Creative (adj.)

DIVORCE

2012-04-11T11:51:00.000-04:00

Men, when Christ stops loving the church, you can stop loving your wives.

A short, but good, reflection on Ephesians 5, HERE.

A very high calling indeed.

Resurrection: Bringing the Dead Back to Life

2012-04-06T10:15:00.001-04:00

Last night, I believe, was the first Maundy-Thursday service I have ever participated in. It was a great time of reflection and fellowship. After our meal, there were songs and some time to meditate on key Scriptures dealing with the passion of Christ. Then, we celebrated the Lord's Supper together.

It was during this time that something happened and made the experience a very personal one. I poured out the grape juice into the cups and passed them around. At that moment, I thought of Christ's final meal with his disciples and wondered what they all must have been thinking as he was doing a very similar act.

Then as we were silently reflecting on the broken body and shed blood of Jesus, I noticed the mason jar that was once full of grape juice was not completely empty. That's when it hit me: When Christ was suffering very real physical and spiritual pain, there was nothing left for him to give. He life was all He had to offer and He gave it completely to His Father's will. Not a drop of life was left in Him once he breathed his last. His goal (God's will) was completed and His life was accomplished. If there was anything left, he couldn't have said, "It is finished."

In those moments of reflection I prayed for forgiveness. At times I, like Peter, find myself denying the full authority and work of Christ. I am willing to give what I want to give but that's it. I am the jar that isn't completely empty. Unlike Christ, I am quick to save some of my life for myself...to do the things that I want to do. I am an idolater of self.

Thank God that what Christ accomplished secured true life and forgiveness forever for any who would believe (including me). This pain of death and spiritual punishment was all according to God's will to save His people, whom He has made his family. Without the shedding of Christ's blood, there is no forgiveness of sin. There is no entering the household of God.

I am so glad we can rejoice that Christ gave His life for the salvation plan of God. He reduced His life to nothing so that we might have everything! I hope you can rejoice in this season as well!

Jesus prayed for unity not world peace

2012-03-29T13:30:00.000-04:00

With an eye on the future

As I worked with the students this week I brought up the issue of unity. My desire is to take this group from being a bunch of individuals, to being a community (or family to be more biblical) of like minded believers, or at least try to get us to better understand what that looks like from a biblical world view. These past couple of weeks I have purposefully watched them play games, talk with each other, and seen where they sit in the youth room. My observation is this there are many unified fragments and individuals but I struggle to find something that completely unifies them. After asking them to rate on a scale from 0-100 where they thought their unity fell...both groups said anywhere between 60-75 on average. Now, on a scale of 100% that is pretty good but if we hold it to a standard of grading, there is room for improvement. I love how well these students get along. It brings me much joy to watch them work and laugh together but, I want them to see that Jesus himself prayed that between believers a relationship would exists that surpasses anything we can know with our senses. He wanted His Spirit to bring us together (John 17:20-23). There were millions of other things He could have prayed for but that was vitally important to him.

Because no one group of Christians is the same, each time we come together it can be an awesome and unique experience if we allow Christ to unify all of our differences. On the other side of that coin is this principle: When we allow things like fear, pride, selfishness, worldly standards of divisions (i.e. popular vs. unpopular) to keep us apart, while we are together, we grieve the very heart of God and will never reach the full amount of unity that Christ intended for us.

In Galatians 3:36-38, Paul goes so far as to say that not even the difference of being male nor female should be dividing the church. Now, he does not mean that when we believe in Christ we become one gender. What he is getting at is that the unity we can have in Jesus is greater than even earthly gender differences. We are one body in Christ.

My Goal:

Over the next few months I hope to work with the kids and challenge their commitment to Christ, the church, youth group, and their friendships. In this process I hope to see the body of Christ formed within these groups.

What will it take for us to look like the unified body of Christ in Western Mass? What does it mean to have one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father like stated in Ephesians 4:1-6? If we can understand this, we understand our freedoms as the church!

Iron Roses for Victims of Norway Shootings

2012-03-07T07:11:00.001-05:00

My cousin posted an interesting video on his blog. Very cool and it's a great cause.

Check the video out HERE.

If you like it, share it!

