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I was wondering what Christmas would look like if I wrote the Christmas story.  If I was God coming to earth, how would I script my entrance?  I know that I would do it totally different than the way that God did it.  First of all, I would do it between the years of 2008 through 2011.  Why those years?  Well, there are so many inventions that would really help my story.  24 hour news networks, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Ustream and many more mediums that I could use to proclaim my message.  I mean, how fast could it go viral that God was coming to earth if it was proclaimed on Twitter!  And wouldn't it be great if someone with an iPhone took video of the angels proclaiming that God was coming to earth?  How many hits would that get?  And speaking of the angels, I wouldn't have sent them to shepherds in the middle of nowhere.  I would send them to important people, like presidents and prime ministers and other famous world leaders.  Or maybe, I would even send them to the United Nations!  That way all the nations of the world would hear my story!  All of the rich and powerful people, the famous people, that is who I would announce to.

And what about my actual coming?  I wouldn't script it to be in a stable.  No, I would descend out of the sky with a billion angels and there would be lightning and thunder and music.  It would happen over New York City, so that everyone could see, and those not there could see it on TV and the Internet.  I would announce my plan to all the world so that  all would know.  It would be grand, spectacular and amazing.  It would be breathtaking and beautiful!

I wouldn't come as a baby.  I wouldn't come in a small town.  I wouldn't come in a quiet way.

But I'm not God.

Everything about the story of Jesus coming to earth is absolutely mind blowing.  Think of the name "Emmanuel" - which means "God is with us"!  The thought of Almighty, Creator God becoming the thing that He created is something beyond comprehension!  God came to earth in a still, quiet way.  Announced to lowly shepherds. Parented by a young woman and her husband-to-be.  Think of that.  Creator God submitting to and obeying parents that He created!  As for the timing of it, He came at the exact right time.  It was the moment that He set before the foundations of the world to come.  

He didn't come with fanfare. He came with humility.  He didn't come to the wealthy, the famous, the self-righteous.  He came to the poor, the forgotten, the sinners.

And that is exactly who He still comes to.  His message is the message of mercy, grace and forgiveness.  His coming was a gift.  The greatest gift ever to be given.  For He emptied Himself to come to this earth He created so that He could die one of the most horrible deaths mankind ever invented.  So that I could live.  So that you could live.  What kind of God would do such a thing?  What kind of God, knowing that mankind would reject Him and that He would be the only escape, would even create us?  A God who loves us all more than we can realize in this lifetime.  The God who, knowing the future, still created us because He loves us so intensely and so ferociously that He was willing to come and to die to take the penalty for all mankind's sins!  The kind of God who turned His back on Himself because He could not bear to look at the sin that was on Jesus, and for the first and only time in history we had God separated from God!  He did that for you and He did that for me!  As the old chorus says, "He paid a debt He did not owe, I owed a debt I could not pay, I needed someone to wash my sins away."

Jesus came not to be crowned with gold, but with thorns.  He came not to be served, but to serve.  He came not in glory, but in humility.  He came not for Himself, but for you and for me.

We give gifts at Christmas as a remembrance of the amazing, sacrificial gift that God gave us that first Christmas.  You've probably heard that it is better to give than to receive, and for the most part, that is true.  But this Christmas, it would be much better for you to receive this one great gift from God, than anything else.  

Receive the gift of God's forgiveness.  

Receive eternal life.  

You see, Jesus is God in human flesh.  He came for one reason, and that is to die on the cross to pay for the sins of all mankind.  But on the third day, Jesus rose out of the grave proving that He is God, and that He has power over sin, death and Satan.  And He is offering forgiveness of all sins and eternal life for all who would believe in Him.  Romans 10:9-13 says, "If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. Now the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on Him will not be put to shame, for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him.  For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

It's that easy.  Confess with your mouth "Jesus is Lord!" Believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead!  Because everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved from eternity separated from God!

I can't think of a better way to celebrate Christmas than to receive the gift God is offering to you!

Merry Christmas

For more information, to share your story or to ask questions, please email me by clicking here.

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"In Christ, there is nothing I can do that would make You love me more, and nothing I have done that makes You love me less."

"Your presences and approval are all I need for everlasting joy."

"As You have been to me, so I will be to others."

"As I pray, I'll measure Your compassion by the cross and Your power by the resurrection."

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]]> c31b0a4841306c920fe45b39dce71806 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-10-05%2015:14:02 I recently had a conversation with a man who was adamant about teaching everything about all of the cults to our teenagers.  This man had very good intentions; he wanted to make sure our students could distinguish truth from error.  I told him that there were a couple of schools of thought on this very subject.  One was to teach everything about every other religion, cult, sect, etc., so that you could identify it.  

But then I shared with him a story my dad had told me when I was growing up.  For a time, my dad was a banker.  The bank told him that they were going to teach him how to spot counterfeit bills.  But first, they wanted him to spend time counting money.  I don't know how long they had him locked away counting money, but it was several days, maybe even a week.  Then one day, they slipped some fake bills into the stack Dad was counting.  Immediately he stopped.  He knew there was something wrong with that bill.  Dad had spent so much time around the real thing that he was able to spot the fake right away.  This, I explained to the questioning man, is exactly what we do with our students.  We spend as much time with the truth as we can.  We talk about the Gospel repeatedly, so that it sinks into our lives and saturates us with the truth.  We study doctrine, we study theology, we study the big words (and their meanings), we memorize Scripture, we do a daily quiet time.

We are constantly surrounding ourselves with the truth.  We do talk about other religions, but we do not spend immense amounts of time studying what isn't true.

Jesus said, "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:32, HCSB) 

So how does that translate over to our personal lives?  Well, how much time do we allow others to speak into our lives rather than the Word of God?  We listen to Oprah, Rush, Dr. Phil, The View, Father Albert, your neighbor, friend, dog, Dear Abby, boss and more.  We seek their advice, yet we never go to the source of all truth - Jehovah God.  We need to spend more time knowing God and knowing God's Word, which leads us to knowing God's will..  There is so much information out there, so much that is false.  We are constantly inundated with it!

So, honestly, how much time do you spend with the truth?

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]]> e545b12f803367941986f70ac37c2099 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-09-23%2010:45:26 This question has been asked of me a number of times lately.  Others have simply told me that they don't have faith; some even wishing that they did.  So what's the answer?  How do we solve this problem of faith?

