"Why You Will Join the Wrong Church"

Janice Backer shared an article with me that has an unusual title: "Why You Will Join the Wrong Church". The article is written by Sam Emadi, a member of Third Avenue Baptist Church in Louisville, KY and published by the 9Marks Ministry. The article discusses the importance of seeing church membership in the context of a covenant relationship. 
In the introduction, Emadi writes: 

Almost every Christian knows what it’s like to question whether they joined the “right church.” After an initial “honeymoon stage,” we begin to see our church’s problems with greater clarity than we see its strengths. The sermons start to seem too intellectual, or not intellectual enough. The church begins budgeting for ministries that don’t seem deserving of the dollar figure on the spreadsheet. The small groups don’t meet our needs in the ways we’d hoped. 

More personally, the needs of other church members begin to encroach increasingly on our own personal freedoms. Some members sin against us—even without knowing just how deeply we’ve been wounded. Without even realizing it’s happening, we begin to wonder whether our local assembly is the “right” place for us. Of course, we remind ourselves that there’s no such thing as a perfect church—something we’ve even told our fellow church members. And yet, we can’t help but grapple with the nagging question: “Did I join the wrong church?”

He goes on to say: 

The problem with this question is that it assumes church life shouldn’t be hard. It assumes the “honeymoon stage” should continue in perpetuity or that something has gone awry if we experience significant disappointment or hurt from our relationships with other members or the church’s leadership. 

But these assumptions reveal a deep and unthinking commitment to consumerism: only if the perks of membership outweigh its inconveniences will we think it’s worth it to stick it out. Regrettably, many Christians seem trapped in a perpetual cycle of this type of cost-benefit analysis.

Emadi then offers a different perspective on belonging to a church, that of a covenant relationship, compared to the biblical understanding of covenant marriage. It is an excellent article. I encourage you to take a few minutes and read the full article here.  

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Prayer: Trust God's Timing and His Answer

And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him,and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John." Luke 1:12-13

 A couple of weeks ago I was preaching on "Christmas Fear" and looking at some of the Christmas story characters from the Scriptures. I read the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth, the elderly parents of John the Baptist. Zechariah was serving as a priest in the Temple when an angel appeared to him to tell him he would soon be a father. Naturally Zechariah was troubled and the angel assured him, saying:  

“Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John." (Luke 1:13) What caught my attention was the phrase, "for your prayer has been heard." My first thought was, "What prayer?" 

Scripture doesn't record Zechariah's prayer for us, but the context of the Scripture indicates that he had been praying for a child, particularly a son. We also don't know how long he had been praying for a child, but he was an older man when this happened, so we can assume he had been praying this prayer for many years. 

What would have happened in the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth if God had answered their request for a baby immediately? What if God had said "Yes" earlier in their lives? They would have gotten a sweet little baby that they would have loved and cherished. But God delayed the request for a number of years, and then when He answered, He gave them John the Baptist, the cousin of Jesus Christ, the only prophet to see the prophecies of Jesus fulfilled, and the forerunner of the Messiah.

Sometimes God doesn't answer our prayers when we pray them, because He has something better in mind. He has a bigger plan and purpose and He can see the end from the beginning. If God had answered some of my prayers exactly as I’d asked them, I would have gotten shortchanged. His answers were much greater than my requests. 

This is a great reason to keep praying, and not give up. God has something better in mind for us, we just have to trust Him with the outcome of our prayers, and trust His timing. 

Movement, Monument, Mausoleum

Ray Ortlund is the lead pastor of Immanuel Church in Nashville, TN and a board member of The Gospel Coalition ministry. He wrote and excellent article about the stages many churches are going through in our culture. Powerful and important words...

Some years ago a friend of mine used these three simple categories to objectify the sequential stages of a church’s rise and fall.

Movement

A healthy church is born as a burst of positive gospel energy. It’s a Pentecost-like explosion of joy, a vital gospel movement. Such a church has a sense of mission, even a sense of destiny. It’s exciting to be in this church. Think of a steep upward trajectory.

Monument

Given human weakness, after a time, this movement becomes a monument. The spirit of the church changes from hunger to self-satisfaction, from eagerness to routine, from daring new steps of faith to maintaining the status quo, from outward to ingrown. It’s easy not to notice this shift. The self-image of the church might still be that of a vital movement. But deep within, everything has changed. Think of leveling off.

Mausoleum

If the trend toward mediocrity is not arrested, the church will decline and become a mausoleum, a place of death. The church as an institution may have enough social momentum and financial resources to keep churning on. But as a force for newness of life, it no longer counts. Think of steep decline—indeed, a death spiral.

The responsibility of a church’s leaders is to discern when their movement is starting to level off as a monument. It is at this crucial point that they must face themselves honestly and discover why they have lost their edge, go into repentance and return to the costly commitments that made them great to begin with. They may need to deconstruct much of what they have become, which is painful and embarrassing. But if the leaders will have the humility, clarity, and courage to do this, their church will go into renewal and re-launch as a movement once more. Jesus will become real again, people will be helped again, and those bold, humble leaders will never regret the price they paid.