Social Media Desocializing

2012-03-05T13:01:00.000-05:00

I recently have been trying to intentionally call more relatives and friends out of a personal conviction. Interestingly enough, I read this article today and it sums up a lot of my feelings. When you remove the ironic brown nosing of relatives for hopes of an inheritance setting to the article, the point is very sharp and clear. Social media is eating away at our ability to be publicly social. We can be overly interactive on sites like Facebook and Twitter but completely isolated, very alone, and lacking the ability to interact in social environments. I don't believe (much to the opposition of my New Englander blood) that we were designed to be a society/world full of individuals/loners. If we were, why did God create the family? Though the article is a little humorous in it's delivery, it's still worth thinking about the influence of the social networking screen in our lives.

Teen and Teacher Together: What to think?

2012-03-02T08:51:00.000-05:00

I can't believe the article I just read this morning. It has greatly disturbed me. I saw very a similar thing happen in my own high school. How are we going to think about these things? How are we going to react? I am not talking about "Christian activist" extremism but we have to have some kind of reaction, don't we? In youth group, we've been talking about sowing works of the flesh and works of the Spirit. What kind of fruit will this have in the lives of these two people? I think the answer is already obvious...The man (who is 41) left his wife and children to move in with this 18 year old girl because they were "just following their hearts". His family is not just broken but destroyed. Yet, this mentality of letting your emotions and feelings drive your decisions is the culture we live in. The idea is to tie your level of commitment to your feelings of love and you will find what it truly means to love. In other words, when you feel love for someone else, forsake everything and everyone in the name of love because that will bring you true happiness. This kind of thinking is so twisted from the truth. Is this the kind of love Paul was talking about when he listed of the fruit of the Spirit? What are your reactions?
Remember, we must guard the deposit of truth!

Facebook is Modern Worship

2012-02-10T12:26:00.000-05:00

In our world of technology and advancements, social interaction is at the tip of our fingers. With just the click of a button, we can have hundreds and thousands of friends and followers from all over the world. 50 years ago this kind of online socializing couldn't even be imagined. Places like Facebook and Twitter have made the impossible, possible.

There's only one problem. Online, we can "appear" to be whoever we want. We can claim to have hundreds of friends who "like" us. In reality, do they really even know us. We choose just the right picture to make us look like just the right person. We update everyone with pictures, statuses, and quotes as if we were a famous celebrity. Our lives could be falling apart at home but online we are cool, calm, and collect. We put an image out there of something we are not.

Paul found the Christians in Galatia in the same state. They were trying to appear holy and righteous according to their good works. He was disappointed because this was not the freedom they were called to. This was not the gospel he preached. They were wasting their time trying to prove themselves to be something they could never be: perfect.

He exclaims to them again that the Christian life is all about loving, savoring, and worshiping Jesus. He wants them to accept who they are and what Christ has done on their behalf regardless of their sinful nature. In that, there is true freedom to do the things God truly desires (v. 14-15: love one another).

Today we are in the same predicament. We are constantly trying to upgrade ourselves in order to make us appear better than we really are. This attempt at showing off ourselves is idolatry at best. We are worshiping ourselves. It's like a rotting log in the woods. On the topside, it can be very beautiful in a natural wilderness kind-of-way. But, if you roll the log over, it is rotten, there are bugs and slime, and you may even find a predator you're not expecting. Jesus Christ has the ability to make your weaknesses your greatest features but he bids you to come and die in order that you may find true life. Only He can take the emptiness that is inside of you and make it good. Only when you trust Him, can you truly reflect outwardly what is happening inwardly.

Is your life beautiful on the outside but empty inside? Is your worship and love for Jesus only as true as your friends and status on Facebook? Is your love for Christ only skin deep? This is not how it was meant to be. Claim the freedom, life, and love He offers by trusting that only He can give you something worth more than Facebook, Twitter, your image, and even the world.

Read Your Bible, be made NEW by God

2012-02-02T08:51:00.001-05:00

I just read the weekly blog digest from John Piper. It addresses the issue of reading Scripture daily out of desire not obligation. I hope you are as encouraged by it as I was/am! It hits the issue I was trying to talk about this week. Do not make something like reading your Bible a law to yourself. Out of a love for God, enjoy the opportunity you have to read His Word! It is in that state of love that the Holy Spirit will work and move to mold and shape you into the image of Jesus Christ. Even when the reading seems dry and you feel like a desert, think of it as a spiritual investment! Remember, the Word and Truth of God never comes back void. Click HERE to read it.

