Quote of the YEAR!

Well, it's official. The quote of the year is......drum role, please.....‘Don’t tase me, bro!’

Reuters
updated 12:56 p.m. CT, Wed., Dec. 19, 2007-

LOS ANGELES - "Don't tase me, bro," a phrase that swept the nation after a U.S. college student used it seeking to stop campus police from throwing him out of a speech by Sen. John Kerry, was named Wednesday as the most memorable quote of 2007.
Fred R. Shapiro, the editor of the Yale Book of Quotations, said the plea made by University of Florida student Andrew Meyer on Sep. 17, accompanied by Meyer's screams as he was tased, beat out the racial slur that cost shock jock Don Imus his job and the Iranian president's declaration that his country does not have homosexuals.
Shapiro said Meyer's quote was a symbol of pop culture success. Within two days it was one of the most popular phrases on Google and one of the most viewed videos. It also showed up on ringtones and T-shirts.

I won't even list 2 through 4 on the list.....it's just too sad. If this is the best that the great minds of our country can come up with then we are in a sad place. Hopefully they chose the most notables, not the most intelligent....so at least that would give me some solace.

While you're making other plans....

There's an old saying, "life happens while you're making other plans." As a pastor I see that in my life and the lives of the people I care about all the time. Yesterday one of our guys called me to ask for help. His mother was dying, and he wanted to know what to do about funeral arrangements. He said, "we just didn't think about this part of it." That is usually the way it goes...we are busy just living each day and then suddenly must deal with things we never thought about.

We got a call like that yesterday. My wife's mother is going into the hospital today. She has pneumonia. So we spend the evening discussing what we should do. Should my wife go there immediately? How to get there- drive or fly? Do we cancel Christmas and do it later? How do we fund the trip? Can I rearrange my schedule to go with her? A dozen questions that suddenly must be answered and dealt with. It's just life in a fallen world, and we all go through these things.

Once in a while though I get a glimpse behind the curtain and see what life could be without the ravages of sin on this planet, and wonder how many of the things we live with, endure and have to work through would not even exist in a sinless world. So, here's a short list of things that I think will change when this broken, fallen world is fixed and put right-

-We won't have to deal with funerals anymore...no more death...that will be nice.
-I won't have to have a Kleenex box on my desk for the spouse who is sitting in my office after finding out their mate is divorcing them. In fact the tissue companies will be out of business with the removal of tears....even that little thing is profound.
-Hospitals will be empty! No more sickness or death.
-No more glasses! I'll be able to see perfectly.
-The courts will be closed. Without sin to mess things up they won't be needed.
-Traffic lights will be turned off, you won't have to legislate "doing the right thing."
-No more politicians! How great will that be?!
-No more keys needed...without sin we won't need to secure against its temptations.

As my mind wanders I think of a dozen things (I'm sure there are hundreds) that would change when sin is dispatched. I can't wait for the day...the day when Christ returns, sets up his kingdom, and we see for the first time how life was meant to be without sin and it's impact on our lives. I think we will be amazed at how different it will be....how many things we think of as "normal" will be done away with....I can't wait.

Quote of the day

The quote of the day comes from a good friend of mine, Eric. Eric has decided, at the tender age of 45, to go to seminary and prepare for ministry. His quote comes from his own odyssey of faith and what he has learned about the Christian life. Eric said,

"You don't have to be ok, you just have to be obedient." --Eric Allen

Great songs come from trials

One of the men in our church, Mike Bascue, has been through an amazingly difficult time and is coming through the other side. He found times of doubt, times when he was angry at God, times when he felt alone.....but through it all, and now on the other side of his trials God is working in his life. Here is a song he just wrote. I think you will really like it. Here's the link to his first cut of "The Stone."

Christmas is coming....

Christmas came whether anyone believed it or not. How many in our day miss out because "it's just impossible!"? The truth is that it is a miracle, it is impossible....and that's why it's so exciting. The God who made us became one of us to save us. It is a miracle....don't miss it.

Monday's cartoon

Well, we did it.....we got a Nintendo Wii. Joye got a really amazing deal from Amazon.com, and we got the Wii for $79.00! It's great fun, but now we battle with "Wii elbow" and the temptation to use words pastors shouldn't use. The games are very frustrating! I must tell you that my dear wife, Joye, is a Wii addict. Intervention may be necessary.....especially with the new game Mario Galaxy. She has nearly conquered it, and can't stop until she does. She loves puzzles, and this kind of game is the ultimate puzzle. But the truth is that I knew that about her, and I get blamed for getting the game and getting her addicted. I confess....I did it. We are having great fun and frustration with the Wii. Come over sometime....let's play a game...a Wii little game.

