A good book to put on your list

I don't do this often, because I know that not everyone wants to know all the books us pastors read, but I'm half way through one that I really like. I will have to read it again when I finish (strange, huh?)

It's not a new publication, but very good, it's titled "The divine conspiracy" by Dallas Willard.

I'm also part way through one called "When bad Christians happen to good people" by Dave Burchett. It's also very good.

What are you reading?

15 minutes well spent

http://www.juststopandthink.com/

Deep thoughts, part 2

Ok, now for some deep thoughts from a shallow mind. Realize that profound is just a word to me, and I live in the world of application (so what do I do with that?) So my thoughts will not stir you to great heights, but I do hope they will encourage you.

The older I get the simpler things become.

It's not that I have things figured out, but I have lived long enough to make some simple observations. My conclusions are rather simple. After years in business and in ministry I have seen a lot. My friendships have been with the rich and with the needy. I have spent time with the "pretty people" and with those who find themselves the outcasts of their culture. I have friends who have multiple educational degrees and others who didn't finish high school.

I could continue with the contrasts, there are many of them, but the truth is that life comes down to some very simple things- 1. There is a God I will report to, and 2. the only thing that will last in this world are people.

So, I have decided to focus on those two things- God and people. The rest is just "bling", as our culture describes it. The rest are just distractions from the most important things.

Jesus said it best, so let me close this short post with his words,

Mat 6:33 Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.
Mat 6:34 "Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

Winter Bible Conference

Next Sunday we begin our Winter Bible Conference. It's going to be a great week. If you are in our area I invite you to attend. Here is the link for more information-

http://crossroadsbible.org/bible%20conference%20main%20page.htm

I am really looking forward to hearing the guys coming here from Biola. I hope to see you.

Fumbling in the light

I have been a Christian for a long time, and yet, I still feel like I'm just getting started, still trying to figure things out, still fumbling in the light.

It's frustrating to have read the bible through hundreds of times, and still have things I need to work on. I guess I am really frustrated with the reality of my ever active, ever present sin nature, how desperately wicked I am, and how fallen we all are. It's such a bother to have to deal with this sin nature. For me, the best part of heaven will be the absense of my sin nature. Oh sure, I will love the new body, and the new home and eternity, but to be rid of this sin nature....I cannot wait!

I read the word, pray and gradually grow, rowing toward the goal....and yet the me I started with is still active, still busy, still trying to get his own way. For all of us it's the weight we long to unload, the anchor that slows our progress.

I vividly remember the comments from one of our men in the church when we had to announce the fall of a friend. He came up to me with tears, and wept, "I hate sin, I hate sin...." He couldn't say anything else. Well, that describes it for me. That's the place I have come to- a deep hatred for sin and what it does, and in the shadow of that I am also working on another thing, quite the opposite...

I'm comsumed by Jesus' simple instructions to a religion leader who asked, "what's the most important thing?" Jesus replied, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

I am teaching on this tomorrow, but it has become more than a simple topic to teach through, it is weaving its golden threads through all that I am. I can't wait to see what these words do in my life, for they are becoming most important to me.

I am convinced of this one thing- If I work on nothing else in my entire Christian life other than these two things-to love God and love my neighbor, I will have a great walk with God!

Smiles for the day

Intentional confusion

Walking the dog

Bored penguins

A bad day at work

Sorry, just wanted to make you smile, hope I did. Have a great day.

Enjoying average

Life isn't always exciting. There are many days that are just downright boring. Nothing happens. We just live, work, eat and sleep. It's life. It's average sometimes, and that's great for me. I think we have an urgency to accomplish something in our lives, so it's hard for us to have a "nothing day." But the truth is that God isn't after accomplishments in our lives, he's after a relationship...with us! So, if I have a nothing day, and yet in that day spend some time with the God who made me, then it was an awesome day.

Psa 37:7 Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him;

The thrill of being alive!

Ecc 9:2 It's one fate for everybody--righteous and wicked, good people, bad people, the nice and the nasty, worshipers and non-worshipers, committed and uncommitted.
Ecc 9:3 I find this outrageous--the worst thing about living on this earth--that everyone's lumped together in one fate. Is it any wonder that so many people are obsessed with evil? Is it any wonder that people go crazy right and left? Life leads to death. That's it.
Ecc 9:4 Still, anyone selected out for life has hope, for, as they say, "A living dog is better than a dead lion."
Ecc 9:5 The living at least know something, even if it's only that they're going to die. But the dead know nothing and get nothing. They're a minus that no one remembers.
Ecc 9:6 Their loves, their hates, yes, even their dreams, are long gone. There's not a trace of them left in the affairs of this earth.
Ecc 9:7 Seize life! Eat bread with gusto, Drink wine with a robust heart. Oh yes--God takes pleasure in your pleasure!
Ecc 9:8 Dress festively every morning. Don't skimp on colors and scarves.
Ecc 9:9 Relish life with the spouse you love each and every day of your precarious life. Each day is God's gift. It's all you get in exchange For the hard work of staying alive. Make the most of each one!
Ecc 9:10 Whatever turns up, grab it and do it. And heartily! This is your last and only chance at it, For there's neither work to do nor thoughts to think In the company of the dead, where you're most certainly headed.