“Remember from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.”  Revelation 2:5

Ray Ortland, The Gospel Coalition. You can read the original article here.

Thankful for Fleas

I shared a little of this story in Pastor's Pals this past Sunday. Corrie ten Boom and her family were arrested by the Nazi's for hiding Jews in their home in Holland. She and her sister Betsie were imprisoned by the Nazi's at the notorious Ravensbruck concentration camp. She and Betsie, devout Christians had managed to smuggle a Bible into the camp, and secretly studied the word and prayed together. In her book The Hiding Place, Corrie tells how she came to realize that God was working even in the worst circumstances. 

The living conditions in the camp were pretty deplorable.Corrie writes:

"Barracks 8 was in the quarantine compound. Next to us--perhaps as a deliberate warning to newcomers--were located the punishment barracks. From there, all day long and often into the night, came the sounds of hell itself. They were not the sounds of anger, or of any human emotion, but of a cruelty altogether detached: blows landing in regular rhythm, screams keeping pace. We would stand in our ten-deep ranks with our hands trembling at our sides, longing to jam them against our ears, to make the sounds stop.   

"It grew harder and harder. Even within these four walls there was too much misery, too much seemingly pointless suffering. Every day something else failed to make sense, something else grew too heavy."

Yet, in the midst of the terrible conditions, the women found comfort in the little Bible studies they held in the barracks. Corrie writes they gathered around the Bible "like waifs clustered around a blazing fire…The blacker the night around us grew, the brighter and truer and more beautiful burned the Word of God." 

When they were moved to Barracks 28, Corrie was horrified. The barracks was packed beyond capacity and the straw covered bunks that they were forced to sleep on were infested with fleas. Corrie wondered how could they could possibly live in such a miserable place?

It was Betsie who discovered God's answer:

"'Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus." That's it, Corrie! That's His answer. 'Give thanks in all circumstances!' That's what we can do. We can start right now to thank God for every single thing about this new barracks!'   

"I stared at her; then around me at the dark, foul-aired room…" 

They thanked God for the fact they were together. They thanked God they had a Bible. They even thanked God for the horrible crowds of prisoners, that more people would be able to hear God's Word. 

And then, Betsie thanked God for the fleas.

"The fleas! This was too much. 'Betsie, there's no way even God can make me grateful for a flea.'"  

"'Give thanks in all circumstances,' she quoted. 'It doesn't say, 'in pleasant circumstances.'  Fleas are part of this place where God has put us."   

"And so we stood between tiers of bunks and gave thanks for fleas. But this time I was sure Betsie was wrong."

As it turned out that Betsie wasn't wrong; the fleas were a blessing after all. The guards were aware of the flea infestation in the barracks and refused to go in. The women were able to have Bible studies in the barracks with a great deal of freedom, never bothered by supervisors coming in and bother them. Through those fleas, God protected the women from abuse, harassment and even worse cruelty.  Dozens of desperate women were free to hear the comforting, hope-giving Word of God. 

We all have "fleas" in our lives. We all have things that are unpleasant, painful things that we want gone from our lives. But is often the "fleas", the unpleasant, difficult things in our lives that God uses to accomplish His purposes in our lives. Our greatest burdens may also contain our greatest blessings. As we celebrate Thanksgiving Day, lets thank God in all of our circumstances, and for the hidden blessings that often come disguised as "fleas."

Field of Stars, WWII Memorial

Praise the Lord, who is my rock. He trains my hands for war and gives my fingers skill for battle. He is my loving ally and my fortress, my tower of safety, my rescuer. He is my shield, and I take refuge in him. 
Psalms 144:1-2 (NLT)

Several years ago our family had the privilege of being in Washington, D.C. for a brief vacation. We were visiting the World War II Memorial for the first time. I'm a bit of a history nut and I've always been interested in World War II, and being in the Memorial for the first time was strangely emotional. The Memorial honors the 16 million who served and more than 400,000 American soldiers who died during the war. The engraved quotes from the political and military leaders are inspiring, but the Field of Stars representing the lives lost, is overwhelming.

While I was trying to absorb all of the Memorial, I noticed and older gentleman dressed in a military uniform and a younger woman with him taking in the sights of the Memorial. Something within me said, "Tell him 'Thank you.'" So I spoke to him and the woman, who was his daughter, and learned that he served in the Pacific Theatre during the war. I thanked him for his service and for protecting our freedoms. He chuckled a little and said, "Oh, I was just doing my job." He acted like it was no big deal. We talked a little longer and then shook hands and I walked away. A few minutes later his daughter came up to me and said, "I just want to thank you for what you did. You are the first person that has ever told my dad 'Thank You' for his service in the military. It really meant a lot to me for him to hear that." 

