Thoughts from the March of Life 2009

    We haven’t been home long from the March for Life but I wanted to write my thoughts down while they were fresh on my heart.  For over fifteen years myself and others have made the yearly trip to Washington to observe the remembrance of the Supreme Court decision making abortion the law of the land.  Since that time it is estimated that thirty-eight million, five hundred thousand children growing in their mother’s wombs have been killed and aborted.

      There are always banners and homemade signs that range in size, color and content.  But the one that always arrests my attention  quotes the start of the Declaration of Independence.  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”  All men have been given by God the right to life!  That is what it says.  It’s funny but the same supreme court that ruled that children in the womb don’t have an inalienable  right to live also ruled that black people also did not have rights to life and liberty.  We all agree today that they got it wrong back then and I tell you they have it wrong today!  God has given children, even while in their mother’s womb, the right to life and liberty and pursuit of happiness.

    Psalm 139:13-16 says, “Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother's womb.  I thank you, High God—you're breathtaking!  Body and soul, I am marvelously made!  I worship in adoration—what a creation!  You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something.  Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, The days of my life all prepared before I'd even lived one day."

    The Bible is clear that children in the womb are God’s creation and have a right to live.  They are important to him and they should matter to us.  Proverbs 24:11-12 commands us, “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter.  If you say, "But we knew nothing about this, does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?  Does not he who guards your life know it?  Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?”   We know it beloved!  We can not stand by and do nothing. 

    What can we do to light our world and shine for life in ‘09?   First and most certainly foremost, we should pray.  Pray for the hearts of Americans to change.  Today there are very, very few that believe people of color should not have the same rights as white people.  Pray that God would help Americans see that unborn children have the right to live.  Pray for our president.  President Obama is the most pro-abortion president we’ve had in years.  He believes that children who are born alive should not be given medical help but left to die unless their parents desire it.  He affirms partial birth abortion as a viable method of abortion.  This very afternoon he said we will no longer torture our enemies– a move I very much agree with– because we will fight the war on terror but do so holding to our core values.  Pray that he might see that life, the life of America’s unborn, should be a core value.  Pray!

    Speak up for the truth of Life.  Don’t be ashamed to challenge your friends and coworkers with the horrific truth of abortion.  Don’t be argumentative or condescending but be firm and specific.  Use the many tools available to you from videos to pamphlets.  We must speak up.

    Write letters to your congressmen.  It is projected that this year congress will vote on the Freedom of Choice Act.  It will codify Roe v. Wade and truly make it the law of the land.  States rights to regulate abortion in anyway will be done away with.  State laws requiring even such basic things as parental notification will be overturned.  President Obama has promised to sign it if it comes across his desk.  Write Senators Webb and Warner, Congressmen Forbes and Scott,  and ask them to please vote against it.  The worst thing we can do, is do nothing.

    Join us next January on the March for Life.  This year the crowd seemed smaller than in past years.  I know everyone is tired, and I don’t know that we accomplish very much if anything, but we must speak up.

    “God, thank you for giving us life.  Help us to be defenders of this very precious gift.  Use us to stand for righteousness.  In Jesus name we ask, amen”

We have to forget the fortress mentality!

The text for today was the last part of chapter of five of Luke. God really showed me something I needed to see.

In my observations I saw that Jesus did things different then the religious folks of his day. They avoided sinners-- he went to eat with them. Others were fasting as a group-- his disciples weren't. I also noticed that Jesus really had a clear purpose and objective. When they challenged him on why he was eating with sinners, the answer was right there-- this is my purpose.

The interpretation to this passage is really challenging. Jesus was telling us that he was going to do it different then everyone else. His goal was to get out where the people were that needed him, not fortress himself away from them. No wonder they often felt loved by him! He even tells a parable where he says new things require new boxes or new paradigms. I'm going to do it different. Sinners need me so I'm going to them. One final word in the parable-- people when they have the old wine, don't like the new. What he's saying there is that change is difficult. We are happy with the status quo but we must embrace change.

In the application part I was convicted. This is my prayer. "Father, I'm too into the fortress mentality once again-- I need to get back out there where the people who most need you are. Help me to make friends and be salt and light where I'm needed most." My application is that I want to reach out and make some friends who don't know Jesus that maybe by God's grace I might help them know him.