One of the greatest prayers ever recorded was that of the man who brought his son to have a demon cast out.  The disciples couldn't do it.  So the distraught man was begging Jesus to help.  Jesus asked the man how long this had been going on.  The man answered, "'From childhood,' he said.  'And many times it has thrown him into fire or water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.'  Then Jesus said to him, ''If You can"? Everything is possible to the one who believes.'  Immediately the father of the boy cried out, "I do believe! Help my unbelief.�' (Mark 9:14-29, HCSB)

Jesus went on to cast out the demon.  It was a great miracle.  It was life changing for that boy and his dad.  But don't miss two key components.  1 - Jesus said, "Everything is possible to the one who believes."  2 - The man said, "I do believe! Help my unbelief."  Jesus is telling us that the key is faith, belief, trust.  The man said he did believe, but also had doubts.  He was asking God to help his faith be stronger!  And what was the result?  The healing of the boy - exactly what the man was asking for.

In Matthew's account of this very same story, the disciples asked why they couldn't cast out that demon.  '"Because of your little faith,� He told them. "For I assure you: If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, �Move from here to there,� and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."' (Matthew 7:19-20, HCSB)

So why don't we regularly see mountains moving?  Because our faith is smaller than the smallest seed.  We allow doubt and "reason" to take over.  We allow fear to conquer.  Some say, "I know Jesus is the way to salvation, but I just don't believe."  My response is to ask God to show you how to believe.  "Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith without doubting. For the doubter is like the surging sea, driven and tossed by the wind.  That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.  An indecisive man is unstable in all his ways." (James 1:5-8, HCSB)

Ok, so that sounds good on paper, but it doesn't work in real life.  That seems like a total "Sunday School" answer, doesn't it?  How do we put that into real life practice?  I would say that many times when we doubt God, it is because we are over thinking and over analyzing too much.  Jesus instructed us to have faith like a child.  Let me illustrate.  When our oldest daughter, Emma, was about 2 1/2 years old, she was climbing the ladder into her top bunk.  I was walking towards her, but was still across the room.  I told her to come here, to which she simply jumped off the ladder.  In her mind, she had no doubt I would catch her.  Her faith wasn't depending on her reason and calculations about how quick I could cross the room and if I was strong enough to catch her.  It was actually all up to me.  Faith isn't about you, but rather it's about God.  It's not about the one who has the faith, it's about the One in whom you are placing your faith.

When we talk of "placing our faith in Jesus", that is exactly what we mean.  It's not about me, it's about Him.  If He is who He said He is, then He will do what He said He would - forgive your sins, and give you a place in Heaven.

So, the question is, are you willing to jump off the ladder?

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]]> 2c477b2e002954ae01f96d6107a16c3e http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-09-19%2010:48:59 Church membership.  For some people, those words send chills down their spines.  Some have said they don't want to join the church because then they would have to be a deacon or on a committee or something.  Some people don't see the point.  Some people just want to be anonymous.  For others, there are feelings of security, being at home and comfort associated with church membership.  For some really great articles on why church membership is important, see Thom Rainer's blog here and SBC Life here.  In fact, I suggest you do that before you move on.

Today, I'm not going to talk about church membership, but rather being faithful in attendance to your church.  Whatever church you consider "your church", should be the one you are faithful to.  Why is this important?  Well, there are a number of reasons.  First of all, any time a church is trying to establish or build something, but you can't get the same people there two weeks in a row, it is very frustrating.  You never know who is going to show up, and who you can count on.  Second, as you can see from the above articles, church membership is a Biblical principle.  If the membership of the local church is important, than one would assume that the attendance is also important.  Third, it is a command.  In Hebrews 10:24-25 it says, "And let us be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good works, not staying away from our worship meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day drawing near." (HCSB)  These verses clearly tell us that we are to be at our worship meetings.

This blog is not to criticize those who are sick, on vacation, have work, etc.  However, I see more than just that.  Many people like to church hop to see if Church X is doing worship better than Church T, and if Church E is doing Student Ministry better than Church U.  Church is not a place to go "bargain hunting"! Church is a gathering of people to worship Jesus, to be challenged to live for Him more and more each day.  It's a place to connect, a place to serve, a place to grow.  It's a hospital for the spiritually sick; it's family for those who have none; it's a training facility for sending missionaries into the world.  

Stop asking "What can I get out of this church?" and start asking "How can I serve God in this church?"  Stop being selfish; stop looking inward; stop looking only for your own comfort.  Start serving; start giving; start bringing the healing of Jesus to others.  We've got to rise up and get on mission.

Find your local church.  Get involved.  Stop playing silly games.  Be faithful to your local church.

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]]> 14b92ad9ffc54ae9dc4defd9c4e3acc0 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-08-22%2014:53:40 This past weekend I was a part of the Identity315 conference in Largo, FL.  I was privileged to be one of the seminar speakers, and spent two days talking about Leadership from the book of Nehemiah.  There were about 215 amazing students there from about 10 churches in the area, plus great speakers like Ed Newton, Jason McLeod and Sarah Howard.  One of the coolest things that happened (even for a Phillies fan like me) was when Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Ben Zobrist came and spoke to the crowd.  He was dead on talking about the Gospel, and talking about living for Jesus.  One great thing that he said was this: "If I mess up on the field, that doesn't change my identity.  My identity is in Jesus Christ!"  That was an incredibly powerful thing to hear coming from someone who is a Major League Baseball player!  And the students (not to mention every single adult) were hanging on his every word.

But it was something else that he said that I have not been able to shake.  He opened it up for questions, and one teen asked him about what kind of boundaries he sets in his life to keep from living like the world.  Ben had already talked about how living for Jesus as a MLB player was like swimming upstream.  I thought it was a great question.  And I was expecting him to tell us about rules he had set up in his life.  Instead, he totally caught me off guard.  He told us that when he sets boundaries or rules in his life, he (and each one of us) always tries to see how close he can get to the boundary without going over.  And then, inevitably, he goes over that boundary.  This led to a yo-yo Christian life going back and forth over the boundaries.  He also mentioned that sometimes he would stay within the boundaries, but then pride would come in, and his heart would be wrong.  Because even though his actions were right, his heart was wrong.