I was overcome with emotion but managed to hold back the tears until she walked away. I couldn't imagine all that he had gone through in the war, and then never have anyone to say "thank you." I was heartbroken, and determined to never let an opportunity pass to say thank you to the men and women who have served in our military.

We live in a great country; she's far from perfect and after watching about 5 minutes of national news, I sometimes worry where we are going to end up. But I'm incredibly grateful to live in America and experience the freedoms we have. I am also mindful that this country is great because of those who have given years of their lives to protect and serve through our military. This Veterans Day, I encourage you to make the effort to thank a veteran for their service.

Share the Word

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Romans 10:17

     Writer Robert Morgan tells the story of Dr. Doren Edwards, a surgeon in Franklin, Tennessee. Dr. Edwards is a devout Christian and is involved in the Gideons International. Several years ago he had a patient whose alcoholic husband had died. Her two children were giving her problems, finances were tight, and life was very hard. She wasn’t a Christian.

One day she came to see Dr. Edwards after she had been diagnosed cancer, with multiple organs involved. No treatment was available, and she was very bitter about it; life had been very hard and now she was dying. Dr. Edwards wanted to talk with her about the Lord, but she wouldn’t allow him to share his witness. She did, however, accept a small New Testament that he kept in his office.

 A few weeks later, Doctor Edwards learned from the newspaper obituary that she had died. He sent a card to the family, telling them he had donated Bibles in her memory to the Gideons. 

A few days later the woman’s daughter called Dr. Edwards. “Could you please send us a Bible like the ones you donated in memory of our mother,” she asked. “We don’t have a Bible in our home. The last six days she was alive, Mama's whole life changed. She was no longer bitter, she was at peace and she wasn’t afraid to die. She said something about knowing Jesus, but she asked that her Bible be buried in her hand, and we couldn’t keep it. Would you please send us a Bible so that we can find what Mama found in that book?” 

Dr. Edwards sent them all Bibles, and soon afterwards the daughter, the son, and one of the woman's sisters were saved as a result. 

There are many ways to share the Gospel: Bibles, cards, letters, text messages, personal testimony, etc. Think about a person you could give the gift of the Gospel to, and then do it.

Keep Your Eyes on the Shepherd

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." Psalm 91:1-2

When businessman Allan Emery was in the wool business, he once spent an evening with a shepherd on the Texas prairie. During the night, the long wail of coyotes pierced the air. The shepherd’s dogs growled and peered into the darkness. The sheep, which had been sleeping, lumbered to their feet, alarmed, bleating pitifully. The shepherd tossed more logs onto the fire, and the flames shot up. In the glow, Allen looked out and saw thousands of little lights. He realized those were reflections of the fire in the eyes of the sheep.

“In the midst of danger,” he observed, “the sheep were not looking out into the darkness but were keeping their eyes set in the direction of their safety, looking toward the shepherd. I couldn’t help but think of Hebrews 12:2: ‘looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. … ’ ”

Sometimes we get discouraged when we look around and see all our troubles surrounding us.  But this is no surprise to Jesus—when He sent out His twelve apostles, He even warned them: “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves” (Matthew 10:16).  The most important thing to do when danger approaches is to look at the Shepherd, not at the wolves.  God is your shelter, you can trust in Him.  You can rest in the shadow of your Savior!

 During your most difficult moments this week, be sure to look beyond your troubles to see the face of God, and trust Him!

Financial Issues of Replanting Churches

In May of this year we voted to replant our church and start over. In some ways we have become a new church (new name, new governing documents, new service times, etc.), but we still have some carry over from who we were, such as our church budget and expenses. Thankfully we do not have any debt as a church, but we do have operating expenses. We have experienced some initial decline in our attendance, and in our giving. This isn't unusual for a church going through a replant. Struggling finances are typically and issue for any church, but are magnified for churches going through change.

Recently Thom Rainer, president of Lifeway Christian Resources and Mark Clifton, Director of the Replant Division of the North American Mission Board began to offer a podcast called "Revitalize and Replant." Through these podcasts they discuss issues facing churches that are in the process of revitalizing or replanting. One of the podcasts this week dealt with the issues of finances in a replanting church. You can listen to the podcast here. After listening, feel free to leave questions or comments in the comment section below.

Never Give Up... Never Surrender

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.  Galatians 6:9

The sermon this past Sunday was on the spiritual gift of leadership/administration, one of the practical gifts God gives to His people and His church. I never score high on leadership on the spiritual gifts assessment, which sometimes befuddles me because God has put me in a 'leadership" position in the church. As I shared Sunday, I often wonder why God called me to pastor, but didn't gift me with the gift of leadership. Oh well, His ways and thoughts are higher than mine, so I trust He knows what He is doing ☺

He has created in me a desire to learn leadership. I'll never be a spiritually gifted leader, but I can develop the leadership abilities He has given me. One of the best ways to do that is to learn from great leaders. The sermon Sunday was on Nehemiah who led the people to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem that had laid in ruins for more than 140 years. Here is the sermon in brief:
Nehemiah was ...