Make your applications a prayer

Several of you have mentioned that you are reading what I am writing so I will continue to do this through the week. Melissa commented that she found the observations and interpretations sort of morphed into one thing. I can relate. Even the handout I gave you was a bit muddied so let me see if I can simplify this. Let your observations be things that you notice or stand out and questions you have. Then let the interpretation section be a rewriting of the passage in your own words. To do that, you might have to try and answer some of the questions raised in your observations. Here's where Bible study can get more involved if you have the time and the curiosity. If you have a question that you don't understand, you might want to read some extra sources on the passage. John McArthur writes great commentaries that are thorough and easy to understand. You might want to look at other parallel passage in the Bible that talk about the same subject. The final section, would be the application. What specifically does God want me to apply to my life, from the text? As I said on Sunday, there may be many things you think of but hone in on one of them and make it an item of meditation and prayer throughout the day. In fact, why not practice writing out your application in the form of a prayer to God? I think that will help you be specific.

Here's what I wrote down from the text today. (Luke 5:12-26)

Observations:

• I noticed that the man focused, not on Jesus' ability but his willingness. "If you are willing..." Jesus also does the same, "I am willing..."
• Again, there was the don't tell anyone command but to no avail, the crowds just kept getting bigger.
• Jesus always felt the need to slip away and pray-- alone.
• It seems there is a point begin made in verse 17 that on this day there was power for Jesus to heal; does that mean that at some times there was not? Could Jesus heal whenever he wanted to or were there limitations on his abilities?
• (vs. 20) It seems that Jesus made his statement about the man's sins because he wanted to make a point.
• (vs.22) Jesus could read their hearts!
• (vs.23) They were both equally easy to say-- Jesus meant which is easier to say and it be proven true?
• Jesus reasons, "Because I have authority to heal instantly that which men do not, I tell you have authority to forgive your sins too."
• The response to the healing was that men glorified God-- that is they 'made God big!' Both the guy healed and the people who saw it happen. They were filled with fear. I think whenever people see God actually move in power, the response is fear. Why? There is a God and they must answer to him.

Interpretation:

There are two stories in this text. In the first Jesus heals a man who covered with leprosy. He had no hope. He was an outcast. He had faith that God could heal him but he wasn't convinced that Jesus would be willing to. Maybe he had heard of Jesus healing other lepers but just didn't think he'd care to intervene in his life. Yet Jesus was willing. The result was as it had been time and time before. The news of his power spread and more and more people came to him to be healed. But in the middle of all that, Jesus continually saw the need to get alone with God and pray.

In the second story some men take a paralyzed friend to see Jesus. They have to cut a hole in the roof to get him in before Jesus because the crowd is so big. Jesus recognized the faith of the men and says that because of their faith, the man's sins are forgiven. The religious people think that is terrible because only God can forgive sins. To this Jesus responds, knowing their hearts, "Which is easier to say, 'Your sins are forgiven or you are healed, get up and walk?' " I've always loved that question! Both are easy to say but only one is easy to say and have the proof follow. If I say your sins are forgiven, how can you prove it? But if I say, 'You are healed' you either are or you are not. Prove it! So Jesus says, so that you will know that I can forgive sins I say to this man WALK! And he does. I love that. The people are amazed, astonished and afraid. I think knowing you are int he presence of God is scary. Peter was afraid on his boat-- they are afraid in the house.

Application:

Lord, I think you want me know that Jesus is God. The whole point of this second episode seems that you wanted to make the point, "Jesus can forgive sins because he IS God. The religious people had it right, "Only God can forgive sins!"

Also, in the first part I find myself being so much like the leper, "I know you can but I'm not really quite convinced you are willing." I pray all the time for things, like what Anne's going through, but I'm not really sure you're willing. Yet in the text you stress, "I am willing." Help me pray with more heart faith that you are willing. Increase my faith in the willing part.

Those were my thoughts and applications? What were yours? Are you writing them down? Remember, one important part of this Bible study exercise is to journal, to write your thoughts down. It will help you focus and be more pointed in your applications. Besides, it will help you remember and we all know I need help in that area!

Leaving it all behind

Today's inductive Bible study was on Luke 5:1-11. Did you read the text? My kids said it was easier today. Even Joy, who had a real hard time the first day, is beginning to get a handle on inductive Bible Study.

Some of the things I observed were that Jesus interrupted their work. They were almost finished; they were cleaning their nets. Peter didn't want to do it but he did it anyway. I noticed that they caught so many fish they needed help to bring them in and that Peter's response to this was worship. I also see that Peter must have showed fear because Jesus says, "Don't be afraid." The story ends with Jesus challenging them to change the focus of their lives.

