Gleanings from the New Life vine

Ministry by Paranoia by Dr. Dan

2010-09-13T08:51:00.000-07:00

I was intrigued and convicted by this last weeks Monday Morning Memo from my professor and friend Dr. Dan Crawford. I thought you might enjoy it:

Ministry by Paranoia

Paranoia is a thought process heavily influenced by anxiety or fear. Many people minister by paranoia – fearful of what someone might think or say. In my younger days, working hard to be liked and fearing rejection, I practiced ministry through paranoia. Basically I liked to be liked and I feared failure. Jesus, on the other hand, was never anxious or intimidated by what others thought. After He called Zacchaeus down from the tree, He walked with him through the streets of Jericho, unafraid of the watching crowd or the wagging tongues. He was intent on going to the home of a rather notorious sinner where not only Zacchaeus, but the entire household would be saved. Deuteronomy 31:6 says, “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.” Lord, deliver my friends and me from ministry by paranoia.

Dr. Dan's Morning Memos. www.Discipleallnations.org

Gauges of our Lives

2010-06-03T16:18:00.000-07:00

I was recently asked a question: Can a person be emotionally immature and still be spiritually mature? Why or why not?

Good question. there are 4 areas or gauges in our life that we must monitor. They are: 1. Physical health (our fuel gauge). We must take care of our bodies in order to live healthy and active. To not get proper rest and exercise diminishes all other aspects of our lives. 2. Spiritual health (our temperature gauge). Are we hot or cold? If we are lukewarm then God says He will spew us out of His mouth in Revelation 3:16. If we are cold, we are at the bottom of the barrel of our lives and we will naturally look up to God for help. If we are hot, we are in touch with God and ready to serve Him. 3. Mental health (our volt meter) What is it that charges us up. We need a level of stimulus that comes from new information and new knowledge. If we quit learning we quit maturing. The Bible is the best source of knowledge for everyday living – 2 Timothy 3:16-17. You can study it over and over and never exhaust it’s depths or the challenges it presents. 4. Emotional health (our pressure gauge). This gauge is often ignored until the pressure becomes so great we blow a gasket. Stress is one of the greatest causes of collapse in the other areas of our lives. We need a certain amount of pressure (eustress, good stress) to challenge us and help push us to grow in areas that we would not on our own. Too much stress, however, redlines our emotional gauge and results in an explosion that can have devastating results with a lot of collateral damage. We hurt not only ourselves, but also those around us; the closer the relationship, most often, the more damage - Matthew 11:28-30.

To answer your question more specifically: Each of these areas, physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional, are so tied together that to suffer in one makes an impact on the others. If we are not taking care of our bodies, we shorten our lives and are not able to grow and serve. In the specific case of being emotionally immature and spiritually mature, both of these need to rise together or the one that is ignored will not be able to be fully accomplished. If we do not follow Jesus’ admonition to not worry (an emotion) then ultimately the problem is in our lack of trust in God to handle the situations that we are worrying about (a spiritual problem). If we are consistently angry (an emotion) with people then we are not successfully loving them (a spiritual problem) as we are admonished to by Jesus in John 13:34-35.

All of us have room to grow in all the arena’s of our lives. Because they are interconnected we cannot expect to mature in one area and ignore the others. Spiritual growth is so interconnected with emotional well being that both need to be raised or neither will be as healthy as they can be. Spiritual maturity is often confused with knowledge of spiritual facts (Bible, doctrine, and traditions) and not the wisdom that comes with the practical application of that knowledge. In applying the knowledge we enter into the other three areas of our lives including the emotional. We cannot have wisdom without application. Thus, our spiritual maturity will be stunted without maturing in the other areas of our lives.

Sometimes we don't monitor our gauges well and the idiot light comes on. Hopefully we will stop and see what is wrong before we are not able to go forward or make progress. If we carelfully watch the gauges on the dashboard of our lives we will be able to continue to grow into the mature person that God has designed for us to be. Don’t wait for the check engine light to come on. Check where you are Spiritually, Physically, Mentally, and Emotionally.

Intelligent Design

2010-04-15T13:33:00.000-07:00

I have enjoyed beginning a study of the book of Genesis with a series called "Intelligent Design." There are many arguments for a belief in a Devine Creator when you look carefully at His creation. I picked up the following information from the "Answers in Genesis" website:

Strong evidence for a Designer comes from the fine-tuning of the universal constants and the solar system

• The electromagnetic coupling constant binds electrons to protons in atoms. If it was smaller, fewer electrons could be held. If it was larger, electrons would be held too tightly to bond with other atoms.

