Stephen's rebuttal

I have studied this passage many times over and every time I come back to one group of verses. I have looked over and over at the life of Stephen, his martyrdom, his faith and his confidence in his faith. Every time there are a few things that jump out.
This Sunday we are finishing up the 6th chapter of Acts and it revolves around Stephen's arrest. People started a rumor about him that was not anywhere close to true. They tried to go head to head with him and couldn't, they tried to attack him both publically and privately but it says they were no match for him. So they started spreading nasty rumors about him. They said that he had spoken blasphemy against the temple(which was an attack to get the law following Jews involved), and against Moses(which was to get the "Freedmen" group involved as they were direct decendants of those who were in the wilderness lead by Moses) and they got their way. They got him arrested and now he had to defend himself. But he didn't immediately.
Have you ever had something spread about you that wasn't anywhere close to true. People take either your words or your actions and spin them around taking everything out of context so that you look terrible. They do it on purpose maybe to try to ruin you in some way, how do you handle it. It's tough I'll admit being in that situation, and if confronted by a group of people who don't know the truth and are only questioning you based on what you have heard it is angering. It gives you a sour feeling in your gut and an anger burning inside your head for sure. You immediately want to cut them off as they say those things and defend yourself. You want to let them know how angry it makes you that they would even believe such a thing. You are so full of rage, and hurt that these things are even being questioned.
In ACts chapter 6, verse 15 we read: All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.
His direct reaction to hearing these things, which I am sure he knew were being spread, I'm sure he had spent nights questioning why these things were being said, and thinking of what the best way to respond would be. I'm sure these things enraged him to the fullest, yet it says as they stared him down. As they gave him a look as if they were disgusted with him, his face was like the face of an angel.
What? That's it, one of the guys who is doing the most for the church in this setting, the one everyone refers to as "full of the SPirit" and "of full faith" is going to sit there and look like an angel? How very dissappointing. Well, truth is he does let them know what the truth is, but he does so lovingly, and as if the Sanhedrin were the ones on trial and not himself.
So next time you're feeling like you are under attack, by rumors and gossiping that just aren't true at all think about Stephen. While people are attacking you your body language and your face tell them if they are winning or not. If you are angry looking and sour in the face, they've won. But, if you are smiling and look like you have no argument in you, with the face of an angel they'll be discouraged and they will notice it as they are speaking to you.
So follow Stephen's example and be the face of an angel to those who are attacking you with things that are not true.
Thanks for reading and have an awesome weekend!

Using your talents

Last night in youth we studied the parable of the talents. We looked at what that parable meant then, and what it means now to teenagers who don't necessarily have any money but have lots of giftedness in God.
IT's interesting if you tie that group of verses in with God's conversation with Moses. When God told Moses to go tell the Pharaoh to let His people go Moses came back with a slew of reasons why he couldn't do it. Why he was not the man for that job, and why he didn't think he was the man for that job. Instead, God replied with "What is in your hand." God wanted Moses to realize, and wants us to realize that we need to focus on what we have, and not on what we don't have. We can't use any of our gifts that He has given us if we focus on the ones we don't have.
The parable of the talents shows us how to view God and His gifts to us. One man got 5 talents and doubled it, another got 2 talents and doubled it. Those two men got the exact same reward. So it doesn't matter what our giftedness is, it's what we do with what we possess that matters to God. The man who received one talent buried it, hid it and then dug it up when his master returned. We do this, we take and bury our gifts from God, we put them away and then call on them when He needs them. We should be out making them grow, making them multiply like the first two, then and only then will God be pleased with our work.
We must focus on what we have and not what we lack. We as believers need to focus on using all that God has given us to further His kingdom, so that we too can hear Well done good and faithful servant, you were faithful with little, now share in my happiness.
I found this story in my studies a few weeks ago getting ready for last night's lesson. It's about a young mother who was born with one leg and no hands. The local authorities had decided that she could not care for her newborn baby. Then, some of her family took her to court and it was there in teh courtroom that the baby started crying. She gently lifted the baby, caressed it until it relaxed and then changed it's diaper right there in front of a courtroom full of people, redressed the baby and then sat there nurturing it. The judge later ruled that in that very moment, he made up his mind to allow the mother to keep custody. You see it wasn't what she was lacking that mattered, it was what she possessed that would help that baby grow.
So use your gifts, make them multiply and focus on all that God has given you to be proud of. Then you will begin to see the world through His eyes.
Thanks for reading and have a great day!