Interpretation is us putting the text in our own words so that we understand it. Here's what I wrote. Jesus is teaching along the sea of Galilee and he notices some boats on the shore. He decides it would be good to teach from the boat. Maybe it would help people see him or maybe it would enable more people to hear. He asks Peter if he can use his boat and obviously Peter lets the Rabi. We don't know if Peter knew Jesus at this point but I believe it's safe to assume he knew he was a rabi and probably had heard about him and his miracles. After Jesus teaches, maybe hours, and Peter listening, Jesus asks him to get in the boat and put out to deep water and go fishing. Peter doesn't want to do it! He's been fishing all night. Tired. Just finished cleaning his nets, which he'd have to do after this failed attempt. It's the wrong time to fish-- they had fished all night. That is the right time. But he says, I believe hoping Jesus would say never mind but he doesn't, ok, because you ask me, I'll do it. The rest is history. The catch is so big Peter has to call for help from his buddies. At this point Peter is overwhelmed with the sense that God is present. He worships Jesus. Obviously he's a bit afraid. Jesus tells him it's ok and that at this point Jesus will make him a fisher of men-- not a fisher of fish. They leave everything.

The application part of inductive Bible study is the most personal. What is God saying to me? For me I felt the Lord tell me I need to be like Peter-- obedient even when I don't want to be. There are things that God asks me to do because I love him and trust him that I don't want to do. This morning I asked him to help me obey, like Peter, when I think I know best. I asked him to help me trust him. The second thing I took away from the text was that God wanted me to devote myself to fishing for men. Fishing for fish, whatever my livelihood, is a good thing but being a fisher of men is what God wants for me. I asked him to help me today fish for men.

How about you? What did God say to you? In our family devotions Katie shared that she notice that Peter had the biggest catch he'd ever had but the story says he left that behind and began to follow Jesus. She prayed that God might help her put a much greater value on following Him than she does on her earthly possessions.

Inductive Bible study is a great place to start as we begin to understand and apply the Bible. How about sharing your application? If you have a moment, why not share your application in the comments.

Remember Mr. Ortberg's definition of training: "It is arranging my life around those activities that will enable me to do what I can't now do by direct effort." Arranging your life around the activity of Bible study will enable you to know God's Word in a way you can never know by simply wishing it were so. I hope you will keep this practice up.

Learning to do inductive Bible Study

Well, I hope you've come to read here because you are checking out the Bible Study for today. All week I'm going to record my thoughts here so you can get an idea of how to do an inductive study.

Our text for today was Luke 4:31-44. First I'm going to simply record my observations.

Observations:

• They were amazed because his teaching was different– he taught with an authority they were not used to.
• The demon said “us” but the text refers to him in the singular. There must have been more than one of them.
• The demon went to synagogue!
• The demon screamed out as loud as he could? Why?
• News spread of him all around.
• Not out of place to ask Jesus to heal Simon’ mom.
• Simon Peter was married.
• Healed, she began to serve.
• He constantly told the demons to be quiet because they knew who he was. Why?
• Early in the morning, Jesus got a lone. Why?
• Jesus wouldn’t plant himself in one spot– He was sent to all the people.

Interpretation:

• Why did Jesus tell the demon to shut up? I guess we’ll never know for sure but it seems he either didn’t want a frenzy or he wanted folks to come to that conclusion on their own. Whenever the Messiah thing bubbled to the top, he was often mobbed with people.
• Why would the demon scream so loud? Exactly the opposite reason. He obviously wouldn’t want Jesus to succeed so why announce the great truth? Because a frenzy would rob Jesus of an opportunity to present truth in a way that people would understand and get it.
• Conclusion: It was so important to Jesus to communicate truth is such a way that people could get it. Without huge distractions.
• Why did Jesus go out early? No distractions. Could be alone, away from the demands of people. We all need time alone to replenish and restore. Time with God. Time alone.

Application:

• Jesus spoke and taught with authority. God, help me to walk in Your authority. Not with pride or boastfulness but with assurance. I want to be convinced and convincing. And help me to communicate clearly today as I have opportunity. Help me make that a priority.
• The importance of a daily time alone with God can’t be minimized. Jesus felt it necessary– I must make it necessary. Lord, I’ve not been as faithful as I need to be to get alone with you. Help me to make that an indispensable priority in my life.