• Ratio of electron to proton mass (1:1836). Again, if this was larger or smaller, molecules could not form.

• Carbon and oxygen nuclei have finely tuned energy levels.

• Electromagnetic and gravitational forces are finely tuned, so the right kind of star can be stable.

• Our sun is the right colour. If it was redder or bluer, photosynthetic response would be weaker.

• Our sun is also the right mass. If it was larger, its brightness would change too quickly and there would be too much high energy radiation. If it was smaller, the range of planetary distances able to support life would be too narrow; the right distance would be so close to the star that tidal forces would disrupt the planet’s rotational period. UV radiation would also be inadequate for photosynthesis.

• The earth’s distance from the sun is crucial for a stable water cycle. Too far away, and most water would freeze; too close and most water would boil.

• The earth’s gravity, axial tilt, rotation period, magnetic field, crust thickness, oxygen/nitrogen ratio, carbon dioxide, water vapor and ozone levels are just right.

Former atheist Sir Fred Hoyle states, ‘commonsense interpretation of the facts is that a super-intelligence has monkeyed with physics, as well as chemistry and biology, and that there are no blind forces in nature.’

Science continues to confirm the proof for a cosmic watchmaker whom we know as Yahweh. Whether it is the cosmological argument presented above or many other scientific findings in the areas of genetics, biology, archeology, or any other scientific discipline, the proof is overwhelming. Of course belief in God has never been dependant on enough proof. God has always given plenty of proof as He says through Paul in Romans:

Romans 1:18-20 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

Baptist Press - FIRST-PERSON: Don't be afraid - News with a Christian Perspective

2010-03-23T12:17:00.000-07:00

The House has just passed what President Obama declares as "historic legislation." All of us have an opinion as to whether the health care bill is good or bad, but what is a proper Christian response? Russell D. Moore from one of our six seminaries helps us understand that no matter what we think about our governments actions we should always maintain a solid confidence in our Lord. Please read this excellent article.

Baptist Press - FIRST-PERSON: Don't be afraid - News with a Christian Perspective

Don't be afaid. Good advice from Jesus Himself. God is still on the throne and all else is less important than this one great fact.

Recognizing Great Service

2010-03-16T16:38:00.001-07:00

Chris and I were eating out with some friends from the church and had the opportunity to receive some great service. This waitress responded to our needs and even anticipated them bringing us an extra portion of steak fries (just what we needed?). We had volunteered to pray for her and she was deeply appreciative. It turns out that we had set in a different section the last time we were there but we had prayed for her upcoming surgery a couple of months before. She explained that they found cancer and Chris was able to share with her some encouragement having just come through some similar situations. The last time we visited she sought us out and updated us on how things were going. We prayed for her again. Please remember this young single mom, Heather, in your prayers as well. In this case we were glad to recognize great service with a large tip and some much needed prayer.

I appreciate good service, and this past Sunday we had the opportunity to recognize such service with more than a tip. Russ Dusky has put in almost as many hours as his tractors have here at Brookwood, serving the body by taking care of the grounds. I cannot begin to tell you how faithful he has been in helping keep the lawns and outside plants presentable to our many guests and a pleasure to all of us members. Of course we are not discounting the many people who have helped and will continue to help in this task, but we did want to recognize the man who has for years sought to glorify the Lord by taking care of His house. Donna has done similar work with the Young at Heart group as her latest project. Both are worthy of receiving an award for great service.

Howard and Fran Saxton have been solid supporters of the Lord's work here at Brookwood and have even at times risked life and limb in their service for the Lord. Can you remember Fran 35 feet in the air putting in insulation and Howard reaching out over space helping lay down sheet after sheet of our metal roof. Whether it is sewing a quilt (not Howard) or hauling away metal (not Fran), their service has gone above and beyond.

Bill and Dixie Evans are at the church as much as the staff. We often do not see them here unless we walk around the back of the church and see their truck or car. They not only do ministry worthy of the chairman of deacons but also do many maintenance things that most people never know about. We would not be approved (sans elevator) for our final occupancy permit without Bill, Dixie, Dede, and John Lute. They each put in a lot of effort and time with diligent inspectors to wrap things up on this worthy goal.