1. Passionate (1:1-4)
2. Prayerful (1:5-110
3. Prepared (2:1-8)
4. Planning (2:11-18, and ch.3)
5. Persistent (2:19-20; chapter 4-6)
6. Pleasing (6:15-16; ch.8)

 You can listen to the full sermon here.

 I've been mulling over the sermon since Sunday and the point that God keeps 'highlighting" for me is #5 - Persistent. In re-reading the Scriptures, Nehemiah had dozens of reasons to walk away from the project: he faced serious opposition, he was threatened, he was ridiculed, the people he was working with got discouraged and wanted to quit, the work was hard and they were working long hours under the threat of attack. Most men would have given up and walked away, but Nehemiah wasn't most men - he was a committed follower of the Lord who had been given a task to complete, and though he grew weary and tired, he never gave up. And the result was ... well, you can read about in the Bible.

A few years ago I was reading the story of Jerry Rice, perhaps the greatest receiver in the history of the NFL. Rice played most of his career with the San Francisco 49ers. He won three Super Bowls, was a Super Bowl MVP, a 13 time All-Pro and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. He still holds four NFL records. Not bad for a kid from the little town of Crawford Mississippi, a town of a about 500 people.


Rice's success came from his work ethic. His workout regiment was legendary, considered the most demanding of anyone playing football. His commitment to success seemed to come natural, but in truth it was the result of a decision Jerry made when he was in high school. Jerry joined his high school’s football team in his sophomore year. During one particular practice, he was in the middle of running a series of twenty sprints up and down a hill in pads and helmet. A tired and out of breath Jerry decided to stop at number eleven, convinced that he could get away with skipping the last nine sprints without punishment. He was halfway to the locker room when he decided it was not the time to quit, that there was no reason to quit, and that quitting at that point would put him in a mode of making quitting seem acceptable in the future. He decided that quitting was unacceptable to himself, regardless of what others would think or do, and he finished off the last nine sprints.


That experience became an important part in Jerry’s development, as it contributed much to his tough resoluteness and commitment to excellence. He simply didn't want to make a habit of quitting. He knew if he quit in this area of his life, it would become easier to quit in other areas too.


Unfortunately, not many have the attitude of Jerry Rice, or Nehemiah. When things get hard and times get tough or stressful, their inclination is to quit. And once they begin to quit in one area of life, they find it easier to quit in other areas. It becomes a pattern and a habit for their lives - work, projects, relationships, marriages,  even in the spiritual realm of their lives.


Many times in Scripture God's people are admonished to not give up. Paul writes to the churches of Galatia, "Don't grow weary in doing good, for at the right time we will reap a reward if we don't give up." (Gal 6:9) I don't know what area of life you are growing weary in, or what you are ready to give up on, but let me encourage you - don't do it. Don't give up, don't give in, and don't give out. Don't let quitting become the pattern of your life! Stay faithful, stay focused and stay fervent, and at the right time you will be rewarded for your persistence and commitment. Never give up... never surrender!

Leadership: Learning from the Past

I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw.

Proverbs 24:32

The further back you can see into the past, the further ahead you can see into the future. And the closer you pay attention to what’s going on around you, the more accurately you’ll be able to see where the road is leading.

Unfortunately, we often try to plan for the future without learning from the past. As a result, we make the same mistakes over and over instead of making strides ahead. It’s been said many times that history is doomed to repeat itself. Why has this shown itself to be true? Because so many leaders have done the exact same things as past leaders, but expected different results.

If you want to bring into sharp focus the vision that God has for you, your family, your church, etc., you must take three steps:

1.  Abandon the ways of the world. They have always failed and always will fail. Try God’s ways—only His ways work.
2. Pay attention to what God has already done and is doing. Even just a quick glance at the Scriptures shows us that God continues to build on things He started long ago.
3. Pray for discernment and understanding to see the vision. Be still before the Lord as you watch and listen for God’s guidance.

Challenge: Take some time today to look back and evaluate your life. Do you keep making the same mistakes? Are you doing things God’s way? Are you consistently praying for God’s vision? Try these three steps and see how God responds.

Spiritually Alive or Religiously Dead?

You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others. 

2 Timothy 2:2 NLT

The Dead Sea, Israel

A few years ago I had the great privilege of visiting Israel, the land of the Bible. The tour group I was with spent the first few days visiting sites around one of Israel's major bodies of water, the Sea of Galilee. Galilee is a beautiful region; the land around the lake is lush and green.  We spent one afternoon on a boat ride on the Sea and learned about the various fish species in the lake and the fishing industry. There are about 18 species of fish found in the lake. Life is abundant in and around the water. 

