Before you offer a washcloth

Be honest. Have you ever sat there and thought to yourself hmmm I am so glad that so and so was in church today to hear that message... they really needed to hear that sermon... or maybe they weren't there and you were wishing that they had been?

Honestly I think this has happened to all of us at some point or another if we are really honest with ourselves but when we do this, when we fall into that trap of thinking of someone else's problems we lose sight of our own problems. 

This is why in Matthew 7:5(HCSB) Jesus says "Hypocrite! First take the log out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye." 

He is instructing those listening in (including us btw) to stop holding those around them to a different standard (a higher standard) than they held themselves 

Eugene Peterson has a great take on this passage - Matthew 7:1-5

“Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.

And the next time you are sitting in church and those thoughts pop into your head? Rather than looking at someones failings try to look at their strengths. You should also take a closer look at your own life because if those thoughts are popping up someone is trying to distract you from receiving a message... just sayin...  

Is Jesus like a Tinkerbell doll?

Just a few days away from Ainsley's birthday the presents are starting to arrive and each time a package arrives there is a sense of anticipation and excitement on her part. It really is something to see the joy and triumph on her face when she opened a new Tinkerbell doll, or when she opens a book that has her name in it and insists that someone read it to her in that moment... But these gifts as with all earthly things will wear out, be passed on to other little girls and boys, new gifts will be received at Christmas and randomly throughout the year and these will be forgotten... 

Now here in lies the problem with any analogies you try to make about Christ - you can always find holes in them but bear with me...

I see this and I am reminded that there is another gift that we are all offered (Ephesians 2:8-9) and when we first receive that gift there is that same joy in our eyes as we experience the love of our Savior and we feel moved to share what he has done in us with everyone... 

But then we are faced with a choice... 

So often we treat Jesus like that Tinkerbell doll, we are excited when we first receive it. He takes the place of honor in our hearts, we show him off to everyone with great joy.
Isaiah 61:10a "I will find joy in the Lord. I will delight in my God."

 But then that excitement fades... We find other things to place in the seat of honor in our hearts, we find it easier to climb up and sit on His throne instead of bowing before it... When we do that we become like the church at Ephesus, having lost our first love...  

Revelation 2:4-5 But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then how far you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.

Are you treating Jesus like a Tinkerbell doll today or is he still your first and only love? 

Identity Crisis

Who are you? I'm mean do you know who you really are? Not who you think you... Not who others think you are.... But who you are in the eyes of the one true God.

In 1 Corinthians 4:3-5 Paul shares:

It is of little importance to me that I should be evaluated by you or by any human court. In fact, I don’t even evaluate myself. For I am not conscious of anything against myself, but I am not justified by this. The One who evaluates me is the Lord. Therefore don’t judge anything prematurely, before the Lord comes, who will both bring to light what is hidden in darkness and reveal the intentions of the hearts. And then praise will come to each one from God.

This passage should be one of great encouragement to us!

It shouldn't matter to us what others think of us... but at the same time we can't disconnect so much that we stop listening to those around us - judging only ourselves... if we do that we risk losing touch with the world and we are putting ourselves in God's shoes...

We need to stop comparing ourselves to each other, we need to stop trying to see who's pile of chips is the highest, whose racked up the most points because when it comes right down to it there are no chips or points because God alone is our judge.

We should seek to find our identity in Christ and Christ alone.

I know this won't sound very politically correct but you can't do this... stop trying to deceive yourself... You cannot fix yourself. You need Jesus. The world will not satisfy. Neither can you cannot grow in your faith alone. We need each other. Growth as the people of God requires unity, a shared identity, shared mind, and shared mission. But unity requires humility. The humility of the gospel isn’t thinking LESS OF YOURSELF it is thinking OF YOURSELF LESS. It is refusing to listen to the world’s judgment or our own, in order to determine WHO WE ARE.

The only thing that matters is WHO, by faith in Christ, God SAYS you are! In Christ, you are a son, you are servant, and you are a steward. You have an identity, you have a role, and you have a responsibility. 

There is freedom in forgetting yourself and living in Christ. And only with an identity secure in Christ, will you be able to experience genuine peace and joy in who God has made you to be and what He has given you to do, not tomorrow, but today.

So I ask you again who are you?

Find your chair… Sit in it…

What is salvation all about? What does the Bible really say about such things? If I just pray a prayer am I saved? What am I saved from? Can I save myself? these are all questions that are asked every day in regards to salvation...