Children Adopted by God

2012-01-27T11:41:00.000-05:00

At some point in our lives, we have all had a teacher, boss, coach, or whoever place a standard level of performance on us. This means that they have authority to keep us in line, discipline us (both in the form of training and consequence of negative behavior), and teach us. This type of relationship is different from a friendship but there are still relational aspects to it. It is more serious and has a professional overtone.

In these type of relationships, sometimes it is easy to meet the requirements or perform well enough to please the people/bosses placed over us. When we do well, we reap the rewards (i.e. good grades, pay raise, etc...). Still, at times, it is not so easy to meet the demands placed on us. And usually, negative consequences will follow.

It is all to easy for us to bring this "business like" mentality into our relationship with God. We seek to gain acceptance from God by doing things that we think will please Him. Sadly, we often build our core definition of salvation from this mentality. We try hard to pray often, read Scripture daily, go to Church on Sunday's, tithe 10%, and volunteer for different ministries all in order to seek God's good grace. When we mess up, sin, we do these things with even more intensity as if to quickly re-purify ourselves in a form of "binge-holiness". Paul's letter to the Galatians is a reminder to the believers that God's acceptance of them is based on the external factor of His love (Galatians 3:23-4:7). In this we too can find hope and freedom from our inability to be perfect.

I'll state as simply as I can: God does not want to be your boss, He wants to be your father.

When you trust that Christ has taken your disobedience and laid it to rest forever by dying on the cross, you become a child of God. Truth: YOU ENTER HIS HOUSEHOLD! This was the blessing of Abraham being fulfilled.

Sometimes we get too carried away with doing things, thinking they will please God and we miss the fact that God wants to love us like a father loves his children. Stressing out about our failures often times is due to a misconception of God's love and acceptance. He doesn't look at your performance, He looks at Christ. Your obedience is a sign that you love Him that will evidence over time. We cannot become perfect over night. Just like a child learns how to walk or talk, it takes repeated routine, practice, love, and encouragement from the parents.

When Jesus taught us how to pray he started with, "Our Father, who is in heaven..." (italics added). That word literally means daddy. Jesus addressed God as dad. And in Galatians 4:7, we see that we too can cry out to God as our father because of the work of Christ, not because we've been good.

What does a father relationship with God look like to you? Do you call him Dad?

Retreat and Conviction

2012-01-19T11:01:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I took a group of students to the SPAM Camp Winter Retreat in Alton Bay, NH. It was a great opportunity to spend some personal time with fewer students than I am used too. I really enjoyed getting to know all of them a little better. With little sleep and a little stress I learned a very big lesson over the weekend.

Even though I am a youth pastor, I am still a sinful human being.

There were a couple of moments where I caught myself saying things out of frustration and selfishness. Lack of sleep is no excuse. I allowed myself to come across strong and offensive. By the time all the kids had left the church and Hannah and I were ready to go to sleep at our house Monday night, I had a level of guiltiness weighing in on my heart. I was so tired and looking forward to sleep but I found little because I was feeling convicted. God was working hard on me. For that, I am grateful.

All that to say: I'm sorry. When I should have been an example, I showed my immaturity. If I have offended you, please forgive me.

Something John Tate said this weekend that has stuck in my mind: Spiritual Alchemy is impossible. To create something precious, rare, and extremely valuable out of nothing is impossible. To produce hope we must go through trouble (even the trouble we create), persevere, have proven character and then we will have hope (Romans 5:3-5).

Abraham the Man of Faith (Galatians 3:6-9)

2012-01-06T11:00:00.000-05:00

Galatians 3:6-9 (ESV)

6 just as hAbraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?

7 Know then that it is ithose of faith who are jthe sons of Abraham. 8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that kGod would justify3 the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, l“In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

Paul is defending an essential truth about the work of Christ. The false teachers were saying that you must obey God's law in order to earn his favor. They were preaching that you must obey the law more than you disobey it in hopes that God might show you his favor. No doubt they had an entire arsenal of twisted biblical truth that they were using to make their point. No doubt they used the law to prove their works based justification.

Paul sees their deception and makes his next point by looking at the story of Abraham. Abram (later to be called Abraham) was chosen by God. He was not a Jew yet he was chosen. He was considered righteous but he was not a Jew. How was any of that possible?