Those are my writings from the day. Throughout today, I've tried to think about how I can make myself clear in my presentations and how I can make my time alone with God a priority. I've tried praying about these off and on.

Several of you are doing the exercise this week and I'm so glad. It would be neat if a number of us come out of this series with a commitment to train spiritually on a daily basis.

A first attempt at Inductive Bible Study

Good morning church family,

How did your first exercise in inductive Bible Study go? Not very well, huh? My wife said I chose a hard passage to start with because it didn’t have any command to obey. We did it as our family devotions this morning and my kids found it hard. Don’t give up though. Training is never easy to start with. Hopefully, if you stick with it this week, you’ll have a better handle on a great exercise for transforming your mind and revitalizing your spiritual life.

As I talked with my kids today, here’s a couple of things that I clarified. Write down your observations. Some of them are so obvious they don’t really need any interpretation but then there may be some things that you observe that you don’t understand. Here’s an example. Katie noted that in the text for this morning, Luke 4:14-30, Jesus sat down after he read— she wondered why? Shep wanted to know what the saying, “Physician heal yourself meant.” Anyway, take one or two of the observations you noted and try to discern what they meant. And then finally, look at all you’ve written and ask the question, what do I take away from this?

For me, I came away with two applications. First, I noted that Jesus read the scroll and said “What I just read is about me.” When I read the words from Isaiah I noticed that Jesus was bringing good news, news of release and freedom. He wasn’t bringing bad news or even condemning news— he was bringing news of hope. Isaiah called it good news. So as a way of application I’ve asked God today for an opportunity to be an encouraging person, a person who brings good news and hope to others. Second, I observed that they went from loving him to hating him in just a very short about of time— maybe a few hours. So I asked why. As best I can discern, they turned on him because he spoke of God loving non-Jewish people. It was their prejudice that must have driven them to such hatred so quickly. So as a second application, I’ve asked God to help me never let prejudice blind me or direct my life. I asked him this morning to help me judge men on the content of their character whether than the color of their skin or their ethnicity. My hope is to think on these things through out the day.

Don’t give up. Bring your notes on Sunday and we’ll see some of the things God taught us this past week. Remember, training is never easy and every expert was once a beginner!

Some things trump all the rest.

(This is a letter I read to my church family on the Sunday prior to the election. I'm posting it today because several of you have asked to read it.)

Well the election is two days away and I know all of us are very glad. No more ads! I can’t wait for that.

Last Sunday I told you it was so important that you vote and that you vote your values. I’ve been thinking about that all week and the truth is, that wasn't really saying anything. We always vote our values. When we pull the trigger in the voting booth, we are always saying the candidate we vote for will best support what I value most.

There are many things we can value in the voting booth. We can value the economy most. The commercials we’ve watched make it clear that there are two thoughts on how to grow the economy. One is nick named trickle down economics where big business grows and gives jobs. The other is being called trickle up economics where the middle class and small businesses are promoted by being given tax breaks and larger businesses are taxed more.

Or maybe you value change. I think just about everyone is wanting change in our country. We’re tired of the cronyism in Washington and the just absolute unwillingness to make hard choices. We want to believe there are some principled men and women who will do what’s best for America rather than adding pork and earmarks to bills running up our country’s deficits. I’ll be honest, change was high on my list of values.

In this election we have an opportunity to elect a man of African heritage. It has been as recent as my life time that the 24th Amendment was passed removing the poll tax which attempted to keep black people from voting. The Civil Rights Act of 1964, which was the most sweeping reform in civil rights for people of color, was passed when I was five years old. Some folks value putting that chapter of our history behind us and this election gives them that opportunity. That would be high on my value list as well.

I think most of us try to evaluate candidates against the many things we value and see who would be the best. I don’t think a single issue can necessarily qualify a candidate, but I do believe a single issue can disqualify him.

I’m sure there were many issues before the Germans when the Nazis were killing the Jews and Gypsies but don’t you believe that issue should have trumped all the rest?

Or during the time of Abe Lincoln, when his platform was for the ending of slavery and the Douglas’ was not; wouldn’t that issue trump all the other issues?

For all my adult Christian life, I have been unapologetically pro-life. I have done what I can to defend the life of unborn children. We have gone to Washington consistently to speak with our political leaders. We have written letters. We have given money to fund abortion alternatives. And for many years now, I have said that abortion trumps all the other issues I value when it comes to voting. I want to say to all of you that protecting the lives of unborn children, ought to trump every other thing you value.

