along with her divine calling, there will be some for us, but we too can step up the the plate and hit a home run in faithfulness to God.

Mary never claimed to be what many have made her out to be. In reality she was an ordinary woman who looked to an extraordinary God.

What does Jesus Mean for Today?

2009-05-05T08:56:00.005-04:00

Okay, so we all know that Jesus was around a really long time ago and died on a cross, came back to life, yada, yaha, yada... But why should I care? Does he really care about me now? I think he just sits on a some rocking chair in the sky waiting to ruin the world someday and get snapped back into reality that we are here.

The above is a common view of Jesus, and if you that is your view of Jesus you are in luck. Although this perception of Jesus is very common, there is truth out there that you need to know. You are right, Jesus was a guy who was around a really long time ago and he did die on a cross and came back to life, but he is not just sitting on a rocking chair practicing his aim throwing lightening bolts. Jesus is very active, maybe even more so than when he was here on earth. "Doing what?" you ask; working for you.

You see, in the Old Testamant we see all the ways that God worked before Jesus (the body of God) came to earth. God communicated with regular people of faith and instructed them how to get to know Him more. The three main offices that helped people get to know God were the Prophets, the Priests, and even the King. God guided them and thier experiences to help us. Once Jesus came and lived the life He did, dying for us, coming back to life, and ascending back to heaven, everything changed.

While the Old Testament people relied on the three main offices to aid in the relationship to God, we rely on Jesus because he has now taken on those roles. Jesus is our prophet, our priest, and our King. Now, you may not recognize Him as that yet, but He is. Jesus is speaking to you and wanting to guide you but it all comes down to you letting him. You see, God may have the unlimited power of the universe, but he is still to much of a gentlemen to force himself upon you; you have to openly and willingly recognize God.

You will really find a lot of good stuff on this if you watch our sermon in this series "finding answers. together." You are not the first person who searched for spiritual truth, we all do. Right now I want to partner with you on your search. Join me and watch this.

If Jesus was God, How Could He Be a Man?

2009-04-28T09:22:00.006-04:00

If Jesus is God, why would he ever chose to come to earth, and if he did come to earth why would he come in a human body? If I were God the last thing I would want to do is elect to be a human, be treated like a human, experience life as a human, smell like a human, or go get old like a human. But Jesus did. Why? Was he on a mid-life adventure trip or was there a reason for it?

If you have ever thought these things like me, you will benefit from hearing this very practical, down-to-earth sermon on Jesus being a man and doing normal man things. Jesus did not come to earth as God in human form for fun; God works intentionally with purpose. Join us in discovering that purpose.

Fair Warning: This session will change your perception of Jesus and possibly shock and or offend you.

As requested, here is a copy of the list from the Book of Mark as stated in the Sermon.

1. Ch. 1. Jesus yells at complete strangers telling them to repent, orders guys to quit their jobs to follow him, and tells demons and leper to keep their mouths shut.
2. Ch. 2. Jesus picks a fight with religious leaders because he did the equivalent of breaking into church and making sandwiches out of communion bread.
3. Ch. 3. Jesus gets angry and he ignores his mom.
4. Ch. 4. Jesus rebukes the wind.
5. Ch. 5. Jesus kills 2,000 pigs.
6. Ch. 6. Jesus offends people.
7. Ch. 7. He publically calls the religious leaders hypocrites and goes on a tirade about them.
8. Ch. 8. Jesus gets frustrated, puts spit in a guys eyes, and calls Peter “Satan”
9. Ch. 9. Jesus gets sick of some people and asks them, “How long do I have to put up with you.”
10. Ch. 10. He tells a rich guy to sell his stuff and give it to the poor.
11. Ch. 11. He has a disciple take a donkey without asking and kills a fig tree
12. Ch. 12. Jesus tells people they are wrong and that they don’t know their Bibles.
13. Ch. 13. Jesus threatens to destroy the temple.
14. Ch. 14. Jesus yells at his friends for taking a nap late at night after running them all over the place for 3 years.
15. Ch. 15. He is murdered.
16. Ch. 16. He is alive again.

What's So Special About Jesus?

2009-04-21T08:43:00.006-04:00

Why are you a Christian? Why did you chose to follow Christ and not Islam, Buddha, or Scientology? Really, think about it. What makes Christianity so different from these, or any other religion? The difference: we have Christ... but so what? What makes Jesus so special that we should follow him and not other religions? What gives Christians the right to say they are the only way to heaven, don't all roads lead to heaven?

These questions and more are answered in this sermon.

Sermon: What's So Special About Jesus?

finding answers. together.

2009-04-21T07:09:00.002-04:00

Our current series is making an impact. You can watch this series on this blog as our sermons are posted weekly (normally by Tuesday afternoon) but I want to take a moment and talk about this series.
Finding Answers. Together. is designed for people who are willing to look at what they believe and admit they don't have all the answers but want them. You'd be scared to know that most everyone is just like everyone else... we all have questions. You won't find answers unless your questions are asked. That is what we are finding... answers.
This series takes a very commonsense approach and is not for the heavily intellectual person, but for the commoner. Bible is used but so is logic. It is serious topic studies but delivered with humor and satire. Some could argue, "You can't use logic to answer questions about Christ... we are to walk by faith and not by sight." I agree about walking by faith, but don't forget that if you are saying this statement you are likely a current follower of Christ and have faith; but we are sent to people who are not Christ followers and do not have faith. Realize that even the Christ follower does not have blind faith; the Christ follower has seen enough to believe and continues to believe and therefore sees. (Yes, that does make sense but you may have to read it a few times and then have your mom explain it to you.)
If you have questions you would like us to answer in this series please feel free to email them over to me: pastor@millettbbc.org. If your question fits into the flow of the series it will be considered. Makes sure to keep up with the series as you may have it answered somewhere throughout it.
If you are enlightened or inspired by this series please let me know as well. Send me an email and share your blessing. Be sure to tell which sermon touched you and how.
I look forward to having you join me as we continue Finding Answers. Together.

Did Jesus Really Come Back to Life?

2009-04-15T06:39:00.008-04:00

On Easter Sunday we began a series for people like me... you know, the kind who want to cut through all the fluff and get to the truth. We are calling this series "Finding Answers. Together." and we are doing just that; finding real answers. We all have questions dealing with Jesus and we are going to find real answers to them, not just hearsay.

Since we began on Easter we began with the question, "Did Jesus Really Come Back to Life?" Good question. Think about it, could it really have happened? Do you really believe it? Just because your grandma did doesn't mean you have to; she also believed rubbing butter on a burn was the right thing to do but we all know it is the worst. Is their really any proof that Jesus, the worlds most popular person could really die and really come back to life? Watch this video as we explored conspiracy theories and seek truth.

Sermon - Did Jesus Really Come Back to Life?

Easter Choir.

Special - Arise My Love

Easter Sunday! Great Day!

2009-04-14T07:22:00.011-04:00

April 12th was Easter Sunday which meant things were busy around the church, but well worth it! Our attendance was up 50% from the previous week which meant we connected more people with Jesus.

From tasteful choir songs and other special music to starting a new sermon series called Finding Answers. Together. Face it, we all have questions concerning spiritual things and in this series we are looking at objective evidence that Jesus and Christianity are truly legit.

Take some time to enjoy the special moments of the day! Below are video clips from the celebration service.
Piano Solo - Myrical

Special - Communion

Special - This man

Jesus' Freedom March.

2009-04-07T07:13:00.004-04:00

Every church takes a different approach to Palm Sunday. I like to think of it as the Freedom March that lead way to a liberation movment of grace and forgiveness. As Jesus rode into town on the back of a colt it was far different than what the Israelites thought the Messiah would do, look like, think like, and act like, but it was exactly how God knew it would go all along.

Luke 19 records this freedom march. Grab your Bible and follow along.

Where You'll Find Jesus

2009-03-24T07:59:00.005-04:00

As we continue in our "Preparing for Easter" series we look at what many wonder... where is Jesus today? If he is so loving how could we possibly see the evil present in the world today? Fact is, Jesus is here; as we sit around talking about him, he is waiting for us to recognize him.

What the Resurrection Means Today.

2009-03-19T10:07:00.005-04:00

March 15, 2009 we began a new series called "Preparing for Easter" as we count down the last 4 weeks before the highlight of the Christian calendar. Enjoy.

Grand Prix Winners! 2009

2009-03-18T06:55:00.006-04:00

As promised, here are some of the winners of the Grand Prix for cars which were entered through our church.

TEEN DIVISION.

1st Place Design and Peoples Choice Award: Jin.

2nd Place Design: Freddy

3rd Place Speed: Michael

ADULT DIVISION.

3rd Place Speed: Dale

3rd Place Design: Roger

2nd Place Design: Amber

People's Choice in Design: Randy

Grand Prix 2009

2009-03-17T07:04:00.006-04:00

Grand Prix 2009. This was the third year we partnered with Colonial Village Baptist to race in the annual Grand Prix. Again it proved to be an amazing time and provided great opportunity for people who are not fimiliar with church to participate and get to know the love of Christ by experiencing it in action. We had 18 cars registered to race through our church and we walked away with 9 metals! Congratulations to Freddy, Jin, Amber, and Randy who won awards for design, and to Michael and Dale who won awards for speed! Pictures of the winnings cars will be published in a continued post.

Enjoy the pictures and watch the video.

Review Video. Check it out!

Day 5 - Lobby Remodel

2009-03-17T06:57:00.004-04:00

Day 5 - Crunch Time. This is our last day to work on our project before Sunday. Tomorrow the cleaning crew is coming in and it must be ready for them. The desk frame was made, the countertop secured, clearcoat the oak sill, and get the final trim put on. Once that is done... start reloading the office space with furniture and supplies. Not to mention mount the welcome sign and have the pro's do the carpet.

Day 4 - Lobby Remodel.

2009-03-17T06:51:00.004-04:00

Day 4 - Sand the drywall and paint, paint, paint! After hours the pro's came back over and fit our custom desktop and cut our oak sill.

Day 3 - Lobby Remodel

2009-03-17T06:50:00.001-04:00

Day 3 - Sand the drywall and mud it again. Wait. Sorry, no fancy pictures here. See day 2; it looks the same.

Day 2 - Lobby Remodel

2009-03-17T06:46:00.001-04:00

Day 2. Today we mud the drywall and wait.

Welcome Desk/Lobby Remodel Day 1

2009-03-10T10:16:00.004-04:00

Day one is done and we are right on schedule! Check out some of the pictures of our remodel.

A special thanks to our workers who are volunteering their help.

Believe in Yourself; Jesus does.

2009-02-03T14:04:00.003-05:00

When did you stop believing in yourself?

As followers of Christ we can sometimes be cinical of the way people always promote self confidence over faith in a "higher power". Humanism is the belief that power comes from within ones self and must be released for one to reach their full potential while faith in God teaches us to reach within ourselves to believe in Him rather than ourselves. If all of this has your head spinning in confusion don't worry, so is mine. However, last week a revelation was given to me in preparation for two youth services. Believing in Jesus is great but if you don't believe in yourself your faith in Jesus if useless.

In Matthew 14.22-33 the record is shared that Jesus is walking on the water with his followers were in a boat. One of the men, Peter, calls out and asks if he can join Jesus. Jesus says "yes" so Peter steps out of the boat and begins to talk on the water! He is actually walking on top of the water! Well... for a moment, then he starts to sink. Why does he sink? Because he starts to doubt. Jesus asks him, "Why did you doubt?" Stop here. If doubt caused Peter to sink, we have to ask our self, who or what did he doubt. Some would be quick to say, "He must have doubted Jesus" but that isn't true because he calls out for Jesus to save him. He doubted himself. He doubted that he could walk on water. He doubted what he could do when he was acting under the command of Jesus. We do the same thing.

Peter knew that Jesus had all power of heaven and earth and that Jesus was the Son of God; what he forgot was that that power had been given to him as well. Peter told himself, "I am man, man cannot walk on the water. I cannot walk on the water!" True. Man cannot walk on the water but man under power of God can. "I can do all thing through Christ who gives me strength." Philippians 4.13.

The next time you tell yourself that you can't do something remember that Jesus said you can. At the same time that we say we believe in Jesus, He is believing in us. As we are trusting Jesus, he is trusting us. Jesus trusts in you enough, and has enough confidence in you that he has trusted you with his love, his salvation, and his word that you can carry it to the world. He believes you can; it is time you start believing that you can too.

The Honor Clause

2009-01-13T08:43:00.004-05:00

Since 2006 our church has attended, sponsored, and endorsed Lake Ann Camp (LA) in northern Michigan. This past weekend we attended our 4th Freeze Out (FO) Winter Retreat for J. High and High School students. Each FO there is a time of winter fun, friendship, and most of all Faith. This year the camp had added times where each church could get together with their own youth you talk to the hearts of the their kids. Leading up the FO I felt God was laying on my heart to talk about "Honor".

