On several occasions I have bemoaned to others that I am so far behind in my reading that I'm going to have to carry books with me when I go to heaven. At home I have a stack of "must-read" books sitting next to my recliner that I just haven't gotten around to because of other pressing priorities. Sigh...
But, in addition to these books and the weekly and monthly magazines (Christianity Today, Discipleship Journal, World Magazine, The Interpreter, Good News Magazine, Focus on the Family) that I subscribe to and try to read to stay current, I find myself getting somewhat overwhelmed with the vast amount of information and really, really good thoughts from lesser known writers on the internet, especially among the blogging community.
These men and women typically aren't producing books sold in your local Christian bookstore. They aren't writing articles in the major magazines. But, they are blogging really great insights on their experiences with the Bible, God's work in their life and in the life of their church, and on a variety of issues of interest in the culture today. I have a list of bloggers on the side of this blogsite (courtesy of the Wesley Blog)that are just a part of the group I'm talking about. But, once again, the problem -- how do I keep up with what is being written and how do I know what sites I definitely need to read to stay current or grow in my Christian walk?
One great way to do this is by visiting the blog "Locusts and Honey." John has started doing a weekly roundup of blog sites. Here's a link to his most recent weekly roundup. You can check this out, find subjects that interest you, and quickly make the most of your reading time.
If anyone knows of any other sites that synopsize blogs, websites, article, or books, please pass it on and I'll post it on this site.
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Monday, June 27, 2005
IMAGE ALIGNMENT
[NOTE: After I preached the sermon below on self-image and living in the image of God, I ran across this great article by Dr. John C. Maxwell with similar thoughts.]
IMAGE ALIGNMENT
By Dr. John C. Maxwell
When I was fairly young, I was a pretty decent communicator. The upside to that was that I received some great opportunities to speak. The downside, however, was that I was often in over my head at these events.
For example, when I was 33, I was asked to speak at a youth conference at a state university campus. A few aspects of this engagement made me very nervous. For one thing, there would be 14,000 kids in the audience. For another, I had never spoken in such a big arena. And to make matters even worse, I was following a speaker who was much better and much more experienced than I was.
I well remember how I felt when I was preparing to go out on stage. The lights were bright and I couldn't see the audience. I knew there were 14,000 people out there, but all I saw was a big black hole. As someone who communicates best when I'm eye to eye with people, this made me very uncomfortable. I felt completely inadequate.
Not surprisingly, I bombed. It truly was one of those speeches that only my mother could have applauded.
Looking back, it's easy to see how my self-image—how I viewed myself—had a direct bearing upon my effectiveness—or lack thereof—that day. After that experience, I began to understand that leaders must believe in themselves before they can ever hope to believe in their people. I also realized that, as a leader, if I've not bought in to myself, no one else is going to buy in to me either.
Each one of us has an internal mirror that reflects how we see ourselves. And what we see in this mirror determines how we act as leaders. In other words, our self-image determines our behavior. That's why it's impossible for a person with a poor self image to produce consistently on a high level. It simply can't happen, because we cannot conduct our daily affairs in a way that contradicts how we see ourselves. On the other hand, when a leader believes he can do a good job and views himself as successful, his actions will show it.
Have you ever gone to a funhouse at a carnival and looked in one of those distorted mirrors? From one angle, you look as skinny as a rail; from another, you look bigger than an elephant. That's not how you really are, of course, but because the mirror is distorted, your image also is distorted.
Sadly, many leaders don't have an accurate picture of themselves because their internal mirrors are distorted. Because they're unable to see themselves as they really are, they're forever trying to find the right image to present to others. Some project an image that is bigger than they really are; others project an image that is smaller than they really are. Either way, the result is internal confusion.
A key to effectiveness—in life and as a leader—is to project a true image of who you are. The only problem is that we all carry with us four images of ourselves that can cause us to act differently with different people. These four images are:
1. The image that others have of us. This is how the people around us—the ones who observe us at our best and our worst—see us.
2. The image that we project to others. This is how we want others to view us.
3. The image we have of ourselves. This is how we actually view ourselves. Many times, this image does not match what we project to others.
4. Our true self. This includes our character and gifts; it represents who we were created to be.
When these four images don't match, we know it. This awareness might be subconscious, but it's there nonetheless. And it weighs us down.
The solution lies in making sure that these four images are as closely aligned as possible. You see, we can be emotionally healthy only when the image that other people have of us, the image that we project to others, the image that we have of ourselves and our true selves all match. The more distortion there is—among any or all of these images—the less healthy our self-image is, and the less effective our leadership will be.
Marcus Aurelius said, "I often marvel how it is that, though each man loves himself beyond all else, he should yet value his own opinion of himself less than that of others." As I learned so many years ago, when it comes to leadership, the first person you must believe in is yourself. The mirror reminds me that I must read myself well before I can ever attempt to read others.
IMAGE ALIGNMENT
By Dr. John C. Maxwell
When I was fairly young, I was a pretty decent communicator. The upside to that was that I received some great opportunities to speak. The downside, however, was that I was often in over my head at these events.
For example, when I was 33, I was asked to speak at a youth conference at a state university campus. A few aspects of this engagement made me very nervous. For one thing, there would be 14,000 kids in the audience. For another, I had never spoken in such a big arena. And to make matters even worse, I was following a speaker who was much better and much more experienced than I was.
I well remember how I felt when I was preparing to go out on stage. The lights were bright and I couldn't see the audience. I knew there were 14,000 people out there, but all I saw was a big black hole. As someone who communicates best when I'm eye to eye with people, this made me very uncomfortable. I felt completely inadequate.
Not surprisingly, I bombed. It truly was one of those speeches that only my mother could have applauded.
Looking back, it's easy to see how my self-image—how I viewed myself—had a direct bearing upon my effectiveness—or lack thereof—that day. After that experience, I began to understand that leaders must believe in themselves before they can ever hope to believe in their people. I also realized that, as a leader, if I've not bought in to myself, no one else is going to buy in to me either.
Each one of us has an internal mirror that reflects how we see ourselves. And what we see in this mirror determines how we act as leaders. In other words, our self-image determines our behavior. That's why it's impossible for a person with a poor self image to produce consistently on a high level. It simply can't happen, because we cannot conduct our daily affairs in a way that contradicts how we see ourselves. On the other hand, when a leader believes he can do a good job and views himself as successful, his actions will show it.
Have you ever gone to a funhouse at a carnival and looked in one of those distorted mirrors? From one angle, you look as skinny as a rail; from another, you look bigger than an elephant. That's not how you really are, of course, but because the mirror is distorted, your image also is distorted.
Sadly, many leaders don't have an accurate picture of themselves because their internal mirrors are distorted. Because they're unable to see themselves as they really are, they're forever trying to find the right image to present to others. Some project an image that is bigger than they really are; others project an image that is smaller than they really are. Either way, the result is internal confusion.
A key to effectiveness—in life and as a leader—is to project a true image of who you are. The only problem is that we all carry with us four images of ourselves that can cause us to act differently with different people. These four images are:
1. The image that others have of us. This is how the people around us—the ones who observe us at our best and our worst—see us.
2. The image that we project to others. This is how we want others to view us.
3. The image we have of ourselves. This is how we actually view ourselves. Many times, this image does not match what we project to others.
4. Our true self. This includes our character and gifts; it represents who we were created to be.
When these four images don't match, we know it. This awareness might be subconscious, but it's there nonetheless. And it weighs us down.
The solution lies in making sure that these four images are as closely aligned as possible. You see, we can be emotionally healthy only when the image that other people have of us, the image that we project to others, the image that we have of ourselves and our true selves all match. The more distortion there is—among any or all of these images—the less healthy our self-image is, and the less effective our leadership will be.
Marcus Aurelius said, "I often marvel how it is that, though each man loves himself beyond all else, he should yet value his own opinion of himself less than that of others." As I learned so many years ago, when it comes to leadership, the first person you must believe in is yourself. The mirror reminds me that I must read myself well before I can ever attempt to read others.
WHO AM I? WHO ARE YOU?
Gregory W. Lee
Preached 26 June 2005
I. Introduction
-- turn to 1 Corinthians 13:1
1. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
2. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
3. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
5. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
6. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
7. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
9. For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
10. but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.
11. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.
12. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
13. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
-- once upon a time the wife of a rich man fell sick, and as she felt that her end was drawing near, she called her only daughter to her bedside and said, dear child, be good and pious, and then the good God will always protect you, and I will look down on you from heaven and be near you.
-- over time, the rich man remarried -- his new wife -- the young daughter's stepmother -- brought with her into the house two daughters, who were beautiful and fair of face, but vile and black of heart -- the two step-sisters tormented the rich man's daughter from the first marriage -- They took her pretty clothes away from her, put an old grey bedgown on her, and gave her wooden shoes to wear
-- they forced her to work in the kitchen and to serve as their maid -- to sleep by the hearth, covered with ash and cinders and dirty and tired all the time -- and to make matters worse, they called her names, such as "stupid" and "dirty" and "ugly" and "unloveable" -- eventually, the pretty daughter of the rich man began to believe that she was all of those things and she accepted her fate and position as just -- in addition to losing her former position as the most loved daughter of the rich man, she also lost her name and became known as Cinderella because she was as dirty and dusty as the cinders that she slept in
II. The Story Behind the Story
-- this is, of course, the start of the fairy tale from the original story of Cinderella as recorded in Grimm's Fairy Tales -- kind of a curious way to start a sermon, wouldn't you say? -- but let me ask you, how many of you believe in fairy tales? -- how many of you believe that fairy tales are true?
-- in the story of Cinderella, we see the all too real picture of how a person can have their true identity stripped away from them by others and how they can began to see themselves as something less than what they truly are
-- Cinderella started the story as the only daughter of a rich man -- beautiful and loved and filled with the knowledge of the glory of God -- her mother called her both good and pious -- but, over time, as she listened to the lies of her stepsisters -- as she allowed herself to be defined by their words and by her demoted position as kitchen help -- she believed the lies and became what the stepsisters said she was
-- later on in the story, when the prince holds a ball in order to select a wife, she does not see herself as being worthy of going as she is -- she sees herself only in the reflection of her stepsister's eyes
-- and while we all know how the story ends -- how the stepsisters get their come-uppance and Cinderella marries the prince -- there is a sad truth about the start of this story -- we all have been in Cinderella's shoes -- we all have been subjected to the criticisms and the comments of others, and have let them define who we are today -- perhaps one reason why we are all so attracted to the old fairy tales is because we see a little bit of ourselves in all of them
-- the passage I read at the start of the sermon -- 1 Corinthians 13 -- is known as the love chapter -- in verses 1 through 8, the Apostle Paul gives us this stunning description of what God's love looks like -- of what perfect love looks like -- of what our relationship with God and with each other should look like -- these are the verses that we hear read at weddings as two young lovers commit their lives to one another
-- but then, Paul stops in verse 9 and takes another direction and gives us this thought
9. For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
10. but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.
11. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.
12. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
-- why did God have Paul put these verses in the Love Chapter? -- I think it's because God knew that we would never recognize or receive perfect love here on earth and He wanted to make sure that we knew that there was more to love than what we were currently experiencing
-- Paul points out that perfect love makes imperfect love disappear -- the problem, though, is that we are still living and loving as children -- we are still living and loving in imperfection
-- rather than living and loving in the perfect love that God has offered, we are living and seeing life and love as a poor reflection in a mirror -- the ultimate problem is that we are living our lives based on a small part of the whole -- rather than living our lives with the full knowledge of who we are in God, we live our lives in part -- tainted by our own false self-image built by the lies of the world
-- that is exactly what happened to Cinderella -- she was called to live in the fullness of her beauty and character and nature -- but, she rather than living that way, she allowed her perception of herself to be distorted by the lies and torments of her evil stepsisters -- she lived in the reflection of their opinion of her rather than in the light of God's love
III. Simon and the Sinful Woman
-- let me give you another example to help you see this more clearly -- turn over to Luke 7:36-50
36. Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table.
37. When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume,
38. and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
39. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is--that she is a sinner."
40. Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you." "Tell me, teacher," he said.
41. "Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
42. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?"
43. Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled." "You have judged correctly," Jesus said.
44. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.
45. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet.
46. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet.
47. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."
48. Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."
49. The other guests began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"
50. Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
-- here we see the perfect example of what I am talking about -- in this passage we read about a woman who Luke tells us "had lived" a sinful life in that town -- she comes into the Pharisee's house where Jesus was and began to wash Jesus' feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair and to anoint them with oil
-- look at the difference between the way the Pharisee saw her and the way Jesus saw her -- look at verse 39
39. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is--that she is a sinner."
-- the Pharisee saw a sinful woman -- but look how Jesus saw her -- Jesus saw her with love -- He saw her as a forgiven sinner -- as a pure and clean and holy child
-- note that Luke is careful to tell us in verse 37 that she "had lived" -- past tense -- "had lived" a sinful life -- evidently, she had believed in Christ and trusted in His forgiveness of sins and had been cleansed prior to coming into Simon's house -- it was because she had been forgiven that she came in and worshiped Jesus by anointing His feet with her tears and with perfume
-- Simon the Pharisee saw her in part -- he judged her and condemned her as a sinner even though that was not who she truly was -- from the moment Christ forgave her sins and cleansed her from all unrighteousness, she became a new creation and began to live and to love in the light of God's perfect love
-- now I want you to compare this woman to Cinderella -- what's the difference between these two ladies? -- the difference is in where they receive their value -- from who do they determine their worth
-- Cinderella let herself be defined by her stepsisters and became what they said she was -- dirty, ugly, and unloveable -- and it almost caused her to miss out on her prince when he came
-- this woman did not let the world define her -- she did not let Simon tell her who she was and how she should live -- she lived in the fullness of the knowledge of God's love -- she was defined by her place with God -- by her value in the eyes of God as forgiven and pure and holy -- rather than by the way Simon tried to define her
-- notice that she did not seek Simon's approval to come into his house to visit Jesus -- notice that she didn't care what he would think about her -- she came into the presence of Christ based on her position in Christ -- rather than looking at herself through the poor reflection of Simon's mirror, she allowed herself to bask in the light of Jesus' perfect love
IV. Application
-- so, what should this mean to you? -- what can we learn from the stories of Cinderella and a sinful woman?
-- if you will stop and think about it for just a moment, you'll have to admit that peer pressure is not just something that a teenager has to deal with -- we all suffer from peer pressure -- we all are concerned about what others think of us -- and we all let other's opinions and comments shape who we are to some extent
-- let me give you a personal example -- let me tell you about an incident that happened when I was in the fifth grade -- do you remember what it was like when you were around that age in school? -- you'd gather together on the playground and you'd talk and joke and try to impress your buddies -- well, one day a classmate told me in front of everybody there that I was a know-it-all and that I kept telling the same stories over and over again
-- that little comment has haunted me my whole life -- to some extent, he was probably right -- at that time, I was extremely outgoing and I loved to talk and I loved to point out things to others -- but from that point on, I became more withdrawn -- I quit talking out so much for fear that others would make fun of me -- I quit telling others the things I knew -- I quit being who I was -- who God had made me -- and became someone else so that the world would find me acceptable
-- and you may not believe it because I'm standing up here, but since then, I have always been one who preferred to stay hidden -- who preferred to stay behind the scenes -- who preferred to not speak up and not draw attention to myself -- I became very shy because I feared that others would judge me and make fun of me -- to this day, when we go out to social events, I still hug the walls and rarely speak to others -- when I went to my class reunion last year, I probably didn't talk to over 10 people all night -- people I have known my whole life -- and I didn't initiate any conversations
-- since God called me into the ministry, I have tried to become more outgoing and more sociable and more like I was in my younger years, but I still find myself falling into playing a role that the cutting comments of a fifth-grader forced me into many years ago
-- in their book, "The Sacred Romance," Brent Curtis and John Eldredge talk about the "arrows that become lodged in places of our self-identify" -- they say that words and comments like these get "repeated a thousand times and play like a recording in our inner thoughts" -- causing us to live life based on what we think the world wants rather than what God wants -- living in part and in the looking glass instead of living in the light of truth given to us through God's perfect love
-- that's exactly what happened to Cinderella and that's exactly what happens to us when we allow someone other than God to define us and to tell us how to live -- Curtis and Eldredge say that we go through life with a "Crisis of Identity" -- living out a script or role that someone else has written for us -- not being who we truly are and not being who God has called us to be but living in part based on the world's design
-- G.K. Chesterton said, "Every man has forgotten who he is .... We are all under the same mental calamity; we have all forgotten our names. We have all forgotten what we really are."
-- Cinderella had a "crisis of identity" -- she had forgotten that she was beautiful and good and pious and became who her stepsisters -- who the world -- told her she was
-- this crisis of identity is a tool of Satan to keep Christians from moving forward into Christian maturity -- even though we have been saved and made pure and holy in the eyes of God, Satan tries to do everything he can to keep us thinking that we are unworthy of love and incapable of serving God
-- he whispers lies and torments in our ears just like the stepsisters whispered to Cinderella -- and when we believe these lies -- when we start to live our life based on these lies -- we find ourselves crippled and unable to serve God -- we become who Satan tells us we are
-- on the other hand, the sinful woman who anointed Jesus' feet didn't have a crisis of identity -- she recognized the truth of who she was in Christ and lived in that truth
-- as Curtis and Eldredge state, "we are created in the image of God -- we are created as a reflection of the Trinity" -- and we are called to live in this image, not in the image the world has given us
-- Gerald May said, "Our creation is by love, in love, and for love" -- we need to recognize who we are as children of God and start living like it -- 1 Peter 2:9 sums up who we are in Christ "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."
-- we are not who the world says we are, but we are a chosen people -- a royal priesthood -- a holy nation -- the sons and daughters of God -- and we should live as such
IV. Closing
-- let me close by giving you two principles to carry forth with you when you leave here:
1. Remember who you are -- remember that if you are saved -- if you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and been forgiven of your sins
-- remember that you are pure and holy in God's eye -- you do not have to be told who and what you are by the world -- you should already know who you are
-- remember that you have the Holy Spirit within you who will help you live the life in Christ that He has called you to live -- and be true to your nature and to your calling
2. Remember that the same God who touched you has made that same touch available to every single person you come into contact with -- be careful in your conduct with others -- don't be like Simon the Pharisee or like Cinderella's stepsisters -- don't let your words condemn others and keep them from becoming who they can be in Christ -- we need to take care to honor others and to not devalue their worth as children of God -- and especially be mindful of your words to children, because comments received in childhood can distort and shape the life of an adult
-- before I close in prayer, we're going to have a moment of silence -- in the silence of this place -- in the silence of your heart, ask that God would reveal to you the arrows that may have led you to a crisis of identity -- the events that have forced you to assume a role that the world wants you to play rather than the life that God has called you to live
-- and as you recognize these moments, let's pray together that we would be freed from the power of the arrows and that we would quit looking at ourselves in a poor reflection in the mirror and that we would know ourselves fully just as we are fully known by God
-- remember this, the fairy tales are true -- "the hero really does have a heart of gold and the beloved daughter really does possess a hidden beauty" [curtis and eldredge] -- pray that you would come to recognize this in your life and in the life of others
-- let us pray
Preached 26 June 2005
I. Introduction
-- turn to 1 Corinthians 13:1
1. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
2. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
3. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
5. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
6. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
7. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
9. For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
10. but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.
11. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.
12. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
13. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
-- once upon a time the wife of a rich man fell sick, and as she felt that her end was drawing near, she called her only daughter to her bedside and said, dear child, be good and pious, and then the good God will always protect you, and I will look down on you from heaven and be near you.
-- over time, the rich man remarried -- his new wife -- the young daughter's stepmother -- brought with her into the house two daughters, who were beautiful and fair of face, but vile and black of heart -- the two step-sisters tormented the rich man's daughter from the first marriage -- They took her pretty clothes away from her, put an old grey bedgown on her, and gave her wooden shoes to wear
-- they forced her to work in the kitchen and to serve as their maid -- to sleep by the hearth, covered with ash and cinders and dirty and tired all the time -- and to make matters worse, they called her names, such as "stupid" and "dirty" and "ugly" and "unloveable" -- eventually, the pretty daughter of the rich man began to believe that she was all of those things and she accepted her fate and position as just -- in addition to losing her former position as the most loved daughter of the rich man, she also lost her name and became known as Cinderella because she was as dirty and dusty as the cinders that she slept in
II. The Story Behind the Story
-- this is, of course, the start of the fairy tale from the original story of Cinderella as recorded in Grimm's Fairy Tales -- kind of a curious way to start a sermon, wouldn't you say? -- but let me ask you, how many of you believe in fairy tales? -- how many of you believe that fairy tales are true?
-- in the story of Cinderella, we see the all too real picture of how a person can have their true identity stripped away from them by others and how they can began to see themselves as something less than what they truly are
-- Cinderella started the story as the only daughter of a rich man -- beautiful and loved and filled with the knowledge of the glory of God -- her mother called her both good and pious -- but, over time, as she listened to the lies of her stepsisters -- as she allowed herself to be defined by their words and by her demoted position as kitchen help -- she believed the lies and became what the stepsisters said she was
-- later on in the story, when the prince holds a ball in order to select a wife, she does not see herself as being worthy of going as she is -- she sees herself only in the reflection of her stepsister's eyes
-- and while we all know how the story ends -- how the stepsisters get their come-uppance and Cinderella marries the prince -- there is a sad truth about the start of this story -- we all have been in Cinderella's shoes -- we all have been subjected to the criticisms and the comments of others, and have let them define who we are today -- perhaps one reason why we are all so attracted to the old fairy tales is because we see a little bit of ourselves in all of them
-- the passage I read at the start of the sermon -- 1 Corinthians 13 -- is known as the love chapter -- in verses 1 through 8, the Apostle Paul gives us this stunning description of what God's love looks like -- of what perfect love looks like -- of what our relationship with God and with each other should look like -- these are the verses that we hear read at weddings as two young lovers commit their lives to one another
-- but then, Paul stops in verse 9 and takes another direction and gives us this thought
9. For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
10. but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.
11. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.
12. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
-- why did God have Paul put these verses in the Love Chapter? -- I think it's because God knew that we would never recognize or receive perfect love here on earth and He wanted to make sure that we knew that there was more to love than what we were currently experiencing
-- Paul points out that perfect love makes imperfect love disappear -- the problem, though, is that we are still living and loving as children -- we are still living and loving in imperfection
-- rather than living and loving in the perfect love that God has offered, we are living and seeing life and love as a poor reflection in a mirror -- the ultimate problem is that we are living our lives based on a small part of the whole -- rather than living our lives with the full knowledge of who we are in God, we live our lives in part -- tainted by our own false self-image built by the lies of the world
-- that is exactly what happened to Cinderella -- she was called to live in the fullness of her beauty and character and nature -- but, she rather than living that way, she allowed her perception of herself to be distorted by the lies and torments of her evil stepsisters -- she lived in the reflection of their opinion of her rather than in the light of God's love
III. Simon and the Sinful Woman
-- let me give you another example to help you see this more clearly -- turn over to Luke 7:36-50
36. Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table.
37. When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume,
38. and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
39. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is--that she is a sinner."
40. Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you." "Tell me, teacher," he said.
41. "Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
42. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?"
43. Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled." "You have judged correctly," Jesus said.
44. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.
45. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet.
46. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet.
47. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."
48. Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."
49. The other guests began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"
50. Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
-- here we see the perfect example of what I am talking about -- in this passage we read about a woman who Luke tells us "had lived" a sinful life in that town -- she comes into the Pharisee's house where Jesus was and began to wash Jesus' feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair and to anoint them with oil
-- look at the difference between the way the Pharisee saw her and the way Jesus saw her -- look at verse 39
39. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is--that she is a sinner."
-- the Pharisee saw a sinful woman -- but look how Jesus saw her -- Jesus saw her with love -- He saw her as a forgiven sinner -- as a pure and clean and holy child
-- note that Luke is careful to tell us in verse 37 that she "had lived" -- past tense -- "had lived" a sinful life -- evidently, she had believed in Christ and trusted in His forgiveness of sins and had been cleansed prior to coming into Simon's house -- it was because she had been forgiven that she came in and worshiped Jesus by anointing His feet with her tears and with perfume
-- Simon the Pharisee saw her in part -- he judged her and condemned her as a sinner even though that was not who she truly was -- from the moment Christ forgave her sins and cleansed her from all unrighteousness, she became a new creation and began to live and to love in the light of God's perfect love
-- now I want you to compare this woman to Cinderella -- what's the difference between these two ladies? -- the difference is in where they receive their value -- from who do they determine their worth
-- Cinderella let herself be defined by her stepsisters and became what they said she was -- dirty, ugly, and unloveable -- and it almost caused her to miss out on her prince when he came
-- this woman did not let the world define her -- she did not let Simon tell her who she was and how she should live -- she lived in the fullness of the knowledge of God's love -- she was defined by her place with God -- by her value in the eyes of God as forgiven and pure and holy -- rather than by the way Simon tried to define her
-- notice that she did not seek Simon's approval to come into his house to visit Jesus -- notice that she didn't care what he would think about her -- she came into the presence of Christ based on her position in Christ -- rather than looking at herself through the poor reflection of Simon's mirror, she allowed herself to bask in the light of Jesus' perfect love
IV. Application
-- so, what should this mean to you? -- what can we learn from the stories of Cinderella and a sinful woman?
-- if you will stop and think about it for just a moment, you'll have to admit that peer pressure is not just something that a teenager has to deal with -- we all suffer from peer pressure -- we all are concerned about what others think of us -- and we all let other's opinions and comments shape who we are to some extent
-- let me give you a personal example -- let me tell you about an incident that happened when I was in the fifth grade -- do you remember what it was like when you were around that age in school? -- you'd gather together on the playground and you'd talk and joke and try to impress your buddies -- well, one day a classmate told me in front of everybody there that I was a know-it-all and that I kept telling the same stories over and over again
-- that little comment has haunted me my whole life -- to some extent, he was probably right -- at that time, I was extremely outgoing and I loved to talk and I loved to point out things to others -- but from that point on, I became more withdrawn -- I quit talking out so much for fear that others would make fun of me -- I quit telling others the things I knew -- I quit being who I was -- who God had made me -- and became someone else so that the world would find me acceptable
-- and you may not believe it because I'm standing up here, but since then, I have always been one who preferred to stay hidden -- who preferred to stay behind the scenes -- who preferred to not speak up and not draw attention to myself -- I became very shy because I feared that others would judge me and make fun of me -- to this day, when we go out to social events, I still hug the walls and rarely speak to others -- when I went to my class reunion last year, I probably didn't talk to over 10 people all night -- people I have known my whole life -- and I didn't initiate any conversations
-- since God called me into the ministry, I have tried to become more outgoing and more sociable and more like I was in my younger years, but I still find myself falling into playing a role that the cutting comments of a fifth-grader forced me into many years ago
-- in their book, "The Sacred Romance," Brent Curtis and John Eldredge talk about the "arrows that become lodged in places of our self-identify" -- they say that words and comments like these get "repeated a thousand times and play like a recording in our inner thoughts" -- causing us to live life based on what we think the world wants rather than what God wants -- living in part and in the looking glass instead of living in the light of truth given to us through God's perfect love
-- that's exactly what happened to Cinderella and that's exactly what happens to us when we allow someone other than God to define us and to tell us how to live -- Curtis and Eldredge say that we go through life with a "Crisis of Identity" -- living out a script or role that someone else has written for us -- not being who we truly are and not being who God has called us to be but living in part based on the world's design
-- G.K. Chesterton said, "Every man has forgotten who he is .... We are all under the same mental calamity; we have all forgotten our names. We have all forgotten what we really are."
-- Cinderella had a "crisis of identity" -- she had forgotten that she was beautiful and good and pious and became who her stepsisters -- who the world -- told her she was
-- this crisis of identity is a tool of Satan to keep Christians from moving forward into Christian maturity -- even though we have been saved and made pure and holy in the eyes of God, Satan tries to do everything he can to keep us thinking that we are unworthy of love and incapable of serving God
-- he whispers lies and torments in our ears just like the stepsisters whispered to Cinderella -- and when we believe these lies -- when we start to live our life based on these lies -- we find ourselves crippled and unable to serve God -- we become who Satan tells us we are
-- on the other hand, the sinful woman who anointed Jesus' feet didn't have a crisis of identity -- she recognized the truth of who she was in Christ and lived in that truth
-- as Curtis and Eldredge state, "we are created in the image of God -- we are created as a reflection of the Trinity" -- and we are called to live in this image, not in the image the world has given us
-- Gerald May said, "Our creation is by love, in love, and for love" -- we need to recognize who we are as children of God and start living like it -- 1 Peter 2:9 sums up who we are in Christ "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."
-- we are not who the world says we are, but we are a chosen people -- a royal priesthood -- a holy nation -- the sons and daughters of God -- and we should live as such
IV. Closing
-- let me close by giving you two principles to carry forth with you when you leave here:
1. Remember who you are -- remember that if you are saved -- if you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and been forgiven of your sins
-- remember that you are pure and holy in God's eye -- you do not have to be told who and what you are by the world -- you should already know who you are
-- remember that you have the Holy Spirit within you who will help you live the life in Christ that He has called you to live -- and be true to your nature and to your calling
2. Remember that the same God who touched you has made that same touch available to every single person you come into contact with -- be careful in your conduct with others -- don't be like Simon the Pharisee or like Cinderella's stepsisters -- don't let your words condemn others and keep them from becoming who they can be in Christ -- we need to take care to honor others and to not devalue their worth as children of God -- and especially be mindful of your words to children, because comments received in childhood can distort and shape the life of an adult
-- before I close in prayer, we're going to have a moment of silence -- in the silence of this place -- in the silence of your heart, ask that God would reveal to you the arrows that may have led you to a crisis of identity -- the events that have forced you to assume a role that the world wants you to play rather than the life that God has called you to live
-- and as you recognize these moments, let's pray together that we would be freed from the power of the arrows and that we would quit looking at ourselves in a poor reflection in the mirror and that we would know ourselves fully just as we are fully known by God
-- remember this, the fairy tales are true -- "the hero really does have a heart of gold and the beloved daughter really does possess a hidden beauty" [curtis and eldredge] -- pray that you would come to recognize this in your life and in the life of others
-- let us pray
Sunday, June 26, 2005
WHAT WE HAVE
Preached by Gregory W. Lee
18 June 2005 at Wright's Chapel UMC, Lake Park, GA
I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to 1 Corinthians 12
-- several years ago, a local businessman decided to build a tavern in a town that was located in a dry county -- a group of Christians from a local church got concerned and planned an all-night prayer meeting -- they wanted to ask God to intervene and stop the tavern
-- the next day, lightning struck the bar and it burned to the ground -- well, the owner of the bar sued the church, claiming that the prayers of the members were responsible
-- but the church hired a lawyer to argue in court that they were not responsible -- "we're only a small church -- what could we have done to cause this to happen?"
-- the presiding judge was a man who was very wise -- after his initial review of the case, he stated, "no matter how this case comes out, one thing is obvious -- the tavern owner believes in prayer and the Christians do not"
-- let me ask you a question this morning -- what do you believe about Wright's Chapel UMC? -- do you believe that God is using Wright's Chapel and has plans to use us more and more -- or do you think like the members of that church in my story -- that we are just a small church and nothing much happens here through us?