Of course we have failed to recognize so many people who have put in hours of work and effort to make this a great place to meet God. These couples are now retired from jobs but have not retired from serving God. While they cannot do all they want to or once did, it will take a lot of work from the younger generations to match the zeal, commitment and just plain faithfulness of these Christian pioneers. Many more have given us (the body of Brookwood) great service, but, I am glad we have had the opportunity to recognize these fine servants of Christ.

Thanks Mark for the inspiration and the work putting this together.

Pastor Albert

Perseverance

2010-02-22T12:54:00.000-08:00

Here is a blog posting from the professor that I worked under at seminary. He is currently working in an evangelistic ministry at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

"She fell on the ski slope. When the results were known, Petra Majdic of Slovenia had five broken ribs and suffered a collapsed lung. Doctors discouraged her from continuing to compete in the 2010 Winter Olympics, but she was determined. Another qualifying race, then another, then a third place finish. She had to be assisted to the medal stand to receive her bronze medal. Most courageous athlete in these Vancouver games? The award should be hers hands down. Many Christians don’t have that kind of perseverance when it comes to demonstrating faith. A temporary set-back, a severe temptation, a troubling circumstance, and we get discouraged, forgetting that the Christian life is a mixture of enjoyment and endurance, “the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings” (Phil. 3:10). Life’s medals bring great joy, but with Jesus, life is about more than gold. We, like Him, must endure, “for the joy set before” (Heb. 12:2)." Dr. Dan's Monday Morning Memo, February 22, 2010

Time for new generation of black Americans (OneNewsNow.com)

2010-02-22T12:36:00.000-08:00

I found this article very well written and interesting. I think that this applies to all of us when we get away from our Biblical roots and seek solutions in social programs. The church should be in the lead on promoting the care of the poor and needy but we must always "share a cup of water in the name of Jesus" and not forget our purpose. We are all wandering in the wilderness when we seek answers that are not solidly scriptural. This Sunday we will have some testimonies and reports on the work of our church and eleven others at the SOS homeless shelter. The testimonies will show that the right purpose has been kept at the forefront. Thank you for your support in this worthy effort.

Time for new generation of black Americans (OneNewsNow.com)

Growth Fund

2010-02-17T14:52:00.000-08:00

Last week we voted to purchase the elevator that we have long looked forward to. Though it will take some time for it to come in and to be installed, I am excited to have the new rooms available upstairs both to those who cannot negotiate stairs and to our growing Life Groups. We will also soon be entering into a new Growth Fund that will help to pay for the elevator and to finish many of the projects in our current and last building phase (phase 5). What is left after this phase is ongoing maintenance of a very large and useful facility.

This is an exciting time in the life of our church and I pray that you will be committed to help us finish strong on our building program. The growth fund sets aside a set $4000 in reserve to help with staff salaries in a lean month and also $900 in reserve to cover two payments for the elevator loan if we ever need it. Beyond that, the money will be used on the projects as presented in our priority list. As you can see in the newsletter, the youth rooms are in desperate need of remodeling and they will be our first priority. Other priorities will be accomplished as funds become available. As an added aid to growth as much as 10% of receipts will be put aside for "growing the body" projects designed to impact our community such as direct mail, special outreach events, and other things that are not covered in the current budget.

This is a great time to be a part of Brookwood. We will soon see the fruits of our Life Group/Growth Group/Encouragement Group structure. We will see more people come to know the Lord and grow in their relationship with Him than ever before. The "Growth Fund" will give us opportunity to give above our tithes to accomplish building the body and the building and it will also provide opportunity for us to volunteer our labor in a worthwile life-changing work.

I heard a child relate a cute saying on the Radio. He said, "The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary." Where ever he came up with this statement, (I believe a dad or teacher might have made him aware of it), I am sure that you would agree with the truth behind it. All of these changes will only be successful if we pray as if it all depends on God and work as if it depends on us. Or another way to say it is when we open ourself to God's power and use it to work in His fields, He will bring in a harvest we cannot even imagine. Let's "put our hands to the plow, not looking back,(Luke 9:62) and "not be discouraged in doing good work (Gal. 6:9)."

God has great plans for a faithful, committed, hard working people. May God bless you as you serve Him and others.

See you Sunday and on the coming workdays as well.

The Answer for America

2010-02-05T02:32:00.000-08:00

How do you deliver on such a title? For years politicians have failed to provide such an answer. So what contribution can a preacher make to such an audacious task as to have "The Answer for America?" I do believe there is such an answer but it is not one of my own making or a product of intense polling of political opinion. The answer for America is not a political solution, a think-tank conclusion, or a scientific collusion. It does not come from anything that man has done, is doing, or can do.