The answer is very simple. God promised Abraham three things:

That He would give him many descendants and make them a great nation
That He would give them a land of their own full of milk and honey
That they would be a blessing to all nations

And Abraham believed that God would not forsake these promises. He had faith that God was going to do all that he said. That faith was counted to him as righteousness. Yet, the false teachers wanted that Galatians to obey the law of God given to Moses in order to earn God's favor. To put it in perspective of the historical timeline (the reason Paul uses Abraham as an example), Abraham lived 500 years before Moses. My point, the Old Testament Law didn't exist yet. How could Abraham be considered righteous for obeying a law that didn't exist? He couldn't. It was his faith that he had in God and His promises. The practical truth for today is that God has always been about having people believe in Him and his promises. For us today it is believing that Christ was and is the Savior for mankind. Charles Spurgeon said it in one of his sermons, "it is not so much as your grip of Christ as his grip on you." Christ has come and we are saved that is the blessing of God. That is the only way to God.

Why can't the law save us?

What then is the role of obedience if it doesn't change your position before God?

What is the blessing of God for those who have faith? (verse 9)

God Bless

Spiritual Food for 2012

2011-12-29T08:39:00.002-05:00

I just found this article and am thinking that I will try to follow the steps within it for my Bible reading plan in 2012. It is pretty intense. But, shouldn't it always be intense?

Check it out HERE.

Money Investment

2011-12-14T10:54:00.001-05:00

I found an article my cousin posted on his website that was very helpful in being prepared for crisis. It talks about creating a "nest egg" in case there is a "bank holiday", like there was in the great depression. I would go one step further and say that it's a good idea to potentially invest into basic survival items. Think about it, when in a time of crisis and money has little to no value, having basic survival tools will become invaluable. It would be wise to invest in these things. I mean if we are talking something as extreme as a full out zombie apocalypse things like knives, rope, lighters, canned goods, and flashlights would be of most value. I'm just spouting off now but, the article is worth reading.

Read it here!

Tetelestai
-Sam

Lambs in the midst of Wolves

2011-12-09T12:57:00.001-05:00

Luke 10:3 : 3 Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.

I just read this as part of my daily devotions and wanted to share some initial thoughts. There is a lot of work, not many workers, and the harvest is among the fiercest of enemies. It will be this way until he returns. Taking up your cross daily is no small task in these conditions but it is the calling of every Christian. Talk about tough. All I can think of are the words of Paul, "To live is Christ, and to die is gain". Not once did Christ ever call someone to a life of good health and wealth. The reward of Christ is eternal but getting to eternity will be no small task. We will be troubled, persecuted, and brought low. We must be ready to fight this good fight of faith which God has put before us. We must be ready to take the role of the suffering servant with Christ, himself, as our example. We must keep our eyes on that eternal prize of the glory of God so that when we are under fire, we will not lose hope. I pray you find your hope in His perfect glory.

Faith is not Foolish

2011-12-08T09:17:00.001-05:00

Galatians 3:1-5
O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun with the Spirit, are you now ending with the flesh? Did you experience so many things in vain?—if it really is in vain. Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?

Paul cannot believe how ridiculous the Galatians are being. He very seriously calls them foolish twice in these five verses. He goes as far as to say that they are bewitched (under a spell). When he was with them, the gospel became their hope and passion. When he left them, false teachers were able to come in and distort the gospel. They made the equation of salvation = Jesus + Good Works. This is not what Paul had preached to them at all. He preached the righteousness and perfection of Christ, His death, and resurrection was the payment for sin because of the imperfect human nature. Christ death was necessary because we lacked the ability to save ourselves (Galatians 2:16).

John Piper says it well in a sermon on this passage (http://ow.ly/7SROz) ,"...it is the people who don't take Christ into account who are in the dream-world." I would take it one step further and say that it takes more faith for someone to not believe in God and Christ than to believe that Christ was the son of God and died for the sinful, unrighteous man. But, he finds the Galatians believing that they must earn God's favor through their own works. So, he brings them right back around to the gospel by asking questions that need no answer. Christ is the only key to gaining access with God. Faith is not foolishness. The truth is that Christ died for us when we were dead in our sin and unable to do anything to save ourselves.

The best part is we can know whether or not we are truly His because of the Spirit. This Holy Spirit is given to any who believe as a seal/ mark of God's family. It's like the family crest, it's how you identify where you belong. And we can know whether or not we have the Spirit by the fruit in our lives. I'll clue you in...the fruit of the Spirit is not a strawberry. Later in this letter, Paul makes known the fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal. 5:22-23). This is the Spirit of Christ. If you are His, you will begin to desire this fruit. What kind of fruit are you producing in your life right now?