Let the light shine!

Have you ever gotten up in the morning, or sat down to lunch, or even sat down in the evening with God and had an amazingly moving experience? Can you remember those times of oneness with Him, when you feel as though you're floating in the air and no longer grounded? I have those and I can say there is no greater feeling than sharing those moments with others.
John 12:35 says, "Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you....."
It's important that those moments whether they come during a morning quiet time, an afternoon devotion or even during worship at church that we share them. It does us no good to have these moving experiences from God and not share with others.
I went to Tara's school on Sunday afternoon for their open house. I ran into several people that spoke to me, but looked at me strangely. One guy who knows Tara well, and me fairly well told Tara he didn't even recognize me. Monday, I returned to the school to drop P.J. off and he stopped and talked to me. He admitted that he is struggling to lose weight and that he was jealous of me and what I had accomplished. I told him it had not been that easy, but that I had just watched very closely my carb and sugar intake and the pounds had slowly melted away.
This brings up 2 questions that go right along with our faith.
1. Why did he want to know about my diet? Because he could see the results, they are positive results that are out in plain sight. Not just something that got cooked up and then kind of set aside. Is your faith in plain sight? Is it out there where people see the light? Or are you just keeping it to yourself so that darkness seemingly surrounds you?
2. Why was he jealous? Because he saw the results and he wanted the same results for himself. Again I ask you, do people want what you have with God? Do you show what your personal relationship with Christ means so strongly that others are jealous and want that for themselves? I hope so.
So make sure your walk is out loud, that people see what an awesome thing we have in a personal relationship with Christ, and they want it.Make them really want it for themselves by the way you carry yourself and share it with others.
Thanks for reading and have an awesome "HUMP DAY!"

Constant renewal

So the past few Sundays it has seemed that we have been having some air conditioning issues at the church, especially in the sanctuary area. Each Sunday I get to the church around 8:45 and crank up the air conditioning in the youth house, sunday school classroom and the sanctuary. Usually the sanctuary is somewhat cool by the time we get ready for worship at 11:00, but not lately. Lately it seems that it cools to a certain point and then it just stops being efficient. So I called one of my close friends who works on air conditioners for a living. He asked me to describe my problem and I did, he asked me if it had just started over the past 3 weeks or so and I said yes. He said there was so much humidity lately that they were having that same problem with several of their customers. He talked to me for a while and suggested that the problem is that in 2-3 hours the air conditioning units in the church don't stand a chance of cooling the building and fighting off all of the humidity. That we were far better off, and money ahead if we go ahead and leave the units running through out the week. He said if we set the air a little big higher than we want it through out the week and then turn it down on Sunday the results would be much better.
How is that like our walk with God? Sometimes we sit the whole week through stagnating, and losing ground only to show up on Sunday hoping to make it all up. We come into worship expecting in one hour to be able not just to get an uplifting, spirit filled time with God but also wanting to undo all of the things that have happened to cause this need. We need to focus on God each day. Start out each day with prayer and reading a devotion of some sort, during this time let God know that you want to give Him your thoughts and your actions for that day. Then, when we show up for worship on Sunday it simply re-inforces and strengthens what we've done all week long. Sunday morning worship is meant to complement your week and walk with Christ, not to supplement what you didn't do all week with God.
Romans 12:1-2 states, - Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual Or reasonable act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will.
We cannot offer ourselves as living sacrifices until we learn to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. We cannot renew our minds without daily contact with God. Without His help, and His guidance and direction we are defenseless in our endeavors to keep our lives where they need to be on a daily basis, so that Sunday does not become a frantic time of trying to get ourselves right, we should stay right all week and be uplifted by Sunday worship!
Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Poor in spirit