Seeking to find the biblical perspective on salvation it is important to begin with the most basic definition of salvation found in the Bible. Salvation ultimately is the deliverance from God’s wrath which is eternal separation from Him. John 3:36 says “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him”.

Knowing the definition only gives a partial picture though, to truly understand salvation we need to know the answer to a couple of very important questions.

First off what are we saved from? It's important to note that we are all in need of saving Romans 3:30 tells us that there are none righteous, Romans 6:23 tells us in fact that the wages of our sin is death. 2 Thessalonians 1:9 speaks of eternal punishment, separation from the Lord which is God’s wrath. But as we see in Romans 5:9 when we are bought by the blood of Christ we are declared righteous and we are saved from God’s wrath.

That leads to the next question of salvation which is who does the saving? Try as we might only God can remove sin and deliver us from sin’s penalty. This is expressed in 2 Timothy 1:9 He has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. Also affirmed in Titus 3:5.

So now we know what we are saved from and who does the actual work of salvation but how exactly are we saved? Romans 3:23 says the wages of sin is death, we have a debt that we cannot pay on our own because of our sin, however our sin debt has been satisfied by Jesus through His death on the cross. Paul in Romans 3:25 tells us “God presented Him as a propitiation through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His restraint God passed over the sins previously committed.” We are saved because of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for us. 

Generations have been told pray this prayer and God will save you… Let me ask you this does praying the sinner’s prayer save you? Not on its own! It’s the posture of your heart when you realize you are in need of forgiveness of your sins. There isn’t a magic prayer or incantation you have to recite, there isn’t a special sacrifice that you have to offer, Romans 10:9-10 gives us a simple easy to understand path to follow to receiving biblical salvation“⁹ If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.”

But you can’t leave it there – Remember it’s the posture of your heart, think about it like this…

If you walk up to a chair and give the chair an eloquent speech about how you want it to your own personal chair, how you will love this chair, and carry it with you always, that you will never find another chair like it, and you just keep standing there talking to the chair never actually sitting in the chair what does that say about our speech to the chair? It was worthless and empty…. How many of us have done the same thing with Christ? We have prayed the sinner’s prayer, we have said all the right words, we have made all the right changes in the eyes of the world, yet we don’t change our posture towards God in our hearts… We need to rest in the grace of God…

Are you relying on your prayers or on your posture to ensure your salvation today?

Cracked Pots

I shared this illustration a couple weeks ago in my sermon but I wanted to revisit it as
it is important for us to remember that even in light of our flaws and failures Christ loves us... (Romans 5:8)

There is an ancient Chinese proverb about a water bearer. This water bearer had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole, which he carried across his neck. 

One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. 

For two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots of water to his master’s house. Of course, the townspeople laughed every time they saw the old man spilling water all the way home.

The perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made.

But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do. He felt even worse that the water bearer was mocked due to his inadequacy.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you."

"Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?"

"I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you suffer such mockery from the others," the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master’s house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again it apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, "I hear the laughter of the others, but I want you to notice something. Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot’s side? 

That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them. 
For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master’s table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house."

****

Each of us has our own unique flaws. We’re all cracked pots. But if we will
allow it, the Lord will use our flaws to grace His table. They can appear as foolishness to the rest of the world, but God knows what he’s doing. This is what it is to truly be the church! Recognizing that we are all flawed individuals, broken and in need of redemption. But God’s plan is perfect! He has no plan b, He alone is sovereign. 

Worldviews

What is a worldview?  Everyone whether or not they are able to articulate it has some form of worldview.  A worldview is “a particular philosophy of life or conception of the world”[1]  Simply put is the way we view the world, our understanding or our filter on how we accept and interact with the world around us. Our worldview is a result of each moment’s life experiences. For example burning a finger on a hot stove informs future behavior or an individual raised without a male father figure as a child is likely to have a different perspective or understanding of God being their heavenly father as someone who grew up in a home with a loving and present father. A worldview however is a choice, and you can choose to change your views, you can believe anything you want to believe ultimately however if you want to be truly satisfied with this life your worldview must be based on the Bible and on Christ. Jesus said in John 6:35 that only those who come to him will find their hunger and thirst truly satisfied. The lens in which we filter this world should be the cross of Christ. When we allow Christ to be our filter we can begin to live our 1 Corinthians 5:17, allowing the old to pass away and focus on becoming a new creation.

---

In a Christian worldview the Bible is the standard by which we base all our understanding. We look to its pages to lay the foundation for our understanding not just of God but for things such as creation and our purpose here on earth.

