MONDAY THANKFULNESS

I've found that it is always best to start the week with an attitude of thankfulness. Monday's are often difficult times for ministers - we're typically exhausted from the weekend, we're discouraged because attendance was low, or no one responded to the message (basic "pity-party" stuff), and we have a long list of things to accomplish before next Sunday. Think about Monday's too much and you'll climb back into bed and hide under the covers (which is sometimes the best thing to do).
But I've found that taking a few minutes to count my blessings sets a positive tone for the day and even the week. So here's what I'm thanking the Lord for today:
1. The amazing grace of God that abounds in my life! I'm overwhelmed by the fact that God loves me even though I screw-up most of the time. My past is covered under the blood of Christ and my day is in His hands, therefore I can relax and rejoice in His amazing grace!
2. An incredible family of faith that I am blessed to be a part of. The Lord says that whoever leaves anything for the cause of the Kingdom will receive 100-fold back in return. I don't know that I've left very much behind for the Kingdom, but I've gained an incredible amount through the family of faith that God let's me be a part of. Magna View BC is an awesome group of people to share life with.
3. The challenge to be more proactive in sharing my faith with others and inviting others to join me in this journey of following Christ. Jesus says I WILL be His witness (Acts 1:8), therefore I am challenged to live out that verse today.
4. My wonderful wife and daughters - everyday I am thankful for the incredible relationship I have with the people closest to me. God has blessed our family with a wonderful (and weird) sense of humor. We laugh together more than any family I know of. I'm not only enjoying my family in this life, but I rejoice in knowing that I'll enjoy them forever in Christ.
5. Electronic connections - I know its not the same as "face-to-face" fellowship, but I'm thankful for the ability to connect with people who are significant to me through electronic media. I'm blessed to learn about what God is doing in people's lives all over the world.
6. Challenging readings - Reading the "Cost of Discipleship" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer and he is stretching my understanding of the church.
7. The opportunities to impact others for Christ. It's hard for me to fathom that Jesus chooses to partner with me to impact people's lives, but He has put His treasure in this earthen vessel, and I want to use it for His glory!

  Rejoice always, pray without ceasing,  in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thess 5:16-18 (NKJV)

reFresh Ministry Conference

I had a great day! I attended the reFresh Pastors Conference in Knoxville with my friend Phil Young, and I  was truly "refreshed" by Pastor Jim Cymbala of the Brooklyn Tabernacle, and Daniel Henderson, president of Strategic Renewal. It was one of those challenging, convicting, and yet encouraging conferences. Here are some of my favorite quotes and sayings:

Jim Cymbala
Commenting on "Christians" who on't like coming to worship: "If people don't want to be in God's presence on earth, why would He punish them by sending them to heaven?"

"God will help you see people as He sees them."

On communication - "When you love, you get through."

"Our culture is killing us. Culture is stronger than the Bible and the Holy Spirit in most of our churches."

Daniel Henderson
"The devil doesn't have to destroy us, he just has to distract us."

"Leadership can't point the way to prayer, we have to lead the way to prayer."

"We've replaced the leadership of the Holy Spirit with 'having a vision.' Don't do vision by imitation, do it by inspiration."

"The only enduring motive for praying is that He is worthy to be sought."

"If I were the devil, I would concentrate on keeping Christians from praying."


These are just a few snippets from an overall great conference.

Seven Things for Magna View

Seven things I want our church to know this week:

1. So thankful for the Spirit's powerful presence yesterday! Each week it seems like God "ramps-up" our passion a little bit more.
2. Loving God with all of our heart, soul, and strength is a life-long journey. I feel like in some ways I'm just getting started, but it gets better and better each day. Making the effort to "keep your spiritual fervor" is worth it!
3. God is at work all over the place - it was amazing to see again how God is at work in an orphanage in Honduras last Sunday night! God is using His people to give hope and life to over 400 kids who would be living and dying on the streets of Honduras without Orphanage Emmanuel.
4. Next Sunday is so important in our review of our Mission Statement. LOVING OTHERS is the natural outflow of loving God.
5. Small Groups has changed my life. I'm so encouraged every time we do our Family2Family Small Groups. I get to know my family of faith so much better and I see God literally building His church using small groups. Next Sunday night is going to be a blast!
6. I think Magna View is the most "ministry-minded" church I've ever been a part of. Each week I hear about how ministry is taking place within the Body as members minister to one another. Nobody is drawing attention to themselves, but a lot of ministry is taking place each week and it is bringing glory to the Father.
7. God loves His church (you) so much and He has blessings for you if you'll put yourself in a place where you can receive them.