Lake Kinneret, as it is called by Israelis, is fed by springs as well tributaries from Mt. Hermon in the north. At the southern end of the lake, water flows out through the Jordan River, Israel's most famous stream. The word Jordan means "down-rusher" which described the descent from Galilee to Israel's other significant inland body of water, the Dead Sea. Between the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee and the entrance to the Dead Sea, a distance of about 65 miles in a straight line, the Jordan drops over 600 ft. The Dead Sea is over 1300 feet below sea level. 

The Dead Sea and surrounding area is the opposite of the Sea of Galilee; the landscape is dry desert, and the Dead Sea contains no fish. The mineral elements in the water are so thick that the lake cannot sustain life. The Dead Sea is "dead" because water flows in but there is no outlet for water to flow out. As the water evaporates in the desert heat, salt minerals are left behind and forbid the existence of life. While it is an interesting experience to float in the Dead Sea, the minerals in the water can be toxic even for humans. 

For a body of water to be healthy and sustain life, it must have tributaries or springs that feed it, and it must have outlets for water to flow from it. Without both, the water would dry up, become stagnant and toxic. 

There is a spiritual lesson in these two bodies of water. In order for a follower of Christ to be healthy spiritually, he or she needs tributaries, others who are feeding into them, helping to nourish them spiritually. But they also need outlets, people in whom they can invest what they have learned in following Christ. Without an outlet for our spiritual life, our faith begins to weaken and dry up. We end up becoming spiritually stagnant and even spiritually toxic. Some of the most miserable "Christians" I have known were those who have spent their lives in the church having someone (usually the pastor or Sunday School teacher) pour into them, but never finding other people to pour into themselves. Many times they become bitter, controlling, and even toxic to those around them. 

Paul teaches Timothy this truth about healthy spiritual life in the above Scripture. Paul poured into Timothy ("You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses") and then instructed Timothy to pour into others ("Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people ") who would then pass the instructions on to even more ("who will be able to pass them on to others.") This is the "secret" to a healthy spiritual life - having someone (or someones) to invest in your life, and having other people in whom you are investing. This is the difference between a living faith and dead religious life. 

 Who are you learning from and who are you pouring into? Who is discipling you, and who are you discipling? (And are you helping them disciple others?) Are you spiritually alive or religiously dead?

Worry and Words

Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad  Prov 12:25 (NKJV)

I love the language of the Old Testament; Hebrew is very expressive. For example the word translated “anxiety” in the verse above literally means “heaviness”. It describes a burden or weight that is being carried around. Isn’t that what worry really is – an emotional weight or heaviness? And where does it lead? The Hebrew word translated “depression” means to “stoop” or to “be pressed down.” Worry or anxiety (fear) drags a person down – causes them to be depressed. We all know people who seem to have this constant weight on their shoulders because of the anxiety in their hearts. Writer Henry David Thoreau said, “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation…”

But the writer of Proverbs also offers hope for those under the weight of worry – “A good word makes it glad.” The word translated “good” is used 559 times in the Old Testament and is translated in a variety of ways: precious, better, pleasant, prosperity, beautiful, favor, wealth… (you get the picture!). And the word translated “glad” means “to rejoice” or “be cheerful.”

When you put it all together, “Worry brings people down, but a good (pleasant, beautiful, etc…) word lifts them up.” You and I have the potential power to change another person’s day (or life) with a good words. What you say makes a difference.

Why not start looking for those opportunities to make a difference today? Start with those closest to you – family, co-workers, other students. The field is wide open, make the most of it today.

Mr. Encouragement

"Helping one person might not change the whole world, but it could change the world for one person." Paul Spear

Yesterday at Grace Point we studied the spiritual gift of exhortation/encouragement. In LIFE Group after the worship service we looked at the life of a disciple who was known as "Mr. Encouragement." His name was Joses, but the disciples called him "Barnabas" which means "Son of Encouragement." Barnabas is a pretty remarkable figure in the New Testament church, but unless you are looking for him, you might miss his contributions to the Kingdom.

We first meet Barnabas in Acts 4:37 where we are told that he sold some property and brought the proceeds to the disciples so they could use it to for ministry. Barnabas was a generous person and he encouraged the church with his sacrificial giving. People with the gift of encouragement often use their resources to bless others.

The next time we see Barnabas is Acts 9. Saul of Tarsus had been incredibly saved on the road to Damascus. He had been a notorious persecutor of Christians, but God dramatically changed his life and he began to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. After being run out of Damascus, Saul went to Jerusalem in the hopes of connecting with the apostles, who had been facing serious persecution. When they heard Saul was in town wanting the meet with them, they feared it was a trap and initially refused to meet with him. So, Mr. Encouragement comes to the rescue and stands with Saul, giving testimony of his salvation and transformation. The apostles had great faith in Barnabas and Saul is allowed to join them. He comes in and out among them until he leaves Jerusalem for a while.

A couple of chapters laters, Acts 11, Barnabas is sent to Antioch because word had come to Jerusalem that God was moving in the city and people were coming to faith in Christ. Barnabas saw the great things God was doing in Antioch and knew these new believers needed to be discipled, so he left Antioch and went Tarsus and found Saul and brought him to Antioch, and for a year he and Saul work among the new believers, discipling them in the Christian faith.