The Question of Origin – (How did life begin? How did mankind come into existence?)

The question of origin is one that is pivotal in formulating a biblically based worldview. The Bible begins with the foundational account of the creation story. Genesis 1 speaks to the creation of what we in view as the universe and everything in it, from the stars in the night sky to the sand on the beach we witness the creators work all around us. When Genesis 2:7 speaks to the creation of man from the dust of the earth life began when God breathed into His creation. We see a similar scenario recorded in Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones. Upon God’s direction in Ezekiel 37 the prophet speaks over the bones and the bodies are formed but life does not enter them until God breathes into them.  Thus life began when the breath of God entered into man.  John 1:3-4 goes further and indicates that Jesus is the true source of life “all things were created.” 

  

The Question of Identity – (What does it mean to be human? Are humans more important than animals?)

The question of humanity raises so many possibilities. In a Biblical worldview to be human means to be created in the image of God. (Genesis 1:26) But as we continue to read in that same verse we were not just created by God to exist, God created all life the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and we were created to rule over it; Genesis 1:28 says man is to “subdue” the earth.  God’s plan for man was not just to be a part in kind of His glorious creation, His intention all along was to have a Father/Child relationship.  He desires an intimate relationship with His creation.  God initiated this relationship with creation, James 4:8 illustrates that the next move is ours, God desires to be in relationship with us, as our heavenly father He desires to be close to us but it requires action on our part.

The Question of Meaning/Purpose – (Why does mankind exist? Why do I exist?)

Questions of origins and identity are often easy to resolve but when it comes to the question of purpose, why are we here, why do I exist type of questions the answer can be much more challenging when it actually should be the easiest question for us to address.  Ultimately we exist to glorify God. Thomas Watson the puritan pastor said that “the glory of God is a silver thread which must run through all our actions.”[2] 1 Corinthians 10:31; 1 Peter 4:11 both speak to that end. Our purpose is here on Earth the meaning of all life ultimately is to bring glory to the name of God. Why? Acts 17:27 tells us that God established the world this way with a purpose, to draw all men to Him, our purpose is to glorify Him so that the world around us might see God.

The Question of Morality – (What is meant by right and wrong? How should I live?)

The question of right and wrong is answered through the lens by which you view the world. Those holding to a Christian worldview interpret morality based not on mans every changing standard but by God’s unchanging word.  Proverbs 14:12 indicates that left to our own choices we would surely die, rather we should be living by Philippians 4:8 seeking to bring honor to God in all things.

The Question of Destiny – (Is there life after death? What will happen to me when I die?)

A question that often haunts men and women from the time they are old enough to comprehend till the day they die. But that doesn’t have to be the case. In a Christian worldview the answer is yes there is life after death! We have been promised eternal life in heaven with God thanks to Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross. We don’t do anything earn this it is a free gift for those who believe and place their faith in Christ to be their Lord and Savior. (Romans 3:23) Those who chose not to believe or reject God’s provision face eternal separation from Him. (Matthew 25:46) Regardless of an individual’s choice it is an eternal one, once we leave this world we cannot change our decision. Luke 16:26 makes this clear here we see that the choices of this life determine our eternal destiny, and once death has taken place, that destiny is fixed.[3]

How might/should a biblical worldview influence the way you…

                    …think about, treat, and speak to others on a daily basis?

“Understanding a person's worldview can help you communicate with them better as well as help you understand what they believe and why they act in a certain way.”[4] The Bible goes into great detail on how we should interact with others. Ephesians 4:32 tells us to be kind to one another; it tells us to forgive as Christ forgave us. In John 15:12 Jesus tells his disciples to love one another as he loved them. These verses and the countless others all command to show respect and love for those around us, and not just those with whom we share our faith but also with those who would persecute us. (Proverbs 24:17; Luke 6:27)

…decide on a future career (what you will choose and/or how you will carry it out)?

Choosing a career is a big decision no doubt. Colossians 3:23 gives a clear directive that whatever your career choice is the work is to be done such to glorify God because you are working for God not man. Doesn’t matter if you are digging ditches, dictating foreign policy, or standing in the pulpit on Sunday morning. In choosing your career you look to God’s word and it will direct your path. Psalm 119:105

Works Cited

[1]Simpson, J. A. The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press; 1989.

[2] Watson, Thomas. "Man's Chief End Is to Glorify God." Man's Chief End Is to Glorify God. Accessed July 15, 2015.