"Delight yourself also in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

Monday Thankfulness

Just a few things I'm thankful for this Monday evening. They're not in any particular order -

1. I'm thankful for a great Sunday at Magna View. The powerful presence of God's Holy Spirit has been obvious in our worship services and I am thankful to be there and experience it.
2. For a wonderful family - I had a great week/weekend with my family. My oldest daughter got her official drivers license, and we learned she made a good grade on her ACT. We spent Saturday in Corbin, KY for my youngest daughter's 12th birthday. Her choice was to go to the Original Kentucky Fried Chicken Sanders Cafe. It was a neat experience. We spent the afternoon walking around an indoor flea market looking for "treasures" we couldn't live without. On Sunday my middle daughter was called upon to lead a worship song in the worship service - she did awesome. I'm so proud to see how God is using her. I have a great group of girls.
3. Small Group was incredible Sunday night. I attended the "seniors" group and I was blown away again at how God is building His Body @ Magna View. We have some great Seniors who have a heart for the Lord and the desire to share their experiences with others. I learn something new about our church family every time we get together in small group. Our time of sharing about what our parents "handed-down" to us was powerful!
4. For the opportunity to teach college students the word of God. I have a great group of students in my Religion 101 Old Testament class at Carson-Newman College. They stayed with me through Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy tonight.
5. For getting preached to today at the Nolachucky Baptist Association Pastor's Conference this morning. Don Pierson, prayer specialist from the TBC preached the pure word of God to us pastors today - it was both encouraging and challenging (and a little painful as well).
6. For the opportunity to start my day in prayer and in the presence of my Savior and in the word of God.
7. For Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German Lutheran pastor executed by the Nazi's at the end of WWII - for the writing he left behind, The Cost of Discipleship - grace is free, but it is not cheap. It cost Jesus His life, but I cheapen it when I fail to live completely committed to Jesus.

Never stop cultivating a heart of thankfulness.

Book Review: If God is Good...

Randy Alcorn's "If God is Good: Faith in the Midst of Suffering and Evil" is a thorough, helpful, and inspiring treatise on the problem of evil and suffering in light of the belief in a benevolent and all-powerful God. The book is exceptionally written with both supporting information and enlightening illustrations. Throughout the book, Alcorn makes the case for a belief in the all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-good God of the Bible, in-spite of, or perhaps even because of, suffering and evil in the world.

Alcorn acknowledges that evil and suffering are real and are real problems when it comes to believing in the God of the Bible. He presents the arguments offered by atheists and agnostics, that the existence of evil and suffering in our world is evidence against the reality of the God of the Bible. If God is all-good and all-powerful, he certainly would not allow such evil and suffering to exist as rape, child-abuse, cancer and natural disasters. Alcorn then masterfully responds to those arguments from Scripture, philosophy and human experiences and insights. He provides substantial support for his position that God not only exists, but he is actively at work in and through the lives of those who suffer.

This book is a remarkable work. Though Alcorn deals with the very difficult subject of pain and suffering, he does so with a unique compassion in his writing. While offering opposing view points from his own, he does not come across as being arrogant or of being condemning of those who hold different opinions. He also deals with some very technical issues, such as predestination verses freewill, but does so in a very understandable way.

"If God is Good" is an exceptional work that will help provide encouragement, comfort and understanding to those going through times of suffering. It will also be a helpful resource for those who are looking for a better understanding of how and why God allows suffering and evil to exist. I personally have a better understanding of how God has been working in my own life through personal suffering and difficulties. I highly recommend this book.

This book was provided by Waterbrook Multnomah for review.

Thanksgiving

One of my favorite holidays. I have so much to be thankful for - first and foremost, my salvation in Christ. Without Him I would be hopeless. I'm also thankful for my wife, with whom I recently celebrated 26 years of marriage. I'm thankful for my beautiful daughters who are the joy of my life. I'm thankful for my mom who has been modeling faith for me from the day I was born. And I'm thankful for my family of faith who mean more to me than they will ever know in this life - thank you Magna View.

Thanksgiving Week

This week is one of my favorite weeks of the year. Just working Monday and Tuesday this week. Taking Wednesday off to be with Cecelia and the girls. We're going to Dollywood and to look at Christmas lights. We're doing Thanksgiving at home, starting our own family traditions. I'm looking forward to cooking and watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade with the girls. I have fond memories from my childhood of cracking pecans for Waldorf Salad while watching the parade with my family. And, of course, I'll be watching a lot of football this weekend.

40 Days of Praise

Our church has been doing 40 Days of Praise leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday and it has been wonderful to hear the praises of God's people and see some of the wonderful results of putting a priority on praising the Lord. Each week we have had different people share their testimonies of how God is at work in their lives. The result has been that others are becoming more encouraged to share their testimonies and praises.