It comes from the number one selling book in the world. This book once purchased, often goes unread and unheeded. The solution comes from the God who created us and thus knows what makes us tick. Physical obesity is not our number one issue, spiritual starvation is. The answer for America is Spiritual. The "change we can believe in" is the change that comes when a person believes in Jesus (2 Cor. 5:17).

The Bible tells us to pray for our government, to be good citizens, and to support those who rule over us ( Romans 13:1-7). The government is not always right but we have the opportunity to work to make it better as citizens. Voting is important and whom we vote for should always be a result of our Christian principles, but the Bible does not indicate that we can change the world for the better by politics.

Our first and primary action as citizens of the Kingdom of God is to love God and people with our whole heart (Matt. 22:27). Our prime directive is to enlist new members into that Kingdom (Ephesians 2:19-22; Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 1:8), include them in the church, and teach them the truth. When we do this well we will have found the answer for America and the world.

Any self seeking, self serving, or self promoting answer will fall flat and ultimately bring dishonor on the name of the One we serve. Our task is to share with others so that God can change one heart at a time and by doing so change America and the world. We cannot do this under our own power or abilities. It is not change we must believe in, it is Jesus.

Now, with God's help, lets go change the world.

Prayer for Haiti Team

2010-02-02T12:19:00.000-08:00

I covet your prayer for a group of Southern Baptist members who have been arrested in Haiti. They were trying to help orphaned children and did not go through the proper channels in a disorganized government so they have been jailed. An update on their situation is explained in the link below:

http://www.bpnews.net/

One the group is a pastor of one of the churches from Idaho and is a close friend of our family for many years. Paul Thompson was the son of my pastor when I was a teenager. His dad is the primary reason that Chris and I met when I began to pick her up to interpret for a deaf member in our church. We have counted Clyde and Shirley as mentors and friends for a number of years. It is under their ministry that I surrendered to preach. Paul has the same integrity level as his dad and I know would not intentionally do anything illegal as you may have heard in the news.

We have recieved a regular email from his mom for many years and so have been praying for them ever since we heard about this event. Please pray that God will work this out for His glory and protect His children. As the article I have referenced above indicates there were better ways to be involved than what this group choose, but I know that their hearts were to help the children.

Thanks for your prayers on their behalf.

Aroma

2010-01-29T04:55:00.000-08:00

I have been playing basketball with a group of men a couple times a week (don't worry about my ankles, I never really leave the ground). I also have a meeting at 8 am once a week with the pastors of churches in the Hillsboro area. The meeting comes right after the game and 2-3 of us have been playing basketball. We are temporarily meeting in a very small room and often fill it. You can begin to imagine our problem. The aroma of our prayers and praise is pleasing to God but I am pretty sure the aroma from the room might be discouraging attendance. It may be the reason we are moving to a large spacious fellowship hall next week.

"But thanks be to God who always leads us in truimphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death, to the other the fragrance of life. And who is equal to the task?" 2 Corinthians 2:14-16.

Hopefully, I stink (yeh, I haven't played in a while) more playing basketball with a group of guys who are observing my Christian witness than I do in the little meeting room with the other pastors. I try to play and speak in such a way as to bring honor to Christ and thus become a sweet smelling aroma of life to those who will recieve Him and a warning of the stench of death to those who will not. I must check my heart to make sure that I am sincere, like a man sent from God (2 Cor. 2:15), so that the aroma I put off will be sweet, leading to life, not bitter, leading to death. How I respond to being fouled could make a difference in someone's eternal future. What applies to how I play basketball also applies to how I do anything else. I am challenged to sincerely speak the gospel and to live it as well.

I pray that our aroma from the way we live life will be a sweet smelling sacrifice to God and lead others to knowing Him.

Clay Jars

2010-01-22T06:43:00.000-08:00

I have been enjoying throwing pottery again (not at people but on the potter's wheel). Pottery was one of my majors in college and I have been away from it for a long time. In the studio are many examples for us to better understand the many references to clay, pots, and the potter's house. Recently God spoke to me through a reference in 2 Corinthians 4:7: "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that the all surpaassing power is from God and not from us....for our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all."

At our best we are still fragile and unworthy to claim any glory on our own for any deed that has eternal significance. God's power is seen through us when we realize we are but jars of clay. When we are humble.