Yesterday I talked about the importance of the servant's heart. The fact that if a person is "filled with the Spirit" which is the #1 qualification the apostles were looking for in a helper. In the 6th chapter of Acts the church had outgrown the apostles' capabilities of serving and meeting all of the needs of its members. They were experiencing their first administrative problem. Anyone who has been a part of a growing church knows that they come regardless of how prepared you are for them.
THe apostles put together a team, and looked for people who were full of the spirit and they had to exemplify a servant's heart. That is something that cannot be taught. You can teach someone to preach, teach sunday school, usher, do visitation and the like, but you cannot teach a person to have a spirit filled heart.
In Matthew 5 Jesus says, "blessed are the poor in Spirit." What does this mean, and how does it tie to the passage in Acts 6? The bottom line is we must start putting the needs of others ahead of our own. To have a spirit filled heart, and to be poor in Spirit doesn't mean we think less of ourselves. It actually means we think of ourselves less.
Oswald Chambers states, "The true character of the loveliness that speaks for God is always unnoticed by the one possessing that quality. It means that these things come automatic, and unnoticed by the person who possesses the qualities.
In John 7:38 Jesus says, "He who believes in Me, outof his heart will flow rivers of living water." We will experience these rivers of flowing water, living water when and only when we are completely in tune with God. It's when we start focusing on the water flowing out that we become prideful and un-Christlike.
So focus on God, seeking His favor and all of these other qualities will fall into place. Even when the blessing start flowing and we realize we are making a difference we must focus even harder on Him so we don't get puffed up.
Thanks for reading and have a great day!

God's integrity

We talked a few weeks back about humility and how God sees it completely differently from us. Well, integrity works the same way. There are a lot of people whom we know well that are seemingly full of integrity, in their walk and in their lifestyles. But, does GOd really see them as people full of integrity? The problem with that question is teh fact that God knows all and sees all.
Have I lied to anyone or deceived anyone? LEt God judge me on the scales of justice, for he knows my integrity. Job 31:5-6
God knows your integrity. In Psalms David asks God to , Search me oh God and know my thoughts. It's one thing to acknowledge that God knows our thoughts, it's different altogether to ask Him to search my thoughts. I can think of a lot of times that I would not want anyone to know exactly what I am thinking. The thoughts that come to mind at times in the heat of the moment, the temptations that feed on our anger or unhappiness. But, I know I wouldn't actually want God to search those thoughts. But, I know He already knows them.
So God can see everything, and know everything, Got it! Now let's think about the motives. God sees right down to the heart, you know the motive of your actions. We walk into church and see people doing great things for the church, for God and to assist in the Gospel. God sees many times people trying to outdo those around them, people trying to do good to cover up all the bad they've done in recent days. Many times God gets to see people doing good expecting Him to bless them in return.These are all attitudes that we take in serving Him on a regular basis.
When you get right down to it, there are times in my life that we don't have the money to tithe and to pay all of our bills. So guess what, I tell Tara to go ahead and tithe the full amount and that God will take care of us. Am I really giving? Are we really giving that money to God if we are expecting GOd to take care of us? I don't feel like it.
So understand two things: First, what you do in private on earth is an open show for God. Second, the way you do things is all that GOd sees, motive is the drive behind your actions in God's book. So do things for God, to please God and for no other reason.
Have a great day and try to stay dry!

More to that story

So we talked yesterday about Gamaliel's comments about thing being God-driven. Today I want to look a little bit at things being driven for God.
I was a young, easily energized man looking for a way to get plugged in. I wanted badly to get involved in the ministry at my local church. I knew I had been called by God into the ministry, I was just waiting for Him to find that place to plug me in. Well, it happened in the very church I was teaching. It started out with an opportunity to teach Sunday School and then a chance to start leading the youth group on Wednesday nights. I was pumped to say the least. Well, I showed up to teach Sunday School and there were only about 4 kids there. I got ready to start doing Wednesday nights and we started with about 6. So here I was planning these lessons, getting games arranged and everything in place only to show up for a handful of kids. I was frustrated and noticeably down about it. I was lucky enough to have been close to Rev. Armando Silverio, whom had started several churches. He taught me about a revelation and breakthrough he had in his early ministry days. He had several children and others from the neighborhood who would come to dinner with his kids each evening. He set up to cook a big meal, he got all the food ready, his wife was getting the table ready and his son came in with news that his 2 friends from next door weren't coming to dinner. Then, his neighbor called and said his family couldn't make it to dinner. So there they were, Him, his wife, and his 2 sons eating a meal prepared for about 12. He said they sat down and ate, and they ate good like nothing had changed and that is how we must approach ministry. You can prepare for whoever you want, but you must feed the people who show up. From that point on I have been a changed person. He shared a verse with me in 1 Corinthians 10:31.
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
That verse is very meaningful for us as we plan our lives, we need to plan them to work for God, to serve for God, and to be with God and no one else.
So if I plan a sermon for 50 people and only have 15 show up I am going to be disappointed on my fleshly side. But, if I plan a sermon for God, then 15, 50 or 500 I am going to have accomplished my task for that day. When you plan things and you have a chance to serve for God, do it for Him and Him alone and it will make the experience a blessing for you and for those involved. Every time we put a value on what we are doing other than God's Glory then we will never get full value for that experience.So do it for GOd, and let everyone who wants to be a part of it do so with no expectations.
Have a great day and thanks for reading!