This is not pro-life Sunday but I want you to watch this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtYQpA-tics


God’s word is really clear that children are a blessing from God. That life is sacred and shedding innocent blood, ranks super high in what God hates. Listen to what God says about the shedding of innocent blood....

"Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molech, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD." (Leviticus 18:21)

If the people of the community close their eyes when that man gives one of his children to Molech…I will set my face against that man and his family and will cut off from their people both him and all who follow him… (Leviticus 20:1-5)

Do this so that innocent blood will not be shed in your land, which the LORD your God is giving you as your inheritance, and so that you will not be guilty of bloodshed. (Deuteronomy 19:10)

He sent them to destroy Judah…Surely these things happened to Judah according to the Lord’s command, in order to remove them from his presence because of the sins of Manasseh and all he had done, including the shedding of innocent blood. For he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the LORD was not willing to forgive. (2 Kings 24:2_4)

There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood… (Proverbs 6:16_19)

"Therefore as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I will give you over to bloodshed and it will pursue you. Since you did not hate bloodshed, bloodshed will pursue you." (Ezekiel 35:6)

Last week I told you that I had come to the conclusion that I was writing in my vote. I was pretty confident in that direction but as I’ve thought that through, I’ve come to the conclusion that it was because I had placed the value of change above the value of life. I’ve reconsidered.

On the issue or value of life, there is a vast difference between the candidates. Vast! Now, if you think that's an overstatement, that the difference between the candidates isn't that great, or they will not influence the future of abortion in this country, I challenge you to look their statements and their records. Mr. Obama is clearly and strongly committed to the legalized killing of unborn children, backed up by his 100% pro-abortion voting record. Mr. McCain has repeatedly stated his commitment to life and has also demonstrated it by his voting record to oppose the legalized killing of children.

I’m not thrilled with the pro-life candidate, but you need to understand that the pro-abortion candidate is very committed. In his July 17, 2007 speech to the Planned Parenthood Action Fund Mr. Obama said,

"We know that a woman's right to make a decision about how many children she wants to have and when— without government interference—is one of the most fundamental freedoms we have in this country. . . . I have worked on this issue for decades now. I put Roe at the center of my lesson plan on reproductive freedom when I taught constitutional law. . . So, you know where I stand. . . The first thing I'd do as president is sign the Freedom of Choice Act. That's the first thing that I'd do."

If you don't know about the Freedom of Choice Act, it was written by the most radical pro-abortion activists because they saw informed consent and parental consent laws being passed at the state level. They wanted something powerful that would dismantle anything that could serve to reduce abortions through requiring that people be told the truth before an abortion or before their sixteen year old, who can't be given an aspirin without their permission, can have an abortion.

So on Tuesday you have a clear and different choice. I know there are many things that you value that may make you want to vote for the pro-abortion candidate. Believe me, I understand. But I want to challenge you all to make defending the life of innocent, unborn children your highest value when you go to the polls on Tuesday.

(I am indebted to Randy Alcorn whose blog on this very issue impact my decision.)

Loving Jesus

What is love? So often we think of just the emotion, the feeling. O how I love the feeling of love! It's wonderful! It's powerful! How I love the feeling of "feeling" in love with Jesus. But Jesus makes it clear over and over again that it is not the feeling of love that he longs for from me. It is the practice of love that leads me to walk in holiness and obedience to his will.

Jesus asked us clearly, "Why do you call me Lord and not do what I say?" In other words, "Why do you say you love me when you don't follow me?" It was a big theme in John's writings too; "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments." (John 14.15) In the mind of Jesus true love for him translates into commitment to His will.

So what does that mean for you and me? Just this. It doesn't mean too much that we read our Bibles daily or even pray... It doesn't mean too much that we raise our hands in worship or sing praises with great emotion and even if tears run down our cheeks... It doesn't bless the Lord too much if our heart is full of emotion but our lives are riddled with sin.

Don't get me wrong-- we still fall short of God's perfection and He knows this. I don't want us to be burdened down with a false sense guilt. In fact, in the Lord Jesus there is supposed to be rest and peace and joy as we trust him for our salvation. If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all our failures! Praise God for that truth! But I'm really not talking about the stumblings we endure because of our sinful nature. I'm talking about the outright rejection of what we know is His will for us. True love deals with it!