Growing up I had the idea in my head that "honor" meant to obey; I believed the two were synonymous but after studying it in preparation I realize it has nothing to do with each other. They are related, but not the same. Exodus 20.12 says that we are to "Honor [our] father and mother that we may have long days in the land that God has given to you." The traditional view of this verse is that it means we have to OBEY mom and dad. Though we should obey them (Eph. 6.1), it does not say to obey, it says to honor. The definition we used at FO was this: Honor: Willing obedience, defending reputation, and benefiting someone else. Let me explain...

Willing Obedience: When we honor someone we are obeying them, but when we are obeying, we are not necessarily honoring. I explained it this way: "You are talking with your best friend at school and make plans for them to come over later that night but when your mom or dad come home they say, "Lets just have a quiet night tonight. We are not having anyone over but just staying in and staying low-key." You have a choice of your response when you call your friend, you can say, "You can't come over! My is so stupid! I told them that you were coming over they said no just because they are tired! So what! What a stupid rule!" or you can respond, "Hey, it isn't going to work out tonight. Mom/dad is pretty tired and just wants a quiet night here. We'll try again another time." Which one is honor? You get the point; both obeyed, one honored.

Defending Reputation: Honor is not done for our self (we will talk more about that later). In the military there is a lot done in the name of honor. Why? Because it is about defending the reputation of America. America is known for being a strong and independent country; we command respect by the world and it comes down to the pride we are have in it. Just a soldier defends the pride and lifestyle of our country, we must honor our parents by defending what they have worked for. A child can ruin the reputation of a family. How many times have we been in a public place and heard a child that needed some serious discipline and we say, "Why don't the shut that kid up!" Or you see on TV a juvenile who begins to have a string of petty crimes under their belt and who is blamed... the parent. Some studies who that in more cases than not it is the teenage kids that can ruin the reputation of a family more than the parents. In the case of honor we must take pride in the family we are in because we see it as a gift from God and therefore are willing to defend it even if we don't agree with it. Again, the analogy of our country; we don't agree with everything that goes along within it but we honor it just the same in word and deed. Side note: One teen said, "See it is our fault when our parents get a divorce." NO! This is not talking about marriage, this family pride while we respect and honor it.

About Someone Else: Honor is taking the essence of pride and directing it somewhere else. When we have pride, especially self-pride we do anything to promote it and defend it. Honor redirects that motivation and puts it on someone else. How many times have we heard that phrase: "yada yada... in honor of John Doe." What does that mean? Something was done for the benefit of someone else. At our meeting time I gave the example that if one of the teens along were to have a horrible accident which landed her on her death bed that day, and she looked at me in her last breath and said, "Pastor, as my last dying request I want you to go down the tubing hill in only your boxers." Do you know what I would try to do that night? Yes! I would try to go down the hill in my boxers! Why? Because I would do all I could to honor her last request! Certainly it would not be about my own pleasure, but to please someone else. The same is true with our parents; our actions is not about us but about them. It also must be pointed out that Jesus did make a last request when he left (Matthew 28.19) to go and make disciples of him. Are we going to honor.

In our last meeting together I asked the athletes these questions; Does your coach have the right to tell you what time you get up? What do eat? What to wear? What time to be where? That you need to improve? etc... They answer for all of them was "Yes". My next question was, "Why?" To which they said, "To improve your game". When I asked the exact same questions but changed it to "Does your mom or dad have the right to...?" They all said "no!!!". I also repeated them with "Does God have the right...?" This was a great eye opener to many of the as we revealed that they were focused more on honoring the wrong people in life but that the same reason our parents set standards for us to follow is the same reason a coach sets standards for their team... to improve you.

We returned from FO on Sunday afternoon. I was very excited when after the evening service I had already heard from parents who wondered what had happened to their kids at FO because they were like a different child. When they would have fought over an issue the teen was respectful! Praise God!

Master Pine Head

2008-12-24T06:51:00.007-05:00

Last May I joined a forum site called "DerbyTalk" (http://www.derbytalk.com/). It is a site that allows members to ask and discuss any question about the Pinewood Derby topic. After joining the site I saw that there were ranks associated with each member; Apprentice, Journeymen, Pine Head, Master Pine Head, and Moderator. Immediately I thought, "Wow, that would be cool to actually know enough to be in the high ranks of knowledge of the Pinewood Derby (PWD) world. As a sat with the rank of Apprentice I wanted to know more. I began to read the posts people had written and gain knowledge. I felt as though I was gaining experience and wisdom through other people's testing, success, and failure. The more I read, the more I became confident; the more I became confident the more I would reply to other peoples questions, and the more I replied to other peoples the questions the high rank I began to receive.

There is something that feels good inside of us when someone has a question that we have the answer to. We may not have an answer all the time, and we may not always have the right answer, but it still feels good when we get it right. More and more I find people asking me about a PWD subject. When they do I have a moral dilemma; since I race against many of these people whom ask questions outside of Derbytalk I have to choose whether to give them the best answer and have them potentially beat me, or tell them a portion of the answer so they have a less likely chance of beating me. So, how do I answer? I tell them what I know. I appreciate that people have been patient and honest in teaching me. If I withhold what I know then the next generation of racers will be at a disadvantage. I would rather leave a legacy of aiding in victory rather than a trail of defeat.

As I have contributed to helping inform racers on DerbyTalk, I recently achieved the highest level of ranking that anyone can achieve without being personally selected for a moderator selection (and since all of the limited number of positions are fulfilled I can't go any higher). I am now officially a "Master Pine Head"; a title which I am honored to wear.

So, what does all of this have to do with a church website's blog? A lot. When someone comes to Christ they are often on fire and want to know more about God. We instruct them that they need to start reading and learning about God and how he can transform their life. The more they begin to learn about God the more they find that they gain experience and knowledge from others around them whom have been a Christian for a longer time. The more experience and knowledge you receive the more confident you become and begin to witness and answer the spiritual questions of the people around you. Soon people start to ask questions because they are confident that you will have the answer and that you know what you are talking about. And, in the end you receive a rank from God in eternity of a "Faithful Servant".

A portion of Matthew 25 tells of a group workers who were giving a talent (portion of money that was given for a natural ability the person had. "Talent" was originally a financial term but what it was used for is what it is now become. It was the payment given to the painter or musician on the corner, the task that someone did extraordinarily well that came natural to them.) The workers were sent out to do what they could naturally do well and use this money wisely. It didn't require anything outrageous, just what was natural. When the workers returned the Master examined the talents and saw that 2 had doubled their money and the other had held on to what he had and wasn't even willing to use what he had to generate what he didn't have. The one who had refused using his natural gift to create and increase was forced to give it up the the faithful; and to the faith the master said, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord" Matthew 25.21.

What are we doing with the natural ability God has given us. You don't have to go out of your way to make something of yourself for Christ; you just need to be willing to use what you have and it will naturally increase.

When it comes to Christ are you willing to give it all so you have lead a legacy of victory, or a trail of defeat?

Batteries and Jesus.

2008-12-12T10:58:00.004-05:00

For all who read this before December 14th, you will be hearing this again on Sunday's Christmas service but here goes.

Batteries and Jesus? What do they have to do with anything? Batteries are little round cylinders that carry an electric current to anything that requires that works off from electricity... that has nothing to do with Jesus. Continue reading.

Growing up we didn't have a whole lot of money when it came to gifts so we never really expected much which worked well because none of us 5 kids required much. We always had more fun playing with each other than with than toys... don't get me wrong, we liked our toys too though. I remember one Birthday, I think I was eight when I received a toy radio controlled car, you know, the ones that turn by going in reverse (the ones that if you leave them like that will make a cat so dizzy it pukes). I thought this birthday was the greatest until the batteries went dead. Thankfully my older brother, 18 at the time, jumped on his bike and went to the nearby store for some more. When he got back I proved I was now a big boy and put the batteries in myself but the car still didn't work. I couldn't figure it out; were they duds? I put the old ones back in it and they didn't work either. Frustration came over me as I went from being the happiest boy in the world to the saddest because me new toy didn't work. Thankfully, big brother nearby was willing to help and showed me that I had put the batteries in the wrong way. Once they were put in the right way they worked perfectly.

So, what does this have to do with Jesus? Jesus did not buy me batteries, nor did he deliver a great incite that they were in backwards. What does Jesus have to do with all of this?

Just like you get birthday gifts on your birthday, Jesus' birthday is coming up and guess what... you get gifts on his birthday too. John 3.16 says "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life." Jesus' birth began the tradition of giving presents at Christmas as God sent his son as a gift, but you receive something too. There are two thing in that verse give to the world; since you are reading this-that's you. We are given Jesus - The Savior and provider of restoration of relationship... eternal life with God, and we are given eternal life.

We are like the idea of having a close relationship with God. Most people believe in a god or higher power. There is a part ingrained in us that tells us there is a god. We like this idea. However, what people seem to have an issue with is that it is Jesus and Jesus alone that makes this relationship and restoration possible; we like the gift, but not the required power source. We look all around us trying to find some loophole to restoring the relationship and try many different things: money, kindness, numerous "religions", support groups, goodness, organizations, etc... and then we get mad when someone says that these things are good, but won't restore that relationship. We tell people things like "You're narrow minded" and "If God is really a loving God wouldn't he let all religions go to heaven" and the list could go on.

This is where Jesus and batteries get something in common. Imagine how stupid you would sound if you called up that toy car manufacture and said something like this: "You are so narrow minded! If you really wanted me to play with your toy you would make it so the batteries could be put in anyway I wanted to!" or maybe "I can't believe you actually requires batteries to play with this toy. I have been good my whole life and worked hard to get this toy car, that should count for something!" and even "I'm not going to put batteries in it because I know other people put batteries in their cars and they are jerks!"

If you really did call up a manufacture and give these complaints you would end up and the next "list of stupid" email going around the office because they claims are simply ridiculous but we justify saying the same thing about Jesus and having our relationship with God restored.

You can have the greatest gift set before you but if you don't have the batteries it will never be used. You have to have the right power source to get any good out of it. God has given you eternal life but you can only use it by placing your faith in Jesus Christ.

Genuine Thanks Generates Generous Actions.

2008-12-03T13:52:00.008-05:00

When I was in high school my sister and I had been out with a friend who lived with her grandma. Her parents lived several hundred miles away so she didn't see them often so around Christmas her local aunts and uncles would bring her gifts. I don't remember what we had done while out that ngiht, but we had all decided to go back to her grandma's and watch a movie. When we got there her aunt and uncle where there and they had stopped over to surprise her and her grandma with Christmas gifts. All is fine with that but it left my sister and I feeling a bit awkward. I didn't drive yet so we were stuck there watching her family Christmas. We did end up watching the movie, but I remember what she said after the family Christmas; "I am so sorry, I didn't know they were coming or I would have wrapped something up to give you guys." She felt bad that in the spirit of giving, she wanted to give.
The natural reaction for humans is to give when given too. If we appreciate something we like to pass it on. Now, I know that someone just popped into your mind that is ungrateful, but in general we are give when given to. The friend had been given to and wanted to give. We all know the feeling when someone gets you a gift but you have nothing to give back... uncomfortable.
David writes a song about this. In Psalm 116 David takes the first 8 verses to sit back to list all the things that God has blessed him with... all the blessings that he does not deserve but appreciates, then verse 12. "What can I render unto the Lord for all his benefits unto me?" David has received and now he is wanting to give. David has received what he cannot buy, earn, or deserve and he doesn't want to take it for granted. But what had David received that was so special that he wanted to give in return?
-V1-2 David needed someone to talk too and God heard... How many people do you know right now that may just need someone to listen. You may not agree with them or even like them, but you can listen with scrutiny or distraction. A listening ear is a gift that costs nothing but is very meaningful. It is praactical yet extravagent.
- V3-5 David had gotten himself into some hard situations; we know his story, theses hard places were often brought on by his own foolishness... but God delivers him. Someone that you know is going through a hard time that they have brought upon themself. They need you to help them get through this time and be delivered from their struggles. God didn't not beat up David or kick him while he was down... he helped him be delivered.
-V6-7 David tells that he was low and God took him high. God didn't not do the least effort in recovering David because it was a mess that he'd gotten himself into... God wen't the extra mile and was "bountiful" with David, not average or ordinary. If David's struggles were a lake; God did not help David get back to shallow water, He took him unto dry ground, sat him down, warmed him up, and gave him something to eat.
When we see what God has done for David and what he has done for us, we too should ask what David asked, "What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?"
God has blessed you and we must praise God's name for it, and pass on teh blessing. God has used others to be a blessing to you, and he is counting on you to be a blessing to those around you. Examine the people around you today and see whom you may be able to take out of the lake of struggles and set upon dry ground.

Tripping Over Myself

2008-11-18T09:49:00.002-05:00

On the campus of Pensacola Christian College my sophomore year they built a new dining hall and called it "The Four Winds". It was gorgeous; high ceiling, bright colors, large portions of class that shown the bright Florida sunshine and let us look out to the palm trees and landscape of the campus. In it there were several food lines that were categorized by ethic tastes or preferences. it was magnificent. But, then there was the carpet. No, it wasn't really ugly but it was bright and reminded me of the big casinos you see in a movie, but it could do amazing things! I fell prey to the carpet many times and you could humorously watch other be victimized by it as well! The carpet would reach up and trip you when you weren't suspecting it! I can remember more than one occasion seeing people drop a tray full of food because the carpet tripped them. Now, there were to magic powers bestowed to the carpet, but it happened over and over. For some reason the knap and weave of the carpet could make a completely competent person stumble. As silly as it sounds to say that the carpet actually tripped people, there is something else just as silly... we often trip ourselves. We want to move forward but we become the very thing that holds us back.