If it's of man, it will surely fail!

Just last week we talked about making decisions based on God and not flesh. Then, we talked about how to stop using our flesh to reach people and using our personal relationship with Christ. Well, just yesterday I finished up the 5th chapter of Acts in our sermon series on Acts. We looked at the words of a Pharisee, which should be extremely meaningful to us as believers.

When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death. But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law,who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. Then he addressed them: "Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God."

How much more perfectly could he have chosen his words? First, he lists two men who had come along and caused them trouble. Each of them had a large following and seemed to be prospering, but what they were doing was apparently fleshly and not of God. Gamaliel noticed this and basically said, "If what they are doing is not of GOd they will destroy themselves, but if it is of God we will never be able to stop them."
Fighting against God is how he put it, he was afraid they were actually doing everything and personally driven by God through the Holy Spirit and he was smart enough to recognize that there would be no wait to stop them.
So, if you are doing GOd's will for your life, if you are setting aside flesh and pressing on toward a life that is pleasing God and not man, there is no need to worry. You will prevail every time through tests and trials because God is at the center of what you are doing. The key ingredient however, is the Holy Spirit and His work in and through you, you are just a small piece of the puzzle.
Thanks for reading, and keep on doing what GOd calls you to do no matter what the price!

Bye, bye flesh

I used to do a children's sermon illustration that I saw at a camp one time. You take a big clear jar and fill it with large rocks. Then you ask if the jar is full. Sometimes you get a yes if you pack the rocks to the very top. But, you then take much smaller rocks and dump them in, and if done right the smaller rocks will sink through the large ones and settle through out the jar. Then you ask again if the jar is full. After which you take sand and dump it into the jar, the sand will fill in around the rocks and settle through out the jar. You ask now if it is full, and you'll get a yes almost every time. But, if you make sure you don't pack the sand, and rocks in there too tightly you can now dump water in there. That's what this verse in Colossians is saying.
I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill u in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ. Colossians 1:24
We should rejoice in our sufferings, especially when those sufferings involve our personal testimony. As believers in Christ we grow and grow closer to Christ. We fill ouselves with the Word of God, we attempt to fill ourselves with good things, but there are sufferiings that must come with that. It's when we think we are completely full that the sufferings usually come too. That's the water, it's when the Holy Spirit is made most real through our lives, our sufferings, that we actually become full. But we must be careful how we use the Spirit.
People will be drawn to us in many ways in life. Many people are drawn to us because of material things, wealth and power. Many will be drawn to us because of our appearances or actions. Many more still, will be drawn to us through our personalities. You personality is many times your greatest draw to friends. We must be careful, as believers Christ is calling us to be a draw because we are full of Him and the Holy Spirit. We need to fill up, with Christ, and that will automatically keep us from being full of ourselves which is easy to do. We all know someone who is full of themself, they think everything they do is going to come out smelling like roses, those are fleshly people.
God is calling me to re-evaluate myself every day so that I make certain that no one is drawn to me because of my flesh or my personality. THey should be drawn to me because of the Spirit of God permeating out of me in all that I do and say. So think about those friends that you are trying to reach with the Gospel. What means are you using? Don't use anything fleshly and you will see great results, the moment you pray that people will feel His presence in their time with you. That is my heart's desire, for people to feel like they are in the presence of someone amazingly close to CHrist when they are with me, that they will see me not as Jeff Gatlin, but as one of God's messengers.
So check your flesh, keep it in check, and have an awesome weekend!