He told us that instead of creating big walls, he is asking for God to change his heart.

Wow.  It was so simple, yet so profound.  Now, to be clear, he was not saying he does not have rules in his life that he follows, but rather that he is more concerned about his heart being right with God that simply "coloring inside the lines."  Coloring inside the lines can many times lead to legalism.  And Ben told us that he simply wanted God to have control of his heart and life.  Because sometimes even if our outward actions are right, our inward thoughts, desires and intents can be really wrong.

That is why Jesus told us that if we are angry with someone in our heart, it is the same as murdering them; and that if you lust after someone in your heart, it is the same as committing adultery with them (Matthew 5:28).  The actions may have been right, but the heart intent was wrong.

So I walked away from the conference thinking about heart change.  Asking myself and God if I was really interested in my heart changing, not so that I would just stay inside the lines, but rather so that I would be pleasing to God.

So what about you?  Do you need heart change?

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]]> 2bf018668c8c14ef2a28addbe0495d41 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-07-03%2021:28:13 I love the United States of America.  I am proud to be an American.  I love the history of our nation.  I believe as Christians, we should love our country.  But we always face danger when we come to patriotic celebrations.  And I don't mean from fireworks, but rather the worship of our country.  I've heard Christians proclaim, with sinful pride, that they would never live anywhere else.  My first thought is that for anyone who was born here, they had no part in the decision to be born in the U.S.A.  Secondly, when we get to that level of pride, we are making something else to be our God, rather than the Creator.
Fox 13 in Tampa did a piece on legal immigrants who were taking the oath to become naturalized citizens.  These people came from many different countries to come to America, and after many years (5 years minimum), they took their test and pledged their allegiance.  The reporter asked several of them why they wanted to be Americans.  To a person, all that were interviewed talked of freedom.  One of the many great things about our country is that we are free.  Today, I was free to go to church.  Twice.  I was free to pray, teach students, worship, and learn without fear of arrest, torture or death.  I celebrate that freedom.  I embrace that freedom.  I am grateful for that freedom.  
But I will not worship that freedom. Most in our country are chasing the American dream.  Too many Christians chase it daily.  But rather than chasing the American dream, we need to remember what Jesus told His disciples, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." I fear that too many who call themselves Christians use the freedom in our country for personal gain rather than using it to celebrate, worship and preach Jesus Christ.  We are after the bigger house, bigger car, promotion, status, influence and power - this is called Americanism.  And while there is nothing wrong with any of those things, if we are seeking them rather than a deeper relationship with Jesus and more opportunities to share the Gospel with others, then we are worshipping freedom and not Almighty God.

Jerry Vines (follow him on Twitter here) this morning Tweeted the following: "If you can walk and chew gum at same time, you can celebrate freedom and preach gospel in same service. Duh."  Darrin Patrick (follow on Twitter) wrote: "PASTOR: Preach Jesus today, not Americanism" (I saw this re-Tweeted by Danny Akin).  Ken Whitten (follow on Twitter) Tweeted, "The gospel is gloriously simple and simply glorious. Knowing the Truth sets me free... Indeed" and again, "Grateful we live in a land where we can preach the gospel freely. Praying for my preacher friends today as they do just that."
So what does this mean?  Freedom is not the same thing as Americanism.  We can, and should, celebrate freedom.  But we must avoid Americanism; we must tell more about Jesus; we must give more to send the Gospel around the world; and we must go more to places where the name of Jesus has never been heard.  Americanism will keep us in our comfy houses; freedom will send us to the corners of the globe with the Gospel.  Americanism will help us to stock more in our 401k's; freedom will help us give more so the Gospel can be heard by all men, women and children.

Ultimately, the only freedom we can really have is the freedom that only Jesus brings.  He said, "If the Son sets you free, you are free indeed."  True freedom can only be known by knowing Jesus Christ.  He is Eternal God who came to earth and lived a perfect, sinless life.  He sacrificed His life so that we could live.  He died on the cross for all humankind to pay the penalty for every person's sins.  He was buried, but on the third day, He rose again proving that He has power over sin, death and Satan.  And He is offering a free gift of forgiveness, eternal life and freedom to all who will believe in Him.  If you want to know more of this freedom and free gift, please click on this link to View the Story of Jesus.  Celebrate true freedom this weekend.

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]]> 52863dd43ff7f8f453f85a8ea33e3c89 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-06-24%2011:36:28 If you've been a Christian for any length of time, you have figured out that you don't always feel like one.  Sure, sometimes you have those "mountain top" experiences where you feel really close to God.  Anything can be a M.T. experience: camp, conference or retreat, Sunday morning service, or even a really good quiet time by yourself.  I love those M.T. experiences.  You feel as though you would go anywhere or do anything to God, because at that moment you are so in love with Him.  Sin is far away from you; you are remembering Bible verses like never before.  You are sharing the Gospel with everyone you meet, and revival has broken out in your front yard!  You're even quoting entire sermons by Johnny Hunt, or Matt Chandler or Rick Warren!

But then, sometimes you feel really far away from God.  You feel like you are in the desert; you're all alone.  You feel totally dry spiritually.  You don't even know where your Bible is...or even if you own one!  You feel lost.  When you are in the desert, you don't feel like you are saved.  You don't feel like doing your quiet time, praying or going to church.  You definitely don't feel like sharing the Gospel with anyone.  You go days or even weeks without doing your quiet time.  You miss church or Sunday School, and you're absolutely not showing up for Sunday night!

I think King David went through a lot of these times.  Just read the Psalms.  In one Psalm, he is praising God for always being with him, while in the next one, he is asking God why He left him alone!  Sometimes we look at things like that and laugh, but the truth is, we've all been there.

So, how can you love Jesus even when you don't feel like it?  Here are a few things I've found that help me, but I have to mention, it takes discipline and it is not easy.  (These are not in order of importance, and should not be considered steps.)

1 - praise God.  Sing songs to Him.  Put on your Passion CD; crank some Chris Tomlin or Steve Fee and just worship God through song.  This is hard, because when you are in the desert, you don't feel like doing this.  But it is absolutely necessary.

2 - read through the Psalms.  I don't mean you need to read all 150 Psalms, but that isn't a bad idea.  But read through several of them in one sitting.  After all, these are praise songs from back in the day.