In Matthew chapter 6 Jesus is talking in the Sermon on the Mount and repeats the same phrase or idea over and over again. That phrase: "...and you Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly" (verse 4, 6, 18, and 33 (the idea of 33)). Jesus is stating that God the Father is wanting you to be a blessed person. God wants people to look at you and say, "I wish I could be like them." Face it, we all have idols; maybe not in worship but in admiration. We have role models in finance, in family, in dress, in speech, etc... and this is good. There is nothing wrong with having people that we look up to. Jesus is saying that God wants to bless you, and to bless you OPENLY. Why openly? Because he wants people to see what a dedicated life to Christ brings. God is holding a handful of blessings to give to you but there are conditions.

This chapter tells us that God is waiting to bless us so all can see that we are blessed, but we are not the ones to make our blessings known... that is to be God's job.

This chapter reveals 4 areas that we must keep ourselves in check and all 4 of those areas come to the root of our motives; more specifically our prideful and selfish motives. When we are able to suppress ourselves in these areas God is adorn us with blessings for the world to see as a testimony of what he has done for us.

Area 1. Verses 1-4 deal with our charity toward other people... our "good works". No, not for salvation, but cause of salvation. It paints the picture doing things for the sake of helping in the name of Christ, not so you can be pointed out. Remember, it is your job to do the work and God's job to do the pointing out. Recently I was at a funeral dinner where there was a sweet old lady who had made many dishes to share. However, standing beside her she fed you a running commentary of what she had brought and how many people had taken it. She boasted of how good of a cook she was and how her items must be superior to other's. I couldn't help but think that the only reward she received was her own pat on the back when God could have been ready and willing to bless her with anything from a good nights sleep to a check in the mail. On the flip side. Last year our church was in need of an air conditioner unit which would rest in the range of $1,300. After mentioning this (not even asking for money) a visiting guest came up to me after ward and said, "God told me to give you this, but don't tell anyone where it came from." This person is not a church member and I have seen them only a handful of times since, but it is no wonder that God has blessing them in high levels of success because they follow this principle.

Area 2. Prayer. This passage holds the most quoted prayer of all time, The Lord's Prayer, but that is not what carries the main message of this section. Verses 4-15 speaks of the hypocrites that only pray if and when someone is watching, including making themselves a public spectacle to do so. They repeat the same thing over and over and make sure they use impressive words. This doesn't please God. If we want to impress God with our prayers we are told to keep it between him and us, then he will bless us publicly for it.

Area 3. Fasting. This is a practice that is done less and less since it deals with suppressing the physical so we can give more attention to the spiritual and that is not popular in a society that tells us that it is all about us and as long as we believe in ourselves things will be just fine. Matthew 17.21 Jesus tells the disciples that some things can't be done but by prayer AND fasting, he is specifically talking about casting out demons. In Matthew 6.16-19 we see that people are fasting, which is good, but they are making themselves look sick so that others know they are fasting. Again, it is all about us... or the person involved... so much for the "suppressing the physical" part. We are instructed to take an extra effort to make ourselves look strong during times of fasting including the use of make up if necessary. Verse 17 says to anoint your head and wash your face. This is not anointing like often we thing of anointing with oil; this is actually staining your skin with olive oil to give color and then washing off the excess so you look healthy. When we get this area in check and do it properly we will then know the blessing that God has for us and it will be a public example of what he has done.

Area 4. Wealth. From verse 19 to the end we are told all about our assests. We are told to invest into areas that will never pass away, not areas of earthly possessions and treasures that will someday rot and decay. We are not able to serve God and money, they are two areas that are constantly at war because they both want complete control of your time, money, and life. We must freely chose to follow God and let him supply our needs. It draw the comparison of a flower and King Solomon. A flower does nothing to look pretty, it just comes natural because God has designed it that way; King Solomon was the richest man ever and he worked hard to make sure he looked better and had more things than anyone, but he failed at it because he found out the hard way that he can't buy what God gives freely.

I am not saying all of this because I had an extra 15 minutes to write an article for the web, but because this is true. Get yourself in check and act out of the right motives and God will reward you openly. I have seen this over and over in my life. If you look at me I am an average person, but there are many areas that God has proven this. I am not perfect but God has blessed me openly in areas that I couldn't never achieve on my own and He gets all the credit, not me. I have a home that I shouldn't be able to afford, a wife and kids I don't deserve, a car I shouldn't be able to afford, a phone I could never afford, a tv I never dreamed of, peace that I sure don't create on my own, and a God that I can never repay. This in not bragging, this is just praising God for keeping his promise to reward us openly. God has a blessing for you today. Don't trip over yourself trying to get it on your own power.

"I disagree with what you're about to say!"

2008-10-08T12:11:00.004-04:00

Recently I had the opportunity to host a local pastor fellowship meeting with about 16 pastors and their wives present. I had chosen the topic study of the age demographics of our church and which areas we are excelling at and which areas we are missing the boat. The begin I drew a pie chart on the board and divided it into quarters labeling them Kids, Teens, Adults, and Seniors to represent the basic areas of ministry a church has. Having said little more, I wanted to stir a little discussion and asked, "Which areas do you find the American church as a whole is doing a good job in, and which areas do you feel we are lacking in?" A few Pastors who are obviously blind to American church trends said, "I don't know that we can really answer that..." Then rose a voice above the rest saying, "Randy, I can see where you are going with this and I disagree with what you are about to say!" He went on telling me why he disagreed with what I was about to say however, I hadn't said anything yet for him to disagree with! For the next several minutes I allowed him to dig a whole as he told all about why he didn't agree with me. In his speech he received many affirming gestures and remarks from other Pastor's present.
Immediately a fence was built down the middle of our group; on one side was everyone who agreed with what he said, and the other group on the side of what I said... although I hadn't said anything, and frankly, I was on his side because he said what I was about to say. Once his whole was deep enough and my blood was boiling enough I interjected as calmly as I could, "_____, You started your speech saying to disagreed with me. I am wondering, the question was, 'Which areas is the church doing good at and which areas is it failing?' What is your answer to this?" After he then answered the question and I asked him this, "Okay, now which areas did you expect me to pick?" After back peddling and denying he every claimed to disagree with me he was bound to an answer but, it was the same answer that he had given! He vehemently said he disagreed with me, took five minutes to tell me why he disagreed with me, and then says that he thinks I agree with him! I am not one to get mad but on the inside my blood was boiling!!! No matter what I said the rest of the meeting I knew that since all I did was retold what he had just said, it sounding like I was only following his direction and not presenting it as my own... the fence was already erected and though we were on the same side it was still dividing. To his credit he did publicly apologize, but that did little for me.
Throughout the afternoon and evening I couldn't get the incident out of my mind. The next day I couldn't get it out of my mind. I got little sleep either of those nights because of the who ordeal, but I knew it wasn't right. God continued to pound my mind with verses like Luke 17.3b-4 If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him. It kept through my mind like a Christmas list through the mind of a child. The verse, the ordeal, the apology, the fence... it was all consuming until I finally had to claim victory. It was not God who was wanting me to hold a grudge, it was Satan! I was holding myself victim to a man that simply made a fool of himself in front of his colleagues. I was allowing his foolish action to plague me and keep me from sleep! Satan was throwing this back into my face and keeping me down.
Lying in bed getting no sleep for the second night in a row I finally had to claim victory over defeat and release this from me. God had been prompting me to give it up all along with the scriptures he brought to my mind, but I wasn't done with it yet. Finally, laying there in the stillness of the night I mentally took my hands off from around the man's neck that I had been wringing for the last days and in turn released the bonds of bitterness and unforgiveness.
Sharing my personal struggle with you is not to tattle on anyone. I get the overwhelming feeling that many of our readers are also holding on to something in their life that they need to let go of. Something of the past is dragging you down in the present. You are not only hurting yourself in self-bondage, you are limiting the work of God in your life, and allowing someone else's foolish actions to control yours. Release yourself from their grasp today.

Tempting or Testing?

2008-09-30T07:18:00.002-04:00

After a month since posting the last article I am back at the reigns to help you continue your spiritual walk and understand the character of God.

I was asked a question a couple of weeks ago that seemed quite simple to me until I began to reply. Thankfully the question was via email so I had a bit more liberty to stall and research before reply. The question was this: "How do you know the difference between God's testing and Satan's tempting? Are they the same? Do you treat them the same?"

Some of you just thought, "That isn't that hard, we all know that God doesn't tempt he tests, and Satan tempts. Come on Pastor, don't you know that if we 'resist the devil he will flee from [us]?'" Well, for those of you who just said that... keep reading and realize that in the Bible is actually says that God “tempts” people (Genesis 22.1).

Now that you know this there are some things to consider; What is the difference between God's temptation and Satan's temptation? Here is the difference: Intent. Testing is using a circumstance or situation to prove or improve someone. Tempting is using a circumstance of situation to get someone to fall. The same circumstance or situation could be used to either test or tempt someone so you must determine the intent. Once you have determined the intent you can see who it is coming from; God or Satan. God wants to prove us to Him and ourselves while also improving us. Satan wants us to give in and fail.

So, to put it in few words. Testing and tempting can look identical. The easiest way to know is to look at the intent and outcome. God leads us into his likeness, and Satan leads us to destruction.

Next question. Does it matter which?
Answer: No. Any temptation of Satan can be overcome. Or, we can fail any test given by God. The important thing is that we stay true to God in either situation and overcome. I Corinthians 10.13 says that “there is no temptation given to us but that which is common to others. God is faithful and will take the temptation and make a way of escape.” (Barton translation from memory). Essentially, when we are tempted, it can be overcome and God can help you get through it. Notice in the verse it says that the very temptation turns out to be the way of escape. The when we pass the test/temptation we are stronger in the end.

Next question. Do you handle the issue the same?
Answer: Yes. All testing and temptations should be executed using the actions, thoughts, and heart of God. Essentially, WWJD. Very important is to know your Bible. When Jesus was tempted by Satan himself he used scripture to overcome Satan’s temptation. I know that at times we feel we don’t know enough scripture to save our life let alone our soul, but that is where we have to turn to God for help and through the Holy Spirit that help is provided. John 14.26 says “…the Holy Ghost…shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance…” A lot of prayer and Biblical counsel and church support can go a long way in overcoming a test/temptation.

Whether you are under Satan's attack or being tested by God, you can be an overcomer and rise higher than you have ever been for Christ. You can become one in the great cloud of witness mentioned in Hebrews 12.1 for someone around you. You are an ambassador for Christ. You represent Christ. We must represent that Christ is all we need to overcome life.

The Rest of the Story

2008-08-28T06:16:00.003-04:00

Before you read this article, read the posted before it (most likely just below) entitled, "How do I become a 'Baptism'?"

Upon arriving at church last night for our weekly youth outreach service I was met by the same girl who had asked this question. "Guess what!" sprang out of her mouth. "What?!" I exclaimed in a way that somewhat exaggerated her youthful enthusiasm. "I got saved! ... Sunday night after church I was sitting outside and I started to pray; I cried out to God and asked Him to open His arms and come into my life. After that it was amazing, I just started to cry for like 10 minutes."

I couldn't believe it! What a blessing! I never cease to be amazed at how the Holy Spirit will work in people to bring them to Christ. This young lady has been coming to our youth services for nearly 6 months and now heard dozens of calls for salvation and now, all on her own she cries out to God asking him to come into her life. Rarely to you ever hear of someone getting saved without someone walking them through the "Romans Road", but I just had.

In further talk I asked her what made her decide to get saved then. She said that she knew she needed to, and during our Sunday night song service she kept feeling more and more like it was something she needed to do. Little did she know that it was the Holy Spirit working in her, convicting her or her need of salvation. Whether she knew it or not the results are now eternal history.

But there is more. Last night after the youth service SHE approached ME with the question, "So, when can I get baptized? Maybe this Sunday or next?" Wow, how amazing! She was so excited that she wanted to announce it in person in the service. She did, and all of the other teens erupted in applause!

This was such a great praise I knew I just had to share with you the rest of the story after having posted the question, "How do I become a 'Baptism'?" And there you have it.

"How do I become a 'Baptism'?"