The big decision

We've discussed making Jesus happy, bringing Him joy through our actions. Today, I want to focus a little bit more on the tail half of the verse I shared yesterday.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7).
Paul first tells us not to be anxious, but to use prayer and petition to God with thanksgiving for all that you already have. Then comes the big one, and the peace of God, it's not peace like the quiet in my house when my family is on vacation. It's not the peace that means not a time of war for our country, it's God's peace.
I have experienced God's peace numerous times, but I can recall it 2 times in my life where it didn't make sense.
FIrst, I was about 21 years old, I had been working in construction for about a year and a half and I was finally making good money. I was about to pay off my truck, Tara and I had been dating for a few years and we were both finishing up our AA degrees at St. Johns. Everything was making sense, I was still living at home, she was living at home and then we decided to get married. We got married and about a year and a half later we had Alexa. It was then that I got a little anxious about our bills and thinking about having another person to provide for. It was also then that God gave me peace in a decision that had been on my heart. God gave me peace to quit my construction job and go to work at the church for half of what I was making at the time. I did it and never looked back. We lived on student loans and credit cards for groceries and such for about 4 years, but we never doubted for a second we were doing what we should be doing, because we had His peace!
There was also a time in my life where I had been working for about 8 years in an environment that was growing more and more emotionally draining. I was emotionally and mentally beaten up for about 2 years and just completely drained. I got a raise and we were finally making enough money to pay off some of our prior debt and get rid of my truck that was running on about half the required cyllinders. Things were looking up in all areas except for getting beat up almost weekly by attacks on the leadership and within. I was praying what I should do and I knew I needed to get out but the anxiety of not being able to pay our bills kept me there, in complete unhappiness. Then, a few things transpired and sitting in the living room, my eyes closed about 5 minutes after having read my Bible and prayed God lifted the burden off of me and Tara and I decided to move on. It was His peace that got me through that time, I had not had it in the past. I was offered about 4 jobs inside of a week after giving the notice that I was going to leave. Some way too good to be true, but none of them gave me God's peace. I went to work again for less than half of what i had been making before, less than I had started with in the ministry some 9 years prior. But I am telling you all this to say, that God's peace is all it takes. Bills, stress, anxiety, friendships, and relationships they all fade away the very moment you get God's peace about your decisions in life.
So turn it over to God, allow Him to lift your burdens and make your decisions for you. When it's His decision, you will be right every time!
Have a great day!

Another way to bring Him Joy!

Another way we bring joy to Jesus is when we let Him make our decisions. I have a bad habit of letting other people decide things. If I surround myself with Godly people and I can't decide one way or the other I will simply let them decide. Most of the time it is smaller decisions but other times it is somewhat large ones. The key to what I just stated is that I only do that when I am surrounded by Godly people.
People who are seeking after God and His will. I will never question what someone else is doing in the work of the church if I know they are seeking after God's will and it isn't self-serving. Each of us have a unique relationship with our Creator and I respect that. God is moving in each of our lives in different ways, sometimes God is moving fast other times He's letting us remember to rely on Him. So He may be revealing His will to me slowly so that I will trust in Him and others, and He may be giving all the answers to another believer whom I trust in completely. All we want is His will, whether it's our idea or not, we want to serve Him completely.
So what if neither of these is working?
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7).
Don't get anxious is a big one, we get antsy the second we feel like something should be happening but isn't. Especially if we are looking for guidance. P.J., my youngest daughter, will call for you to help her with something. If you don't show up real soon she's going to start fighting with whatever it is. She gets anxious and that is exactly how we get toward God if we don't get immediate answers sometimes. Prayer and petition does not mean say one prayer and get the answer. It never does, it means presenting God with the question and waiting on Him in His timing to reveal His answer and His will for that particular situation.
The truth is when we are faced with a decision we make the choice right off the bat. Am I right? Tomorrow I want to talk about the second part of the verses we read in Philippians and talk about getting peace in the situation. Peace, God's peace is the most important ingredient in making big decisions.
Have a great day!