For me personally, this has been one of the best Fall seasons I can remember. Typically the time leading up to Thanksgiving is stressful - lots of church activities, lots of sickness in the church, and trying to get all of the family stuff done in preparation of the holiday. This year has been different because I'm more focused on the Lord. I've made praising Him a priority in my life and the result has been a wonderful peace in my heart. There are still a lot of church activities, there is still a lot of people sick, and there is plenty of family stuff to get done, but this year there is no stress, just peace and joy. God is good like that!

This week in our 40 Days of Praise devotionals we are focusing on the names of God in the Old Testament. The Hebrew people often named places or gave God characteristic names after some significant event. These refer to God's acts or His character. Today we praise Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord our Healer. In Exodus 15, after crossing the Red Sea, the Hebrews came to a place called Marah where they found water that was bitter. Unable to drink the water, the people whined to Moses who cried out to God, who showed Moses a tree that he could put in the water and it would take away the bitterness. At Marah, God made a covenant that if they obeyed His voice, they would not suffer the diseases that had plagued the Egyptians, for He Himself would heal them. He is Jehovah-Rapha, the Lord who heals. 

A Blessed Man!

Today was one of those special days when I realize how blessed I really am. This morning started out with our traditional Sunday ritual, breakfast at McDonald's. We started doing this on Sunday mornings as a way to motivate our kids to get up and ready for church. It has been such a blessing because we have an opportunity to talk and enjoy each other and not have to worry about cooking or cleaning up. We also have a good time cutting up with one another and it just puts us in a good mood as we prepare for worship. 

Today was different because I was invited to preach at Bulls Gap Baptist for their Homecoming service. I pastored Bulls Gap from 1994-1998 and we had not been back there for a long time. It was wonderful to see some familiar faces and to remember some wonderful times of ministry. I remembered a lot of things about our time there: ministering to people in crisis, fellowship times, worship times, baptisms, weddings and funerals. The years at BG were years of growth for me, and God brought some wonderful people into my life to help me grow. 

After the service we had a wonderful lunch and fellowship time. Then we came home and cleaned-up and got ready for our small group, we call it Family2Family. Normally our girls do childcare, but we didn't have any little ones tonight so the girls got to participate in the Bible study, and it was real blessing to have them in on the discussion.  I'm amazed at how they are growing in the Lord. I remember when I was their age and I had virtually no relationship with the Lord. I was saved, but I was not growing in the Lord. My girls are much farther along spiritually than I was at their age. It blesses me to see how God is at work through them. 

I'm thankful for our small group. We're usually not a very small group but tonight was different and it gave us a chance to really share our hearts. We discussed the story of David and Goliath, which Bill preached on this morning. There are so many lessons in that story; it was great to hear different perspectives from different people. Each time we meet I learn something new about the people I worship and serve with. God is doing some great things in my life through the small group. 

I am a blessed man. 

Security in God

In Sunday School the last several weeks we have been studying a wonderful section of Scripture called the "Psalms of Ascent", Psalms 120-134. This week we are studying Psalms 125 and 126. A big part of the lesson that I've studied so far has been on 125:1-2, "Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people, from this time forth and forevermore." The psalmist describes the security that God is to His people. Just as Jerusalem was secured by the surrounding mountains, so God's people are secure in Him. Our security, spiritually and in all other ways, lies in our close relationship with God. But a problem can occur when we begin to trust more in the blessings of God or in the manifestations of God's presence, than in God Himself.

The writer of the lesson puts it this way:

"We often know enough not to ascribe our security to carnal, worldly things. Our greater, slyer temptation is to place our security in the blessings we readily credit to the Lord.

"Even if our security is in something God has given us -- our gifts, talents, loved ones, church family, consitent victory, passion for His Word -- our seemingly secure mountain ultimately will fall into the sea. We can grow secure in the favor God has shown us, but God's favor and His person are not synonymous. If our trust is in the manifestations of God's favor rather than God Himself, we will crumble like dry clay when He calls us to walk a distance of our journey entirely by faith and not by sight.

"To build on our previous psalm of ascent [124], God is with us and for us even when His face and His favor seem hidden. Mountain-like security only comes from trusting God, not what He's done for us or given us, however glorious and eternal those things may be." (Masterwork, p.45)

Amen.

A Believing Pharisee???

Last week I attended a leadership conference at NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC with a couple of guys from church. It was a pretty intense one-day event. We heard some of the best preachers in the country: Perry Noble (host pastor), Mark Driscoll, Francis Chan, Jud Wilhite, Judah Smith, Steven Furtick, and Andy Stanley. All of these guys and their messages had a different impact on me. Some of them encouraged me, some challenged me, and all of them taught me. And God used them to help me see some things that I hadn't seen before.