In Acts 13 Barnabas and Saul are chosen and sent out by the church on the first missionary journey. They travel around, sharing the gospel, making disciples and planting churches. They begin to encounter non-Jewish people who are coming to the Lord. When they return and tell of the wonderful things God is doing, a group of Jewish believers are concerned that non-Jewish believers are being saved, but aren't following the Jewish customs. The apostles take up the issue in Jerusalem and call on Saul (now being called "Paul") and Barnabas to give testimony to what the Lord had been doing. After hearing their words, the apostles declare that God can save anyone under any circumstance and following the Jewish customs is not required for salvation. Paul and Barnabas are sent out to share the news with all believers.

After spending more time in Antioch, Barnabas and Paul are ready to go back out on the mission field and revisit the believers and churches where they had gone before. Barnabas wants to take a young man named John Mark with them. Apparently John Mark had started out with them on their early journey, but somewhere along the way had left the group and returned home. Paul wasn't happy with John Mark because he had bailed out on them before, and he refused to let John Mark go with them. The Bible says that the contention between Barnabas and Paul became so great that two split up, and went their separate ways; Paul took Silas, and Barnabas took John Mark and headed out on a different route.

Barnabas is only mentioned a couple of other times in the writings of Paul, but we see from these episodes in the book of Acts what an impact he had on the movement of early Christianity.
1. Barnabas encouraged the church by his sacrificial giving when resources were needed to care for needy members of the church.
2. Barnabas stood by Saul/Paul before the apostles when they weren't willing to to trust him. He also went after Paul at Tarsus and brought him to Antioch to help disciple the new believers. Then he went with Paul on his first missionary journey to share the gospel and encourage believers. I can't help but wonder how Paul's life might have different (and how Christianity might have been different) had Barnabas not stood with him and encouraged him (Paul went on to write about 2/3 of the New Testament we have today).
3. Barnabas also took a stand at the Jerusalem Council for the non-Jews who were being saved. His words helped convince the apostles that Gentiles could be saved and receive the Holy Spirit without following the Jewish customs.
4. And Barnabas stood with John Mark, willing to give him a second chance, when Paul had given up on him. We don't really know what happened to Barnabas after he and John Mark left for Cyprus, but we know that John Mark went on to write the gospel that bears his name and give testimony to person of Jesus Christ.

Mr. Encouragement had a huge impact on early Christianity, even though he isn't often remembered for his contributions. I can't help but wonder how different things might be had Barnabas not stood with Paul and John Mark, and the non-Jewish believers. He may not get a lot of attention for his contributions, but he made a difference by his encouragement.

You may not feel like you have much to offer in service of the Lord; you may not have a lot of resources, or abilities, but you may be able to encourage another person who God uses to change the world. Never underestimate the power of encouragement.

He Will Direct Your Path

"In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths." 
Proverbs 3:6 (NKJV)

    Last night at Grace Point we wrapped up our study on "What to Do When You Don't Know What to Do." We've been looking at Proverbs 3:5-6 for several weeks, and last night was v.6. I shared how the first part of the passage was a command for us to make sure we are knowing the Lord in every aspect of our lives: "in ALL our ways..." We are prone to compartmentalize our lives and fail to acknowledge God in every area. But as the missionary Hudson Taylor said, "Christ is either Lord of all, or He is not Lord at all."
    The last part of the verse is a promise that as we draw near to God through the circumstances of our lives, He will "direct our paths." Some will read that and think it means He will tell us ahead of time what His plan is and how He will work it out- He will show us "the map" so we know where He is taking us in life. But that isn't really what the passage means, and it isn't the model we see in Scripture. What He is telling us that as we draw near to Him, He will BE our guide, He will lead us as we follow Him. He is the way and He is our "directions." He is telling us we will have a deeper relationship with Him as we follow Him.
    In Matthew 4 when Jesus calls His disciples, He calls them to follow Him. He doesn’t go into detail about what that looks like. He says “Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matt 3:19) He doesn't say, “Ok, here’s the plan - I’m going to disciple You, invest in your lives for three years. We’re going to this village and that village, and we’re going to feed the hungry, heal the sick, raise the dead. And then at the end of three years I’m going to be killed and you all are going to carry on the work until they kill you also.” Do you think they would have followed had they known all of that? Maybe, maybe not. But the thing is, when Jesus called them, the only thing they had was Him - they didn’t know the plan, they didn’t know the direction, they didn’t know the end result - all they had was Him... and He was enough. They left their nets and their tax tables and they followed Him. And He guided their lives and directed their paths, and they knew Him at a more intimate level with each new day.
     I closed with a portion of a poem I had read sometime back:

He does not lead me year by year, Nor even day by day;
But step-by-step my path unfolds, My Lord directs my way.
Tomorrow’s plans I do not know; I only know this minute.
But He will say, “This is the way, By faith now walk in it.”
And I am glad that it is so, Today’s enough to bear;
And when tomorrow comes, His grace shall far exceed its care.
What need to worry then, or fret? The God who gave His Son,
Holds all the moments in His hand And gives them one-by-one.