2008-08-26T08:15:00.003-04:00

Sunday night as I finished up a few last minute things a teenage approached me with the question, "How do I become a 'Baptism'?" I knew what she meant... baptist, and I knew why she was asking it. She has been attending a different church her entire life with her mother and as felt... less than Spirit led at that church; things seem to be more steeped in religion and tradition that relationship and grace. Having come for nearly 6 months to our Wednesday youth outreach, she has realized that we are not interested in someone merely doing motions in a service nor anyone attending a church based upon the title on the sign. During her attendance here she has urged her mother to come and see our church and experience the difference of relationship over religion... with no avail. Well, Sunday might have changed things. Apparently at the "other church" the sermon was all about how their church and every one of it methods were far superior to any other church in the world, regardless if their practices had any Biblical backing. So, what did I say in regards to the question, "How do I become a 'Baptism'?" The same thing Paul and Silas told the jailer when he asked them a similar question: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved." Acts 16.30

The first thing out of my mouth (after, "You mean 'Baptist'" was;) "It isn't about being a Baptist, or a Lutheran, or a Methodist, or a Catholic, or... it is about knowing Jesus Christ your personal Lord and Savior. Anyone is welcome to come, participate, and attend our church; if you want to know what it takes to become a member, however, you must profess the name of Jesus Christ having placed your faith in Him and asked him to forgive you. AFTER that you need to be Biblically baptized, and attest that you believe the basic Bible doctrines as we do. It's that simple; Have faith in Jesus Christ, believe the Bible, and follow the Bible."

Immediately there was a relief in her eyes. "So I don't have to do _____, or _____ like at my other church?" she asked. "No, those may be nice things to do, and you may choose to do those to help you reverence God, but the most important things is to live by the Bible." With a smile on her face she said, "I think it would be great to be a 'Baptism'!" I reminder her, "It isn't about being a 'Baptist', it is about being a 'Bible Believing, Christ following Christian' that matters. We have 'Baptist' in our church name, but we have 'Christ' upon our hearts. Worry about being a good 'Christian', not a good 'Baptist'."

As she ran turn to leave the smile was still on her face as she exclaimed, "I'll tell my mom, I hope we can start coming."

There are some who will disagree with me and you are welcome to. However, if you claim that there is something more that a believer should do than what the Bible says, or less that a believer should do than what the Bible says I believe you should read Revelation 22.18-19 "For I testify unto every man that hears the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book." We need stop worrying about the title on the church sign, and start worrying about the title of Christ upon your heart.

Is Christianity a Religion?

2008-08-12T09:50:00.003-04:00

The question came to be from one of our church members, "I believe Jesus is the only way to heaven… but even so does all the religion really matter? And isn’t religion just another meaning for tradition?" I could see where the conversation was soon heading as there has been a big misrepresentation of Christianity in the minds of our nation as being a "religion", or something that does something for the sake that "it has always been done that way before" and "since God doesn't care about all the 'religion' stuff aren't we wasting our time with all the 'religious stuff'?" This is a great point and good thought.

Going back to the question; it stated that religion is another word for tradition. If you look up "Religion" in any dictionary you will find multiple definitions for it, but one will mention something to doing certain things "religiously" or out of ritual... tradition. Along with the long list of definitions you will see one that says something to the order of "a faith based system." Looking at these two definitions I find that Christianity fits one definition perfectly, and not so much the other. Biblical Christianity is certainly a faith based system as it is centered around the faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of all, but it is not something that should be believed or practiced simply out of ritual reasons. Thus, yes, you could accurately says Christianity is a "religion" but it may not be the best word to describe it.

There is a common saying amongst Biblical Christians: "Christianity is a relationship, not a religion." This is a true saying. Though Biblical Christianity does fit a portion of the dictionary's definition for religion it does not cover all of them. Relationship however, describes the very basis of Christianity; it is a relationship with Jesus Christ.

In a discussion over this same question it was brought up that we do practice things that may appear to be done in tradition, thus making Christianity appear to be a religion: communion, baptism, modest dress, sexual purity, prohibition of alcohol, support Christian music, etc... "What about these things... aren't we making Christianity a religion? Why are we wasting our time doing them?" was a legitimate question that came up. To answer this question you have to consider a relationship. A relationship, any relationship has expectation within it, and expectation are not all bad. In fact, lets consider some relationship that have no spiritual relevance. In your relationship to a cashier you expect them to give you the correct change and they expect you to put all your items on the belt the be paid for. In your relationship to your mailman you expect him to give you your mail without reading it first, and he expects you to have your mail in your box by the time he comes with the correct postage on it. In your relationship to your boss she expects you to be to work on time and be on task while you expect her to provide the proper wages and a healthy work environment. So far there are no complaints in any of these areas in the expectations we live with every day. Expectations actually create a health relationship. Now, in our relationship to Christ we are equated as being a bride for her husband so, what are some reasonable expectations a husband has for his bride? He expects her to be faithful to him in her love, he expects her to dress in a way that doesn't attract attention from others, he expects her to talk well of him, he expects her to spend time with others in his family, he expects her to read his love letters, he expects her to keep open communication. Etc... All of these are things that are done in a health relationship of a husband and wife and our world is filled with examples of consequence when these things are neglected in a husband wife relationship.

So, does having expectations on a Biblical Christian make it a religion? NO! In fact, it makes it a healthy relationship. In Matthew 15.2-4 the religious leaders were upset at Jesus because they didn't wash their hands so Jesus points out that they are focusing on the entirely wrong thing because they are breaking the Law of God in several areas. It is true, God is concerned about our heart and its intent. The Pharisees were worried about the disciples hands more than they were their own hearts. Yes, we should seek good hygiene, but we can't neglect our heart's condition. Romans 12.1-2 tells us we are to present our bodies a sacrifice to God and that it is our reasonable service. God is concerned our hearts first, but he does have expectations of how we handle our body, dress our body, and conduct our body. Satan will tell us that it is OUR body but God says that it is for his work. This is another healthy expectation; what groom wants a bride that has neglected and abused her body and only wants to give him what is left after she and everyone else is done with it. Preserving our body and living a sanctified life is not a call of religion; it is a dedication of a deep relationship.

I'll close with this. Last week in counseling a man who claims he "believes in God but doesn't care about what God cares about or thinks about him" he said, "I'm not coming to church anymore because I will be a fake a be just one of the 'religious' people who don't believe in their hearts." My response was in two parts: "So why don't you give your life to Christ and make it so you're not a 'fake'," and "Who is more likely to get an understanding of God and become a genuine Christian, the person who believes in God but stays home because they are a fake, or the person who continues attending church and being fed the Word of God?" He admitted that I was right, but still walked away from God.

Religion carries a set of rules that are kept because they have always been kept. A relationship carries a moral code that is kept in order to get to know each other better.

David: All Action, No Drama

2008-08-04T07:05:00.003-04:00

David is loved by all but what makes him so special. Sure, we say "David, a man after God's own heart" and give him a lot of credit for being a really great warrior and king, but David was a failure in so many accounts it isn't even funny. David failed at his marriage. David failed in his family. David failed in humility. David was selfish. In the midst of all David failed at we sit back and give him some of the highest praise of all the people in scripture. Is this all for no reason or just because we like to hear stories of a hero that can take down a giant? Are we putting this guy on some pedestal that needs to be knocked down a few notches? What makes this guy so special? Does playing a harp and having the kings son as a childhood friend make you such a special person that people think you are cool? The answer to all of these questions: No.

Yes, David failed in many areas just like we do, but there is something about David that is reflected the most in the first verse of the vast majority of the Psalms. Take a moment and skim through the first verse of nearly every Psalm and you find something in common; David is calling out to God. David wants to be heard by God. David wants to hear from God. David is wanting to further his relationship with God. Can all of these things be said of us? It can be said of David and that is some of what makes this guy special.

In Psalm 15 David proposes the question of how he can ABIDE in the tabernacle; the place where God was dwelling at the time. He wanted to know how he could DWELL in the holy hill. David is not wanting to visit the presence of God, he is wanted to stay in the presence of God. From verse 2 through the end of the chapter he is answering his own question under inspiration of God. He spells out a lifestyle that conveys the holy character of God. A lifestyle that is needed by each of us and if each of us lived this character we would see the world change a record speeds for Christ. Now, notice that the question is not "how do I get saved?" rather, (paraphrased) "How do I stay in the active presence of God?" and the answer had to do with how we live. This is not legalism for it is not adding anything to salvation, but it is promoting a lifestyle that reflects integrity and character for a greater reason than "because it is nice". We must live a life of integrity for the fact that it will help us remain in the active presence of God.

David demonstrates this type of integrity in Psalm 38. It seems that everyone is coming down on David and he feels that the heat is on. As you enter verse 12 the skeptics are breathing down his neck and he would have every reason to start lashing out and backbiting but he doesn't. What does he do? He becomes as a deaf mute who refuses to listen to the scrutiny of his critics or shoot off his mouth in retaliation. Instead he turns his focus from being on the prosecution to being on the Lord. When it would be easy to play childish name calling games or a bar-room brawl, David chooses to please God over scuffling with men. David chose to live the life of integrity in the active presence of God over a life of superficial conflict.

What will we choose? In chapter 15 we have a clear lifestyle integrity spelled out for us. Now the question shifts to us, "Are you willing to live lifestyle godly character and integrity so you can dwell in the active presence of God?"

Calling All Heros

2008-07-29T09:12:00.006-04:00

Last week was Vacation Bible School and what a blessing it was. The theme this year was from The Pirate's Who Don't Do Anything and we gave a challenge of "Calling All Heroes" for our kids to be a hero for God; first, to accept his salvation, second, to stand up for what is right and witness.

Each night the kids were welcomed by staff who were adorned like pirates, complete with pirate names. Each learning station was decorated like a fun tropical location with really helped to set the mood for fun and learning. The staff and kids all went by their "pirate names" all week and this added an extra fun atmosphere for learning.

Something new we did this year was the concept that "Every station was learning station". Most VBS programs simply have the story time the move on to an irrelevant game, craft, and snack; not so here. We had an 2 hour long VBS program and to use on 20 minutes to convey the truth of Jesus Christ would be a waste of every one's time. Each craft, game, and snack went along with the Bible story of the day. The verses too were specifically chosen. In the end, each child had a full 2 hours of Biblical learning and Spiritual growth. The fruit of it was great!

On Thursday we gave the heaviest emphasis on salvation and 4 responded. No one was pushed to make a decision for Christ; rather, they made the decision to repent of their sin themselves. Following their salvation they all burst into tears of joy as they had been set free from what would weigh them down and keep them from God.

VBS is a lot of work and will undeniably wear one out by the end of week, but it is worth it. Our staff enjoyed it the most I think. It is a bit sad to now say that it is over for another year, but we are looking forward to next year when we can serve God in this capacity again.

What Will It Take

2008-07-22T07:28:00.006-04:00

Wouldn't it be neat if you could push a magic button and take the place of one of the disciples for a moment, or even a few moments? In the back our minds we believe that if we could just see Jesus and sit by his side that our doubts would melt away and we could follow him the way he intends us to. Which disciple would you like to be for you moment? Personally I would rather not be Judas Iscariot. John would be neat but I don't need to be Thomas or Peter; I already struggle with doubt from time to time and put my foot in my mouth. Which would you choose.

This would undoubtedly be a neat experience if it could be done, but would it melt away any spiritual struggles? Unfortunately, no. In John 21 it records Jesus appearing the disciples as they are out fishing. They have been out all night and caught nothing; we probably all know the story, but do you know the background and setting? Jesus has recently resurrected and the disciples have seen him twice already (which you likely think would solve all of your spiritual doubts and shame to have seen this account first hand) but the disciples continue in fear. Before Jesus had been crucified we have accounts of them being very busy in ministry and serving along side Jesus. After Jesus' resurrection we find them in their popular hideout... huddled in an attic in fear of death. Time seems to be stacking atop itself and they have time to burn as they cower. Finally as John 21.3 records, Peter says, "Guys, I'm going out fishing" and almost instinctively some of the others say, "Hey, I'll come too. Wait up." They are doing this under the cover of nightfall. Ask yourself this, aren't these God's chosen people who he trained to carry the torch after the resurrection? Now they are just going fishing when no one is looking, and doing nothing when people are?

Peter and the others are starting to regress from the divine call; they are returning to the people they used to be: fishermen. After the fish all night they find that they have miserably failed at what they thought would be something they could always fall back on. About that time some crazy old loon calls from the shore and tells them to try fishing on the other side of the boat. What do they have to lose? They try it and it worked. They had more fish than they know what to do with and they recognize that the loon on the shore was really the very Son of God, Jesus Christ. He had come to visit them again. But, when did his visit begin? I believe that God had been with them all night. God was the one that didn't allow them to catch any fish to teach them a lesson: Whenever you chase your own plans, thought, ideas, or vocation instead of God's plan for your life you will only come up disappointed at best. God had moved his hand on them to fail in order to direct them back into his will and call for their life. Jesus essentially saw the recovering drunks car and the bar and went in to drag them out.

Back on the sea shore Jesus feed their belly then heads straight for the heart. Talking to Peter, the ringleader of the fishing trip, Jesus tells him to "Feed my lambs" and to "Feed my sheep" (v15-17). Jesus was reminding Peter of his divine call while Peter was sneaking out at night to do his own thing.

Peter knew what his divine call was. Peter knew that he had influence on others. Peter chose to use his power of influence to reject his call from God and get others to do the same. Jesus had to bring failure in the life of Peter so he could see that true success came from listening to the voice of God.