So, my challenge to all of us is to love Jesus. To look forward to and wallow in the experience of loving Him! To raise our hands in praise and feel his love and express our own love emotionally. But even as we do that, let's not forget that the true foundation of loving Jesus is walking in what we know to be His will. If you know what His heart is, then do it!

As a man thinks in his heart...

Recently I was challenged by my wife with this thought from Scripture; "As a man thinks so is he." In other words, what we think on affects our entire life. If we think on negative things, if we let our mind dwell on our unhappiness or difficult circumstances, our whole soul and demeanor will be affected. But conversely, if we meditate on positive things we will be affected in a positive way.

As I've considered that, the Lord has reminded me that himself gives us such advice. For instance in Colossians Paul says, "Set your mind on things above [in heaven] not on the things that are on earth." In Philippians he says, "Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things."

In other words, what I think about greatly affects how I am. If I think on the negative things in life, what I don't have or what's not going my way or how I wish things might be then the result will be at least a droopy heart. I was reminded of this in a home group meeting the other week when I was lamenting all the negative things I was feeling about church and a relatively new Christian began to talk about all the positive. I was immediately convicted of how I had set my mind on things below, not above; things negative, not positive.

On another front, how we believe God in our heart with our mind affects us as well. We need to believe God for His best. We often want what we want. We believe we know the best for us and when God says no, we are not only disappointed we are angry. Often God has told us his will and we do everything we can to circumvent it instead of to graciously and humbly accepting what he calls us to do.

Lord, help me set my mind to things above. Help me believe you and trust you. I don't want to be negative or discontent. I want to allow your grace to shape my life.

Why?

Why does God move in revival? I have been asking myself that question for many months now. Is it due to some formula that believers finally get right like "x" number of believers praying "x" number of times a week? Is there a key we must turn that we find because God gives it to us or we stumble on it by accident? Often we pray like that. We say, "Lord, we know you want to send us revival more than we want it!" I struggle with that concept or thought. Or is it that we must achieve a level of holiness that puts us over the top and God rewards us with revival? Somehow none of those thoughts resonate with my spirit.

The bottom line is I don't know why God chooses to send revival to whom he chooses when he chooses. I just know that as we read history, all the great awakenings of the past have been preceded by people praying. So I think we should continue to pray. That is all I know to do is pray and call on God to help us. Maybe in a season of his choosing he might see fit to grant us what we ask.

Lord, please hear my cry. It is a cry for revival in my own heart. It is a prayer of need. Like Keith Green once sang,

My eyes are dry
My faith is old
My heart is hard
My prayers are cold
And I know how I ought to be
Alive to You and dead to me.

That is me. I need you to help me. Holy Spirit, please see fit to soften my heart and send the rains of refreshing to me and others. Please. Amen.

How to judge an elder

I've discovered over the years that it is easy to judge an elder. He must be perfect! (Please not the sarcasm!) Or at least he must measure up to some level of perfection that we imagine in our mind. It's amazing to me how tough we are on others but how lenient we are on ourselves. It's like Jesus said, we are so good at getting the speck out of our brother's eye but we can't see the log in our own. So we look at an area of weakness in our brother's life and we judge him as unfit, unqualified when we ourselves don't measure up and most of the time don't care. We justify it and say, "Hey, it's not me who wants to serve as an elder."

I guess the most difficult part in it all is that those who would judge a man unqualified to serve, will not lift a finger to help him. They will judge him unfit but they will not go and gently say, "Can I talk to you about something." So not only do we judge elders by a very strict standard, I believe even an unbiblical standard, we then do nothing to help them meet our expectations. How is that love? How is that God's will?

Lord, forgive us. We're like the Pharisees who put a load on people that the people can't carry and the Pharisees themselves didn't even try to carry. And then we won't even lift a finger to help a man grow. Change us, Father.

Don't quit!

A couple of verses that have particularly challenged me from the beginning of my walk with Jesus are Galatians 6:9-10. They read, “And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary. So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all men, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.”

Do you ever grow weary of doing the right thing? I know I do. Sometimes it’s all I can do keep keeping on. I’m convinced that one of Satan’s biggest tools is discouragement. He has such an arsenal. He can use difficult circumstances to discourage you like a loss of a job or the death of a loved one. He can use unfulfilled expectations to discourage you. Nothing discourages like dreaming a dream that never comes to pass. This is why God was so pleased with King David— he dreamed big dreams but he didn’t let God’s nos get him down. But Satan’s most effective tool for discouragement is people. People like you and me. The old nursery rhyme says, “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.” I don’t know where that originated but it simply isn’t true. People say the most hurtful things. Even people who love each other say things that wound and cut and hurt.