A few study/ follow up questions:

Why is Paul calling the Galatians foolish?
What Spirit did the Galatians receive?
How did they receive the Spirit?
Where/Who did the Spirit come from?
Can we have this Spirit? (How can you know?)

Reading From God's Word: A Text, a Prayer

2011-09-25T08:24:00.000-04:00

I was very encouraged by this last week when I read it for my devotions. I read it again this week. It's a perfect prayer for preparing yourself for Sunday morning worship.

Psalms 51
Create in Me a Clean Heart, O God

51 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when vNathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.

1 wHave mercy on me,1 O God,

according to your steadfast love;

according to your xabundant mercy

yblot out my transgressions.

2 zWash me thoroughly from my iniquity,

and acleanse me from my sin!

3 bFor I know my transgressions,

and my sin is ever before me.

4 cAgainst you, you only, have I sinned

and done what is evil din your sight,

eso that you may be justified in your words

and blameless in your judgment.

5 Behold, fI was brought forth in iniquity,

and in sin did my mother conceive me.

6 Behold, you delight in truth in gthe inward being,

and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

7 Purge me hwith hyssop, and I shall be clean;

zwash me, and I shall be iwhiter than snow.

8 Let me hear joy and gladness;

jlet the bones kthat you have broken rejoice.

9 lHide your face from my sins,

and yblot out all my iniquities.

10 mCreate in me a nclean heart, O God,

and orenew a right2 spirit within me.

11 pCast me not away from your presence,

and take not qyour Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,

and uphold me with a willing spirit.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

and sinners will rreturn to you.

14 Deliver me from sbloodguiltiness, O God,

O tGod of my salvation,

and umy tongue will sing aloud of your vrighteousness.

15 O Lord, open my lips,

and my mouth will declare your praise.

16 wFor you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;

you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

17 The sacrifices of God are xa broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

18 yDo good to Zion in your good pleasure;

zbuild up the walls of Jerusalem;

19 then will you delight in aright sacrifices,

in burnt offerings and bwhole burnt offerings;

then bulls will be offered on your altar.

God bless!

Key to God: Notes on Prayer

2011-09-21T13:49:00.000-04:00

I moved into my new office on September 1st. It is extremely exciting to be doing something I enjoy so much as my vocation! Hannah was a true blessing in helping me get all my stuff moved in quickly. There are still a few more things I would like to set up but I need to get into the swing of working here first. A couple weeks in, and I am already feeling a little overwhelmed (but I consider the stresses I do have to be good stresses). Within my first full week I had to prepare three different devotionals. It was studying one of the passages I wanted to speak about when I stumbled upon something that really nailed me.

1st Timothy 2:1-7

The idea of prayer as an act of worship is very humbling to me. Prayer is powerful because of WHO you are praying to not who or what YOU are praying for. It's humbling because by praying there is an act of submission that happens. Prayer reveals that there are people and situations in life that are out of my control. (i.e. I cannot cause a persons heart to love God) To make prayer a true act of worship means to admit from the very essence of what it means to be human that God is more powerful and more caring than I could ever be.
Don't get me wrong, I am very thankful that He is! I am thankful that I can pray to God, who can do something. From the above passage, I know that God hears my prayers because Jesus Christ is interceding for me. My prayers do not deserve to be heard because of the sin that is in my life. Yet, Jesus Christ makes that possible. Jesus is actively working on my behalf before God. He is not dead, His tomb is empty. He is very much alive and very much still at work! He is my Savior, and my Mediator (and He offers his work freely to you as well).
So, prayer and the cross go hand in hand. They are intertwined because they both directly relate to God's plan through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Christ again proves to be the epicenter of God's plan for His people.
This passage also reveals God's desire. God wishes that all would be saved. So, Paul says pray for all people. God doesn't want any to perish (John 3:16). That is why he sent Jesus Christ as payment for sin. Without Christ we are enslaved to sin. With Christ we are free from it! The sad reality is that not everyone will believe and therefore be saved. But, the work of Christ is sufficient for all. Paul takes a moment to reaffirm God's mission by looking at his purpose: to preach the good news to the Gentiles so that they might be saved (v.7).
The last piece that really caught my attention was Paul calling the people to pray for the government and high officials. A lot of commentaries say that he wanted this so peace could be restored to the Christians because they were under heavy persecution. Sure this is true but I believe that Paul intends more than that. He is calling the church to do what Christ would have done...love their enemies. At this point in history, Nero is emperor of Rome. He hated Christians. He imprisoned, tortured, burnt, and killed many who confessed Christ as their Savior. Paul knew this, Timothy knew this, and the church in Ephesus (where Timothy was at the time of this letter) knew this. Nero was in fact probably the last person that these Christians in Ephesus wanted to pray for. Paul tells them to pray for the officials...as an act of love for their enemies and so that there might be peace. Those officials needed Christ just as much as anyone. Also, think about how quickly the gospel could spread if the government no longer viewed these Christians as a threat to their empire. Maybe that too is what Paul was getting at.