Bringing Joy to Jesus

So as a pastor now, and having been a youth pastor for many years I have a list of people who call on me a lot. The majority of them attend other churches or don't go to church at all, but when the chips are down and times are tough they tend to rely on me for comfort and guidance. There are a lot of people who I tend to rely on as well, but those who rely on me are special. Why would they be special to me? Why would it be so meaningful to me that they call on me when times are tough? It's simple, we as humans and especially as Christians are programmed to want to help people. There is no better time to help someone both spiritually and emotionally than when they are in a storm or crisis. I (in my own sick way) look forward to those times when I can be there for someone and bring a kind word of encouragement or a shoulder to someone in need.
THink of JEsus, how much joy it must bring to His heart that we call on Him. How much more joy it must bring Him when we are in the toughest of trials and the nastiest of all crisis in our own lives and we give it all to Him. He is calling on us to lift up our burdens and worst trials to Him so that He can bring us comfort. Not by mere words or actions, but by comforting our hearts and making them lighter.
In Matthew 8:26 he states, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?" He says this directly to his disciples who are fearful and they are falling back and relying on their own anxieties to get them through a tough time. Jesus sees in them what He often times sees in us. Believers who are going to let anxiety take over, and our own methods of coping be in control rather than Jesus.
So when you get full of anxiety, and start trying to control a situation that is clearly out of your control. Don't just fight, turn it over to God and let Jesus take the burdens for you. It won't just make you feel better, it will bring Him pure joy to know that in the face of fear, you called on Him making your faith complete in Him.
So don't let fear reign in your heart and don't let your faith be overshadowed by anxiety. Turn it over to Him, the only person who can take it off your heart, your Savior Jesus Christ.

He wants me to hate who?

The 14th chapter of Luke is so rich with things we need to do, and things we need to prioritize to be able to be used by God, truly used by Him. Jesus is setting up His followers to understand what it takes to be a true worker for God. A true, 100% approved disciple of His is completely in love with Him.
Think about your strongest relationship, what is it that makes that relationship so strong, so great, so different. More than likely it is because if the chips were down and a decision had to be made that would be the relationship that you chose to keep. If all else failed you would strive and work hard to keep that relationship intact. It may be your marriage, you either asked that person or said yes to that person to get married and in doing so you made the statement that they were going to mean more to you than any other relationship before them.
It's the same with Jesus, He fully expects to take the highest amount of relations with you. He expects all of our other relationships to simply be relationships that come second to Him.
In Luke 14:26 he says,"If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple."
So there it is, we cannot become His disciple until we fully understand His place in our lives. Your relationship with Jesus cannot just be another relationship. It can't be another friend you have that you spend time with. He has to be THE FRIEND that is more to you than anyone else, even your spouse, your parents, your children and friends.
Can you truly say that He is your all? Can you say that you can throw away all other relationships at the drop of a hat to remain one with Him? It's a tough thing to swallow, but once you put Him on top, I promise all of your other relationships become more pure and far more meaningful.
Have a great day and thanks for reading!

The bridge

The habits subject yesterday served as a great bridge between last week's sermon and this week's. Last week we saw Annanias and Saphira die, they were a part of the cleansing of the church from it's sin, the deadly sin of Hypocrisy. I don't believe anything can kill a church faster than hypocrisy, nothing. Pastors who stand behind a pulpit and preach that they love their congregation but are hard to get in touch with or talk to. Pastors who preach love but don't forgive those around them. Church members who act one way at church and a totally different way the rest of the week are all disgusting in the eyes of God.
There was a artist who was serving the king. He decided to do artwork on the side of a magnificent lighthouse structure for the king. He completed the artwork and there was a great celebration as it was dedicated in the king's name. The artist put the king's name accross the top in letters that were clear to be seen by the king. BUt, he covered his own name with those letters and did it in such a way that the first major storm that came along would wash off the king's name and leave the artist's name in plain view. He had given the king the glory for that one day, but from the first rain storm on the glory was his own. I think we are like that even on Sundays, we give God the glory but then let everyone know we were at church so that we are applauded by man.
THis week we are talking about shadows, the shadow that we leave is important to us. 2 Corinthians 3:2 says, "You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. What is that saying? It's saying that we are a letter, we are a part of God's work and our lives are read by everyone. Many people may never go to church or pick up the Bible, but I don't care who you are a lot of people are reading your life. They are looking to see what you are really like and those are the people outside of church, not the ones in your church families, but your neighbors, friends and co-workers. They are all reading your life's story on a daily basis.
The 5th chapter of Acts tells of people bringing the sick into the streets just hoping to get into the shadow of Peter. What does that say for him when people just want to stand in his shadow? How many people are in your shadow? Your silent testimony that is there wherever you are, and even more how many people even want to be in your shadow? I struggle with this daily, wanting my kids to have a godly example of how to live a life that is pleasing to God. Because P.J. and Alexa are in my shadow, not by choice but by the divine hand of God on our lives, God placed them in my lives, and blessed Tara and I with them, so what I do is of extreme importance to their future relationships with Christ.
So watch your life, your letter to the people around you and make sure it's in tune with God. Remember, the closer you grow to the Son, the larger your shadow will be!
Thanks for reading and have an awesome weekend!