-- take a moment and think about what you actually believe
-- you know, I think a lot of times we kind of think like that small church in our story -- I think we look at ourselves and we look at the number of folks who come on a Sunday morning -- and I think we sometimes think, "we're doing all we can" -- "if we were only larger, then we could do more -- if we only had a few more people, we could do more ministry -- if we only had more money, God could do more through us -- if we only had more people praying, God would listen and act more" -- we get to looking at the big churches in Valdosta and we get envious of them because they are able to do so much more than us -- large youth groups -- nurseries -- mission trips -- multiple services -- something going on every night
-- we send folks off to conference and they come back and talk about what all the other churches are doing that we're not doing -- and we start feeling jealous of them and start thinking that we're not doing enough
-- you've done it -- I've done it -- we've all done it -- we've all visited other churches and larger churches and felt that they were doing more than we ever could -- we've all thought to ourselves, "we're just a little country church -- we can't have as big an impact on others as those large churches can" -- but, you know what -- we were wrong
-- there's nothing wrong with being small, if that's what God has called us to be -- think about Chick Fil A and the story of Truett Cathy
-- Truett Cathy started out in Atlanta with a restaurant so small, it was called the Dwarf Grill -- later, he called it the "Dwarf House" -- it only had 10 stools and four tables
-- and, when he opened it, he didn't offer a full menu like all the other big restaurants had -- he didn't even offer hamburgers -- all he offered was chicken sandwiches and french fries -- and he did something else strange -- he refused to open on Sundays, even though other restaurants got over 20% of their income on that day -- Cathy wanted to make a stand for God
-- for almost 20 years, Cathy operated the Dwarf House -- it was the only restaurant he had -- but this restaurant met a need in the community -- McDonald's didn't have chicken sandwiches -- neither did the other big restaurants -- and business grew
-- finally, in 1967, Cathy opened the first Chick-fil-A restaurant in Atlanta's Greenbriar Mall -- but he didn't change the way he did business -- he didn't try to do everything the big chains and the big restaurants did -- he just sold chicken sandwiches and fries -- and he didn't try to make his restaurants bigger than his neighbors -- he just did what he felt God had called him to do
-- and, by doing what God called him to do, God blessed him -- currently, there are over 1,000 Chick-fil-A restaurants in 35 states and South Africa
-- a recent article in Atlanta Business Chronicle noted that Cathy could make a fortune if he made a public stock offering for Chick-fil-A, but he refuses to consider it -- he said, "We're able to do a lot of things that we couldn't do if we were a large public company" -- Cathy has made the decision to keep Chick-Fil-A small
-- do you know what the biggest problem is with small churches today? -- they want to be large -- they want to do everything the large churches do -- and when they try it, it causes them to lose confidence in themselves when they fail, because there is just no way for small churches to compete with the larger churches
-- but, we don't have to -- in 1 Corinthians 12, the Apostle Paul tells us that the body of Christ is comprised of many different units -- different members with different gifts and talents and responsibilities -- we typically think of individual members in a church when we read this passage
-- but, it also applies to churches as a whole -- every church in God's kingdom has been called to a different mission and given different gifts and talents and responsibilities -- follow along in your Bibles as I read from 1 Cor 12:14-20
14. Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
15. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
16. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
17. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?
18. But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.
19. If they were all one part, where would the body be?
20. As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
-- what Paul is telling us here is that small churches can't look at big churches and say, "I wish I was them -- I wish I had their ministry -- I wish I had their money -- I wish I had their youth" -- they are what God called them to be -- we are what God called us to be
-- there are many parts, but there is only one body -- we need to keep this in mind -- we don't have to try to be Valdosta First or Park Avenue or any other large church -- even though we are small -- even though we sometimes have only 20 or 30 people sitting in the pews, we are still a part of the body and we still have a role to play
-- I want to look at a passage in Acts 3 to bring this home -- please flip over to the Book of Acts and read with me as I start at verse 1-- as we go through this, try to think of what God might want to do through us and in us
-- vs. 1-- One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer--at three in the afternoon.
-- why were Peter and John going to the temple? -- they went to pray -- they went to worship God -- but more importantly, they went expecting something to happen
-- when you pray -- when you come to church, do you think something is going to happen -- do you think God is going to work through you and through this church -- or are you like that small church in my story who prayed for a miracle but didn't believe it when it happened
-- vs. 2 -- "Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts."
-- here we read about this crippled man who was "put" by the gate of the temple -- there was a big difference between Peter & John and this man - Peter and John went seeking God -- they went expecting to see God work through the two of them
-- but this man didn't come to church seeking God -- he didn't expect God to do anything for him -- he went looking simply for what the world had to offer
-- that is exactly what we do, when we try to compare ourselves with larger churches -- we are, in effect, saying that the reason God is working through them is because they are large and the reason why God is not working through us is because we are small
-- this shows a lack of faith in the power of God -- the same God who is working in the life of the large church is the same God who built a kingdom through just 12 disciples -- in 1 Cor 1:27, Paul tells us that God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise -- He chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong
-- God loves to use small churches because it shows that it was Him who did it and not the size of the church
-- verse 3
3. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money.
4. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!"
5. So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
6. Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk."
7. Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong.
8. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.
-- now, don't miss what is going on in this passage -- this crippled man had come to the temple at the same time as Peter and John -- to this large place of worship -- to this large church
-- we don't know how many times this man came to this site -- we don't know how many times he sat by this gate, begging for money but needing a miracle -- we don't know how many members of this church walked past him every day
-- but one thing is sure -- despite all its money -- despite all its members -- despite all its programs and ministries -- this large church couldn't meet the needs of this crippled man
-- instead of using the priest and the congregation there to heal this man, God chose to work through a church of two men -- Peter and John -- to reach out and meet that man at the point of his need
-- he wanted money -- but God wanted to give him what he really needed -- physical and spiritual healing -- and it was only the small church who could meet him where he was
-- look again at Peter's words in verse 6 -- "Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." "
-- silver and gold I do not have -- we don't have money -- we don't have lots of members -- we don't have lots of programs and lots of ministries -- but what I have I give you
-- what does Wright's Chapel United Methodist Church have to give -- what person -- what group of people -- has God called us to reach out and touch for Him -- because no one else and no other church will
-- what do we have to give?
-- well, the first thing that we have to give is Jesus -- just like Peter and John, we have the living Son of God in our midst and in our hearts -- and I don't care how little we are or how little money we have, we can give Jesus away free of charge to everyone we come into contact with
-- and, when you think of it, when you only have Jesus to give, you still have the greatest gift in the world
-- another thing that we have to offer is that we have a stronger sense of family -- we know each other -- we couldn't get lost in a crowd even if we wanted to -- and this makes us closer
-- when someone in a small church is hurting, the entire church hurts -- when something goes good for someone in a small church, everyone rejoices -- this is a major advantage that we have over the larger more impersonal churches
-- it also translates into a more loving, caring atmosphere -- everyone who has ever visited here has said the same thing to me -- it seems like these people genuinely care about me -- they are really friendly
-- a few months ago I went to a large church for worship on Sunday night -- even though there was a small crowd there, it was considerably larger than we have here -- but, the only person who spoke to me was the pastor -- that doesn't happen here
-- we also have more opportunities for spiritual growth -- everyone in a small church is needed -- we can't just come and leave on Sunday -- if you're a member here, you get put to work -- sometimes even guests get put to work -- but that's o.k. -- God uses that to help challenge us and to stretch us and to help us grow into the people He's called us to be
-- so, what can we do? -- we need to build on our strengths -- we need to reach out to people and touch them at the point of their need -- we have been gifted by God to reach those the other churches tend to forget about and those whom other communities don't want anything to do with
-- just this week in the Valdosta paper I read about the county denying the request to build a new church on Shiloh Road -- the people in the community said they didn't want another church there, because the traffic would be too great -- but, I think the real reason they didn't want the church was because it was to be for the hispanics in the area
-- we've got a lot of churches here in Echols County that won't reach out to the Hispanics -- but we've been reaching out to them in many ways over the past several years -- we need to continue to reach out to them and minister to them and offer support to them however we can
-- we need to expand on our opportunities for spiritual growth -- we just expanded our Sunday School to bring in a new class for young adults -- now we need to reach out and invite others in our community to join our classes
-- we just had a successful VBS with over 30 kids each night -- but we can expand on that by arranging transportation for kids who can't come because their parents can't bring them -- and we can reach out to the hispanic children and bring them in, even if that means we have to have a Spanish-speaking VBS Class
-- what else can we do as a church to grow spiritually while at the same time touching people? -- community events? -- servant evangelism? -- we've got that River Festival coming up in August in Statenville -- what can we do to reach others and tell them about Christ and about what good things are going on here at Wright's Chapel?
-- all of these can be unique ways we can reach others for Christ that the larger churches can't do
-- the important thing for us to remember is that -- even though we may not be large -- even though we may not have lots of money or lots of people -- we still have something to offer
-- silver or gold I do not have -- but what I have I give you
-- what can we give today?
-- let us pray
18 June 2005 at Wright's Chapel UMC, Lake Park, GA
I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to 1 Corinthians 12
-- several years ago, a local businessman decided to build a tavern in a town that was located in a dry county -- a group of Christians from a local church got concerned and planned an all-night prayer meeting -- they wanted to ask God to intervene and stop the tavern
-- the next day, lightning struck the bar and it burned to the ground -- well, the owner of the bar sued the church, claiming that the prayers of the members were responsible
-- but the church hired a lawyer to argue in court that they were not responsible -- "we're only a small church -- what could we have done to cause this to happen?"
-- the presiding judge was a man who was very wise -- after his initial review of the case, he stated, "no matter how this case comes out, one thing is obvious -- the tavern owner believes in prayer and the Christians do not"
-- let me ask you a question this morning -- what do you believe about Wright's Chapel UMC? -- do you believe that God is using Wright's Chapel and has plans to use us more and more -- or do you think like the members of that church in my story -- that we are just a small church and nothing much happens here through us?
-- take a moment and think about what you actually believe
-- you know, I think a lot of times we kind of think like that small church in our story -- I think we look at ourselves and we look at the number of folks who come on a Sunday morning -- and I think we sometimes think, "we're doing all we can" -- "if we were only larger, then we could do more -- if we only had a few more people, we could do more ministry -- if we only had more money, God could do more through us -- if we only had more people praying, God would listen and act more" -- we get to looking at the big churches in Valdosta and we get envious of them because they are able to do so much more than us -- large youth groups -- nurseries -- mission trips -- multiple services -- something going on every night
-- we send folks off to conference and they come back and talk about what all the other churches are doing that we're not doing -- and we start feeling jealous of them and start thinking that we're not doing enough
-- you've done it -- I've done it -- we've all done it -- we've all visited other churches and larger churches and felt that they were doing more than we ever could -- we've all thought to ourselves, "we're just a little country church -- we can't have as big an impact on others as those large churches can" -- but, you know what -- we were wrong
-- there's nothing wrong with being small, if that's what God has called us to be -- think about Chick Fil A and the story of Truett Cathy
-- Truett Cathy started out in Atlanta with a restaurant so small, it was called the Dwarf Grill -- later, he called it the "Dwarf House" -- it only had 10 stools and four tables
-- and, when he opened it, he didn't offer a full menu like all the other big restaurants had -- he didn't even offer hamburgers -- all he offered was chicken sandwiches and french fries -- and he did something else strange -- he refused to open on Sundays, even though other restaurants got over 20% of their income on that day -- Cathy wanted to make a stand for God
-- for almost 20 years, Cathy operated the Dwarf House -- it was the only restaurant he had -- but this restaurant met a need in the community -- McDonald's didn't have chicken sandwiches -- neither did the other big restaurants -- and business grew
-- finally, in 1967, Cathy opened the first Chick-fil-A restaurant in Atlanta's Greenbriar Mall -- but he didn't change the way he did business -- he didn't try to do everything the big chains and the big restaurants did -- he just sold chicken sandwiches and fries -- and he didn't try to make his restaurants bigger than his neighbors -- he just did what he felt God had called him to do
-- and, by doing what God called him to do, God blessed him -- currently, there are over 1,000 Chick-fil-A restaurants in 35 states and South Africa
-- a recent article in Atlanta Business Chronicle noted that Cathy could make a fortune if he made a public stock offering for Chick-fil-A, but he refuses to consider it -- he said, "We're able to do a lot of things that we couldn't do if we were a large public company" -- Cathy has made the decision to keep Chick-Fil-A small
-- do you know what the biggest problem is with small churches today? -- they want to be large -- they want to do everything the large churches do -- and when they try it, it causes them to lose confidence in themselves when they fail, because there is just no way for small churches to compete with the larger churches
-- but, we don't have to -- in 1 Corinthians 12, the Apostle Paul tells us that the body of Christ is comprised of many different units -- different members with different gifts and talents and responsibilities -- we typically think of individual members in a church when we read this passage
-- but, it also applies to churches as a whole -- every church in God's kingdom has been called to a different mission and given different gifts and talents and responsibilities -- follow along in your Bibles as I read from 1 Cor 12:14-20
14. Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
15. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
16. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
17. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?