[3] MacDonald, William, and Arthur L. Farstad. Believer's Bible Commentary. 4th ed. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1995.

[4] Weider, L., & Gutierrez, B. (2014). Finding your worldview: Thinking Christianity about the world.

Reliability of the Bible

When I think of the idea of the reliability of the Bible the first thing that comes to my mind is 2 Timothy 3:16 when Paul says that “All scripture is God breathed” that God himself inspired the man who put the pen to the page.  God perfect in His nature cannot lie about neither His nature nor about the record of His grace as recorded in His Word.

There are many arguments that can be made for the reliability of the Holy Scriptures, two of my favorite arguments are the very nature of the work meaning its authorship and focus are unified throughout and also the confirmed historical evidence.

The very essence or nature of the Holy Scriptures is that according to most sources the Bible is composed of sixty-six unique books and letters which were written by 35-40 authors from more than a dozen countries over a period of nearly 1600 years this work is bound together not just in as single historical volume but by the fact that they are all unified in a single theme. The common theme is the redemption of man through Jesus Christ.

Dr Elmer Towns of Core Christianity states that “when you’ve read the Bible you’re left with the impression that only one person wrote the Bible.”^[1] If you think about the scope of it we cannot agree on things one week to the next how could man possibly write a collective work that spanned eighty generations? Don’t believe that it is “humanly” possible aside from God’s direct and continued involvement in the authorship of His Word.

The other argument I often find myself using is the overwhelming historical evidence for both the Bible as a collective work and the ability to substantiate its contents through archaeological and historical data. According to the Institute for Creation Research “the Bible has proven to be more historically and archaeologically accurate than any other ancient book. It has been subjected to the minutest scientific textual analysis possible to humanity and has been proven to be authentic in every way.”^[2] As Mark Strauss echoed in the ACE interview while we don’t have the original copies of the New Testament we can have confidence in the Bible because of the raw amount of evidence that we have more than 5000 reliable manuscript copies some within a few decades unlike of in any other work in history. ^[3]

1.      Towns, Elmer L. "pg 18." In Core Christianity: What Is Christianity All About?, Chattanooga, Tenn.: AMG Publishers, 2007.

2.      Historical Accuracy (Historical Accuracy) http://icr.org/biblical-record

3.      Strauss, Mark. "“Reliability of the NT Manuscripts”." Interview by Joshua Chatraw

Death of a Church

If you go to the doctor because you are sick in order for the doc to figure out how to heal you, how to make you better he has to diagnose what is wrong. It is just as important for a doctor to study ailments and illnesses as it is that he study treatments. Proper treatment requires proper diagnosis… The same is true when it comes to having a healthy church....

I have been reading a lot in 1 Corinthians, praying for God's direction on a new short sermon series – I’ve always admired the Apostle Paul. He was never one to sugar coat his letters, he was far from politically correct in his correspondence, and he was not concerned about being popular. His letter to the church at Corinth is no different.

1 Corinthians 1:1-17 is broken into three clear divisions - a greeting, a praising, and a scolding. Take a look:

(Greeting)

1 Paul, called as an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will, and Sosthenes our brother:

² To God’s church at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus and called as saints, with all those in every place who call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord—both their Lord and ours.

³ Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

(Praising)

⁴ I always thank my God for you because of God’s grace given to you in Christ Jesus, ⁵ that by Him you were enriched in everything—in all speech and all knowledge. ⁶ In this way, the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you, ⁷ so that you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁸ He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you will be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹ God is faithful; you were called by Him into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

(Scolding)

¹⁰ Now I urge you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, that there be no divisions among you, and that you be united with the same understanding and the same conviction. ¹¹ For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers, by members of Chloe’s household, that there is rivalry among you. ¹² What I am saying is this: Each of you says, “I’m with Paul,” or “I’m with Apollos,” or “I’m with Cephas,” or “I’m with Christ.” ¹³ Is Christ divided? Was it Paul who was crucified for you? Or were you baptized in Paul’s name? ¹⁴ I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, ¹⁵ so that no one can say you were baptized in my name. ¹⁶ I did, in fact, baptize the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don’t know if I baptized anyone else. ¹⁷ For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to evangelize—not with clever words, so that the cross of Christ will not be emptied of its effect.

The church in Corinth had started out so faithfully, and had such an impact in its community and the world around it but it had allowed sin to creep in. It had fallen away and as a result it had become a defiled church, full of sexual immorality and drunkenness.  Some lived very worldly, taking God’s grace and forgiveness lightly. It had become defiled because it had become a divided church with differing cliques and factions vying for leadership.  People talking behind the scenes, and taking sides. As a result of becoming defiled and divided it became a disgraced church.  Not only were they not glorifying God, they were hindering the progress of the gospel all around.