A piece of pottery must go through muliple firings of increasing heat before it becomes a useful vessel. The firings that we go through in this life make us more fit vessels for God's use. Ultimately our troubles build up for us a weight of glory in eternity.

I need to see trouble for what it is...light and momentary and see eternal reward for what it is..weighty and eternal. The suffering I have experienced does not begin to match what my Lord did for me. I pray that God will use every fire in your life to make you stronger and more fit for Him to use.

Stay True

2010-01-08T11:27:00.001-08:00

Someone sent me this funny story that illustrates what God said to me the other day in my quite time:

A man was being tailgated by a stressed out woman on a busy boulevard. Suddenly, the light turned yellow, just in front of him. He did the right thing, stopping at the crosswalk, even though he could have beaten the red light by accelerating through the intersection.

The tailgating woman was furious and honked her horn, screaming in frustration as she missed her chance to get through the intersection, dropping her cell phone and makeup.

As she was still in mid-rant, she heard a tap on her window and looked up into the face of a very serious police officer. The officer ordered her to exit her car with her hands up. He took her to the police station where she was searched, finger printed, photographed, and placed in a holding cell. After a couple of hours, a policeman approached the cell and opened the door. She was escorted back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal effects.

He said, 'I'm very sorry for this mistake. You see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, flipping off the guy in front of you, and cussing a blue streak at him. I noticed the 'What Would Jesus Do' bumper sticker, the 'Choose Life' License plate holder, the 'Follow Me to Sunday-School' bumper Sticker, And the chrome-plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk, Naturally...I assumed you had stolen the car.'

How we live and what we preach must correspond. What earned the Scribes and Pharisees the greatest criticisms (white-washed tombs, and den of snakes) was this incongruity of walk and talk. If we are to be the consistent witness that we need to be we must keep a close watch on our words and our actions.

In 1 Timothy 4:16 Paul tells his young prodigy: "Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you." Staying true to what is right affects our own standing with God but also affects those who hear and see us. What we do can invalidate what we say.

A New Year, A New You

2009-12-28T07:22:00.001-08:00

I have not broken any of my new year resolutions yet, of course the new year has yet to start, so I am safe for a few more days. My problem does not seem to be the recognition of what needs to change in my daily habits, but the motivation to actually continue to change them. Perhaps my problem is not the ultimate goal but the zealous steps I determine to reach it. As an example, I want to lose weight so I set a ridiculous schedule for exercise and start some fad diet that promises miracles. Starving myself for a week while at the same time getting up at an hour even God is not awake (just kidding) and sweating to the oldies is never going to work. About one week in, I smash the alarm clock and move the treadmill to the garage where it belongs. I will not continue such an unworkable schedule, so a worthy goal goes by the wayside.

This year instead I have found a fun way to exercise by playing basketball with a group of men at a high school gym a couple of days a week. Adding a bike ride on Saturday will round out some good cardio and is a schedule I will enjoy. Some sensible diet changes that do not promise to drop ten pounds a week but will result in incremental weight loss will also be much easier to do. I believe the goal is within reach.

A much more important goal is often times sabotaged by the same micromanaging and over zealousness. I want to grow spiritually this year and be closer to the Lord than I ever have. Towards this goal I have in the past set a rigorous early morning Bible reading and prayer time. I have often committed to reading great amounts of scripture each day and spending time with a unwieldy list of names (some I don't even know) to pray for. When I miss a day, as it is inevitable that I do, I listen to the great accuser of the brethren and agree that I am worthless as a "good" Christian and will never be able to be consistent so I might as well give up.

Again, I am missing the goal because of unreasonable details. If I want to get up at 5 or 6 am to have time to spend with the Lord I have to give up my habit of staying up till midnight to watch the news. It would be better for me to read a little less scripture and meditate on what it means than to start some Bible marathon and have no idea what I have just read. I can break up my prayer list and pray heartfelt prayers for people's detailed needs without going to sleep in the middle of it. And, when I miss a day, yes it happens no matter how hard I try, I do not have to give in to the guilt that immobilizes me for the next day. Instead, I just start where I left off and keep going.

Reaching the goal is the issue not how fast the process is. So many worthwhile endeavors are thwarted near the starting line because we do not feel we are fast enough out of the blocks. Paul says of his life in 2 Timothy, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have remained faithful, therefore the crown of righteousness is laid up for me." My prayer for you and I is that we will see the goal that God has for us and we will resolutely keep moving toward it. It will be worth it all someday when God says, "well done my good and faithful servant."