Habits

Habits are strange things aren't they. You see many times what we call habits aren't really truly habits. Some are some aren't. Psychologist tell us that it takes 3 weeks to form a habit of daily practice. In other words, if you want to get in the habit of exercising on a daily basis you will have to make it a daily practice for 3 weeks before it truly becomes ingrained in you. 2 peter 1:8 says, "If these things are yours and abound, you will neither be barren nor unfruitful.
What this verse is saying is that if you develop good God-driven habits on a daily basis such as reading your Bible, praying through the day and listening to God in silence you will not live a life that is barren or unfruitful. That having been said what is a habit? What is the definition of a habit? Well Webster-Merriam puts it like this:

1 - manner of conducting oneself : bearing
bodily appearance or makeup
2 - the prevailing disposition or character of a person's thoughts and feelings : mental makeup
3 - a settled tendency or usual manner of behavior
4 - a behavior pattern acquired by frequent repetition or physiologic exposure that shows itself in regularity or increased facility of performance
an acquired mode of behavior that has become nearly or completely involuntary
Those are all of the different ways that the dictionary puts the word habit. All of which are pointing to the fact that it takes a lot of repitition for something to become a habit. So I ask you this, is talking to God on a daily basis and praying through your day a habit? Or do you think about needing to do it and then go and do it? Definition #4 lists it as a behavior pattern acquired by frequent repetition or phsyiologic exposure that shows itself in regularity. THat leads me to think that we need to be exposing ourselves to people who are performing the Christian disciplines as habits to enhance our habits.
The bottom line is we should be so intune to God that we automatically find ourselves in His presence through prayer and reading His word. It should not be a thought that occurs and it should not be an appointment we have and keep, it's a habit that happens completely subliminally as our minds become programmed by our hearts. It's a scary thing when we let that happen, instead for the most part we are letting our minds program our hearts into it and that is completely opposite of what God wants and needs from us. So create some good habits and watch them become real habits that don't need any reminders.
Have an awesome day!

Covenant Community

I want us to think for a minute, before I even get into my blog about Jesus. About the start of His earthly ministry. He started His earthly ministry by assembling the disciples. He didn't start off, reaching people, preaching and figure that God would send the people He needed. Or that "God will provide", no He went to people that were easily available to Him and put them to work. People who He knew were the right ones for the job. I believe that is exactly how God works today. He is providing and calling people to get involved not wanting for anyone to do ministry alone. Even in 1 Thesselonians we see We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ,to strengthen and encourage you in your faith,
The apostles at this time couldn't even meet all of the needs that were being hurled at them, they had to send someone who was equiped with all the goods to do some of the work that they couldn't at that time.
It's about building a covenant community, a community of believers who are working in the ministry, in a specific field of ministry and not only praying for the people they serve, but the people who are serving along with them. I long for the day that we have a group of about 10-15 adults working in youth ministry. Praying for each other after each youth meeting, greeting and having conversation with every teenager that comes through the door, and then discussing their conversations afterward with the other leaders. I want to see the same happen in children's ministry, in Sunday Schools for adults, after small groups and so on. It's about community in a group that is committed to the cause. Committed not to growth numerically but to prayer and meeting the needs of every person who comes through our doors at the church. The first need of every person is community, everyone needs someone at some point each week to listen to them, and hear them. Not necessarily offer advice or meet their physical needs, but just someone to be completely present with them if only for a few minutes each week.
These are just some of the things that God is revealing to me in my endeavors to reach our community for Christ. So if you feel like you want to be a part of this Covenant Community at Freedom make sure you let me know, if you don't let me know and God is calling you to be a part of it, I will find you anyway. So make it easy on both of us and give me a call today. Let's get this taken care of now so we can meet the needs of our community today!
Thanks for reading and have an awesome day!