We need to take measures to prevent ourselves from following in the footsteps of the church at Corinth, we as a body of believers must stand united for the name of Christ. We must call sin what it is; we must be more than united on paper, as believers we must hold each other accountable and guard each other as we guard ourselves. We must strive to do nothing to hinder the work of the gospel.

What are you working towards this week? Come this Sunday and see how to kill a church (and the steps to healing)... 

Permissible but Beneficial?

What a great freedom we have... As disciples of Christ we have been liberated from the shackles that bound us.

Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:23-33 shares with the church at Corinth a powerful concept. in vs 23 & 24 he pens “Everything is permissible,” but not everything is helpful. “Everything is permissible,” but not everything builds up. No one should seek his own good, but the good of the other person.

Paul goes on to argue that while meat sacrificed to idols is perfectly fine for them to consume because as believers they know well and good that there are no other gods for that meat to be sacrificed too but that if their consuming that meat were to cause a non-believer or someone weak in the faith to stumble then they should forsake eating meat all together. 

This is a hard concept for us today because we don't want to give up anything for anyone - our mindset is often if something I am doing bothers you get over it - but that is not what Paul is saying... Paul is saying that our religious freedom is not a weapon for us to wield against those around us - but that we are to go out of our way to share the love of Christ with those who are struggling. 

This does not mean that we are to compromise our morals or our ethics - this doesn't mean that we are to compromise our doctrine and theology - it does mean however that sometimes we need to stop and think about someone else first before we post a snide comment or picture on Facebook - will what I am about to post or share cause someone weaker in the faith or without faith to look poorly on Christ? 

Friends we are called to be a reflection of Christ to the world --- when the world looks at you are they seeing a clear image or is it like they are looking in a carnival mirror, seeing a warped and distorted view of the Gospel? 

Paul closes this chapter out by saying: 
"Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for God’s glory. Give no offense to the Jews or the Greeks or the church of God, just as I also try to please all people in all things, not seeking my own profit, but the profit of many, so that they may be saved."

Think about that today... 

Response to Marriage Rights

Let me preface this by saying personal opinions are like armpits most everyone has two and they usually stink. That said here is my opinion followed by a 2 min reaction by Russell Moore the of The Ethics & Religious Liberties Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention to the Supreme Courts ruling. 

I don't agree with the ruling by the SCOTUS today, but it doesn't change anything in my life nor does it change the way I live for Jesus. I love how Russel Moore put it in his response that the Supreme Court cannot put Jesus back in the grave!

It is up to us as followers of Christ to continue to stand for what we believe and to not compromise our morals. As a follower of Christ we must still show love to all people and we must still call sin what it is, an abomination before the One True God. 

All are welcomed and loved by God and should be by us, His children. However, we should give the same answer to all those who are accused of sin that Jesus gave the woman found in adultery (this includes all of us). Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more. Telling someone that their behavior is sin is not condemnation of the individual, only the sin. We are all guilty of sin and many refuse to admit they are sinning, but that doesn't change the facts in God's eyes. 

Marriage will not make the people in the gay and lesbian community happy anymore than it has for straight people who have had marriages that ended in divorce. Not all of them will end in divorce. Some will last a lifetime until death do they part, but they will not be blessed by God. 

The only thing that will make us truly happy is complete reliance on a most Holy God! 

D.A. Carson penned in his work The Cross and Christian Ministry, "The only thing of transcendent importance to human beings is the knowledge of God. This knowledge does not belong to those who endlessly focus on themselves. Those who truly come to know God delight just to know him." 

Where is your delight? Where is your happiness? 

If you haven't already seen it take a moment and watch Russel Moore's reaction to the Supreme Courts Decision: 

Calming the Storm

Mark 4:35-41 has an account of one of the most incredible feats outside of raising the dead that Jesus did during his ministry here on earth.

If you have ever been on a boat in a storm you can understand the sheer terror that had arisen in the disciples as they crossed over the Sea of Galilee... While the storms I've endured on the water pale in comparison to most I can echo the trauma that they were enduring it is a terrorizing feeling to climb a wave larger than your boat then to crest and be sitting there with the bow and stern out of the water at the same time...

And there is Jesus... sound asleep...

Terror, wind, water all around, and then there is Jesus, calmly sleeping...