Where are you? Have you sneaked out at night to follow your own direction and areas but finding that all you continue to do is fail? Maybe it is time to start listening to the voice of God and returning to what he has called you to do in your life. When Peter listened to the voice of God he found that he life suddenly became so bountiful that he couldn't hardly contain it.

Leading Like Jesus

2008-07-15T07:25:00.004-04:00

Today God revealed to me a great nugget of information that is nestled into a Psalm of David. Psalm 28.1 says "Unto thee will I cry, O Lord my Rock; be not silent to me, lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit." Did you catch it? Let me show it to you.

David begins by saying this: "I am crying out to God, now it is your turn to talk to me. God, if I don't hear from you then I am as good as being in hell". That is a loose paraphrase with emphasis added, but look back to the actual verse and you will see it there along with the state that David might as well be in if he doesn't hear from God. Here is a bit of what brought to my heart as I saw the verse in this light.

First, David is listening to hear from God. You say, "Yeah, so?" This is possibly the most important part of the verse because God could be speaking loudly, opposed to the "still small voice" and if David wasn't listening to God it wouldn't make any difference. David, being a believer if the triune God, is taking the time to recognize that God is wanting to say something and he wants to listen because to him God is his "Rock". If God was not the "Rock" of David's life then he likely wouldn't have cared if he heard God or not. We must make God the Rock of our life and listen for God; He is talking to you and wanting to be heard.

Secondly, David realizes that if he does not hear from God his life is useless and he may as well just go to hell now and save the waste of his earthly breaths. Without the voice of God, David could not write the 23rd Psalm which portrays God as being the Shepherd that leads to the lush great pastures and the calm waters nor prepare the feast before him. David knows that it is imperative that he stay in tune with the voice of God for his life to have meaning and purpose. David knows that as soon as he stops hearing the voice of God his life is over, spiritually speaking. What about you, are you too far from God to hear him speaking? Are you the same as the sinner still bound for hell? Your life has a greater purpose than to be a spiritual couch potato. It is time that we all make God our Rock and stay close enough to Him to hear Him and stay fresh, not stagnate.

Lastly, I was struck with a great truth of a parallel truth of this passage and a series we are currently going through with our 11 am worship services called Follow the Leader where we are learning to not only follow Jesus but to lead like Jesus as well. It has been said that the average person will influence over 200,000 people in their lifetime. If that is the case we have the opportunity to influence A LOT of people with the love of Christ, but if they don't hear from us they are as good as being in hell already. David is crying out to his leader and wanting to hear from them. God was also the mentor and advisor to David and greatly relied upon. If you are believer in Jesus Christ then you are leading someone too and are their spiritual mentor and advisor. No, you should not be their god but you should be the voice of God in their life. If you are someones "spiritual mother or father" they need to hear from you God's voice, and see God's character in you. Are we answering the cry of people who are looking up to us?

God has established the church to be His body in this New Testament church age. We are the ones people are looking to and crying out to for help as they cry out to God. It is time for you to stand up and answer that cry. Live the love of Jesus and lead someone like Jesus would.

ForeRunners

2008-07-15T07:05:00.003-04:00

Over the last 3 years we have seen a youth explosion of sorts in our church. I have been with the ministry of Millett Bible Baptist Church for over 3 years; when I came there was one to two teenagers or preteens that came. They were were disinterested and came because their parents came. In the following months we had a man step up and begin taking on our youth work and doing a great job at it. We began seeing another teen and another teen come and see the grace of Jesus Christ. Within a year and a half we were running 6-8 teens (Which is great because as anyone who has started a ministry knows, the hardest part is getting a core.) Our church was excited and we saw the excitement in the teens who came to be known as "Checkpoint". For the past year and a half I have been working with Checkpoint and God has continued to bless more than imaginable 3 years ago. Now averaging 13-15 teens each Wednesday night we are running out of room and needing more assistance in operation. So, where did we go for the assistance? To Checkpoint.

Some people may disagree with me on this next portion but they can post their opinions in their own blog. I believe that leadership needs to be taught to all ages. If you are a child, start leading. If you are an elder, keep leading. I follow the example of Jesus. Even as a child in the temple Jesus was stepping up and being an example leader with the theologians. As an adult in His Father's ministry he lead the masses but he focused on 12, particularly 3. What does all of this have to do with Checkpoint? We have begun a Student Leadership group to step up and become leaders within the students and attendees. That group: ForeRunners... Leading the Way to Jesus Christ.

ForeRunners had its first meeting last Sunday PM and is lead under my supervision by one of our recent graduates. It is for everyone in checkpoint but not for anyone. Only teens who are eager to learn more about Jesus Christ in their own personal, daily lives is able to come. They must complete daily bible study material and have a regular prayer time. Church attendance, good attitudes, and maintaining an accountability partner is also required. Soon we will be integrating checkpoint officers which will be pulled from our leadership group to begin teaching responsibility and church operations.

The greatest visions we have for ForeRunners is to have our teens become closer to God in their daily Bible Study time and prayer time, draw closer to each other by being in a group setting with the encouragement of each other, nurturing a healthy accountability relationship that helps each other to stick with there commitment to God, Church, and each other, and to learn the Bible so they can build their life upon it and counsel others with it truths.

I am excited to see the life change of our youth as they discover and unlock what God has for their lives. Please pray for ForeRunners.

Player One

2008-07-08T13:14:00.003-04:00

A couple of months ago a good friend of ours gave my kids a Nintendo Gamecube. That was really nice but we didn't have any games. We got some and the kids began to become addicted. We have the addiction well under control now and they eager look forward to every occasion they are able to play. After turning down many proposals to play with them I gave in an sat down to play a great game of "Cars" the video game. It was entertaining and enjoyable but there was something else I soon realized; my kids have control issues. Yes, my oldest is 4 and he has control issues. No matter what it is we are going to play on the gamecube he is determined to be player one! To some that may not seem like a control issue but you must understand that player one holds privileges that the other players do not have. The entire menu, the initial game setup, sometime the only ability to pause an active game, etc... No one ever told my kids that player one held more power, but if you ever play with them you will automatically be handed the player two controller as they hold the plastic scepter of power. This made me think...

How many times do we do this with Jesus? We know that we need to have Jesus a part of our life so we invite him into it our "game of life"; we are really excited that we don't have to "play it" alone but then we stick him with the player two controller. Yes, he can still play the game with us and we can enjoy His company but at the end-of-the-day we are the ones in control.

We tell people Jesus is a part of our life, we thank Him for being a part of our life, and we experience his grace but we just can't bring ourselves to let him be player one.

"Any one can die for Christ; that's easy. Living for Christ is the hard part," is what a man recently told me. How true that is.

Being a Blessed Nation

2008-07-08T12:53:00.003-04:00

Driving down the road I saw a bumper sticker from a radio station that read, "God has blessed America." I agree. It is undeniable that God's blessing has been upon this country for many years and has helped it rise to be the superpower that it currently is. This makes me consider the verse that tells us exactly why a country would be blessed. Psalm 33 holds the key to a nations blessing; "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." v12

Understanding this verse as truth there are a few things we must understand; this is not the complete verse. The second half of this verse says, "And the people whom he has chosen for his own inheritance." God has chosen those who follow him, and those who follow him have chosen to follow Him. This is not to spur a discussion of predestination, but rather the sufficient grace of God. Romans 10.13 say, "Whosoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved." This is true with our nation. If we will bind together with our God being the Lord (Jesus the Christ; the deliverer) we will be blessed.

In the old testament beginning with Abraham God established a nation that would be His example people to demonstrate to the world the blessings of making God your Lord, and the consequence of denying God as Lord. These people are now known as the Jews but have bore names such as Israelites, Children of David, etc throughout history. They have shown the world that God does indeed bless a country when He is made their Lord; and they have demonstrated the painful consequence of proclaiming fame, riches, fornication, or power to become their lord. On a roller coaster ride of faith the nation has seen blessing of wealth and prosperity and the struggles of famine and pestilence.

In the new testament church age (which we are now in) the believer in Jesus Christ is the new chosen people of God (there is still a special place and purpose for the Jews) and they are now given the promise of Psalm 33, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." America is called a Christian nation but the percentage of true God followers is declining every moment. As the spirit of the antichrist saturates our society we are losing true believers in record numbers as they are convinced that there are multiple ways to know God and receive his redemption. Yes, I believe that God has blessed America because it has been the strongest Christian country in the world with the most missionaries sent out than any other country. There was once more Christian churches in America than in the rest of the world combined. Still, the promise holds strong that the nation, regardless of which it is, will be blessed if God is it supreme ruler.

The remainder of Ps. 33 spells out clearly that it is not a king, an army, or its technology that wins a war, it is the power of a God keeping his promise that wins the war. Having said all of this I do not desire to press one into a corner of depression and tell us to look around at all the spiritual ruin, rather I urge you to stand up and claim the promise of God and press forward to maintain a nation whose God is the Lord.

This is an election year and you have a voice in the next leader. You can choose someone who will help us keep God as the Lord, or you can cast your vote for destruction. As you cast your ballot in a couple of months remember this verse as you slide your ballot into the machine.

Getting Along: Conflict Resolution.

2008-06-25T09:23:00.003-04:00

You won't get a long with everyone you meet. Duh.

You won't be friends with everyone we get along with. Okay.

You won't get along with everyone we have to live with. Ain't that the truth.

You were told, "Live peaceably with all men" and "Blessed are the peacemakers." Yeah, but...

No matter how we look at it we don't get along with everyone and there are times in life we can't get away from the people we neither like nor get along with. That is just a part of life. Jesus told us in the Sermon on the Mount that there is a blessing though for people who are peacemakers. Paul instructed us that as much as possible we are to live peaceably with all men. This is not instruction that is easy or enjoyable, but necessary to grow in God's love and ways. Humans relationship are what often stand between us and God. If we are not living peaceably with our fellow man, it will be live within the peace of God. There is a common solution but it is not easy.

Conflict between people is likely because of one or more of these reasons: We do not like the way the person is acting or has acted. We do not like the rationale a person has or has had. We do not like the influences that person has upon them. Or, we don't like the choices the person has made, is making , or is about to make. If you think of the people you have conflict with you will agree that the conflict lies in at least one of these areas. Did you notice though that so far everything has to do with the other person. Of course, because in your mind you are automatically correct and the other person is wrong; thus you have a conflict.

I do not want to trivialize your conflict but there are steps to resolve the issue and the are not: 1. I'm right. 2. You're wrong. 3. Get used to it. NO! That only leads to a bigger problem but we like to do those three much more because they are easy and put us in a position of power.

Here are some much better steps which can help, they are all questions to ask yourself... Now, before I tell you them I want to point out that this is all within the bounds of "generally speaking" and they must be looked at as a basic outline for you to custom tailor to your conflict without changing the intent or thought behind them.

1. What type of relationship is this?

2. What is my God given role within this type of relationship?

3. What can I learn/How is God bettering me through this conflict?

4. What action can I take to resolve this conflict without stepping out of the bounds of my role within the relationship?

5. How can I change to resolve this conflict?

6. How can I praise God for this conflict?

I agree that at face value this looks like it would solve nothing because it never even asks the question of "What is the conflict?" but let me give you a scenario that that is a true happening with my counsel to a teenager this week. The issue was that they could not get along with one or more of their parents and here is how these questions were used to resolve the conflict without me every knowing what any of the specific conflicts might be. (I still don't know what they were, it didn't matter.)

"I just don't know what to do... I a just can't get along with my [parent]" is what was told to me. Obviously then I knew that this was a conflict within a parent-child relationship, pointed this out to the person and went on to question number two. This person knows some basic Bible so I asked, "What are you God given role in your relationship? What does God tell you to do as your role within it?" and I had them look up Exodus 20.12 and Ephesians 6.1-3. It took a little while but the response came, "Obey your parents." They didn't really like hearing it but it was true and no matter how much it wasn't liked you can't really argue that instruction if your parents are creating you to break God's moral or spiritual laws. It was made clear that I was not trying to come down hard on anyone or take any ones side in the issue except for God's and we moved on to the next question. "How can God better me through this conflict?" Pretty soon answers came; learning to listen to authority. learning to get a long with people. learning to submit. humility. The list could go on and on... but it hadn't been thought of like this before.
In life we like to look at how we are being wronged and mistreated... victims to everyone and everything, instead of as over comers who can take any situation and see it as a chance that God is strengthening us. Once we had established that this was a way for God to better our lives; even through conflict, then we could move toward possible resolutions because now we had the correct perspective.
"What action can I take to resolve this conflict without stepping out of the bounds of my role within the relationship?" There were some suggested actions mentioned and discussed but some quite different then they would have been if we had not already established our roles and perspective. Then came the kicker, the point that we hate the most because it reverse our nature and selfish way of thinking. We asked the question "How can I change to resolve this conflict?" You can't consider this question if you are still thinking you are right and they are wrong and that is it! Sure, they may be wrong, and you may be right but one thing still stands: you can't change them but you can change yourself. In the case with this teenager and likely with yours, both parties were wanting to be in charge but when you examine the God given roles it was not both of their positions to be in charge. Again, if you hadn't already established the roles you couldn't get to this question. This all leads us to the last question, "How can I praise God for this conflict?" When you resolve a conflict you will find out that it has only strengthened your relationship regardless of who may have had the biggest peace of humble pie to swallow. If it were not for the conflict your relationship would not be as strong as it is afterward and for that you need to thank God... but please, don't see this as an excuse to create another conflict, they will come again soon enough.