I think Paul understood this so he encourages the Galatians not to quit even when they felt weary and wanting to give up. Now there is one reason that he gives not to quit. He says if you don’t quit, you will reap in due season. If you don’t quit doing good, you will be blessed. If you don’t quit doing that thing you know God wants you to do, you will see reward. There is always a time for sowing and a time for reaping and the truth is the reaping time always comes later than sowing– some times much later.

We often think that God promises that if we don’t allow weariness to cause us to give up, that in this life everything is going to eventually be peachy and just like we want it. Now I honestly believe that God does give us blessings in this life but the fulfillment of God’s promise ultimately lies in heaven. The unbeliever says, “Oh that is just pie in the sky.” No matter how much we wish we had heaven on earth, God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, Paul says.

I don’t know about you but I’ve been weary lately, tired. Maybe you have too. Let’s not give up! Let’s set our face like a flint and stay the course. Remember, we have yet to experience all the wonders God has planned for us who love Him!

I’m pressing on. Press on with me!

Looking beneath the surface

God is always at work in us but all too often we are closed to see it or, if we do see it, we're closed to accept it. I am reading a book that is so challenging me I want to share a portion of it with you. It's Peter Scazzero's book, The Emotionally Healthy Church. He challenges our normal thinking on discipleship when he says that a Christian really can't be a mature believer apart from a healthy emotional maturity. Time doesn't permit me to recount all he says about emotional maturity but in the book he lays out six or seven principles that he believes comprise emotional maturity. One of those is the ability to look at the core of one's self and honestly evaluate what we see. Emotional maturity includes the willingness, and the ability, to look at the center of our being and recognize areas of weakness and areas of compromise that need to be addressed and fixed. It is the ability to look at ourselves, and without casting blame elsewhere, take responsibility and ownership to fix those areas.

Listen to this excerpt-- I love it! "The gospel says you are more sinful and flawed than you ever dared believe, yet you are more accepted and loved than you ever dared hope because Jesus lived and died in your place." "God has given us the Gospel to create a safe environment to look beneath the surface. I don't have to prove that I'm lovable or valuable. I don't have to be right all the time. I can be vulnerable and be myself even if others don't accept me. I can even take risks and fail. Why? Because God sees the 90 percent of the iceberg hidden below the surface, and he utterly, totally loves me in Christ. We have a saying at New Life Fellowship: "You can be yourself because there is nothing left to prove."

If only we could grab hold of this liberating truth! I can be honest with my areas of sin and weakness because I have nothing to prove, nothing to gain. I am loved in Jesus and nothing I do or don't do will make him love me more or less. Sure the Lord wants me to change, He wants me to be like Him. But it doesn't affect His love for me. Emotional health begins with an honest look inside and a willingness to own up to what we see. Am I insecure? Am I prideful? Does gossip make me feel good? Am I a gossip? Am I too weak? Too demanding? Too arrogant? Sometimes looking inward means being willing to open up and let others help me see who I am. Did you know it's really easy to deceive ourselves? It's easy to put up walls so that we can't see our true selves. It reminds me of an ostrich that hides it's head in the sand and thinks no one can see. Or the little child that hides it's eyes behind it's hands somehow believing no one else sees either. The sad part is that others often see perfectly what you and I refuse to even look at or address. So looking within begins with me, but I often need help.

I remember watching a video one time of a business man who brought in some friends and coworkers, he was actually the boss, and asked them to share with him things about himself that they wished he would change or address. At first they were reluctant to speak but as he pressed, they eventually opened up. I remember the gist of his comments; At first it was painful to listen to but nothing helped me grow more than honestly looking at myself through their eyes.

So Lord, this is my prayer: "Help me be secure enough in your love to be honest with myself. Help me not to hide behind a wall of self delusion or a wall of ignorance. Help me change where I need to change. Help me grow where I need to grow. My hope is that when people look at me, they will indeed see a man who is being daily transformed into the image of Jesus. May they see a 'little Christ', a Christian."

From my heart,
Jimmy

Why is praying so hard?