A blessed dad

I am a very blessed man. I have a wonderful wife, kids and grandkids. I just wanted to share a photo with you of our beautiful daughter, Lindsay, and her husband, Zach at his company party last night.

Lindsay is a wonderful blessing, and an amazing woman. I'm honored to be her dad.

Thanks, Linz, for being such an amazing godly woman.

Training for the race

I am preparing for a year with a group of men from our church. I have invited about a dozen men to join me for a one year odyssey of faith. I am going to title this year, "Training for the race" because of the two verses that use this language in the bible. Paul uses this language to describe his own walk of faith, and so I plan to use this same language to bring focus to this year together.
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In my own life I see that I easily lose my focus on what's important if I don't keep my eyes on the goal. The dilemma for most of us is actually knowing where the goal is, so it's easy to get distracted. There are a lot of things that are part of this race-the world, work, family, etc. It's not simply a 100 yard sprint down a track to a finish line I can see. It doesn't take just 10 seconds and then I'm done. This race takes a lifetime...it's a marathon, not a sprint, and the finish line is not in sight for many years. When I first realized this, that it will take my whole life, it changed how I live.
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So, I need your help....if you were to join me in this year of training for the race what would you want to study, what would you want to know? What do you need to help you grow in your life? What do you need to train for your race? Based on these scriptures would you give me your suggestions for what you would want to know to help you in YOUR race to the finish line?
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1 Cor. 9:24 Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! 25 All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 26 So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 27 I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should.
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Heb. 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.

Fedex - Cast Away Commercial

This little parody is loaded with spiritual implications. I have a whole list of them that came to mind. What applications to life do you get from this funny little video?

Another sign that demands a question....

Here's another sign that piques my curiosity to know....where is this sign? It's a great sign, and as a pastor it has spiritual implications for me as I think about the tendencies of us "sheep." I have never thought of sheep "escaping into the jungle," it's quite a picture.....

The Only Worthy One

This morning I was visiting with one of our pastors discussing his Christmas Eve message. We were talking about passages for the scripture readings. We discussed Isaiah, Daniel, Luke, John and Philippians, but my thoughts raced to a passage in Revelation. It's a passage that gets me excited each time I read it. This is only a portion of the chapter (read it all when you have time), but here are the words I want to talk about. Read the verses, and then let's discuss them....
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Rev 5:1 I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a book written inside and on the back, sealed up with seven seals.
Rev 5:2 And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals?"
Rev 5:3 And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the book or to look into it.
Rev 5:4 Then I began to weep greatly because no one was found worthy to open the book or to look into it;
Rev 5:5 and one of the elders *said to me, "Stop weeping; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals."
Rev 5:6 And I saw between the throne (with the four living creatures) and the elders a Lamb standing, as if slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent out into all the earth.
Rev 5:7 And He came and took the book out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne.
Rev 5:8 When He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Rev 5:9 And they *sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
Rev 5:10 "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth."
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This passage thrills me. It takes me into God's very presence and introduces us to the ONLY worthy one.
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There have been hundreds of religious leaders and founders of religions over the centuries, but as we come into the very presence of God we get a clear commentary on all of them when John writes, "Then I began to weep greatly because no one was found worthy." It's clear that this is an intentional passage meant to focus the eyes of the human race on the only one worthy of our worship and praise, Jesus Christ. It's clear how God feels about all the other religious leaders of time and history.
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But did you notice why he is worthy? It's because of his obedience to the father to do for us what no one else could do. No man can pay the price for his soul....it's too high, so here is what the worthy one did, "for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth."
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Christmas is the grand introduction to the world of the only worthy one. Thank you, Lord, for sending the worthy one to provide salvation for the human race.

A post you need to read

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One of the blogs I check regularly is written by a brother in Christ in Singapore. He just posted a story you need to read. He shares the story about his visit to a Christian church in China. You can read his thoughts here.

Google earth's new discoveries

One of the great software programs available online is Google Earth. It's a compilation of satellite photos from space. There are some amazing discoveries from these photos, many of them you may have seen. Here's a new one found recently as people have scanned the photos- Noah's ark-
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And here's another one that amazed me-

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.The children of Israel crossing the Red Sea on dry land!

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Gotcha!

Two weeks 'til Christmas

Christmas is exactly two weeks from today! I guess I better start shopping....

Leading up to this most amazing rememberance of God's gift to man I'd like to share a random selection of Christmas "stuff." Have a great holiday season.

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Rob Bell: Everything Is Spiritual

I really like this little cut from a message Rob did. In it he communicates an important truth very simply. What are your thoughts on this idea?