Sometimes I find it hard to make anytime in my day to pray. Paul emphasized it as of high importance not for just individuals, but for the church, as a whole, as well. All of this is very humbling to me.

Readings for 2011

2011-08-31T12:03:00.001-04:00

Last year I began a reading goal and was greatly deceived at what I would be able to accomplish in a year. This year I determined to read at least one book per month. Let's see how I do/ how I did.

1. The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church- Roland Allen
2. Sharpening the Focus of the Church- Gene Getz
3. Resurrection, His and Ours- David Dean
4. Family Based Youth Ministry- Mark Devries
5. Don't Waste Your Life- John Piper
6. Crazy Love- Francis Chan
7. Romans: Power for Modern Man- C. Norman Bartlet
8. Sex, Romance, and the Glory of God- C.J. Mahaney
9. The Measure of a Man- Gene Getz
10. Day of War- Cliff Graham * totally worth your time

So, I didn't get quite to one book per month but I did finish two classes and get a significant amount of my education completed. All these books are worth the time even the fictional stuff.

Transformers Reflection (The Lawless Decepticon)

2011-05-27T22:36:00.000-04:00

Ever since the false prediction of the end of the world by Harold Camping, I can't get my mind off of the end of everything as we know it and the 2nd coming of Christ. Even tonight as I was reading 2nd Thessalonians, the man of lawlessness was described (2nd Thess. 2:1-12) right after a segment about the second coming and judgment of Christ. This just kept fueling my thoughts and it took all of my will power a to stay focused long enough to finish the book.

But after I finished, my thoughts kept getting caught up on these two verses and thought: 2nd Thessalonians 2:11-12

My illustration of this verse: The man of lawlessness is like a Decepticon (Description of a Decepticon). He is meant to deceive. I have no doubt that backed by the power of Satan he will be the most powerful delusion ever. So much so that the deceived will believe he is truth when really he is the direct opposite of the truth. He will win the hearts of many. He will know how to woo people. Like in the old Transformers cartoon show and recently made movies (where they were cool looking vehicles that transformed into bots) the man of lawlessness will one day be revealed and many will realize they did not know, love and have faith in the Truth (Jesus Christ) and so were deceived. They will realize they believed in Megatron, not Optimus Prime. The illustration is ridiculous but the principle is sobering!

I cannot predict the future or the end. I have no idea what this man of lawlessness looks like. I do know however, that apart from Christ I am nothing. I have nothing else to cling to. He paid the ransom for my sins and now in faith I am made clean before God. In that truth I look forward to His return!

Church Vision: An Eye on the Future

2011-05-23T00:17:00.000-04:00

My wife is sleeping. I should also be. But, as I sit here in the silence of my study, I can't help but reflect on the power of Vision Sunday at Hope Church.

Since I have come to know true life, I have questioned the power of the Holy Spirit in my life and in the church today (in the United States) because I have failed to see it working, until recently. Hope church is potentially going to experience it's first paradigm shift in the way that it teaches it's members. This will be a huge task with long-term studies, conversations, and consequences. All of which I think need to happen and are beginning to happen. As I try to dig into my Antioch School work and engage in these conversations, I am finding evidence that the Holy Spirit is very much behind this shift. I can see it in the passion of the pastors, the backing of the elders and official board, and the hunger for biblical truth from the people. I have never experienced or seen anything like this before. It is good to see God still at work in this country even though we have entered a post-Christian era. If we catch His mission and make it our drive as a church, we could be a very powerful body. I am excited to be a part of this. After today, all the cards are on the table.

Hope church is looking to strengthen itself as a pillar of truth by strengthening and equipping it's families. We are doing this because God's building blocks for His household (the church) is the family unit. In essence, the church is a family of families (An Antioch School/ BILD phraseology but biblical concept). Our current culture is looking to deconstruct and destroy every inclination of family as God not only intended but created it to be. So, as we look to build strong marriages and families, we will no doubt meet opposition of the worst kind. I look forward to all of this because I have hope in the promise that not even the gates of hell can stop the mission of God (His plan for the church).