18. But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.
19. If they were all one part, where would the body be?
20. As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
-- what Paul is telling us here is that small churches can't look at big churches and say, "I wish I was them -- I wish I had their ministry -- I wish I had their money -- I wish I had their youth" -- they are what God called them to be -- we are what God called us to be
-- there are many parts, but there is only one body -- we need to keep this in mind -- we don't have to try to be Valdosta First or Park Avenue or any other large church -- even though we are small -- even though we sometimes have only 20 or 30 people sitting in the pews, we are still a part of the body and we still have a role to play
-- I want to look at a passage in Acts 3 to bring this home -- please flip over to the Book of Acts and read with me as I start at verse 1-- as we go through this, try to think of what God might want to do through us and in us
-- vs. 1-- One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer--at three in the afternoon.
-- why were Peter and John going to the temple? -- they went to pray -- they went to worship God -- but more importantly, they went expecting something to happen
-- when you pray -- when you come to church, do you think something is going to happen -- do you think God is going to work through you and through this church -- or are you like that small church in my story who prayed for a miracle but didn't believe it when it happened
-- vs. 2 -- "Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts."
-- here we read about this crippled man who was "put" by the gate of the temple -- there was a big difference between Peter & John and this man - Peter and John went seeking God -- they went expecting to see God work through the two of them
-- but this man didn't come to church seeking God -- he didn't expect God to do anything for him -- he went looking simply for what the world had to offer
-- that is exactly what we do, when we try to compare ourselves with larger churches -- we are, in effect, saying that the reason God is working through them is because they are large and the reason why God is not working through us is because we are small
-- this shows a lack of faith in the power of God -- the same God who is working in the life of the large church is the same God who built a kingdom through just 12 disciples -- in 1 Cor 1:27, Paul tells us that God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise -- He chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong
-- God loves to use small churches because it shows that it was Him who did it and not the size of the church
-- verse 3
3. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money.
4. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!"
5. So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
6. Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk."
7. Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong.
8. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.
-- now, don't miss what is going on in this passage -- this crippled man had come to the temple at the same time as Peter and John -- to this large place of worship -- to this large church
-- we don't know how many times this man came to this site -- we don't know how many times he sat by this gate, begging for money but needing a miracle -- we don't know how many members of this church walked past him every day
-- but one thing is sure -- despite all its money -- despite all its members -- despite all its programs and ministries -- this large church couldn't meet the needs of this crippled man
-- instead of using the priest and the congregation there to heal this man, God chose to work through a church of two men -- Peter and John -- to reach out and meet that man at the point of his need
-- he wanted money -- but God wanted to give him what he really needed -- physical and spiritual healing -- and it was only the small church who could meet him where he was
-- look again at Peter's words in verse 6 -- "Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." "
-- silver and gold I do not have -- we don't have money -- we don't have lots of members -- we don't have lots of programs and lots of ministries -- but what I have I give you
-- what does Wright's Chapel United Methodist Church have to give -- what person -- what group of people -- has God called us to reach out and touch for Him -- because no one else and no other church will
-- what do we have to give?
-- well, the first thing that we have to give is Jesus -- just like Peter and John, we have the living Son of God in our midst and in our hearts -- and I don't care how little we are or how little money we have, we can give Jesus away free of charge to everyone we come into contact with
-- and, when you think of it, when you only have Jesus to give, you still have the greatest gift in the world
-- another thing that we have to offer is that we have a stronger sense of family -- we know each other -- we couldn't get lost in a crowd even if we wanted to -- and this makes us closer
-- when someone in a small church is hurting, the entire church hurts -- when something goes good for someone in a small church, everyone rejoices -- this is a major advantage that we have over the larger more impersonal churches
-- it also translates into a more loving, caring atmosphere -- everyone who has ever visited here has said the same thing to me -- it seems like these people genuinely care about me -- they are really friendly
-- a few months ago I went to a large church for worship on Sunday night -- even though there was a small crowd there, it was considerably larger than we have here -- but, the only person who spoke to me was the pastor -- that doesn't happen here
-- we also have more opportunities for spiritual growth -- everyone in a small church is needed -- we can't just come and leave on Sunday -- if you're a member here, you get put to work -- sometimes even guests get put to work -- but that's o.k. -- God uses that to help challenge us and to stretch us and to help us grow into the people He's called us to be
-- so, what can we do? -- we need to build on our strengths -- we need to reach out to people and touch them at the point of their need -- we have been gifted by God to reach those the other churches tend to forget about and those whom other communities don't want anything to do with
-- just this week in the Valdosta paper I read about the county denying the request to build a new church on Shiloh Road -- the people in the community said they didn't want another church there, because the traffic would be too great -- but, I think the real reason they didn't want the church was because it was to be for the hispanics in the area
-- we've got a lot of churches here in Echols County that won't reach out to the Hispanics -- but we've been reaching out to them in many ways over the past several years -- we need to continue to reach out to them and minister to them and offer support to them however we can
-- we need to expand on our opportunities for spiritual growth -- we just expanded our Sunday School to bring in a new class for young adults -- now we need to reach out and invite others in our community to join our classes
-- we just had a successful VBS with over 30 kids each night -- but we can expand on that by arranging transportation for kids who can't come because their parents can't bring them -- and we can reach out to the hispanic children and bring them in, even if that means we have to have a Spanish-speaking VBS Class
-- what else can we do as a church to grow spiritually while at the same time touching people? -- community events? -- servant evangelism? -- we've got that River Festival coming up in August in Statenville -- what can we do to reach others and tell them about Christ and about what good things are going on here at Wright's Chapel?
-- all of these can be unique ways we can reach others for Christ that the larger churches can't do
-- the important thing for us to remember is that -- even though we may not be large -- even though we may not have lots of money or lots of people -- we still have something to offer
-- silver or gold I do not have -- but what I have I give you
-- what can we give today?
-- let us pray
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Wonder Working Power in the Methodist Church?
Shane Raynor at The Wesley Blog has started a lively discussion on the Holy Spirit in relation to healing and the life of the Methodist Church. I think it is easy to see that the Methodist Church is operating in more of a maintenance mode and is not moving forth dynamically through the power of the Holy Spirit.
I have blogged on this issue before and have preached and taught on this many, many times. Why are we not seeing the power of the Holy Spirit made manifest in the Methodist Church?
Jerry Varnadoe, the pastor at Gateway Church in Athens, GA, made this statement in a sermon back in February, 2003:
"The founder of our denomination, John Wesley, was concerned that the Methodist movement, which began in an explosion of God's power, would stop tapping into that power. Here's what he wrote: "I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist.... But I am afraid, lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power.""
Having just come through Annual Conference and heading out now for our District Pastor Set-up Meeting and being overburdened with paperwork and apportionment forms and the like, I have to wonder if we are existing as a dead sect, worrying more about apportionments and pastor salaries and clergy compensations than winning people to Christ and seeing the power of the Holy Spirit made manifest throughout our church.
I think it's time for the Methodist Church as a whole to sit down and re-examine where we are and where we should be heading. What is our focus? Where is our attention? Where are we spending our money and our time and our energy? Is it on maintaining the church or is it in letting God transform lives through us?
I have blogged on this issue before and have preached and taught on this many, many times. Why are we not seeing the power of the Holy Spirit made manifest in the Methodist Church?
Jerry Varnadoe, the pastor at Gateway Church in Athens, GA, made this statement in a sermon back in February, 2003:
"The founder of our denomination, John Wesley, was concerned that the Methodist movement, which began in an explosion of God's power, would stop tapping into that power. Here's what he wrote: "I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist.... But I am afraid, lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power.""
Having just come through Annual Conference and heading out now for our District Pastor Set-up Meeting and being overburdened with paperwork and apportionment forms and the like, I have to wonder if we are existing as a dead sect, worrying more about apportionments and pastor salaries and clergy compensations than winning people to Christ and seeing the power of the Holy Spirit made manifest throughout our church.
I think it's time for the Methodist Church as a whole to sit down and re-examine where we are and where we should be heading. What is our focus? Where is our attention? Where are we spending our money and our time and our energy? Is it on maintaining the church or is it in letting God transform lives through us?
Saturday, June 18, 2005
GUARD YOUR HEART
Gregory W. Lee
Preached 12 June 2005
I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Proverbs 4:20
20. My son, pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words.
21. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart;
22. for they are life to those who find them and health to a man's whole body.
23. Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
-- how many of you noticed the rain yesterday? -- for most people, rain like we had yesterday was just a nusiance -- you couldn't get out -- you couldn't enjoy the outdoors -- your yards got soggy -- dirt roads got muddy -- it was just a miserable kind of day, but the rain didn't really cause you any big problems -- it was just a nuisance
-- but, to all the dog lovers in the congregation, yesterday's rain was more than just a nuisance -- you see, us dog lovers know that more than flowers follow rain, mosquitos also come out after the rain -- and if you are a dog lover, there is nothing that you fear and hate more than the mosquito
-- mosquitos down here carry a parasite inside of them -- and when they land on your dog and bite them -- tiny little larval worms get injected into your dog -- they follow the bloodstream all the way to your dog's heart and once they get there, they grow bigger and bigger and bigger -- we call them "heart worms" and they claim the lives of more dogs than any other thing down here in the south
-- that's why we keep a box of this handy with us -- do you know what this is? -- it's called Heart Guard -- a vaccine designed to protect and guard the heart of your dogs and keep them safe and healthy by preventing heart worms from living in your dog's heart
-- and as a dog lover, I am worried about my dog's heart -- but there's a lot of other things in our world today that can do damage to hearts -- not just the heart of a dog -- but also the heart of a person
II. The Value of a Heart
A. The Wellspring of Life
-- King Solomon -- the author of this passage -- was well aware of that -- while he had a good heart as a young man and as a young king, Solomon didn't guard his heart like he should have, and the Bible records that his heart was damaged as he chased after women and material things and false gods
-- I think that's one reason why he wrote this passage that we read -- as a warning to his sons not to follow the same path that he had followed -- but to guard and protect their hearts above all else -- he said that the most important thing they could do in their life was to guard their hearts, because their hearts would be the wellspring of their life
-- listen as I read vs. 23 again
23. Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
-- the wellspring of life -- that's a curious phrase, isn't it? -- what does Solomon mean here when he tells his sons that their hearts are the wellspring of their life -- the KJV sheds a little more light on it when it translates this passage to read that the "issues of life" come out of the heart
-- when I was meditating on this passage of Scripture this week and I reflected on the meaning of a wellspring, I thought about a backpacking trip I took to DeSota Falls in north Georgia when I was in high school -- it was my first backpacking trip and being from the flatlands of south Georgia, I was out of my element -- we wandered up the mountain trail following a river flowing out of the mountain
-- I had never seen a clear river before -- I was used to the blackwater rivers and creeks we have down here in south Georgia -- and I remember how fascinated I was as we walked along that path -- looking in the river and seeing the trout and the insects and the birds and all the animal life living in and around that river -- we followed that river up past a large waterfall and the river grew narrower and narrower and narrower until it finally stopped at a spring probably no bigger around than a five gallon bucket -- just bubbling up and flowing out of a crack in the rocks of that mountain
-- when you think about it, that mountain's very life -- those trout and birds and insects and everything else that depended on that river -- were only there because of that spring -- the issues of life on that mountain came welling up out of it -- that spring brought life to that mountain just like heart wells up and brings forth life for you
B. What does a good heart look like?
-- our hearts are the wellsprings of our life because they define who and what we are -- our character -- our being -- our life -- all are born from the state of our heart -- for whatever is in our hearts is what our lives consist of
-- if your heart is good -- if your heart is filled with the life that flows from the spring of God's love -- then your life and your character and your being are good
-- what does a good heart look like -- turn over to Galatians 5 and let's look at the fruit of the Spirit -- a good heart can be summed up by these characteristics
22. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23. gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
-- how many of you have a heart that looks like that? -- if you have been saved -- if you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and been forgiven of your sins through His blood, then your heart was re-created just like this -- filled with love and joy and peace and patience and goodness and kindness and faithfulness and gentleness and self-control
-- and when you continue to live in Christ -- when you continue to walk with Him and seek His forgiveness and cleansing of your daily sins, this is what your heart -- what the wellspring of your life -- should look like
B. What does a hard heart look like?
-- but, it must be protected -- because just like the heartworms are a danger to our dog's hearts, there are many things out there that are a danger to our hearts -- and these things can come in and damage our hearts and damage our lives and our character and our behavior
-- what does a damaged spiritual heart and a damaged spiritual life look like -- Paul tells us here in verses 19-21
19. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;
20. idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions
21. and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
-- in Mark 7:20-23, Jesus Himself warned us to guard our hearts and to keep our hearts from becoming damaged and unclean in God's eyes -- these verses read, "What comes out of a man is what makes him `unclean.' For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man `unclean.'"
-- a heart that is not protected will become damaged -- a heart that is not guarded will become damaged -- the Bible calls this the "hardening" of your heart
-- Pharoah's heart was hardened when he refused to listen to God's words spoken through Moses and refused to let the Israelites leave Egypt -- and it affected his life and the life of all the Egyptians as God poured out His wrath on Pharoah's people
-- so, how do we guard our hearts and keep them from becoming hardened? -- how can we walk through life with good and pure and holy hearts?
III. The Protection of a Heart
A. Protect ourselves from temptation and sin
-- in Mt 26:41, Jesus told His disciples to "watch and pray" so that they wouldn't fall into temptation -- note that Jesus didn't say to watch and pray so that they would not fall into sin -- but into temptation -- He said the same thing in the Lord's prayer -- Jesus taught us to pray, "lead us not into temptation"
-- as Christians -- especially as Christians -- we need to keep our eyes open for temptations that might come our way and pray that we might not be led into temptation
-- sometimes we get tempted to think that we are above temptation -- sometimes we think that because we're Christians, we don't have to worry about temptation -- we let our guard down and we don't protect our hearts and our lives from temptations that might lead to sin
-- 1 Corinthians 10:12 says, "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" -- we should never consider ourselves above temptation -- but we should protect and guard our hearts by watching and praying that we don't fall into temptation as Jesus commanded
-- this may mean making some changes in your life and in the places you go -- there are some places that I just don't go, because I know that temptations lurk there in the shadows -- there are certain movies that I just don't watch -- and there's some music that I just won't listen to -- because I know that there are temptations there
-- one good way to avoid temptation and sin is to remind yourself daily of the damaging consequences of moral failure -- all you have to do is pick up your morning paper or watch the news to see examples of homes ripped apart -- of families broken and destroyed -- of lives being shattered -- all because someone didn't guard their heart and opened the door for temptation and sin
-- your heart and your life and your family are too valuable to not watch for and avoid temptation every single day
B. Protect Ourselves through Spiritual Disciplines
-- I've talked about these on many occasions -- we can't neglect doing things that keep us close to God -- things like prayer and Bible reading and quiet times and regular attendance at church worshiping God with other believers -- the means of grace that God gave us to keep our relationship with Him strong
-- Rick Warren wrote that we should always watch our spiritual temperature -- by this he means that we should be aware of our level of spiritual committment on a daily basis
-- if you find yourself neglecting prayer and neglecting Bible reading and neglecting the other disciplines, this is a warning sign from God that you are leaving your heart open to temptation and sin and evil enemies
-- turning away from God can lead you down a path towards unbelief and disobedience that can affect your whole life -- Prov 28:14 says, "Blessed is the man who always fears the LORD, but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble."
-- Romans 2:5-6 says, "because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God "will give to each person according to what he has done.""
-- if you turn away from God by neglecting those things that keep you close to Him -- the spiritual disciplines and means of grace that He has given us -- God warns us that trouble will follow and that we are opening ourselves up for judgement and wrath
-- in Ephesians 6:14, Paul tells us to put on the breastplate of righteousness to protect our hearts from the dangers of spiritual battle -- a breastplate of righteousness is characterized by love, obedience, trust, and a close walk with God
IV. Closing
-- please turn over to Phillipians 4:8-9, and we'll close there -- in these two verses, the Apostle Paul, writing under the influence of the Holy Spirit, sums up for us how we should guard our hearts from temptation and sin and unbelief
8. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.
9. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me--put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
-- our hearts are the most important part of us -- they dictate who we are and what we do -- they define our character and our behavior and our very life -- and they should be guarded and protected above all else
-- at the end of my life, when I stand before God's throne at the final judgement, I would like to be able to stand and say, as Paul said in 2 Corinthians 1:12 (NIV), "Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, especially in our relations with you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God."
-- in other words, I want to be able to stand and say, "I have guarded my heart -- and my character -- my being -- my actions -- my very life attest to this fact"
-- above all else, guard your heart, because it is the wellspring of your life
-- let us pray
Gregory W. Lee
Preached 12 June 2005
I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Proverbs 4:20
20. My son, pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words.
21. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart;
22. for they are life to those who find them and health to a man's whole body.
23. Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
-- how many of you noticed the rain yesterday? -- for most people, rain like we had yesterday was just a nusiance -- you couldn't get out -- you couldn't enjoy the outdoors -- your yards got soggy -- dirt roads got muddy -- it was just a miserable kind of day, but the rain didn't really cause you any big problems -- it was just a nuisance
-- but, to all the dog lovers in the congregation, yesterday's rain was more than just a nuisance -- you see, us dog lovers know that more than flowers follow rain, mosquitos also come out after the rain -- and if you are a dog lover, there is nothing that you fear and hate more than the mosquito
-- mosquitos down here carry a parasite inside of them -- and when they land on your dog and bite them -- tiny little larval worms get injected into your dog -- they follow the bloodstream all the way to your dog's heart and once they get there, they grow bigger and bigger and bigger -- we call them "heart worms" and they claim the lives of more dogs than any other thing down here in the south
-- that's why we keep a box of this handy with us -- do you know what this is? -- it's called Heart Guard -- a vaccine designed to protect and guard the heart of your dogs and keep them safe and healthy by preventing heart worms from living in your dog's heart
-- and as a dog lover, I am worried about my dog's heart -- but there's a lot of other things in our world today that can do damage to hearts -- not just the heart of a dog -- but also the heart of a person
II. The Value of a Heart
A. The Wellspring of Life
-- King Solomon -- the author of this passage -- was well aware of that -- while he had a good heart as a young man and as a young king, Solomon didn't guard his heart like he should have, and the Bible records that his heart was damaged as he chased after women and material things and false gods
-- I think that's one reason why he wrote this passage that we read -- as a warning to his sons not to follow the same path that he had followed -- but to guard and protect their hearts above all else -- he said that the most important thing they could do in their life was to guard their hearts, because their hearts would be the wellspring of their life
-- listen as I read vs. 23 again
23. Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
-- the wellspring of life -- that's a curious phrase, isn't it? -- what does Solomon mean here when he tells his sons that their hearts are the wellspring of their life -- the KJV sheds a little more light on it when it translates this passage to read that the "issues of life" come out of the heart
-- when I was meditating on this passage of Scripture this week and I reflected on the meaning of a wellspring, I thought about a backpacking trip I took to DeSota Falls in north Georgia when I was in high school -- it was my first backpacking trip and being from the flatlands of south Georgia, I was out of my element -- we wandered up the mountain trail following a river flowing out of the mountain
-- I had never seen a clear river before -- I was used to the blackwater rivers and creeks we have down here in south Georgia -- and I remember how fascinated I was as we walked along that path -- looking in the river and seeing the trout and the insects and the birds and all the animal life living in and around that river -- we followed that river up past a large waterfall and the river grew narrower and narrower and narrower until it finally stopped at a spring probably no bigger around than a five gallon bucket -- just bubbling up and flowing out of a crack in the rocks of that mountain
-- when you think about it, that mountain's very life -- those trout and birds and insects and everything else that depended on that river -- were only there because of that spring -- the issues of life on that mountain came welling up out of it -- that spring brought life to that mountain just like heart wells up and brings forth life for you
B. What does a good heart look like?
-- our hearts are the wellsprings of our life because they define who and what we are -- our character -- our being -- our life -- all are born from the state of our heart -- for whatever is in our hearts is what our lives consist of
-- if your heart is good -- if your heart is filled with the life that flows from the spring of God's love -- then your life and your character and your being are good
-- what does a good heart look like -- turn over to Galatians 5 and let's look at the fruit of the Spirit -- a good heart can be summed up by these characteristics
22. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23. gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
-- how many of you have a heart that looks like that? -- if you have been saved -- if you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior and been forgiven of your sins through His blood, then your heart was re-created just like this -- filled with love and joy and peace and patience and goodness and kindness and faithfulness and gentleness and self-control
-- and when you continue to live in Christ -- when you continue to walk with Him and seek His forgiveness and cleansing of your daily sins, this is what your heart -- what the wellspring of your life -- should look like
B. What does a hard heart look like?
-- but, it must be protected -- because just like the heartworms are a danger to our dog's hearts, there are many things out there that are a danger to our hearts -- and these things can come in and damage our hearts and damage our lives and our character and our behavior
-- what does a damaged spiritual heart and a damaged spiritual life look like -- Paul tells us here in verses 19-21
19. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;
20. idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions
21. and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
-- in Mark 7:20-23, Jesus Himself warned us to guard our hearts and to keep our hearts from becoming damaged and unclean in God's eyes -- these verses read, "What comes out of a man is what makes him `unclean.' For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man `unclean.'"