3 - pray.  Even if you can't get the words out, pray!  The Bible tells us that one of the Holy Spirit's jobs is to interpret our groanings.  Maybe all you can utter is, "God, help me!"  That is enough.

4 - share the Gospel.  Now, this is going to be really tough if you don't normally share the Gospel with people.  But, I am going to assume that everyone reading this shares the Gospel all the time with others.  Nothing recharges me more than sharing the Gospel with someone.  Even if they do not respond to God's call, just sharing with them about our gracious, loving God is enough to bring me out of the desert.

5 - be quiet.  Sometimes we just need to reflect on who God is, what He has done, what He has said in His Word and how much He loves us!  When we do this, we put things into perspective.

One further thing to note - we must realize that we cannot allow our emotions to control us.  Emotions are good, and they are God-given.  But they cannot be in control of our lives.  That is why disciplines, such as Scripture memory, a daily quiet time and prayer are so vital in our lives.  They help us to have a foundation so that we are not emotion driven.

Let me remind you that I am not perfect, so I don't have any perfect solutions.  What can you add that helps you to get out of the desert and back onto the mountain top?

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]]> 77b0db7ece004e5b9c9c94ffae22e4f9 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-06-21%2011:46:12 I just returned from 11 days in Peru.  For those who do not know, in October 2008, our church adopted Matucana, Peru, and since have sent 4-6 teams there each year.  This was my second time in Matucana, and my 15th or 16th mission trip since 1990.  One of my favorite things to do has been to take students (and leaders) to another country on a mission trip for the first time!  I love watching culture shock.  That may sound odd and even mean, but really I think it is so important.  We are taking these student out of their context, away from their Xbox 360, cell phones, Facebook, friends, family, nice houses, nice cars, etc., and showing them the physical and spiritual needs of others around the world.

As we gathered with the first service on the Sunday morning that we left, I told the congregation that my prayer was not just that we would have a good trip, be safe, be healthy, and reach people for Jesus.  My prayer was that most, if not all, of the students we were taking would then dedicate their lives to reaching the unreached with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Many would ask, "Can't we teach the same things right here in the United States?  After all, there are lost people here, too.  Why spend all the money and face dangerous travel to go to some other country?"  That is true.  There are lost people here.  We can (and do) teach them to reach the lost here.  But first of all, Jesus commanded us to go to the ends of the earth.  (See the Great Commission).  Second, if we don't go, who will?  We have the answers of forgiveness, grace, mercy and eternal life!  If we don't take those answers to all the peoples of the world, who will?

One thing that made an impact on me this trip didn't actually even happen to me.  One of the days, we split up and sent two smaller teams into two mountain villages.  Steven Colwell led the team to Collana.  There, he met the principal of the school there who was saved 17 years ago.  He told Steven that Peru didn't need any more religion; Peru needed the true Gospel.  Later in the week, we ran into that man two times in Matucana.  Both times he asked, "When are you coming back?"

In Acts 16:9-10 is what we refer to as "The Macedonian Call".  This is the vision that Paul saw while in Troas.  "During the night a vision appeared to Paul: A Macedonian man was standing and pleading with him, 'Cross over to Macedonia and help us!'  After he had seen the vision, we immediately made efforts to set out for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to evangelize them."

God may not necessarily be calling you to go to Collana or Matucana, Peru, but He is calling you to reach the nations.  Get out of your context and take the Gospel to places that it is not readily accessible.  

The nations are crying for us to bring them the true Gospel.

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]]> b8ac6fa9e2511e14cd77c1a31c5c04e2 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-05-17%2008:56:26 Yesterday, I posted a link to a Foxnews.com article about Dr. Stephen Hawking definitively stating that there is no heaven (article available here).  Dr. Hawking is an incredibly brilliant man.  His mind certainly works in ways that my mind cannot even dream about.  He truly is an intellectual.  Dr. Hawking also has more faith than I do.  How so?  Dr. Hawking is a man of science, and he has for years talked about the certainty of science and mathematics.  He has also discussed religion and God, saying that there is no need for either.  In the article referenced above, he says that the idea of heaven is a "fairy story for people afraid of the dark."  Dr. Hawking is an evolutionist.  He believes that all we see in the universe is a random act of science.  There is no afterlife; we are here, and then we die.  There is no God, no heaven, no hell, no spiritual forces of any kind.  There is no master plan, all is simply chance.

I don't have that much faith.

The theory of evolution (and yes, it is still call a theory, because that is what it is), in my opinion, takes more faith to believe than it does that an all-powerful, loving God chose to create all things in six literal days and rested on the seventh.  It takes more faith to say, "There is no God" than it does to kneel at His feel in humble adoration.  It takes more faith to say, "There is no heaven; no hell" than it does to recognize that all people have an eternal destination of one of those two places.

I've never met Dr. Hawking, and I doubt I ever will.  He is an amazing man, for even for all his physical limitations, he has never quit working, never quit thinking, never quit using his God-given abilities to teach the world about science.  I have a tremendous amount of respect for him.

Psalm 14:

 "For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

 

1 The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God."

They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds;

There is no one who does good.

2 The LORD has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men

To see if there are any who understand,

Who seek after God.

3 They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt;

There is no one who does good, not even one.

 

4 Do all the workers of wickedness not know,

Who eat up my people as they eat bread,

And do not call upon the LORD?

5 There they are in great dread,

For God is with the righteous generation.

6 You would put to shame the counsel of the afflicted,

But the LORD is his refuge.

 

7 Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!

When the LORD restores His captive people,

Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad."

I pray that Dr. Hawking would turn to Jesus, humble himself, trust in Jesus' death to pay the penalty for his sins, trust in Jesus' resurrection to give him the promise of eternal life in heaven, and follow Him.  And I pray that you would, too.

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]]> 21cd641d60377f192348c7f9a2ef9fab http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-05-03%2012:36:11 I've heard this way too many times: "He just talks about the Gospel too much."  My first thought is, "Really??"  Is there such a thing as talking about the Gospel too much?  Usually when this is said, it is said by people who are Christians, and they want to have an excuse for why they don't want to hear a certain person preach.