Merry Christmas

2009-12-22T11:43:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas!! What a wonderful wish. That first Christmas would not have seemed merry to Joseph and Mary. The ridicule of friends for this out of wedlock baby (or at least before the marriage ceremony), the terrible timing of a census that required a mother in her final days before birth to travel 80 miles, a four day journey, then there was no room for them in any establishment or home except for a cave stable filled with animals. How could this Christmas be merry? What made the difference? It was the child!! This baby changed everything.

Faith Hill's new song A Baby Changes Everything puts it like this:

A Baby Changes Everything
Teenage girl, much too young
Unprepared for what's to come
A baby changes everything

Not a ring
On her hand
All her dreams and all her plans
A baby changes everything (x2)

The man she loves she's never touched
How will she Keep his trust
A baby changes everything (x2)

And she cries, oh she cries

She has to leave, go far away
Heaven knows she can't stay
A baby changes everything

She can feel it's coming soon
There's no place, there's no room
A baby changes everything (x2)

And she cries and she cries O she cries

Shepherds own they got their ...
Star shines down...

Choir of Angels say
Glory to the newborn king
A baby changes everything (x2) everything, everything, every day
Hallelujah x4

My whole life is turned around
I was lost and now I'm found
A baby changes everything (x2)

The baby changed everything. Yes angels appeared, shepherds rejoiced, an old man and woman confirmed, and eventually wise men worshiped, but these were not the biggest changes. Times would still be tough, but God Himself in the form of this infant son, came into the world to save the world. The world would never be the same.

God wants our life to be changed because of this Christmas Child. I pray that you will come to the manger, to the cross, to the empty tomb, and your life will be changed forever. It is the only way to truly have a Merry Christmas!!

Legacy

2009-12-12T10:49:00.001-08:00

What will we leave for our children and grandchildren? So much of our time is spent getting by in this life, working, playing, sometimes just surviving, that we do not give much thought to our children and grandchildren. I am not thinking about material things but treasures much more valuable than cars, houses, or bank accounts.

King Hezekiah was one of the "good" kings of Judah but when it came time for him to die he prayed sincerely and sorrowfully to the Lord and the Lord, through Isaiah, granted him 15 more years. He wrote a wonderful poem of praise to the Lord, which declared his thanks for the Lord's pardon. Soon he had visitors from a distant country named Babylon and he proudly displayed all the wealth and treasures of the kingdom. Isaiah, by God's instructions, visited him again and declared that it is this nation that would come and enslave Judah, make eunuchs of his sons, and carry away all those treasures during his children's time. Hezekiah's statement is revealing, "At least there will be peace and security during my lifetime." The scripture records no sign of sorrow for his sin of pride or heartfelt cries to save the nation as he had done for his own life.

After reading his response, I returned to read his poem again. It is a beautiful poem but it is also rather self-focused. His display of all the treasures is another indication of his self-pride. And, to top it off, his lack of concern for anyone that was coming after him shows him to be a very narcissistic person.

So in our world today our government is not concerned about the debt that they leave to future generations only about the short-term political or ideological goals that will ensure that they are pleasing the entitlement society we now are building. It is not just the government with this problem, we as individuals can be so caught up in personal "peace and security" that we care too little about leaving a godly legacy to our children and grandchildren. We can live so much for ourselves that we fail to prepare them to live a good life after us.

Recent statistics point out that ours is the first generation in a long time that believe that our children will not have a better life than we do. Is it because we are too focused on what we can get instead of what we will leave? What will be our legacy? Are we "training up our child in the way he should go?"

Ignoring Christmas

2009-12-10T14:04:00.001-08:00

Ignoring Christmas, are you kidding? How would that be possible? The stores started assembling their elaborate Christmas displays in mid-October well before Halloween. It is a tradition in my family to wait until the day after thanksgiving to get all the decorations down and the tree up. Some wise people have been purchasing gifts all year long in anticipation of Christmas morning. Then there are those Christmas parties and the anticipation of spending the holidays with family and friends. With all this activity it is impossible to ignore Christmas.

Maybe that is exactly the problem. We are so busy getting ready for Christmas and cleaning up after Christmas that the true significance of Christmas can be ignored or missed entirely. Perhaps we need to learn the lesson that Dr. Seuss writes about in the Christmas classic, "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas."

And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow,

Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?