   A pastor friend was visiting last night. He is between ministries, having stepped down from his previous church in some difficult circumstances. He stepped down in faith, at the time not having another pastoral ministry to go to, and not certain where the Lord was leading them. It has been about 17 weeks, and God has used he and his family to help care for some other family members. On Sunday he will be preaching in view of a call to another church, but he had this Wednesday off and was in our area so he stopped by our Bible study last night.
   After I ended the Bible study with the above poem, my friend shared a testimony. Several years ago he was at a camp with kids from his church and he went for a walk in the woods just to pray and spend time with the Lord. While he was walking, he came across a crumpled piece of paper and he picked it up and looked at it, on the paper were the words of a poem. He began to read it and as he did the Lord gave him a melody to the poem, and he began to sing it. Over the years God had used the poem/song to encourage him and remind him that the Lord was guiding him. As he shared the story, he said that the words on that paper was the very poem I shared with our family last night. God again was encouraging him as he heard those words.
    And God was encouraging me also. I don't usually do poems in my Bible studies, but that one seemed to fit. And the Lord knew my friend, who needed encouragement, would be there last night. He also knew I needed encouragement, so He used that experience to remind me the He is Lord, and He is "guiding my path" and He will provide as needs arise.
   Writing about this experience doesn't seem as effective as telling it in person, but I hope you are encouraged to know that God is with You and as You seek to know Him through every experience of your life, He will guide your path and He will provide for all that you need.

Wednesday Words

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

For the past few Wednesday nights at Grace Point Talbott, we have been studying this one passage of Scripture under the title, "What to do when you don't know what to do." All of us experience seasons in life when it feels like the rug has been pulled out from under us, or as a friend recently described an experience in their family - an earthquake has happened. The "ground" moved and shook up our lives.

What do you do when those experiences happen? You wonder what God is doing in/through your circumstances, or if He is even involved in the circumstances; is He even paying attention to what is going on in your life. And if He is, why isn't He doing something about the situation? And what does He want me to do about the situation - do I try to fix it, do I ride it out, or do I bail out and go in a different direction myself? I realize these are pretty vague and broad statements, but I trust you get the picture, there are seasons in life when it is hard to 'feel" God's presence, or see how He is working, or know what He wants us to do. So what do you do when you don't know what to do?

The above passage gives us three important statements:
1. Trust in the Lord with all your heart - when you don't know what to do, trust that God is doing something both in you and in your circumstances. As the preacher C.H. Spurgeon said, "God is too good to be unkind and He is too wise to be mistaken. And when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart." 

2. Lean not on your own understanding. Our human nature is such that if we don't see God doing something about our situation, He must want us to figure it out ourselves. More often than not, this is a mistake. Our "understanding" is limited and finite, and when we try to fix it ourselves we end up making things worse (think Abraham, Sarah, Hagar and Ishmael, Genesis 16-17). We are going to lean on something, but let us lean on the Lord and His promises rather than our own limited mental and physical abilities.

3. Tonight we are going to look at the last statement in that passage: "In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths." We are going to unpack this verse and look at our "ways", what it means to "acknowledge Him" and what "direct your paths" really looks like.

Join us tonight at 7pm at Grace Point Talbott, or watch my Facebook page around 7:15 and we will be going live.

See you tonight.

In the wake of tragedy...

Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good. Romans 12:21 (NLT)

“But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you.28 Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you." Luke 6:27-28 (NLT)

Yesterday morning we woke to the news of another horrible tragedy in our nation. A gunman opened fire on a crowd at a musical festival, from his room on the 32nd floor of a hotel in Las Vegas. The last report I read said that 58 were confirmed dead and more than 500 were injured. Police investigations so far have not found any motive to the shooter's actions. This seems to be just a horrible, random act of violence.

My first thought is "What is wrong with people?" How can you just open fire and kill people that you don't know and have never done anything to you? This just doesn't make sense...

Evil doesn't make sense, but it is real. People do terrible things; they hurt others for no apparent reason. They kill without cause, steal for personal gain, and destroy without thought to the consequences on themselves or others.... that sounded familiar... "The thief comes only to kill, steal and destroy..." (John 10:10). The "thief" is the enemy, Satan, the personification of evil. His goal is to kill, steal and destroy, and he does it through the evil acts of human beings. I'm not suggesting we alleviate personal responsibility, the Las Vegas shooter chose to do what he did, and he could have chosen not to do it. He could have resisted those impulses to plan and carry out this murderous act, but he didn't. And behind every horrible act such as this, there is an evil one that is encouraging it. The enemy is real, and he is active.