New way to look

I have been working hard at coming up with a new way to look at people from a ministry perspective. I think it clicked late last week and on into this week. I know most all of us as believers see life in certain ways. There is one perspective that people state all the time and that is that you may be the only Jesus some people ever see. In other words, many people may never step foot into a church, read the Bible or listen to a sermon, but they can be exposed to Jesus through you and your relationship with Him. This is an awesome view to have and a great way to see the ministry, but. Let's go ahead and kick it up a notch!
What if we taught people to view the world through Jesus' eyes. What if we saw people the way He really wants us to see them. Look at His words.
In Matthew 25:40 Jesus stated, "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me."
This verse for whatever reason has been really weighing heavy on my heart lately. What if we sat at the door on Sunday morning, or on Wednesday night and we waited impatiently for each person to come through the door. What if we were waiting to catch a glimpse of Jesus in them?
This view is especially important to youth and children's ministry. Imagine a kid who is having a rough home life, doesn't do that well at school and isn't feeling good about themself. Then, they come to youth on Wednesday night and every single adult and college student has a conversation with them. Not just a greeting, but a conversation. If we had this view of looking for a glimpse of JEsus in everyone it would look just like that inside our youth ministries. This is where I am headed with things. Our numbers are not that overpowering yet, to where we can't pull this off with the greatest of ease. The most important part of this is being completely there in the conversation. They have to feel like they are the most important person in the room at that very moment. They will walk away with great impressions of having been in the presence of people who really care!
So practice looking for Jesus in the people you encounter at work. Practice being truly present when they are talking to you, and make sure they know no matter how busy you are they are the most important thing in that room to you right at that moment!
Have a great day!

Time Management

Peter Drucker was a time management consultant for successful businessmen in the mid 1900's. He had a system for helping businessmen control their time usage and take control of their lives which can seem an impossible task at times. THis is what he said:
"First, do not start with the task. Start with your time. Determine where your time is going. Then, attempt to manage that time and cut back unproductive demands on your time. Consolidate your 'discretionary' time into the largest possible continuing time units.
Drucker refers to the second step as time management. After listing the activities to which we devote our time, he suggests that we ask three questions about each of these activities to help us minimize the amount of time we waste: "What would happen if this were not done at all?" And if the answer is, 'Nothing would happen,' then obviously the conclusion is to stop doing it. Next, which of the activities on my time log could be done by somebody else just as well, if not better? What do I do that wastes my time without contributing to my effectiveness?*
Drucker closes by saying 'Know Thyself,' this old prescription for wisdom is impossibly difficult for mortal men. But everyone can follow the injunction 'Know Thy Time' if you want to, and be well on the road toward contribution and effectiveness."

David said this in Psalms, Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life" (Ps 39:4).
I am one to struggle from time to time with managing my own life. A lot of people say that they are amazed that I have such good control over my time but in reality I feel like it is spiraling out of my grasp every day, all day long. Never before have I had so many people demanding so much of my time as I do now.
Drucker's theories are good ones, but I learned a little trick in college. A teacher of a college success class taught us to take back our time by writing down our time. You pick out a week, and for that whole week you track what you do each hour of the day for the whole week (5 days will do, you don't need to keep up on the weekend unless you absolutely want to). At the end of the week you add up the time spent in certain areas for that week and then you decide what's important and what could have more time, what could have less time. Regardless, I still do this about 2 times a year and every time I find myself cutting out a little bit here and there to find more time for my family. It's a great way to test yourself regularly. So keep in check, figure out just how "fleeting your life is" and how much better it could be.

Have a great day!