It came without ribbons! It came without tags!

"It came without packages, boxes or bags!"

And he puzzled three hours, `till his puzzler was sore.

Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!

"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.

"Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!"

Christ is what Christmas is about. The more we ignore that the greater chance that we will miss Christmas. The more we recognize Christ and His gift of eternal life the more Christmas will mean to us. Though I love the tinsel and decorations, the family and friends gatherings, the opportunity to show my love to my loved ones by giving a small token gift, and the small traditions that make this such a blessed time of year, I fully realize that Christmas in it's true significance, can be experienced without any of those things. Christmas is about Immanuel, God with us. So really everyday ought to be Christmas in the believer's heart. May you have a great Christmas season, and may you have the joy of having Christ within you all the days of this new year!!

Walking The Talk.

2009-12-07T14:19:00.000-08:00

Hollywood and Christians are often at odds. It was good to read an Associated Press story this week about actress Sandra Bullock who expressed her appreciation for meeting Leigh Anne Tuohy and seeing her walk the talk of Christianity. Sandra Bullock plays Leigh Anne in the recent block buster movie, "The Blind Side." In preparing for the part she spent a lot of time with Mrs. Tuohy.

The movie depicts a Christian family who adopts a young homeless African American teenager into their home. They supported him through many challenges and later adopted him into their family. Michael Oher, the young man, finished high school, was outstanding in college, and was a first round draft pick for the NFL's Baltimore Ravens.

The Touhys attend Grace Evangelical Church in Mephis and according to Ms Bullock the family allowed her to have “faith in those who say they represent a faith.” “[Mrs. Tuohy] was so open and honest and forthright,” Ms. Bullock said, “and I said, wow, I finally met someone who practices but doesn’t preach.”

Ms. Bullock said she had met other Christians who promoted their faith but did not live a lifestyle that matched it. She stated that she became wary of Christians before she meet Leigh Ann Tuohy.

What this report says to me is that we are a witness for Christ or against Him. The way we live our lives either validates the truth we believe or makes the words invalid by the very actions and attitudes we exhibit. We will fail to carry out the great commision of our Lord if we do not match words with walk.

Many times the problem is not doing things that we should not do (keeping God's proabition laws) but it is in not doing what we should do. Responding to anger with kindness, keeping our own anger under control, displaying the fruits of the Spirit, taking care of the helpless and "to do what is right, to love mercy and to walk humbly before our Lord." (Micah 6:8). When we begin to live this kind of life we will begin to change minds about Christians being narrow-minded, bigoted, judgmental and hypocritical.

Revenge

2009-12-01T22:33:00.000-08:00

You can't live life for long before you are hurt by someone and the thought of getting even comes to mind. Revenge is a natural response but not a Christian response.

"Bless those who curse you...pray that God will bless them...Never pay back evil with evil...never take revenge, leave that to the righteous anger of God...I will take revenge, I will pay them back, says the Lord. Instead if your enemies are hungry, feed them, if thirsty, give them something to drink...Conquer evil by doing good." Romans 12- selected portions.

Revenge is in God's hands because only He is righteous enough to judge fairly the motives of the heart. He will act so we do not need to. We are charged with showing kindness to our enemies and leaving the rest to God. We will be hurt or offended but we are not to respond with equal treatment. While we may be able to keep from taking revenge God expects more. We are to pray that God will bless the people who hurt us. Now I can understand praying that God would get them but not bless them. That is not really possible without God's help.

I have tried to live by this principle and found that it is impossible to continue to be angry with someone when I am praying that God will bless them. I pray that God will help each of us to go the extra mile and pray for "those who spitefully use you."

Blessings

2009-11-30T20:03:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving has come and gone and I wonder just how thankful I have been. God reminded me in my quite time that I am truly blessed and my troubles are few in comparison.

Zach. 9:12b "I will repay two blessings for every one of your troubles."

Everyone will have troubles. You are either going into a valley of trouble or climbing out of one. These scattered Jewish people had their share. Many troubles have been of our own making or a result of our mistakes and sins. God is faithful to His own but also righteous. He will not punish us forever or allow us to be forever tormented. There will be a time when we will have two blessings for every trouble. Realistically we are already doubly blessed but we just don't recognize it.

Thank you God for all your blessings. Blessings that I do not deserve but deeply appreciate.

Pastor Albert

Test.

2008-07-17T08:35:00.000-07:00

This is a test of Pastor's Blog for BBC.