-- a heart that is not protected will become damaged -- a heart that is not guarded will become damaged -- the Bible calls this the "hardening" of your heart
-- Pharoah's heart was hardened when he refused to listen to God's words spoken through Moses and refused to let the Israelites leave Egypt -- and it affected his life and the life of all the Egyptians as God poured out His wrath on Pharoah's people
-- so, how do we guard our hearts and keep them from becoming hardened? -- how can we walk through life with good and pure and holy hearts?
III. The Protection of a Heart
A. Protect ourselves from temptation and sin
-- in Mt 26:41, Jesus told His disciples to "watch and pray" so that they wouldn't fall into temptation -- note that Jesus didn't say to watch and pray so that they would not fall into sin -- but into temptation -- He said the same thing in the Lord's prayer -- Jesus taught us to pray, "lead us not into temptation"
-- as Christians -- especially as Christians -- we need to keep our eyes open for temptations that might come our way and pray that we might not be led into temptation
-- sometimes we get tempted to think that we are above temptation -- sometimes we think that because we're Christians, we don't have to worry about temptation -- we let our guard down and we don't protect our hearts and our lives from temptations that might lead to sin
-- 1 Corinthians 10:12 says, "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" -- we should never consider ourselves above temptation -- but we should protect and guard our hearts by watching and praying that we don't fall into temptation as Jesus commanded
-- this may mean making some changes in your life and in the places you go -- there are some places that I just don't go, because I know that temptations lurk there in the shadows -- there are certain movies that I just don't watch -- and there's some music that I just won't listen to -- because I know that there are temptations there
-- one good way to avoid temptation and sin is to remind yourself daily of the damaging consequences of moral failure -- all you have to do is pick up your morning paper or watch the news to see examples of homes ripped apart -- of families broken and destroyed -- of lives being shattered -- all because someone didn't guard their heart and opened the door for temptation and sin
-- your heart and your life and your family are too valuable to not watch for and avoid temptation every single day
B. Protect Ourselves through Spiritual Disciplines
-- I've talked about these on many occasions -- we can't neglect doing things that keep us close to God -- things like prayer and Bible reading and quiet times and regular attendance at church worshiping God with other believers -- the means of grace that God gave us to keep our relationship with Him strong
-- Rick Warren wrote that we should always watch our spiritual temperature -- by this he means that we should be aware of our level of spiritual committment on a daily basis
-- if you find yourself neglecting prayer and neglecting Bible reading and neglecting the other disciplines, this is a warning sign from God that you are leaving your heart open to temptation and sin and evil enemies
-- turning away from God can lead you down a path towards unbelief and disobedience that can affect your whole life -- Prov 28:14 says, "Blessed is the man who always fears the LORD, but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble."
-- Romans 2:5-6 says, "because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God "will give to each person according to what he has done.""
-- if you turn away from God by neglecting those things that keep you close to Him -- the spiritual disciplines and means of grace that He has given us -- God warns us that trouble will follow and that we are opening ourselves up for judgement and wrath
-- in Ephesians 6:14, Paul tells us to put on the breastplate of righteousness to protect our hearts from the dangers of spiritual battle -- a breastplate of righteousness is characterized by love, obedience, trust, and a close walk with God
IV. Closing
-- please turn over to Phillipians 4:8-9, and we'll close there -- in these two verses, the Apostle Paul, writing under the influence of the Holy Spirit, sums up for us how we should guard our hearts from temptation and sin and unbelief
8. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.
9. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me--put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
-- our hearts are the most important part of us -- they dictate who we are and what we do -- they define our character and our behavior and our very life -- and they should be guarded and protected above all else
-- at the end of my life, when I stand before God's throne at the final judgement, I would like to be able to stand and say, as Paul said in 2 Corinthians 1:12 (NIV), "Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, especially in our relations with you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God."
-- in other words, I want to be able to stand and say, "I have guarded my heart -- and my character -- my being -- my actions -- my very life attest to this fact"
-- above all else, guard your heart, because it is the wellspring of your life
-- let us pray
Monday, June 13, 2005
What Does It Mean To Preach?
As a young pastor, I have often struggled with the concept of preaching. What exactly is preaching? What exactly am I doing when I stand behind the pulpit? Am I less effective because I don't pound the pulpit and exhort with threats of fire and brimstone? Am I not a good preacher because I don't whip a congregation into a frenzy of emotional excess as the good revival preachers do?
Homiletics -- the art of preaching -- is one of the required classes in seminary for ordained clergy or in the United Methodist Church's Course of Study for local pastors. After taking a class in homiletics and reading texts on the art of preaching and listening to other preachers throughout my life expound on what preaching is and should be, I read with delight this synopsis of preaching from an article about Billy Graham by Rabbi Marc Gellman in Newsweek:
"Mostly I love that he is a great preacher, and preaching is a lost art. Young clergy kids I mentor fill their sermons with psychobabble and pal-talk. Their sermons are just spoken apologies for having to take their congregants’ time. They sadly contribute to a culture where the word “preachy” is a universally understood as criticism. But Billy Graham loved to preach, respected the form and used it to its fullest effect. He understood that preaching is essentially the presentation of a spiritual argument, which means that a sermon must be filled with ideas, not just feelings. To preach you must be smart, you must have faith and you must be able to simplify words without simplifying ideas. A preacher must then move beyond the logic of debate and into the world of personal peril and fear. A great sermon must be heard as if it was addressed only to you, the listener. It must first describe the storm in your life, and then it must offer you a compelling course to get through the storm and into quiet seas of love and hope. That hope must be simple and childlike but never childish. It must be a daring hope that inspires—not just deductively proves—the postulates of its argument, and that hope must be consonant with an ancient religion and not just a passing snapshot of what you decided to believe today. A sermon must be worldly without being trendy, humorous without being irreverent and certain without being arrogant. Understood this way, almost nobody can give a great sermon, and if you attend services regularly, you will certainly confirm that fear. That is why I so admire Billy Graham. He could really preach. "
As a young pastor, I have often struggled with the concept of preaching. What exactly is preaching? What exactly am I doing when I stand behind the pulpit? Am I less effective because I don't pound the pulpit and exhort with threats of fire and brimstone? Am I not a good preacher because I don't whip a congregation into a frenzy of emotional excess as the good revival preachers do?
Homiletics -- the art of preaching -- is one of the required classes in seminary for ordained clergy or in the United Methodist Church's Course of Study for local pastors. After taking a class in homiletics and reading texts on the art of preaching and listening to other preachers throughout my life expound on what preaching is and should be, I read with delight this synopsis of preaching from an article about Billy Graham by Rabbi Marc Gellman in Newsweek:
"Mostly I love that he is a great preacher, and preaching is a lost art. Young clergy kids I mentor fill their sermons with psychobabble and pal-talk. Their sermons are just spoken apologies for having to take their congregants’ time. They sadly contribute to a culture where the word “preachy” is a universally understood as criticism. But Billy Graham loved to preach, respected the form and used it to its fullest effect. He understood that preaching is essentially the presentation of a spiritual argument, which means that a sermon must be filled with ideas, not just feelings. To preach you must be smart, you must have faith and you must be able to simplify words without simplifying ideas. A preacher must then move beyond the logic of debate and into the world of personal peril and fear. A great sermon must be heard as if it was addressed only to you, the listener. It must first describe the storm in your life, and then it must offer you a compelling course to get through the storm and into quiet seas of love and hope. That hope must be simple and childlike but never childish. It must be a daring hope that inspires—not just deductively proves—the postulates of its argument, and that hope must be consonant with an ancient religion and not just a passing snapshot of what you decided to believe today. A sermon must be worldly without being trendy, humorous without being irreverent and certain without being arrogant. Understood this way, almost nobody can give a great sermon, and if you attend services regularly, you will certainly confirm that fear. That is why I so admire Billy Graham. He could really preach. "
Translator of The Living Bible Dies
Ken Taylor, the translator of the popular paraphrase, The Living Bible, died on Friday at the age of 88. In addition to being the translator of The Living Bible, Taylor founded Tyndale House Publishers as an outlet for his paraphrases. Tyndale House has emerged as one of the leading Christian publishing firms and was the home for the Left Behind Series.
The Living Bible was first published in its completed form in 1971. Taylor had first experimented with paraphrasing the Bible for children to make the text of the King James Version more understandable for kids. He then decided to take on the task of paraphrasing the entire Bible to make a more readable version for adults, a process that resulted in The Living Bible.
As a child, when I first started reading the Bible, I found the King James Version too difficult to understand. So my mother loaned me her Living Bible, which I still have and refer to on occasion. It was this Bible that first ignited in me a passion for the Word of God as I could read and understand what I was reading since it was written in modern language and not with archaic 17th century wording.
In light of the passing of Mr. Taylor, I thought it would be helpful to point out the difference between paraphrases and translations, because a lot of people in our churches do not seem to understand the difference. To them, a Bible is a Bible is a Bible. But, there are differences.
A translation is an attempt to convert (as close as possible) the original Bible text (Hebrew and Greek) word-for-word or concept-for-concept. Some translations seek to emphasize the word-for-word conversion, but these can be somewhat difficult to read at times because you can never truly convert one language to another on a word-for-word basis. Others seek to ensure that the main concepts are faithfully converted while maintaining readibility. Arguably, the most popular translation of all time has been the King James Version, which is a very good translation. Recent translations that are very popular include the New International Version, the New King James Version, the New Living Translation.
A paraphrase is an attempt to reword the original concepts of the Bible into modern language with the goal being readibility and not direct conversion. In other words, a paraphrase is when the translator rewords a passage of scripture in his words to explain to the readers what the original author said. Paraphrases transmit the concepts of the Bible, then, but are not word-for-word what was said in the original languages. As such, they may slightly change the meaning of some passages. The most popular paraphrase in history has been Taylor's The Living Bible, but a recent paraphrase by Eugene Peterson, The Message, is currently being used by lots of people.
The take-home message to remember when looking at Bibles is that good translations should be considered word-for-word (or as close as possible) to what the original author wrote and that paraphrases are modern renderings and rewordings of the text. A lot of people, especially clergy and scholars, disdain the use of paraphrases because they are not direct translations from the original languages. Rick Warren's book, The Purpose Driven Life, has taken a lot of heat from some because of his extensive use of paraphrases instead of translations.