God did not intend for his prized creation to live continually at odds with each other so don't. Seek peace with God, man, and even your family. Focus on what God has done and is doing even in the face of conflict and praise him for it. No one would ever have victory it there had never been a war.

Becoming a Gladiator

2008-06-16T07:39:00.004-04:00

Monday nights is Gladiator night; regular athletes get to take on a breed of seemingly super-humans in an arena that is designed to press your limits. Thousands show up to see this in person and millions tune in via television. We are fascinated to see limits pressed and effort given. Most of us sit on the couch being the bench warming coaches we've becoming, telling the contenders exactly what to do and how they "should" be doing things when they are likely doing better than we ever could.

June of 2008 my family had our first family vacation ever and enjoyed every minute of it. We took our churches teenagers up to Lake Ann Camp in Lake Ann, MI, and stayed the week ourselves in a beautiful log cabin on the camp's grounds. We did not have much interaction with our teen campers but did see them from time to time. One such occasion was as they were scaling "Goliath". Goliath, named after the giant whom David overcame but the hand of God, is a Gladiator style 4o' tall climbing course that is straight up. You begin on the ground and climb a 10' rope ladder to a swaying 4x6 beam held by cables between two trees. Above that beam 4' is another beam, then another at 6' above that, and another at 8' above that. Above the top beam by 10' is a bell hanging just waiting to be rung. All of this held together by cables and is swaying at every breath of wind. 4 people at a time would scale this behemoth and attempt to ring the bell at the top; but there is more to it than that.

Lake Ann makes it a point to show the campers that God is in every part of our life, and every part of our life should reflect God. So what does "Goliath" have to do with God?

Before climbing a goal was set. Each group had to determine what there level of completion would be, how much were they going to conquer; would they sell themselves short or press themselves all the way? This is paralleled to the issues we face in life and temptations that try to get us to sell short in our walk with God. The course was assembled so that you could not complete it on your own, even if you were an American Gladiator; you had to rely on the people around you. Team work and trust were key elements to reach the top and have 100% completion, just as it is in our Christian walk. We can try to run a strong Christian walk all alone, but that is not how God designed it, we are a body and must work as a community to encourage and support each other to reach for God and draw closer to Him. So, where is the "God" in this Goliath thing? Each person had to strap on a harness before climbing; there's God. See, no matter how bad the climbers may mess up and even fall, they would be caught. Yes, they may lose some ground and have to re-climb some areas they had already conquered, but they were safe and secure in the harness. (The boole' rope holding the harness was also held by other teen campers on their team, talk about trust.)

Such is true in our walk with God. We watch others around us and tell them how to run their Christian walk just like we sit on our couch and tell the contenders how to compete with the Gladiators, when we are the one on the sidelines, and they are the ones in the action. We must take the step to begin climbing the "Goliath's" in our lives and realize that there is support and encouragement around us in the body of Christ, and that God will be there to for us in case we may slip and lose some ground. Remember, "Not succeeding because you are afraid to fail is failure also. Begin to overcome the Goliath's in your life today.

And for you who are thinking I am just a sideline couch for Goliath and couldn't have done it myself... While I was watching our group the camp director told me they were one person short for the next group and asked if I could do it with them. I did.

Why Did God Create Evil?

2008-06-04T06:46:00.004-04:00

"Our teens have a lot of questions..." is the words that came out of our teen Sunday School teachers mouth on Sunday morning back a few months. "They are really questioning everything about Christianity, God, and Salvation." This conversation did not shock me, I have been working with teenagers now for 9 years and have found that the 13-18 year range is a transition period of youth. Up until now they have seemingly blindly followed what their parents believed. The teen years is an eye opening turning point of them having the choice of what to believe, and somehow whatever their parents have always believed will many times appear archaic and outdated. So, what are we doing about this?
This summer we are letting our teens decide what we teach to them. No, we are not going to change the Bible or its message to say that teens are always right and parents are always raging buffoons; we are taking all of their questions and answering a few of them each week using the Bible as our answer source.
Last week we took up the first round of questions and there was one question that was dominating the question pool. No one knew what another person asked but there was a lot of people wondering, "If God created everything, why did He create evil?" Some even went on the write a story on their question card about a baby that had died in their family or a godly person who came down with a disease. This is a good question which is asked by both teens and adults. So, why did God create evil?
To grasp the answer to this question there is a concept you must understand. There is no such thing as evil. Yes, that is right; there is no such thing as evil. What?! Okay, now you think "Pastor Randy has gone nuts-o on us." So what about Satan? We'll get back to him.
Evil is like darkness and cold, they don't exist. Yes, I have been locked a dark room, and yes, I have been out on a winters day, but yes, I have also had high school chemistry where they teach you that there is no such thing as darkness and cold, only levels of light and heat. You can have no light, little light, or a lot of light, but you can not add a measurement of darkness of anything. The same is true with cold; you can only have levels of heat. You can have no heat, little heat, or a lot of heat, but you cannot add "cold" to something. Now, think of this with God and evil. God we know did not intend for evil to be in the world but it is here and it will be until He returns. In the mean time we, through the consequence of sin, cannot not experience the level of God on earth that He intended to be. Instead, we live in a world of lesser levels of God. The more we see unrighteousness, the less God we see. In some places God has been entirely shut out, we know that his spirit is there, but is work is not. In other places there is just a trace of God.
So, what about Satan? Doesn't he work evil? If Satan works evil won't that mean there is such thing as evil and that I was teach heresy when I said there was no such thing as evil? Satan certainly does work evil, but since evil is the absence of God, Satan's work is to lessen the level of God in our lives, our homes,... our world. Satan's goal is to take our focus off from God and push Him more and more out of our lives... thus creating a higher level of evil. Make sense? If not call me.
Okay, so far we have said all of this without cracking the Bible; very dangerous because this teaching is not mine, it is from God and God has given us the Bible. Here's the proof.
1. Genesis 1-3 Mankind was created into a perfect environment where they were able to run, frolic and play freely and were accompanied by God himself. Thus, they were in a place with a high level of God.
2. Romans 5.12 says, "...by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:" Adam and Eve had a high level of God but they also had free-will which gave them the choice to retain the high level of God or give it up; they chose to give it up under the influence of Satan (who remember is out to lessen the level of God.)
3. Notice in Romans 5.12 that sin entered into the WORLD and was passed upon ALL MEN so that ALL have sinned. Do you get the point? Adam cursed the entire human race! Sin did not just send its curse upon one person and enact natural selection, it damned the entire human race. This is very important to remember. The next time you are wondering why a baby died or a godly person got sick you must remember it is because of sin! Sin effects everyone, not just the person who is sinning; we are all sinners and our world is riddled with evil.
4. Romans 5.8-9 "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him." Did you see that? In Romans 5.12 we were condemned because of sin, but now in v8-9 we are "justified" (cleaned thoroughly of our sins)! We no longer have to live in the condemnation of our sins. Just as one man brought sin upon the entire human race, one man (Jesus Christ) was able to pay the sacrifice and counteract it. It was act of love that made forgiveness possible, it will be an act of "grace through faith" (Eph. 2.8-9) that accepts this forgiveness.

Having said all of that, why do we still have problems after we come to Christ? If Jesus came to reverse the curse of sin on mankind, why do believers still encounter evil? This is simple really, remember what was said the be the highest price in Genesis? Death. There were other things that came along with it, but death was most supreme. For the believer, the greatest penalty of sin is wiped away immediately (eternal death) and we will see the rest of our penalty wiped away when Jesus returns and establishes us to a higher level of God; in his presence of eternity.

Good Temptations.

2008-05-20T07:46:00.002-04:00

Has life ever seemed like a race? If you said "NO", your next move needs to be hitting your knees in confession because life can seem like a race and is even referenced as a race in scripture. Life is a race to be completed strong. We may not win the race in the first place position, but we should all strive to finish strong knowing that we did all that we could to finish at the top. In Hebrews we are encouraged to look around us and see that there is a great crowd of witnesses here to support us and be an encouragement to us (Heb 11). The fellowship of the church is also here for support (Heb 10.25). If this is true, why is it that we may find ourselves feeling alone?

A race is made of many people and "contestant" that are all wanting one thing; finish, if not win. In a good race the other racers will be the support of each other, but what if there is no one around us? If you have ever watched a race that is more that a sprint you see that even though the racers start at the same time they will soon be spread out. Sure, there may be clusters of people here and there but soon even they will be split apart because no one runs at the same speed. There are some times in a marathon that a runner can see no on in front of or behind them even though there are hundreds of other runners, and there is no one standing along the sidelines. Runners testify these are the legs of the race that giving up is the easiest. Without the support of runners or witnesses what is left to help the runner press on?

This same thing happens to us spiritually when we hit times in life that everyone has either passed us, or we have passed everyone; we end up finding ourselves all alone; we forget the great distances we have covered and begin to get tired. We are tempted to just give up.

I Corinthians 10.13 says, "There is no temptation give to you that is not common to man; God is faithful and will not tempt you more that you are able but will with the temptation provide a way of escape so that you will be able to bear it."

Did you ever stop to think about this? We are not facing something alone even if we may be running by ourselves for the moment because people who may be out of sight from us right now are going through the same thing; people who have run this race before you went through the same thing; people who run this race after you will go through the same thing. Every time you see someone take first place in a race they were proving that this leg of the race can be conquered. But how could they ever make it through without the support of the fans and the runners?

"God is faithful". The difficulties are overcome because they stop thinking of the race, which lasts only for a short while, and remembered what is eternal. When marathon runner finishes the race and is interviewed they commonly share what "got them through" the race and it is something that had nothing to do with the race; family, charity, prize money, etc... Something other than the race, the fans, or even the other runners support; it was a bigger something that would be waiting for them after the finish line. For the Christian our race of life is doable because of the fact that God is faithful and will keep his promise that "I go to prepare a place for you..." (John 14.1).

The verse does not stop though with God being faithful, if also gives a promise that "God won't bring you to it unless he is willing to get you through it." There is even a cooler part than that; God will end up using the temptation to quit itself to get you past the temptation! This is a part of the verse that seems puzzling to some. What is that supposed to mean? How could a temptation ever help get you out of itself? The way this is possible is if we look to God and allow his the make us stronger through this experience. No, this does not mean we walk into temptation or invite it into our lives so that we can become strong; temptation will find you easily enough without you having to find it.

Think of the alcoholic who ruins his family. When the alcoholic comes to Christ and repents of alcohol, the visions of his past life's effect on his family will keep him from going back, and he will be an effective witness to other alcoholics because he can relate to them. Thinking again of the race scenario, since you are running at different speeds you will eventually come along side of someone else again, and since your temptation is common, they too have likely had a hard time dealing with it; when you are now come together you can be a great support and encouragement on to another.

There is no race that is completed without running it, but running it can become a great experience, even the lonely/temptation times if we remember that we are not facing it alone, God is faithful.

The Power of Willing Heart.

2008-05-07T08:58:00.002-04:00

Having grown up in a strong Christian family which showed up to church whenever someone was there I have been in thousands of services and been a part of just as many events, banquets, fellowships, and celebrations. Through all of those meetings I have heard a common saying over and over; "God will us anyone with a willing heart to serve Him." What is that supposed to mean? As a child there was no choice in Christian service. Either you would left home all alone or you were going to be a part of the church; and the choice was easy for me because my parents made it for me... I was going to be a part of the church.

Now, as an adult I have seen something. I have seen that God is willing to use anyone who is willing to serve Him. (If that sounds familiar to you it is because it is the same quote used earlier.) In recent studies I have done, this theme has been bouncing off the page at me. Over and over again we see that God will use anyone regardless their strengths, weaknesses, background, or social status. Here are a few of the people in scripture that have stood out to me lately as proving this statement true.

Noah. Genesis 6.8 says that "Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." Why? Was he some super business man that was well equipped to fund the larger missions project in his time of history? Did he have a church with an amazing worship band, world class pastor, and have everyone tithing? No. He wasn't even in ministry as we think of it today. What made Noah so great is in Genesis 6.9, "Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God." That is it. He is great because he was will to do what was right and continually walk with God. He simply had a willing heart to do whatever God wanted him to.

Abraham. The father of all the nation of Israel, and even that of Palestine. Abraham is noted as being the faithful of the faithful but why? He was born into an ungodly family. (Actually, they were very "godly"... they had one for everything.) He worked in his dad's idol shop. He travelled in his family as they sought their own desires. He lived secular life. How did he become so great in the eyes of God? God saw much deeper than what was on the surface; God saw the heart. God was the potential of Abraham, the faithfulness within him, and the obedience he would have. The first time we see Abraham see God (the one true God) is in Genesis 12.1 when he gives him a simply but difficult order to leave his family and his homeland. God's judgement of choosing a father for his future chosen people proves itself from the beginning as Abraham obeys. Again, a simple person with a willing heart to serve God.