Here's the thing about the Gospel: it's not just for unbelievers.  I know that is going to shock and probably really mess some people up.  For most Jesus followers, we look at the Gospel as a Band-Aid for people who need Jesus.  We think of it as a one time patch to make all the bad things go away.  The problem with that thinking is that it is completely wrong!  The Gospel isn't some quick fix for bad people.  The Gospel is the timeless truth of the grace and mercy and love of Almighty God that is continually working in us.  Yes, the death of Jesus was a one time event, and yes, your "salvation experience" was a one time event, but the work of the cross is continual.

Each Jesus follower should be constantly studying, learning about, and preaching to themselves the wonderful truth that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  For as we continually internalize the message, it is something that becomes a natural part of us, and it naturally flows from us.

The Gospel is multi-faceted, and I do not believe that we will fully grasp all of it in this lifetime, however, that does not mean we should refrain from learning as much as we can.  As we learn, we are changed even more by the Gospel.  As we are changed by it, we share it with others.

So, no, I do not believe you can talk about the Gospel too much.  In fact, most of us are guilty of talking about it too little.

Learn the Gospel.  Study the Gospel. Preach the Gospel to yourself every day.  Share the Gospel.  Talk about the Gospel.  Be accused of talking about the Gospel too much!

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]]> 8bba5c7dd92c1ca5b3ad340ff5af618e http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-04-22%2009:44:34 Today is Good Friday.  Today is the day that we remember that Jesus Christ, who is Almighty God in the flesh, died a horrible death on the cross, and that God "made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21, HCSB).
But I have a problem with this whole scenario: it really doesn't make sense!  Why would God, who is self sufficient, who is perfect and holy, who has no need of man in any way to complete Him or make Him satisfied, become sin?  God cannot have anything to do with sin.  No sin is allowed in His presence.  But He came to earth just to die in my place and in your place and in the place of every human who ever set foot on earth!  And not only did He die, but He actually became sin!  While Jesus was on the cross, God the Father turned His back on God the Son.  For the first and only time in eternity, God separated from God!


Take a moment to allow that to sink in.  When I think about it, I am dumbfounded. 

Good Friday is not just a time to go to a church service, sing a song or say a prayer.  Good Friday is not just another time to have off of school or leave work early.  It is the time we remember the most amazing thing that ever took place.  My sins; your sins; forgiven; paid for; wiped away.

My friends, this is love; this is grace; this is mercy; this is forgiveness.  Jesus paid the way to Heaven because you and I cannot.  Have you accepted His gift?  Have you put your faith in Him alone for forgiveness and eternity in Heaven?  No baptism, no deeds, no giving of money, no good behavior can ever do for you what Jesus already did.  Stop trusting in yourself.  See Jesus for who He really is and what He really did for you.  This is the best way to celebrate Good Friday.

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]]> 71e29f3d20775cee57c3d78e0e9cac1a http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-04-18%2015:19:34

In October 2008, our church sent some from our Missions Committee to Matucana, Peru to scout it out. The people who went fell in love with the people, and we have since "adopted" the area. We send team from our church to Matucana 4-6 times a year, and we would love to send more! In fact, as I am writing this, Dennis and Cheryl Brown are in Matucana for the 9th time! Dennis is the chairman of our Missions Committee and they both have a passion for the Gospel both in Florida and in Peru!

Last summer, we took 4 students and 4 adults to Matucana for the first time. What a great time we had ministering to and loving the people there. We were able to share Bible stories in town squares, stores, homes, city hall, schools, mountain tops and playgrounds. We had the opportunity to sit down and share the Gospel and answer questions with many people. In Matucana, the Catholic church is very dominant, and they mix Catholicism with Mayan idol worship. It is a very spiritually dark country.

It is time for our team to go back. This year, we are taking 4 adults and 9 students. We are looking forward to being back there from June 5 - 16, 2011. I am asking you to partner with us in prayer and finances. We need people who will be prayer warriors to spend time each week until we go, and each day while we are there for our safety and for opportunities to share the Gospel.

We also need help getting there. Recent economic factors have made airline tickets very expensive. It costs $1,300.00 per person to go. We are asking for your help. This is a second way that you can help us go global. Every gift, no matter how small, is important and will help us tremendously. Would you consider helping us get the Gospel to Matucana and the surrounding villages?

There are two ways to give:

-Give securely online by going to http://www.fbcnpr.com/ and clicking on the blue "E-Giving" logo near the bottom of the page. Simply select the category for Student Peru Trip and enter your donation amount.

-Send a check to:

First Baptist Church of New Port Richey
Attn: Student Ministry Dept.
6800 Trouble Creek Road
New Port Richey, FL 34653

Please make checks payable to First Baptist Church of New Port Richey.

Thanks for praying for and with us as we prepare to go!

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]]> a5ed797c0ffffab9d2f516098427d39b http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-04-06%2012:55:32 This morning, I read (and Tweeted) Isaiah 59:1, "Indeed, the Lord's hand is not too short to save, and His ear is not too deaf to hear."  Wow!  What a great verse.  As I read that and contemplated, my first thought is, "God sure has long arms."  How true!  I kind of got this picture: me hanging on a tree that is growing out of the side of a cliff.  The cliff is hundreds of feet tall, is sheer rock, and the tree is pretty flimsy.  I am yelling for help, but there is no one around.  I am not sure how long I can hold on to the little tree.  Then, God looks over the cliff.  I am pretty far down; surely there is no way He can reach me.  And I am not really sure how He heard me.  But He reaches down His hand, and His arm is long enough to get to me.  He grabs me and pulls me up.  He sets my feet on solid ground, and I look at Him.  I am exhausted and I can barely speak, but I manage to ask this question: "How did You find me?"  His answer is Isaiah 59:1 - "My hand isn't too short to reach you no matter how far away you are, and I can hear your cry even when you are not close to me."

That is salvation.

Salvation is beautiful.  Salvation is free.  But we have to be willing to let go of our flimsy little tree and grab on to God.  It's that easy.  We call it faith.  Why do we keep putting our faith in our flimsy little tree called "Self" when we can grasp onto the mighty hand of God?  God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Today, I am so grateful that God has long arms and great hearing, that He would hear and rescue someone like me!