Have a concert and lots of people show up. They even show up for regular worship services but if you have a meeting devoted to prayer, I mean really praying, they won't come. Why is that? I think there can be a number of reasons why that is so.

One is that praying is hard work. It's hard to keep one's mind from wandering. It's hard to devote the time to talking to God. We are so busy. We often think of only manual labor as hard but labor of the mind and heart can be equally intensive.

The other reason we don't pray is that deep down we are not convinced that prayer really works. By this I mean that we are not convinced that God really answers our prayers with any consistency. He answers some request, he doesn't answer others and it seems that prayer doesn't make any difference. If I pray or don't pray, life will have positives and negatives.

I think early Christians had the same struggles. The reason I say that is because there are so many admonitions in the Bible to devote ourselves to prayer. If it were easy, or if we all knew experientially that prayer makes a huge difference, I don't think there would be a need to devote ourselves to prayer.

So praying takes commitment, consecration. It is something we do on purpose because we choose to, because we believe it's important. Prayer doesn't happen on accident unless you find yourself in dire straights-- then everyone prays!

Let me give you three motivations to help you choose prayer even when you don't really feel like praying. One is the obvious challenge of God's Word. Devote yourself to prayer. Paul on numerous ocassions says just that, "Devote yourself to prayer." You and I can not call ourselves obedient to the Scriptures unless we devote ourselves to prayer.

Second, the clear example of the early church. In Acts 1, before Pentecost, the Bible clearly says the early Christians were devoted to prayer. After Peter's and John's arrest they return to the group and they errupt into a prayer meeting where the Holy Spirit shakes the house. And when Peter is released after another imprisonment, he returns to the group to find them praying. They believed that praying was imperative. Why was that so? I believe because of the example of Jesus.

Jesus' example is our third motivation for praying. He did it. Hours at a time. He did it alone. He led the group. He prayed daily. He prayed while others slept. He chose prayer and he chose it often. If the Son of God prayed, should not we pray too? If it was priority to him, should it not be priority to us?

I don't understand prayer any better than you, but I believe that it is necessary. I believe God hears our prayers. I believe it means something to him. Won't you make a commitment to personal and corporate praying?

Dig for Joy

Dig for Joy!

Happiness is such an elusive thing. One moment you’re happy and the next, something happens to rob you of that happiness. But joy is meant to be different. Joy is meant to be the underlying bedrock that doesn't shift and move with the tides of negative circumstances. But boy is it still hard to choose joy. If one is not careful those waves of adversity can cover that rock of joy with sands of discouragement. Just as a Noreaster blows in the waves that carry the sand onto the beach roads, so can your joy be covered over.

So what’s the key? Dig! Dig for the joy. It's there. Make a choice to search for it; to choose it. Remind yourself of the truth of your life. If you are a believer in Jesus, God said that Jesus came to bring you joy, abundant joy. Jesus himself told us that no one would be able to take our joy from us so when the enemy tries, fight him for it!

But how Jimmy, how do I dig, to use your analogy? Well first we believe the truth that God loves us and nothing can separate us from His great love. Kay Warren defines joy as the , “The unshakable assurance that God is in control of all the details in my life. It is the quiet confidence that ultimately everything will be alright; and the determined purpose to praise God in all things.” Then we stubbornly refuse to allow circumstances to control our lives and our thinking. Instead we rest content in his love and trust in His future for us.

Lord, I want to be a joyous Christian. I want to walk in joy. Joy is my strength. When I am with out it, I am weak and vulnerable to the enemy’s temptations. So Father, please fill me with the joy of your Holy Spirit, even now!

From my heart,
Pastor Jimmy

The crocodile hunter is dead!

The crocodile hunter is dead. It's hard to believe that Steve Irwin is actually gone but it's true. One thing about him that sticks out in my mind was the passion with which he lived for what he believed in. Nature and animals were his thing and passion for them oozed from his very pores.

I was thinking, here I am, a Christian, believing that eternity hangs in the balance for the men and women I meet. I believe that God, the Creator of all things, wants to have a personal friendship with all of us, and not only do I lack passion, I'm actually apathetic. How can such things be? Lord, I ask you to please work in my heart today. Reenergize my passion factor. Kindle again the flame in my heart. Please! That I might not live a humdrum life but one set ablaze by the power and purposes of God. As someone else once said, "Let me burn out for you rather than rust out."

I'm not sure blogging is my thing but I think I will give it a shot. (But not today!)