So how do we respond in the wake of such evil. Politicians and pundits will argue for stricter gun laws, and various political measures to try to prevent mass killings. While laws and regulations can sometimes make it more difficult to carry out such violent acts, the real problem is evil in the human heart, and until that is eliminated, we will continue to experience these violent acts in our world. How, then, do we eliminate evil in the human heart? It is only through the love of God expressed through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our response to horrific events such as what happened in Vegas is to boldly and consistently share the good news of Jesus, and live out the gospel in our homes, communities and the world. We overcome evil with good; we triumph over tragedy with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Pray for those who lost loved ones in Las Vegas. Pray for the police, first responders and care givers that are working in the midst of this tragedy. But also pray for the Church to be the Church, to do what God has instructed us to do - overcome evil with good, pray for those who commit such horrible acts, and pray for ourselves to be salt and light in the world and boldly share the gospel through word and deed. In the wake of such tragedy and evil, BE the Church...

You Are His...

See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!

1 John 3:1 (NLT)

Imagine this scene; you have just been born and are taking your first breathe from outside of your mother's womb. The doctors and nurses are smiling, looking lovingly at your little body. But you notice your parents are strangely quiet. They are looking at you and conferring with one another in hushed voices. 

     Then your father says, "Doctor, could you hold him up in the light so we could get a better look at him? We just want to check everything out and make sure this child is right for us. We were looking at the other children in the nursery earlier, and another baby there seemed to have, well, a little more promise. This one is a little chubby and has dark colored eyes and brown hair. We wanted one with blue eyes, and, you know... a little less baby fat." 

    They whisper into each other's ears as the doctor holds you up in the light. Your mother says, "Doctor, I'm sure we would eventually learn to love this baby, but we really have our hearts set on that blond little baby in the nursery. We think he would fit our family much better. Do you think we could make arrangements to exchange our baby of the one in the nursery? We will be glad to pay for all the expenses." 

     This scenario is obviously absurd. When you were born, your parents didn't negotiate for a better child, they accepted you into their family without qualifications. Their love for you was not based on the color of your hair, the size of your body, or your performance as a baby. They loved you simply because you were their child. Their love may have been imperfect at times, because they are human like you and me, but they loved you because you were theirs. 

    God also loves you, but His love is a perfect love. He loves you not because of who you are, what you do or don't do, or what you accomplish in your life. He loves you because you are His. His love is unconditional and nothing you have done or will ever do can cause Him not to love you. As He said through the prophet Jeremiah,  “I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself." Jeremiah 31:3 (NLT) 

    When you realize that you are loved with an "everlasting" love; loved not because of what you do, or who you are, but loved because of who God is and what He has done for you, it will change your life. God loves you because He created you, and He has proven His love for you through His Son Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross (Romans 5:8). He loves you and calls you into His family as His own child. See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! 1 John 3:1 (NLT)

    Live today in the reality of His everlasting love for you. 

Catching Up

We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps. Proverbs 16:9 (NLT)
               Several weeks ago I rediscovered my blog page and thought it would be a great idea to blog during our mission trip to Guatemala. I had planned to post each night about our adventures during the day. It didn't take long to realize I hadn't thought this plan through very well. I assumed I would have internet access daily, but that didn't work out. I think I was on the internet around three times total during the week and it was just for short periods.                I thought I would just catch up when I got back to the states, but the sudden passing of a dear friend changed everything; I couldn't wrap my mind around a 28 year old, new mom passing away (and still have trouble comprehending that it happened). Needless to say, blog posting didn't even enter my thought processes for quite a while.                The above Scripture has been burned into my brain the last few weeks (and months). I made plans, but the Lord determined my steps. I haven't anticipated some of the "steps" I've had to take over the past several weeks, but I'm (still) learning to trust the Lord to take me where He wants me to go.  He is a good Father and even in the seasons of life where I don't understand what is happening, or what He is doing, I can trust the process He has me in, because I know who He is.                It is still on my heart to blog on a regular basis, so this is another attempt at starting. My prayer is that God will use this exercise to grow me spiritually and perhaps use what He is doing in my life to encourage someone else.  I will still (prayerfully) make plans, but I will also trust God to change those plans and redirect my steps to lead me where He wants me to go. And maybe He will use the changes in my life to help someone else along the journey.              Prayerfully,              George 

Getting Ready for Guatemala

So it has been several years since I've blogged. I was kind of surprised to discover it was still active though the last post was in 2012. But I thought a blog would be a good way to communicate about  our upcoming mission trip to Guatemala. We have a team of 11 going to work with a ministry called Hope for Home Ministries. My daughter Lydia made a connection with one of their missionaries when she was attending school in Antigua earlier this year. This is our first time working with them so it is kind of a "vision trip" to see if we might be able to partner together in the future.

So far all of our interactions have been great, and we are looking forward to being on the ground with them. Here is a video introduction to the ministry.

As you can see, this is a ministry to "the least of these" (Matthew 25:40). We leave Saturday, the 19th at 7:45am. We would appreciate your prayers!