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]]> a894809d05e7c2fc432e1f3b823f44df http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-03-15%2009:22:13 Every Student Pastor worth his weight in salt wants to have a large youth group.  Our goal as a church is to always reach more people.  But sometimes I wonder, "At what cost?"  Sometimes, we are so interested in the masses, that we miss the people.  One of my student ministry heros has burned this thought into my brain in recent years: You can't reach the many until you reach the one.

This past Sunday, my wife and I were able to share the Gospel with two girls who came to our church for the first time.  As is my usual approach, we talked about many different things, but I also asked many questions about their church background.  Both had said they had spent much time in church, and I knew both churches in our city.  As we kept going, and I pressed them about their relationship with God, one of them said, "Well, I've never been baptized, or...what's that other thing.....saved."  I asked her what those things meant, and she had no idea.  So, beginning with Creation, I explained God's story to them, culminating with Jesus dying on the cross, being buried and rising again.  Both girls made professions of faith in Jesus that night.

That is my joy!  Seeing young people (or older people) trust Jesus alone for forgiveness of sins and a guaranteed home in heaven.

Here is my frustration: both spent much time in church and, to their recollection, had not heard the Gospel before.  This is what I call Student Ministry Fail.  Student pastors who are more concerned with large numbers in the building than they are with students one-by-one putting their faith in Jesus alone.  How have we become so off base in our thinking that we've missed the entire point of the church?  Church (and our student ministry) is not just some place for Jesus followers to hang out in a holy huddle.  The church is designed to be a mission for those lost in life; a hospital for those who are ailing; a lighthouse for those who can't see their way.  Above all, the church is designed to be God's missionaries to take the light of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ to those who don't know Him.

So let's go, student pastor.  Stop spending more time on how to be the coolest ministry around than on sharing the Gospel with every teenager you encounter.  Be about God's work.  Be about the Gospel!

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]]> a77d1e71041ba5c48a845ad4db9d39d6 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-03-07%2013:40:00 I was speaking recently with someone who said, "Well, we just have to see if we can find God's will...."  That got me thinking.  Is God's will lost?  Is God's will really hard to find?  Is it like Big Foot, the Loch Ness Monster and Leprechauns with a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow?  Is God's will some great mystery that only the super spiritual get to decipher?  Is it something that we continually search for but never find?

If God's will is elusive, and if God's will is something we never really discover, then God does not really love us.  If His will is hard to find, then we have a God who likes to play with us, who likes to frustrate us, who likes to torture us.

That is not who God is.  God is love.  God is kind.  God is mercy.  God is grace.  God is righteous.

So how can we know God's will?  When I was in Bible school at Word of Life Bible Institute, I was told something that I will never forget.  It isn't a magic formula, it's not even flashy, but it is true.  "If you want to know God's will, you have to know God's Word."  So simple, yet so profound.  

Here's the problem: I suggest that most Christians in America today spend more time brushing their teeth than they do studying God's Word.

When we read God's Word we see things like this:

~ Refraining from sexual immorality is God's will (1 Thess. 4:3)

~ Giving thanks in everything is God's will (1 Thess. 5:18)

~ Doing good, which silences evil men, is God's will (1 Peter 2:15)

~ Having our minds transformed from evil to righteous is God's will (Rom. 12:2)

~ All things that are done in Heaven are God's will (Matt. 6:10)

     * Examples of things done in heaven:

          - Worship of God

          - Communication with God

          - Fellowship with other believers

          - Unwavering obedience

~ All men turning from sin and turning to God so they do not perish is God's will (2 Peter 3:9)

     * If it is God's will for people to repent and turn to Him, then any action that we take to further this (we call it evangelism) is clearly God's will.

Every time that I share this with people, they say things like, "Yeah, but I mean, what is His will for me.  Not just general principles."  In other words, people want to know, which college to go to, who to marry, what job to take, what house to live in, what church to join, what choices to make, etc.  These are valid questions, and very important to make sure that we are making the right choices.  But it simply goes back to knowing God's Word in order to know God's will.  When we align our hearts with God's, the path is made evident for us, but it is made evident to us just one step at a time.  God is not going to send you an email with the next ten years laid out in front of you.  He wants you to trust Him step-by-step, day-by-day.  We call this faith.  If we had the whole plan laid out, then we would have no need of God.

Want to know God's will?  Spend more time getting to know God's Word, and trust Him each and every step of the way.

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]]> b61f778bf29062622d0f1d744f13e1c4 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2011-01-14%2012:48:22 At First Baptist, we are always interested in reaching more people with the Gospel, challenging those people to take the next step in their walk with Jesus, and to be reproducing Jesus followers.  There are a number of ways that we do this, and many different avenues that we are taking.  I like to think of a funnel.  A funnel starts out big, but narrows down to a much smaller size.  Church is like a funnel.  We do many things to introduce our church and Jesus to the masses.  This is the top of the funnel.  This would include Fall Festival, Easter Eggstravaganza, Living Christmas Tree, UpWard Sports and many similar things.  Then, we encourage the flow down to the "smaller end of the funnel".  This would be things like Sunday School, FAITH, Discipleship groups on Wednesday nights, etc.  These things are not smaller in size or importance, but rather just as the flow out of the bottom of the funnel is more intense than at the top, the people involved in these areas become more focused in their relationship with Jesus.

We are adding another part to the funnel.  We are calling it Friday Night Worship.  This is intended to compliment, not replace, other worship services and Bible study classes that we are doing.  Our first Friday Night Worship will take place on Friday, January 28th at 7:00 PM.  Right now, we are planning for one Friday Night Worship a month.  It will take place on the same night as our "Kids Night Out".  This way, there will be child care available for a nominal fee.

So what is Friday Night Worship?  Friday Night Worship (FNW) is a new worship gathering for all ages focused on prayer, worship, missions and learning.  Many are asking if it is contemporary or traditional style of service.  The answer is that it is neither.  It is a unique event designed to bring each person to the feet of Jesus as we worship together, pray together and study God's Word together.

We are praying for our time together each month to be more than "just another service" and not to be a concert of any kind.  We are praying that you will be with us, that you will bring your friends and family who need to hear the Gospel, and that above all Jesus would be glorified!

We look forward to seeing you with us at FNW on January 28th at 7:00 PM.