For example, Andy Stanley preached on Acts 15, on "Four Gravitational Pulls Every Church Experiences." It was a great message; very practical, inspiring and helpful. But God also opened my eyes to a verse I had not paid much attention too before. The context of Acts 15 is the controversy over whether Gentiles could be saved by faith alone, or if they had to be circumcised and keep the Jewish laws. The first Christians were Jews and they were having a difficult time accepting that God could save people outside of the Jewish faith.

The verse that really jumped out was Acts 15:5. I've read this verse numerous times, but suddenly it captivated my attention: But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, "It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses." (NKJV) What? Pharisees who "believed"? I just kept reading those words: "the Pharisees who believed; the Pharisees who believed; the Pharisees who believed." Then the Holy Spirit spoke - "A Pharisee who believes, is still a Pharisee." He believes in Jesus, but he is still holding on to his religious traditions and trying to impose them on others.

To the Pharisees' credit, the things they were holding on to were pretty important. In fact, they had been given to them by God - circumcision as a sign of the covenant, and the Law of Moses as the means of keeping the covenant. It was their "old-time religion" and if it was good enough for Abraham and Moses, it was good enough for them, and it would be good enough for the Gentiles as well!

The problem was, the "Old-Time Religion" wasn't good enough (see Acts 15:10), and so God was doing something new. He had established a new covenant through His Son Jesus. A covenant of faith, not religious ritual. The Pharisees knew of Jesus, and according to the Scriptures, even "believed." But they couldn't let go of the past. And they couldn't let go of their old ways of doing things, like imposing their beliefs on others (i.e., "It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.") Consequently, they were causing division in the church.

Here's the point God gave me - "A believing Pharisee, is still a Pharisee, and will always try to make people do/see things his way. But the church can't be held hostage to the ways of the Pharisee. Grace must (and will) always prevail." Believe me, there are still Pharisees in the church today, and they will always try to control the work of God and make it fit into their theological framework, and by imposing their personal beliefs on others. But, as Jesus said, “No one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the old skins would burst from the pressure, spilling the wine and ruining the skins. New wine is stored in new wineskins so that both are preserved.” Matt 9:17 (NLT) The "New Wine" of Christ will not be contained by the old religious traditions held on to by men, and eventually He will break free from them.

REMEMBERING

Tomorrow is the ninth anniversary of the September 11th attacks on America. I remember being at the office that morning, when our secretary came in and mentioned that she had heard something about a plane hitting one of the buildings in New York. I thought it was probably a small plane and it would turn out to be an accident, but I turned on the radio and discovered it was a major event. I listened to the news on the radio for a while, but decided I needed to see what the TV news people were saying, so I headed home to be with Cecelia and our youngest daughter.

I got home in time to see the second plane hit the tower. By then we knew it was a terrorist attack. I remember the feelings as I watched the towers begin to crumble and fall to the ground. I couldn't believe my eyes. Our friend Kim was here and I remember us praying together for the people involved. I sat in front of the TV for the rest of the day as reports of the crashes at the Pentagon and Pennsylvania came in. I remember feeling numb for a while, and then getting angry. There was nothing I could do, but I was angry.

That evening I was teaching a class for Carson-Newman. I didn't have time to cancel it, so we abbreviated it and we had called a special prayer service at our church. Most of the people who gathered felt the same way; we were in shock and we were angry. But we turned our anger over to God as we spent time talking and praying together. I still cannot understand those who are not only willing to take their own life for a cause, but also willing to murder innocent lives as well.

In the news recently a pastor in Florida has been planning to burn 200 copies of the Koran, the Muslim holy book. There has been a huge outcry from government officials, celebrities, religious figures and others. Muslims across the world are outraged and many are demonstrating against the U.S. by burning flags and shouting "Death to America."

I'm not in favor of burning the Koran; though I do not accept it as a holy book, I think it should be respected as well as the religion it represents. But I do believe that this episode has revealed the huge difference between Christianity and Islam. Burn a stack of Bibles and Christians will be angry, we'll be hurt, we'll condemn the act as sacrilege; but we won't threaten to kill you or demonstrate by burning flags and effigies. We won't threaten worldwide repercussions. We will be angry and voice our anger, but we will also pray for those who commit such an act. We'll pray that the Lord would help them see the error of their ways and come to Him to receive forgiveness and eternal life.

Islam has been touted as a religion of peace, yet every time Muslims feel their holy book or prophet has been defamed, they strike out in violence, threatening riots and attacks and calling for the execution of the perpetrators. They will resort to violence to protect their books, their prophet and their god.

I pray for Pastor Terry Jones, that he would do the right thing. I pray for Muslims worldwide that they would come to know the Prince of Peace, Jesus, and begin to follow Him, and come to know real peace.

Trying something new. Blogging from my phone. I wonder if this will help me keep my blog updated?