Jacob. Jacob may be the grandson of Abraham, but a lot had changed by then. Jacob was a greedy little fella who was out to get everything. So, how could God change him into a patriarch of the faith? This one is a little more like most of the people I know; we are greedy, we want what we see, and we would rather give our energy to fight God than serve him. Jacob goes through the first part of his life living it all about him. He is following the philosophy that he has one life to live so he will get as much as he can during it. All goes well in his eyes until God calls him out of his comfort zone in Genesis 32 to face those who he had trampled down in the past. God sees him through and sets him up for a hard-learned-lesson. Verses 24-30 Jacob wrestles with a mystery man (Most believe this, being the Angel of the Lord, is a Christophany; an appearing of Christ before being physically born of Mary) who doesn't give up fighting him until dawn. At the end of the fight Jacob has his leg thrown out of joint and set straight as far as who is in control here... God is. Through the fight we can see something very important about Jacob; he fought all night. He was willing to stand up for what he believed it. He was strong and courageous even in the face of God. Do see what I see? Jacob had the strength and courage to do great things, he was just channelling it the wrong direction. It is very easy to take the talent God has given to us and use it to our own advantage instead of God's. Jacob found out that his strengths were intended for God and he begins to follow after God's plan from there.

God is willing to us anyone with a willing heart to serve Him. The saying is true, but is it true in your life? The people who we think of as being great are nothing more than ordinary people who are willing to serve and extraordinary God.

Life is Good; Eternal Life is Better

2008-04-29T07:47:00.003-04:00

Standing in the line at the Secretary of State is never on the top of someones "Best time of my life list" as the lines are often long and the wait is painfully boring. Yesterday I was, however, one of the many who were there; along with my 4 year old son, and 2 year old daughter. Amid the drone of the crowd and the counter clerks helping others, there was another more familiar sound of music. Nothing too pronounced but still very noticeable. I soon discovered it was coming from beneath me. It was my son singing his favorite song: "Life is good; eternal life is better. Life is good; eternal life is better..." and so on. The song is catchy and has a fun rhythm and he sings is often, including... the Secretary of State office of all places.

I couldn't help but smile. It occurred to me then that while I had been dreading the trip to the overcrowded and intensely boring line, there was still a song to be song and a message to be told. As Jesus told his disciples to "suffer the little children to come unto me" this may be some of what he had in mind; 2,000 years later the fruit of a child coming to Jesus would begin a ministry to people in a place notorious for causing anxiety and discourse.

I did not shush my son nor did I tell him to sing louder. I simply told him, "That's right. Eternal life is better and people need to know about it." He continued singing most of our stay; repeating the opening line over and over. When we had received our number and took a seat in the waiting area we sat next to a man who works at the gas station we frequent. With the song still on repeat we got into conversation and discovered that he too is a Christian. His number was soon called. No one came to sit next to us for the rest of our time, but all heard that their life may be good, but eternal life was better.

What Makes One Great?

2008-04-22T08:09:00.003-04:00

I can read, but I am not a scholar.

I can strum guitar, but am no master.

I can turn a wrench, but I am not a mechanic.

I can talk to people, but not always relate to them.

I can type, but have many typos.

I can tell of Jesus, but still get nervous.

I can sing a song, but it comes out flat.

I can stand boldly, yet fall spiritually.

What makes someone great? We all have things that we may be good at but we still have failures. We say things to ourselves like, "If only I could...", or "If I had the talent that 'so and so' has, then I could...". Life can become a big period of procrastination because we repeatedly tell ourselves what we can't do instead of doing what we can.

Last Sunday everyone of our services had something to do with Abraham. The more studying that went into one service, the more material came out of it until there was an entire days worth of 'good stuff' to share from this guy. In the midst of studying I found myself saying, "If I could only have had this kind of faith then maybe God could use me like he did Abraham." For just a moment I imagined what it would be like to be one of God's most used people and what it would take for God to chose to use someone that greatly. Then something hit me; I am better equipped than Abraham! YOU are better equipped than Abraham!

Abraham did not have a copy of scripture. Abraham did not have a local church to attend that gave him a weekly recharge and instilled hope. Abraham did not have a computer with an entire internet to let him explore the goodness of God through Biblically based evangelistic websites. Abraham did not have a radio that produced praise music, or Christian programming for him to listen to. There is only one thing that Abraham had that made him great... FAITH! If you have that, then you are just as equipped as Abraham was. Romans 4.20-21 says, "He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God and being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.”

Abraham did not have an evangelistic ministry, a radio show, or a website, but he changed to world with faith. "By grace you are saved through FAITH..." (Ephesians 2.8). Take your faith, and use the resources God has blessed you with and change your world for Christ.

What You Are Worth.

2008-04-15T10:15:00.002-04:00

"Hey Pastor, do you think I can come early to church tonight and talk to you about something?" was the phone call I received recently from a new Christian. "Of course" I replies wondering what it was that they needed to talk about. (Pastor immediately have the question go through their head, "Oh great, now what did I do or say to make someone mad.")

Sure enough we met and had a great chat, but the issue at hand was one that is becoming more and more common. People are wondering, "How could someone love me, like me, or give their life for me?" We have become a society that doesn't see ourselves as worth anything. Why? Here is my top 5 list of why people are having self worth issues.

1. Satan cannot steal the soul of a believer, but he will reek havoc on the mind and body in attempt to distract us from seeing God more clearly.

2. We think more of what we think we are worth, or what others think we are worth, than what God has demonstrated we are worth...His life.

3. Society has convinced us that if we don't look or act a certain way we are nothing. Unfortunately, the "acceptable" way is not achievable by the average person thus leaving them to feel inadequate.

4. Money has become our security. Since our economy is bad our security is gone.

5. Psalm 14.1 "A fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God'." When we remove God we become the fool. Foolish actions and thinking do not lead to personal value or a personal Savior.

So, what advice do I give to the person who is struggling with self worth? Since this person was a believe I focused on the most likely cause of the issue (no.1 above). The last thing Satan wants the believe to do is to live like one, think like one, or speak like one; so he will silence them at all costs. Satan is trying to distract the believer by feeding them lies; sometimes the lie is about self worth, but it is not limited to this; doubt, fear, depression, worry, physical ailments, and many more things can all be the distracting forces of Satan.

If you are dealing with the issues of self worth, here is some help:

But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. ~ Matthew 10.30 God doesn’t just care for you or about you, He cares so much that He even knows how many hairs are on your head.

Cast your burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee…~ Psalm 55.22 You were never intended to carry the hard times of life; you were intended to turn them over to God and He will carry both you and the burden.

Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you. ~ I Peter 5.7 You aren’t a waste of time to God. Just like we only tell our closest friends that we are there for them and tell them to call when there is a problem; God does that to us. Why? Because he cares and considers us as close friends.

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. ~ John 15.13-14 Jesus did lay down his life for you as a demonstration of His love to you. You were worth it to Him.

For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet perhaps for a good man some would even dare to die. But God demonstrates his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. ~Romans 5.7-8 People don’t give their lives for no reason. You were important enough because God saw you as you can be with faith in Him.

…Sparrows…not one is forgotten by God…you have more value than many sparrows. Luke 12.6-7 God has his eye on every one of his creation, even the smallest of birds. If he cares enough to go bird watching, he certainly is caring for his crowning creation: You.

Let us make man in our image, after our likeness… Genesis 1.26 You were created to in the image of God. If you deny your goodness and worth you are denying the goodness of God. God made you something special in resemblance of him.

You were not bought with corruptible things like silver or gold… but with the precious blood of Christ… I Peter 1.18-19 Silver and Gold have some value and can buy some nice things, but you were worth more than money to God, you were worth Jesus.

You are so valuable to God that he paid the highest price just to have you; Don't let Satan convince you of anything else.

You Decide Who Goes to Heaven.

2008-04-08T09:00:00.005-04:00

God has left you in charge of who will be in heaven! That is right, you get to decide who will go to heaven and who will not. This of course is based upon the truth that only people who have accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior will be accepted into heaven (Romans 10.8-9, Ephesians 2.8-9, John 14.6). Recent studies show that 85% of the people who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior first heard of Jesus' saving grace through someone personally telling them about Jesus, inviting them to church, or witnessing with some kind of evangelistic medium. In lieu of this statistic, over 8 out 10 people in heaven are there because someone personally shared Jesus with them. The people who were bold enough to share Jesus with them were able to decide who went to heaven.

I personally organize and arrange over 20 outreach activities or events each year and encourage everyone to invite their friends and family members, even their enemies to these events. What I find is that people have no problem inviting someone to Cedar Point, but when it come to telling someone about Jesus they fall short of words and keep their mouth shut. In reality, how much more important is forgiveness unto heaven than a thrill filled day of roller coasters.

Mark 16.15 instructs us to tell people about Jesus, sharing the good news of Jesus Christ to everyone. We find it easier to tell someone that it costs $50 for a trip to Cedar Point than to tell someone that the cost of eternal life is death... thankfully Jesus paid that price already for us.

Think of it this way: If I told you, I have 10 free tickets to Disney land, all expense paid including travel, lodging, and food; and you can use them whenever you would like to, you would not wait to start calling people and asking if they wanted to go even though they could be used at any time. No, you would get on the phone asap. When I tell you, I have an unlimited number of tickets to heaven, you can take anyone with you, and you will go at any moment; we then tend to become lazy and not tell anyone about it.

Face it. You decide who will accept the forgiveness of God enter into eternity in heaven; and in turn you decide who will spend eternity in hell. Start praying today that you will have the courage to tell people about the free forgiveness through Jesus Christ.

The lies we tell our kids.

2008-04-01T06:25:00.003-04:00

Being a father is a great job that I love, but when I examine myself and compare my words with reality I find flaws. There are times when the words I tell my kids to encourage them are only full of hot-air and empty encouragements. I don't believe I am alone in this. How many times have we told ourselves or others things like, "Just do your best and that will be good enough", or "You can do anything you put your mind to". The fact is, your best is not always good enough, and you can't do everything no matter how hard you try at anything.

Please don't miss understand me, I am not saying that we should then tell our kids the opposite; "Just give it your worst and call it good" or "You may as well give up because you will never get it." No, instead be encouraging but don't forget the grace that says, "I have loved you with an everlasting love." Kids will rarely rise above any expectations placed upon them on their own. they need that encouragement and prodding to go the extra mile and give the extra effort. God does this same thing with us.

God actually used hyperbole's too; he spoke in exaggerations and he used them to convey his expectations of us. He, in his way, told us "You can do anything you put your mind to". I Peter 1.16 says "Be holy as I am holy." Really, can we ever achieve the holiness of God? No, but we should do it or die trying. It is because we can never achieve this holiness that God sent his son to pay the debt of our lack of holiness; but still he instructs us to be holy to the same level that he is. This is no excuse then to give up on our holiness because we can never reach that level, or because we are already holy through by the grace of God, but it is a challenge to still give it our all and not give up on what is righteous.

God has set responsibilities for the true believers and they are of high expectations. This is his way of saying, "You can do anything you put your mind to." Philippians 4.13 says, "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength" as a testimony of Paul who believe that he could do anything he put his mind to by faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus himself said, "You will do greater things that I have done" as an encouragement that we shouldn't give up, but rather press on. We are facing a high bar, and through Jesus Christ we have the hope that we can live up to our expectations of the Father, not unto salvation, but unto the rewards offered in the Kingdom (I Corinthians 3.10-12).

Last summer I was determined my then 3 year old son was able to ride a two wheeler with not training wheels. Yes, I said 3 years old. He is quite smart and coordinated and I was certain that he could do it. We went to the thrift store and picked up a bike his size, found his helmet and headed to the parking lot of a local school. For the next 20 minutes my patience we put to the test and my back was throbbing as I ran along beside a very nervously excited little boy. All attempts seemed to fail and I started to see the fact that he was just simply to young and was not ready to ride with no training wheels, but what did I tell him, "You can do it. You can do it." I repeated that over and over while the seeming reality was that he could not do it. I told him, "Just keep telling yourself that you can do it" and "Give it your best." At times be would become discouraged and want to give up but I would encourage him that he could do it. Finally we went home, he had not done it. All we had done was discouraged a little boy and given myself a headache and back ache. No matter how much I fed him that "he could do it" he didn't, but he did know something, that I expected him to do it, and that I would personally help him learn how to ride his bike. We repeated this routine for next 2 days and he did indeed learn to ride the bike. What seemed to be an impossibility became possible through the care and encouragement of his Father. We to are watched and encouraged by the Heavenly Father and should strive to reach the responsibilities he has set before us.

God of Death?