First Baptist Church of New Port Richey is located at 6800 Trouble Creek Road, New Port Richey, FL 34653.  727.849.4210

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]]> 41fa70792b4706a8c892f8780723dfc0 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2010-10-29%2009:39:31 Have you ever felt far from God?  I mean, really really far from God?  If we were at church or in Sunday School, the answer would be, "No, not really too far."  We say that because at church it is super important to make sure that we are always the holiest looking Christian in the room.  That, of course, is the total opposite of what we are supposed to do in church, yet we seem to do it anyway.  But that is a topic for another day.

If we are honest, we would answer, "Yes!"  Sometimes, you can feel so far away from God that you begin to wonder if He really exists, and if it is really worth it to keep trying to live for Him.  Sometimes we feel as though we are on an island, and no one else understands where we are.  Yet we are too embarrassed to call out for help.

So what do we do?  What I am about to say is not anything brand new.  It may not even excite you.  In fact, you may feel a little let down, because you were looking for the magic foo-foo dust to fix you right up.  Sorry, magic foo-foo dust doesn't exist.

First, we have to figure out why and how we got to this point.  There are two main reasons: perpetual sin and apathy.  Perpetual sin is the sin that we choose to do repeatedly even though we know it is wrong.  Psalm 19 refers to these as presumptuous or willful sins.  This would be things like habitual lying, drunkenness, pornography, adultery, stealing, etc.  You know, the things that we Christians talk about others doing, but we have never been involved in any of them (of course, I am not being serious).  These things tend to have a spiraling downward effect.  The more we do them, the more we hate that we do them, yet the further we feel from God.  These are sins of commission.

Apathy deals with just not caring about God or things that God cares about.  This is when we stop praying, stop studying our Bible, stop witnessing, maybe even stop going to church.  We just literally don't care.  We go through life, go to work, and then pursue our pleasures (which may not even be bad things!) instead of pursuing God.  After all, it is hard work to live for God.  Apathy is sin of omission.

So what do we do?  First of all, regardless if it is perpetual sin or apathy, confess your sin to God.  All throughout the Bible, God repeatedly forgives the most heinous sins.  People of Israel - made an idol of gold and worshipped it; forgiven.  David - slept with a woman and killed her husband; forgiven.  Peter - denied he even knew Jesus; forgiven.  Paul - killed Christians; forgiven.  1 John 1:9 is such a beautiful promise to believers.  It tells us that every time we confess our sin, God is faithful to forgive us and wipe away our iniquity.  God will forgive as many times as we ask for it.

Second, or more appropriately, 1a, humble yourself before God.  This is needed as a part of confession of sin.  James 4:10 says, "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you."  Acknowledge who you are and who God is.  He is the Almighty One.  You are His creation.  We are specks of dust compared to Him.

Third, spend time reading God's Word.  This is a tough one.  Because when we feel this way, we don't want to read the Bible.  We don't feel like doing it.  This is where we have to overtake our feelings and do what we know is right.  And when I say spend time reading, I don't mean 12 minutes.  I mean hours.  Carve out some time to get away, shut your cell phone off, turn off Facebook and Twitter and read and study God's Word.  Take notes, underline verses and even memorize some things.

Fourth, pray.  Pray for real.  Don't just pray to thank God for the food.  Don't just pray at bedtime.  Pray and tell God everything that is on your heart and mind.  He already knows it, but He wants that intimate communication.  Pray about your family.  Pray about work.  Pray about your feelings.  Pray about what you are studying in the Bible.  Pray about everything in your life.  The great thing about prayer is that we don't have to use some prayer from a book, we don't have to have some beads and recite things.  Prayer is personal communication with God.  When Jesus died on the cross, the veil leading into the Holy of Holies in the Temple was torn in half, signifying our ability to go right to the throne of grace.  That is an amazing blessing, and we need to take advantage of it.

We all go through the roller coast life of being a Christian.  But don't stay down low.  Do the work it takes to get back up and live for God!  You won't regret it!

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]]> 70f1d41325d834084f2d79122660d2b5 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2010-10-08%2010:06:57 When I read the Old Testament, I tend to make fun of and look down on the actions and attitudes of the people in it.  What?  A golden calf for your god?  That is stupid!  Oh sure, go ahead and worship another god, even though Jehovah God has to keep sending a judge to rescue you.  That sounds like a great idea, morons.  Admit it, you've had similar thoughts.  I know that when I put myself into the story, I am always the one who is the hero. I stand with Joshua and Caleb in telling the people to go into the Promised Land.  I am one of Gideon's 300 men; in fact, I am his closest friend and advisor.  I tell Abraham not to sleep with Hagar, because God has promised a better way.  The cycle in the book of Judges gets me really going.  How could the people be so dumb as to keep choosing to walk away from God and towards the gods and idols of the people around them.  Why can't they just be faithful to God???!!!

The problem with my "Holier-Than-Thou" attitude is my own life.  How many times do I have to come back to God in repentance seeking His forgiveness for the same dumb thing?  I am sure that the Old Testament saints are saying the same things about me that I say about them.  "Come on, Smith, do you really have to have that attitude again?  What an idiot!"  "Hey look, guys!  Brad is at it again.  Why isn't he just faithful to God?"

If we are really honest, to some extent, we all live right there.  We all have our own little cycle of sin, exile and repentance that we go through.  The question is, how do we break this cycle?  Unfortunately, it is easier said than done.  On paper, it seems easy.  In reality, it is painful and difficult.  

I believe it starts at the cross.  That may seem like an elementary statement, but it is so true.  Without the atoning work of Jesus on the cross, there is no salvation, no forgiveness, no power to change.  But what do we really believe about the cross?  What do we really understand took place?  For some of us, believing in the work of Jesus on the cross was a one time experience.  We call this our salvation experience.  This is an incredibly important time in the life of each believer.  If you have never had a salvation experience, if you have never put your faith in Jesus alone by faith alone to forgive you of your sins, give you a personal relationship with Him and guarantee you eternity in Heaven, please email me by clicking here.  I would love to talk more with you about this all-important subject.  But there is another thing we need to talk about.  Sanctification.  There are three facets of sanctification.  "Positional Sanctification" is first.  This is what happens to a person the moment they put their faith and trust in Jesus for forgiveness and salvation.  The third aspect is called "Ultimate Sanctification".  This is what takes place when we get to heaven, we are with God for eternity, there is no more sin or sin nature.  But it is the second form of sanctification that we want to look at.  Theologians call it "progressive sanctification" or "experiential sanctification".  The word "sanctify" means to be set apart, or holy.  So progressive or experiential sanctification means the process of making us more and more set apart, holy or like God.  Commonly, we refer to this as "spiritual growth".  Are you more like Jesus today than you were yesterday?  Are you closer in your relationship to Almighty God today than you were 5 years ago?  Have you learned more about Him?  Have you witnessed more for Him?  Have you worshipped Him more intensely?