I look forward to seeing the evidence of the Holy Spirit and plan of God unfold at Hope.

Illiterate but not Ignorant.

2011-04-25T10:05:00.000-04:00

I feel like at times the church (I use this term loosely for the moment) holds itself to a substandard on purpose. The majority of family members (being part of God's family, the church) aren't educated in the ways of God and things of Christ. History proves this to be true. We have created our own traditions of only using highly educated pastors to be the professionals Christians who have all the answers (even to questions no one is asking), lead all the ministries, and teach all the people. This has left us at a major disadvantage for the gospel in the United States. The concept of a priesthood of all believers is viewed only as an inward experience and has no ramifications outwardly or corporately as one body in Christ. There is little to no desire for the average, church going Christian to participate in ministry. They feel it's not their calling or that they are not gifted for ministry.

To me, this doesn't add up. I read an article from Mission Frontiers a month or so ago about how Church Planting Movements (CPM's) in India are increasing dynamically along with churches in other parts of the world. The key to their expansion was that every believer in Christ within a local community was brought together and taught very foundational things of Christ to create a church. Part of their training included the mission and responsibility of sharing their new found faith with others. The trainee's were so on fire, it almost seemed natural for them to share this new hope with others (i.e. family, friends, and co-workers). Once the group was founded in the basics of faith and elders were selected (the elders were chosen based upon biblical qualifications which they produced almost naturally once they came to faith), they were left to go and continue this process of building the body of Christ. Some of these Christians can't even read. Yet, they still work towards fulfilling their mission of sharing the gospel with others. Even our oldest, average Christians don't feel the need to do this kind of work. This is a very scary thing.

Illiterate people, in this article about CPM's, were out in the front lines sharing the gospel with others. They were illiterate but not ignorant of the truth and even they managed to preach the gospel effectively. I think at times we are just the opposite. We are literate but completely ignorant because of our traditional way of doing things. Our minds are so capable of understanding but we don't know how or want to learn these basic principles of Christ. We have the ability to be a driving force in the Church but remain dormant. We are stagnant. What will it take to become part of the mission of Christ?

Reflections from Meditation

2011-04-24T21:45:00.000-04:00

I have recently begun to seriously consider the idea of my writing (i.e. poems, songs, and thoughts) being an external outpouring/ form of meditation upon God's Word, prayer, and moments of silent reflection on the many characteristics of God and His holy/good nature (both in general and in my life specifically). What I mean to say is that I believe these things to be an outward expression of things that are happening at the very core of my being. It is a physical reflection of the actual Holy Spirit transforming me as I try to saturate myself with truth and heavenly things.

This idea came to me when preparing the First Principles series on Habits of the Heart. Paul urges the churches of Colossae in Colossians 3:1-17 to spend time filling themselves with, and understanding deeply the things of Christ. From this passage I see both an individual and corporate calling to spend time being saturated with the truth. My idea of writing comes from verses 16 and 17:

¹⁶Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. ¹⁷And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Here is where the corporate aspect of this passage comes in. These are things the church should be doing. So, I will be trying to post my writings here as a reaction to moments of meditation upon the things of Christ. I believe these are the moments I find it easiest to most accurately express exactly what is going on in my inward man.

This is a poem I wrote a couple of nights ago when I began to first think through this process:

In the most inward of places
Of the most natural senses,
Where there is no distinction
Of man and Spirit,
Both are part of one being,
Where ideas begin and from them
Flow outward expressions,
The center of what truly makes
The man more than the machine,
This is where the music is.
This is where life really begins.
Rhythmic melodies come together
Full and bright,
An inward idea
Forming signs of life,
In the place that only knew death and darkness
Shines the purest light,
Making no room for shadows,
Leaving no room for shadows.

are you afraid of washing machines?

2011-03-01T22:05:00.001-05:00

No...Laundromats...maybe.

Ask me anything

Most attractive girl(s) and guy(s)?

2011-03-01T22:04:00.003-05:00

Girl: My wife; Guy: Ryan Reynolds

Ask me anything

If the Internet and TV didn't exist, what would you spend most of your time doing?

2011-03-01T22:04:00.001-05:00

Reading. I already don't watch T.V. Internet on the other hand...

Ask me anything