Disciples are panicked! They think they are all about to die... They are probably think ok if I jump ship now maybe I can make it shore -- but then drowning in the sea was no way to go and there is Jesus resting...

This is an important lesson for us.

When we think the world is coming to an end.. when we think that there is no hope... We need to look to Jesus - we are called to follow his example are we not? Rather than panicking, rather than stressing, rather than trying to control a situation that is beyond our control why don't we just model Jesus and stop take a respite and let God handle the situation?

What storm of life are you enduring today that you need to let God handle?

On Mission

By the time most of you will be reading this our team will be set up and hard at work at Las Brisas Baptist Church in El Cotorro de Cuba. This trip is only part of what it means to be "On Mission"

When you read the various commissioning statements in the Bible we find a very common theme - that they were not to be used as single points of action rather as lifestyle changes. The command is that as we live our lives we are to be working for the completion of God's mission for our lives - in that sense we are all called to be "On Mission" 24/7/365...

We don't get to take a vacation from being "On Mission" either! When we take a vacation from the stress of our jobs or to visit family, go to Disney World, spend a day on the water fishing... we are still called to be on mission! That mission will adapt and change with our location and purposes but we should always be seeking God's face and to be obedient to His plans and will for our lives!

This week ten of us are following God's leading to help rebuild and church and to share the Gospel message with those less fortunate in Cuba - next week we may be called to share the Gospel with the lady behind us in line at Winn Dixie - or to call a friend who is struggling and take them out to lunch or out on the boat for a day of relaxation...

The point is we are to always be seeking new ways to serve - there is no retirement age in the Bible not one of the prophets or disciples ever stopped working until they were in their grave or in Elijah's case carried up to heaven... What makes us so special that we can say we've done our part when there is so much work yet to be done?

Fire and Forgiveness from Heaven

This week I've been reading about another prophet by the name of Elijah. Quite an interesting story of faith and fear. Elijah was a prophet in the days of King Ahab. Ahab was a wicked king (1 Kings 16:30), controlled by his wife Jezebel who was even worse than her husband - still to this day calling someone a Jezebel is a major insult to their character... 1 Kings 16:33 actually says Ahab did more to provoke the Lord than ALL the kings of Israel who were before him. 

God saw the wickedness in the land and called on Elijah to take a stand.  Elijah went before Ahab and told him that it wouldn't rain again in the lands until Elijah called to the heavens for it - God kept his promise and the lands went 3 years without rain... When the time came for God to reveal himself Elijah went up to Mt Caramel and faced off vs 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah in a showdown of whose God is better...

This is the part of the story I love!  The 450 prophets of Baal danced about for hours, they wailed, cried, tore their cloths, put on sackcloth... but alas all that didn't seem to be able to wake up their "sleeping" god... All day from morning till evening they begged and pleaded with their god to show...

Then comes Elijah... He built the alter to the Lord, then dug a trench around it deep enough for about 4 gallons of water... When he had placed the bull on the alter he called on the people to bring 4 jugs of water 3 times they did this till even the trench was full... (keep in mind this was in the midst of a 3 year drought water was scarce to be pouring it out on the ground like this would have seem mad!)

 Then Elijah started praying -- when Elijah called out for God he answered in a mighty way and revealed his might to the crowds.... Fire fell from heaven, it consumed the bull, it consumed the wood, the stones, the dust, it even licked up the water from the trench....

God was not mocked - Elijah had faith that the God he served was the One True God, and while the rest of the people of Israel may have turned from God He (God) did not abandon them completely rather he let them suffer the fate of their own hand, Ahab ultimately suffered the fate of his own hand but we find something shocking! For all of his wickedness, for all the atrocities that he committed as King in 1 Kings 21 God pronounces that He would eliminate all the males from Ahab's line both slave and free... The dogs would lap his blood and prostitutes would bath in it... God wasn't kidding around.

But then something shocking happened something that we need to keep in mind even today (1 Kings 21:27-29) - When Ahab realized his wickedness he repented. Sackcloth, ashes, the whole bit - he humbled himself before the Lord! and God saw it and gave him a reprieve, there would still be consequences for a lifetime of wickedness but Ahab was forgiven.

This is important for us to recognize as well -- no matter how bad our lives have been God will still forgive us! We will still have to face the consequences of those sins - Ahab still had to die and his line removed but he was forgiven and so can you...

The same God who caused the fire to fall in righteous judgment also showers us with his forgiveness and mercy on those who are willing and able to recognize their failings and repent!

What a great promise for us today!