Galatians 5:1 has long been an important verse for me.  It says, "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." [NASB].  Romans 6:1-2 says, "What shall we say then?  Are we to continue in sin that grace may increase?  May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?" [NASB]  Romans 6:5-14 says, "For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is free from sin.  Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him.  For the death that He died, He died to sin, once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.  Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.  Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.  For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law, but under grace." [NASB]

I could go on with many more verses, but the main thrust of these passages is this: we are dead to sin, we are free from sin, stop going back into sin.  Do you realize that many times we keep on doing the very things that put Jesus on the cross?  When we continue to sin, it is like we don't care, and we are putting Him right back up there again.

So let's do this: let's stop having a holier-than-thou attitude about people in the Bible, or people that you know, or people that you hear about in the news.  Let's end the cycle of sin patterns in our lives.  Let's recognize that Jesus has already set us free from sin, so we have no need to go back, and sin has no power over us.  Let's get busy with getting to know the God of the Word by getting to know the Word of God more.  Let's get busy with true worship.  Let's get busy with sharing our faith.  Let's take our relationship with Jesus Christ to a more intimate place than it has ever been before.  Because when we do that and we are more focused on that relationship, it becomes easier and easier to say no to sin.

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]]> 0fa70d5edc4aac7b9f64ae8418944a44 http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2010-10-01%2010:45:20 When I was in middle and high school, one of the sports I participated in was track and field.  I ran relays and did high jump.  High jump was by far my best and my favorite event.  For a few years, I even held the middle school high jump record for our school and for a few meets (don't worry, it has been since broken).  As I was going through my junior and senior years, I was starting to threaten our high school record, but I had kind of hit a plateau and couldn't get any higher.  I figured that I just was at my limit.  One day in practice, my coach, Mr. Bob Becker, put the high jump bar a full foot higher than I had ever jumped.  Then he put a special jumping box in the take-off area of the high jump pit.  He told me that he wanted me to run in and jump like normal, but I would jump off of this box.  I am sure I looked at him like he was crazy.  I knew that it was against the rules to jump off a box in a meet, so why was he having me do that in practice?  He told me that he wanted me to get used to jumping over a bar that was so high, so that it wouldn't feel foreign when I did it for real.  The end result was that I gained about 4 or 5 more inches in my jump.  

I sometimes wonder what would have happened if he would have looked at me and told me to pack it in.  That I had reached my full potential and I was not going to jump any higher.  What if he had lowered the bar instead of raising it?  I am pretty sure that I would not have jumped any higher in my career.

As I think about one coach who refused to let me settle, I can't help but think about student ministry.  How many times do we let teens settle in their walk with God?  I recall a conversation with someone who said we should only expect teens to do a quiet time 2 days a week.  I know of student ministries that attract a lot of students because they are loaded with fun and games, but they never challenge them to make a difference for God.

Two of the men I look up to the most in student ministry have challenged me (and many others) with this exact concept.  Mike Calhoun, Sr. Vice President of Word of Life Fellowship (Word of Life and Mike Calhoun), and Alvin Reid, Professor of Evangelism  and Student Ministry at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (Southeastern and Alvin Reid). I say that because much of what I am thinking about and saying is not new to me, but are things that I have learned from these men (and others).

It is time for those of us in student ministry to raise that bar up and challenge students to make tough choices and do the right thing, even if it is difficult.  It is time that we are turning them into men and women, and not extending their childhood.  Teens need to learn theology.  Teens need to memorize Scripture.  Teens need to be able to share Jesus effectively and lead someone to faith in Him.

So how about it, Student Pastor?  Let's stop with just doing games.  Let's stop "playing church".  Let's get on it.  Let's go do the work of equipping the saints for the ministry.  Let's challenge teens to change the world for Jesus.

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]]> 436dc56c39c43e7790f990e49fa6e1df http://bradsmith12two.com/blog.php?nextdate=2010-08-30%2010:50:31 I was reading in my quiet time this morning from Psalm 104.  In these verses, God talks about growing grass for the cattle, and cliffs for the rock badgers, and trees drinking their fill and many other things.  So I started thinking about that, and how that applies to me.  This thought came into my head, and I wrote it down in my quiet time: God's full attention is not split; it is on me!

For me, this is both an awesome thought and one that I cannot understand.  I am somewhat of a multitasker, but if I get too many things going at once, I will lose touch with all of them.  God does not multitask.  Pause for a moment to let that sink in.  After I wrote those words, I paused to absorb their impact.  In fact, I am going to write them again.  God does not multitask.

If you are like me, you probably know that God is omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient (everywhere present, all powerful and all knowing).   But most of us still picture God as a large man with long white hair and a long white beard sitting on a throne (that isn't God, that is Santa Claus).  We think of standing in line in heaven to get just a few seconds of His time.  I can't even begin to imagine what seeing God is going to be like in heaven, but I know it will blow us all away.  However, we know His omni- attributes, but we don't see them in practical ways.

In this passage of Psalm 104, we see God intimately caring for each of these different created things, yet none of them were created in His image, and none of them have a soul.  We know from Matthew 6:26 that God feeds the birds of the air.  He cares for His creation.

If God is all knowing, and if He is all powerful, and if He is everywhere present, then God's undivided attention is absolutely on me.  And God's undivided attention is absolutely on you.  This is hard to understand, because we try to fit an immense, immeasurable God into our tiny little minds, and He just won't fit there.

So what does that do for me?  How does knowing this help me?  First of all, you are never alone.  God is always with you.  Second, God is always listening to you, so when you pray, you do not get His voicemail, and you do not have to worry about someone else "beeping in" on prayer-waiting.  God will never put you on hold; He will never delete your message.  God is always listening.

You have God's undivided attention.

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