2008-03-25T07:53:00.006-04:00

People can only offer what they have. If someone offers you something they do not have, it is not theirs to offer in the first place. If someone offers you something they don't have but hope to acquire soon, it is a scam. If someone offers you someone else's belongings, they are a thief. So what about Jesus?

Jesus offered us life; "I have come that you might have life," "I am the way the truth and the life." These are powerful claims. But does Jesus really possess this gift to be able to give it? Jesus' claims could be a scam or a thief; but how can we know if it is this or the real thing. How can someone know if they are being part of a spiritual scheme or if Jesus really possess life in order to give it away? The answer: the resurrection.

Matthew chapter 28 tells the account of some of Jesus closest friends coming to visit his tomb. These ladies had come bearing oils and spices to place upon the deceased to help cover the smell of decay. When arriving at the grave, the tomb was open and the tomb was empty. Their curiosity was eased by an angel that was sent to explain what they were seeing. The angel told them that this was not crime scene, rather it was the scene of fulfilled prophecy; "[Jesus] had risen, just as he said."

Jesus is the only person who has died and brought himself back to life by his own power. How could this be done? Because he is God in the flesh, the God of life. If he were the God of death he could not have done this; but since he is the God of life he could honestly say, "I lay it [his life]down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again" (John 10.18). But this still is no declaration that we can have life just because Jesus did this. Well, John 18.18 may not declare it, but John 11.25-26 sure does, "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever lives and believes in me shall never die." You can't get more plainly spoken then that.

The bottom line is that Jesus is God's Son, God in the flesh, and has come to give us life. If we do not accept this life we are accepting death. If we do not claim His blessings upon this life we are only accepting life when we could have abundant life (John 10.10). If you are not living a holy life, then you are being content with life stopping with you and not interesting or concerned is spreading life to others.

Romans 6.23 says that "the gift of God is eternal life through [by means of] Jesus Christ our Lord. Jesus, God in the flesh, possesses all power of life and will share it with anyone who asks. Don't live a life of death, when God laid down his life so you could have yours.

Tears=Joy

2008-03-21T06:32:00.004-04:00

Does God grade on a curve? No. Is God's love love for us based upon a "How much I love Him" meter? No. Are God's blessings bestowed to me based up my dedication and devotion to Him. Yes.
Although it is true that a person can live a life of a carnal Christian and still receive blessings from God, we are still instructed to "Be Holy as I am Holy." There are still responsibilities for the believer. Some try to deny that a God of Grace could ever be partial to some and neglect others. The fact is that God is a just God, and that means he will keep his word. As you look through scripture is repeats over and over the idea that God will bless his own, and the obedient more so than the lukewarm. This is not a bias God, this is a fair God.
God, being a fair God, wants to see us excel in all we do. God nurtures our needs in all realms; spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional, and in all areas we are to submit to him. When we do this, there is reward. Blessings to believer should not be our driving force of dedication to God, but it is certainly a bonus.
Last week a revelation came to be based off Psalm 126.5 "Those who sow in tears, shall reap in joy." Think of this verse; what does it mean to "Sow in tears" and what does it mean in relation to our service to God? Yes, there are certainly times we literally invest sweat, blood, and tears into our life's passion, but was characterizes those times? If we are passionaite about something or someone so much that we are "sowing in tears", it is not an easy task, trial, or temptation that we are going through; we might want to give up. Through out the Psalms David continually whines to God about the unjust people living a life of luxury while he is enduring the day in misery... he was having to "sow in tears".
You too will face mountains in life where you can't do anything but "sow in tears". You won't be able to do more than endure for the moment and have faith that God will take care of it. It will seem easier to give up on people, God, and issues in our life than to press through, but what is the reward in that? God did not intend for us to be quiters or failures. If we were made in the image of God, we were made in the image of the greatest "overcomer" this world has ever known. There are times you will have to invest sweat, blood, and tears into your life, but there is just reward also.
The last half of the verse states the blessing given to people who are faithful through troubles and temptations. "...Shall reap in joy." This is the principle of "Sowing and reaping" found all through scripture. You get what you give. If you put forth a half-baked effort in life, don't expect much out of it. If you put forth a limp-wristed handshake in your relationship to God, don't look for the greatness of the utmost joy. Our salvation is not achieved by anything more than the faith we have through God's grace (Eph. 2.8-9), but our blessing is. Ephesians 5 lists off the fruit of the Spirit, and in them is Joy; how do you get it? By letting Spirit have control and produce it... having faith, sowing in tears because we know God is in control, and from it we "shall reap in joy."
Yesterday I spoke with a friend who is currently incarcerated and shared this verse. This man is justly in jail and he knows it. The fact is that he will face the temptation that put him there for the rest of his life, and in order for him to continue overcoming those temptation he will have to work at it and continually submit this area to Christ. It will not be easy; he will have to "sow in tears" to retain victory, and the reward from God (reaping in joy) will be far greater that the pleasure he would receive from his past substance abuse.
When life seems to be producing little joy, examine it again and see if you have been sowing in tears. What has your effort level been in handing it over to God and pressing through, claiming the power of God. Joy is not conditional upon circumstance and it does not mean you won't bad days, weeks, or years in life, but it does make it easier to sow in tears, when you know that God's blessing of joy awaits.

Race Day.

2008-03-04T06:44:00.004-05:00

At my house one of the best days of the year is when we participate in a local Grand Prix Derby. It is the same thing as the Pinewood Derby in Cub Scouts. It is held at a local church and other churches are invited. The race is help in the early spring/late winter and has about 35-40 cars that race. According to some I get a little carried away with this whole event.

To avoid the cold of winter I begin for the next years race just after the previous race and start planning for next years car. Over and over again I mentally shape and prepare to make the first cuts to the plain block of wood. Plans were put on paper and the building process began.

Over the next few weeks the block of wood began to take shape and an image of a car came out. After the wood was cut and sanded it came time to paint, the put the final workings into making it resemble what I had wanted it to be. In the midst of all of this I began to gain a basic divine truth that is sometimes forgotten.

We are just like that block of wood in the hands of God. In the beginning of all time he looked down, picked up a block of wood and mentally planned each move and mark to place in our life. After His vision of us was complete and began to mold, cut, carve, and sand us into what he had planned. At the end he picked up the rattle can and sprayed us down to bare a resemblance to his image and his likeness. Then, as an act of love that only a parent can give, He placed us on the track and gave us free-will.

No matter how much someone prepares to make the car fast or aerodynamic, once it is on the track it is out of the control of the designer. When God gave us life he was taking his prize creation and setting it in motion. Now, he is along side the track seeing us execute freewill in life. He had a vision and a plan for us and we must now focus on Him to see a plan that was made for us from the beginning.

Recognizing Satan

2008-02-19T14:22:00.004-05:00

Satan is real. Demons are real. Hell is real. Too often we walk around with the great misconception that God is real and all of His angels and all of the good things in life are real at puppies and cute cuddley kittens... but anything that is evil must never be talked about or recognized as reality.

Last Sunday I had opportunity to sit with a man broken and warn from the pressures that alcohol had placed upon him as he was enslaved to it for decades. It had cost him is family, his wife, and nearly his entire life. At the end of his rope he had found help through a local support group but knew it was time go beyond a support group and come face to face with God almighty. He didn't know where to start. After all, how could the God of the universe love someone who was so evil and irresponsible. The largest hurdle standing between this man and a true relationship with the Father was a relationship with Jesus Christ, but how could he be forgiven?

We all of a tendancy of putting God into a closet until we have the rest of the house cleaned up. Yes, we may even let him in unto salvation but quickly wisp Him away so not to reveal the mess we have occumulated over the years. This is an easy trap to fall into but also a deadly one.

While counseling this man he came to realize that we aren't to get our life in order and then come to God; we must go to God and let him get our life in order. I Corinthians 3.6 says "For I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase." What is to be learned here? We can't do anything on our own. God is the one who does the real work, we must let Him.

That man ended up giving his broken life to Jesus and with tears in his eyes he rose from that prayer a man who had a clean rap sheet in life. No matter was man could throw at him or Satan temp him with, he was free.

We all picture Satan to be an evil man who dresses in red and carries a pointy pitchfork, but the reality is, Satan is alive and active in trying to tell us things like, "You aren't good enough to go to God yet", "That isn't a big enough issue for God", or "Your wasting His time." Recognize Satan and cast him far away from you in the name of Jesus Christ.

Mentors being Mentored

2008-02-15T11:45:00.005-05:00

One of my passions in the ministry is training up a new generation to continue the cycle of godliness in the midst of darkness. At the current time I am the Sr. Pastor doubling as the Youth Pastor also which makes thing very busy but also has its rewards.

Last week end I was the adult male sponsor for a winter retreat at Lake Ann Camp called Freeze Out. Going into the trip there were some concerns about some of our youth spiritually. Everything from Salvation to sanctification was consuming my prayers for the weekend. Thankfully we have an amazing God that hears our prayers and likes to see people get closer to him as well.

The theme of the weekend was building a Faith of Virtue. All were encouraged to look past your salvation, and make a life and lifestyle commitment to godliness. On saturday night the focus was on salvation, but also taking a stand. Two areas which are fimiliar to teens were highlighted: Teens from divorced homes, and teens who are the only one who go to church in their homes. The youth workers of each church were asked to pray over all the teens fitting that description within our group. We had 9 kids in our group, and 7 of them fit in that group along with one sponsor. Looking around the chapel some churches were in blank stares because no one in their group were in those situations, but we were and that time was there just for us. It was through that that we saw a girl get saved, and several opened up emotionally and let God take over their bittnerness and anger that had been bottled up for years. Following the service we all met in the dining hall to challenge us to be accountable to each other, not just God, because we are part of a body and have encourage our brothers and sister to stay true to God and stand up for what is right.

Freeze Out is a weekend that is designed for teenagers, but it hit me where I needed it. No, I didn't come from a split home, nor was I the only person in the family that went to church, but it taught me a valuable lesson. Many time we take the areas in life that we feel lost in our out of control in, and since we don't know how to handle them we put them in our pockets and think they will go away. They don't. We must take these things out of our pocket and lay them on the alter before God. If something is out of our control it is in God's. It is not our fault, it is our opportunity to be blessed and be a blessing.

For the first time in nearly 3 years knowing some of these teens I saw them praying for each others and helping each other through difficulties by the Word God, and communication with God.

Some of the teens went just expecting to have fun. They did, but God had more instore for them. You and I might we doing things just becasue they are fun, and if they aren't we hide them in our pockets. I Peter 5.7 says we are to cast our cares upon him... why? because he is madly in love with you and cares for you. Don't forget that. You are never too old, too rich, too wealth, too health or too see the grace of God... but you might make yourself too stupid. Don't. Open your eyes and bask in the light of God's grace.

From the Skeletons to the Defensive Line

2008-02-05T10:06:00.002-05:00

Last week I was sitting on the couch watching the new game show called, "To tell the truth" and began to think of all the parts within me that I don't want anyone to know. The skeletons in my closet that I would never want to be brought to life; not because I am a Pastor, but because I am ashamed to admit the failures I have. In a book I recently read it told of how each person, especially men in positions of leadership have a fear in common, the fear of being exposed for all of what goes on in our hearts and in our minds. The fact is that God already knows what these things are and to him they are not skeletons, they are an army of defense blocking us from the true presence of the Father.

This week was also the Super Bowl where the best football players in the world gather to show who is boss. Within the game stand a brick wall of players all weighing twice my weigh and able to bench press three times as much. As I watched it accured to me that those living skeletons I have kept hidden so long were not skin and bones before the Father, they were like the defensive line of the the worlds best football teams.

All of this can seem overwhelming when we consider that this brick wall of garage we've hidden in our lives is keeping us from the life of abundance Jesus died to give us. One will begin to feel on of two things when this reality strikes. 1. I am hopeless. 2. What is the use, I'll never be perfect, and just continue with the defensive line in full force. What is one to do?

Back to the game show. If the contestant want to defeat the game they have to do only one thing... be honest. It sounds easy, but the people they love the most are present, and those are the people we try to hide these skeletons from the most. What can we do?

Just like in "To tell the Truth" we must simply be honest. Honest before God. Honest before ourselves. Honest before others. Stop living in the fantasy world that if we ignore something no one will, know, care, or be hurt.

What we see as an impossible obstacle is a mere illusion of perspective. God has the power and the desire to wipe out that entire defensive line in one easy blow but it will require that we come clean with him in all areas.

That settles being honest with God. What about being honest with ourselves and others. That is not as easy and may be a process, but it is acheivable.

What a privilege!

2008-01-30T10:02:00.001-05:00

I have been blessed by the life God has provided for me with a wife and family who dearly love me and support me. When God lead me to the church family of MBBC I didn't know anything that I was getting myself into to or what was lying ahead, but those mysteries slowly unlock themselves. It has been 3 years in May since we first came to MBBC and so much has happened. Nearly half of my wonderful marriage has been here and 2 of our kids were born into the church family. To all of the faithful supporters of me and my family I would like to say "Thank You". To my wonderful wife I say, "I Love You." I look forward to continuing a life changing journey or faith and hope through the prosperous message of Jesus Christ.