(Words from Solomon and Eugene Peterson in THE MESSAGE)

Dim lights, bright hopes

I have a Christian friend who fell into sin a while back. I saw him today. It wasn't a situation where we could talk, but I have been thinking for a long time about what I might say to him if I ever get the chance. I love this guy dearly, and it has really grieved me to see what he has done...what he has done to God, his wife and his family. My first thoughts were anger, tell him what you think, give him "what for." But God has a way of dealing with hearts, and he has softened mine. I love this guy, and grieve for what he has done. I don't think he even knows the full scope of his sin yet, but I know that will come. So how do I respond? How do I feel about all of this? It's been hard, I must admit. I have really been burdened over this. I can see how those around David felt when his sin came to light. What a time of sorrow. I am praying for my friend, in fact I prayed for him this morning, and I hope one day God can work in his life again. He was a vessel of honor, but now is simply a cracked pot on the side of the road. His light has dimmed, and for that I grieve. I hope that his dim wick will once again bring light to those around him, but for now I'm praying for my friend....

Rev 3:2 'Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.
Rev 3:3 'So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.

Andy Mckee- a treat for the new year

I just wanted to share one of my new favorites with you to start the new year. Enjoy the music, and I know you will enjoy his style as well.

Happy New Years!

This is the last day of 2006! Glad to see it go. It has been a hard year. I never dreamed we would go through all that we have this year, it's been amazing.

I'm really glad I have had a lot of hard years before this, it has made this one easier to survive. Is this one of those God things? God does build our endurance as we age. He is so kind to gradually equip us for the battles ahead.

But right now I just want to hide out with some cheese and crackers and wait for a new year to begin.

Happy New Year. I hope your 2007 is a great year.

A burden

One billion people in the world are muslim! That's amazing to me. One billion people....for me this is a big thing. I care about those around me who don't know Christ, and that's a lot of people who need the savior. I have had a burden for the muslims for a long time, but frankly don't know what to do with that burden, so I'm going to pray. I'm going to pray for them, all one billion, to find Christ. And I'm going to pray that many will see their need and seek him. I have met a few muslims. Most are wonderful people who love their wives and kids and just want to have a good life. It's only a few hundred million of that billion who would be considered "radical." That's still a lot, but I may not meet any of them. So, what can I do? I'm going to pray for them, and I'm going to look for opportunities to talk to them about Christ. Christ died for them too, I can't ignore them....

Mat 5:44 "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Mat 5:45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
Mat 5:46 "For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
Mat 5:47 "If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Mat 5:48 "Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Not far from the kingdom of God

Sunday is coming, and I am preparing a message. Just taking a moments break to change my thoughts. It's hard when you hit a mental wall. I have a clear understanding of what I want to say (big picture), but the details elude me. I am going to be in Mark these next two weeks. One of the passages that really sticks in my head is something that Jesus said to one of the religious leaders, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." I know, if I had been in the crowd listening that day, I would be like this little girl, picking my nose and thinking, "huh?" I shouldn't say this, but I feel that way a lot! Ok, back to the point- not far from the kingdom. We somehow have a funny idea that the kingdom is coming "someday," and yet Jesus made it clear that this scribe, 2,000 years ago, was near it.

It's clear from the passage in Mark that this man was a seeker, and looking for answers. Jesus told him that he was close. I wonder if he pursued Jesus later to ask, "how do I get from here to there?" I know I would have. If I'm near, what else do I need to do?

I guess my questions range in this direction- Do most people know that God has a kingdom? Do they really want to be part of it? Do they know it's already being inhabitated? Is there a longing in their hearts to find this kingdom? How do we help those around us find the way in?

Like this little girl, I stand, picking my nose and wondering...

Looking ahead

This year is nearly over. A new year is just days away. At this time of year we think about new beginnings, new plans, new resolutions. It's usually a time that we think back on the year, and ahead to the new year with hopes of better days.

The reality is that the new year is simply a day...just another day. The road ahead does not end, we simply start another day, another new beginning.

Each new day is a new opportunity to make good choices, to walk with God, to love one another. Each new day is a new beginning. It doesn't just happen once a year, it happens each morning as you wake to a new opportunity to serve God.

Psa 95:7 For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand. Today, if you would hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts...

Merry Christmas