So, what should you use? I would suggest you use what you are comfortable with. If you like the readibility of the paraphrases, such as The Living Bible or The Message, use them. But use them knowing what they are and that they are not word-for-word translations. If you prefer Bibles that more accurately reflect what the original author wrote in the original languages, then use a good translation. My best suggestion is to use a combination of both translations and paraphrases in order to get the best idea of what God is saying through a particular piece of Scripture. When I am preparing a sermon or a Bible study, I usually check at least two translations (sometimes more) to compare wording and glance at the paraphrase, The Message, just to see how Peterson rendered the concept. I feel that this gives me the best reading of a particular passage and allows me to both remain true to the original as well as translate God's word to a modern audience.
Ken Taylor, the translator of the popular paraphrase, The Living Bible, died on Friday at the age of 88. In addition to being the translator of The Living Bible, Taylor founded Tyndale House Publishers as an outlet for his paraphrases. Tyndale House has emerged as one of the leading Christian publishing firms and was the home for the Left Behind Series.
The Living Bible was first published in its completed form in 1971. Taylor had first experimented with paraphrasing the Bible for children to make the text of the King James Version more understandable for kids. He then decided to take on the task of paraphrasing the entire Bible to make a more readable version for adults, a process that resulted in The Living Bible.
As a child, when I first started reading the Bible, I found the King James Version too difficult to understand. So my mother loaned me her Living Bible, which I still have and refer to on occasion. It was this Bible that first ignited in me a passion for the Word of God as I could read and understand what I was reading since it was written in modern language and not with archaic 17th century wording.
In light of the passing of Mr. Taylor, I thought it would be helpful to point out the difference between paraphrases and translations, because a lot of people in our churches do not seem to understand the difference. To them, a Bible is a Bible is a Bible. But, there are differences.
A translation is an attempt to convert (as close as possible) the original Bible text (Hebrew and Greek) word-for-word or concept-for-concept. Some translations seek to emphasize the word-for-word conversion, but these can be somewhat difficult to read at times because you can never truly convert one language to another on a word-for-word basis. Others seek to ensure that the main concepts are faithfully converted while maintaining readibility. Arguably, the most popular translation of all time has been the King James Version, which is a very good translation. Recent translations that are very popular include the New International Version, the New King James Version, the New Living Translation.
A paraphrase is an attempt to reword the original concepts of the Bible into modern language with the goal being readibility and not direct conversion. In other words, a paraphrase is when the translator rewords a passage of scripture in his words to explain to the readers what the original author said. Paraphrases transmit the concepts of the Bible, then, but are not word-for-word what was said in the original languages. As such, they may slightly change the meaning of some passages. The most popular paraphrase in history has been Taylor's The Living Bible, but a recent paraphrase by Eugene Peterson, The Message, is currently being used by lots of people.
The take-home message to remember when looking at Bibles is that good translations should be considered word-for-word (or as close as possible) to what the original author wrote and that paraphrases are modern renderings and rewordings of the text. A lot of people, especially clergy and scholars, disdain the use of paraphrases because they are not direct translations from the original languages. Rick Warren's book, The Purpose Driven Life, has taken a lot of heat from some because of his extensive use of paraphrases instead of translations.
So, what should you use? I would suggest you use what you are comfortable with. If you like the readibility of the paraphrases, such as The Living Bible or The Message, use them. But use them knowing what they are and that they are not word-for-word translations. If you prefer Bibles that more accurately reflect what the original author wrote in the original languages, then use a good translation. My best suggestion is to use a combination of both translations and paraphrases in order to get the best idea of what God is saying through a particular piece of Scripture. When I am preparing a sermon or a Bible study, I usually check at least two translations (sometimes more) to compare wording and glance at the paraphrase, The Message, just to see how Peterson rendered the concept. I feel that this gives me the best reading of a particular passage and allows me to both remain true to the original as well as translate God's word to a modern audience.
Friday, June 10, 2005
To Be A Methodist Evangelical
In the current conservative climate of America precipitated by the election of President Bush to a second term, the media and the public have become aware of and interested in the phenomena of evangelicalism. Despite the fact that evangelicals have been around for 2000 years, you'd think we were a new creation. In the midst of all this media attention, the question has constantly been debated, "What is an evangelical, and what do they intend to do to America?"
Kenneth Collins, in his book The Evangelical Moment, talks about the formation of American evangelicals:
"Evangelical Protestants draw primarily from two great streams. The Reformed wing shaped the theology of Presbyterian, Baptist and Christian Church denominations and ultimately goes back to John Calvin. Its strength has been in the "head religion" of orthodox doctrine. The Wesleyan wing shaped the Methodist, holiness, pentecostal and charismatic movements and ultimately goes back, as the name suggests, to John Wesley. Its strength has been the "heart religion" of Spirit-filled religious experience.
"These two streams, Reformed and Wesleyan, have been equally important for evangelicalism as a movement of ordinary believers. In evangelical intellectual life, however, the Reformed have dominated. Asbury Theological Seminary is one of the great Wesleyan holiness intellectual centers in the world, and Kenneth Collins is the professor of Wesley studies there. Not surprisingly, then, Collins argues that the Wesleyan tradition has just as much to offer to evangelical thought as any other tradition does. The core of The Evangelical Moment is Collins' argument that the "Wesleyan leavening of evangelicalism" is vital to the future of evangelical Christianity." You can read a review of the book here.
I find that synopsis from Collins' book heartening. Too often, I find myself disenfranchised as a Methodist as I hear that those from an Arminian perspective are not true evangelicals. To be evangelical, they say, you must be Reformed. In fact, most of the media attention, both from the secular and the Christian media, support this claim.
But, as Collins argues, to be a Methodist is to be an evangelical. Through Wesley an emphasis was placed on the spiritual experience of worship and the direct application of the spiritual experience through social action. I think this concept is best summed up by St. Francis' quote, "Witness everyday. Use words if necessary." Our lives should be the best compass pointing people to Christ. And, if we incorporate Wesley's brand of evangelicalism into the current evangelical movement, we will see a more balanced picture of Christianity here in America -- balanced in doctrine and in works and empowered by the presence of the Holy Spirit.
In the current conservative climate of America precipitated by the election of President Bush to a second term, the media and the public have become aware of and interested in the phenomena of evangelicalism. Despite the fact that evangelicals have been around for 2000 years, you'd think we were a new creation. In the midst of all this media attention, the question has constantly been debated, "What is an evangelical, and what do they intend to do to America?"
Kenneth Collins, in his book The Evangelical Moment, talks about the formation of American evangelicals:
"Evangelical Protestants draw primarily from two great streams. The Reformed wing shaped the theology of Presbyterian, Baptist and Christian Church denominations and ultimately goes back to John Calvin. Its strength has been in the "head religion" of orthodox doctrine. The Wesleyan wing shaped the Methodist, holiness, pentecostal and charismatic movements and ultimately goes back, as the name suggests, to John Wesley. Its strength has been the "heart religion" of Spirit-filled religious experience.
"These two streams, Reformed and Wesleyan, have been equally important for evangelicalism as a movement of ordinary believers. In evangelical intellectual life, however, the Reformed have dominated. Asbury Theological Seminary is one of the great Wesleyan holiness intellectual centers in the world, and Kenneth Collins is the professor of Wesley studies there. Not surprisingly, then, Collins argues that the Wesleyan tradition has just as much to offer to evangelical thought as any other tradition does. The core of The Evangelical Moment is Collins' argument that the "Wesleyan leavening of evangelicalism" is vital to the future of evangelical Christianity." You can read a review of the book here.
I find that synopsis from Collins' book heartening. Too often, I find myself disenfranchised as a Methodist as I hear that those from an Arminian perspective are not true evangelicals. To be evangelical, they say, you must be Reformed. In fact, most of the media attention, both from the secular and the Christian media, support this claim.
But, as Collins argues, to be a Methodist is to be an evangelical. Through Wesley an emphasis was placed on the spiritual experience of worship and the direct application of the spiritual experience through social action. I think this concept is best summed up by St. Francis' quote, "Witness everyday. Use words if necessary." Our lives should be the best compass pointing people to Christ. And, if we incorporate Wesley's brand of evangelicalism into the current evangelical movement, we will see a more balanced picture of Christianity here in America -- balanced in doctrine and in works and empowered by the presence of the Holy Spirit.
Thursday, June 02, 2005
Living for Today
This morning, as I was driving in to work, the song "This is Your Life" by Switchfoot came on the radio. As I listened to the song, I felt God speak to me through these lyrics (printed below from this site). God is calling us to live for today -- not to live in the past or to live in the future -- but to live in the here and now.
Too often, we get trapped in the past. We relive things in our lives -- mistakes we have made, sins we have committed, good times with family and friends -- and spend all our time looking back and not looking at the present. I see a lot of churches like this, so caught up in history and tradition that they do not realize that they are not leaving a legacy for the future but are merely living in a legacy of days gone by. Living in the past keeps you from moving forward with God. It limits what He can do through you because you are not willing to move ahead.
After the resurrection and ascension of Christ, the disciples remained in the city of Jerusalem. True, they experienced Pentecost, but by and large, they just remained locked in the past, remembering Jesus and what He had done and not moving forward. Jesus had told them to "Go and make disciples," yet they sat there statically waiting for disciples to come to them. Finally, God allowed persecution into their midst to send them out into the world.
Likewise, we can be trapped in the future. I work with lots of older adults who are living for retirement. They walk through life with blinders on, not caring about their job or their life, but concentrating on living only for the future, for the day "they retire." Their whole existence is wrapped up in what they will do in the future, not what they can do now.
We do that a lot with our life situations. We say things like, "when I get that raise," "when the kids are grown," "when school is out," etc. Living for the future. Putting all our eggs in a basket that may never come. In the parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12:16-21), Jesus warned us not to live for the future but to live for Him in the here and now. In verse 20, God says, "You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?"
We are not promised tomorrow. We are not promised our next breath. So, if we are to serve God, then we must live for today and for the present and quit putting off things until tomorrow that we can do today. Likewise, we have to quit living in the past and live for God today.
Look around you right now. Who is there that needs to know that you love them? Who is there that needs to know that God loves them? Where can you serve God at this moment? What needs can you meet for others in Jesus' name? Live for the present and not for any other times. God described Himself to Moses as "I Am," not "I was" or "I will be" but "I am." We need to live for Him now and not in the past or the future.
Artist: Switchfoot
Album: The Beautiful Letdown
Song:This Is Your Life
Yesterday is a wrinkle on your forehead
Yesterday is a promise that you've broken
Don't close your eyes
Don't close your eyes
This is your life and today is all you've got now
And today is all you'll ever have
Don't close your eyes
Don't close your eyes
This is your life
Are you who you want to be
This is your life
Are you who you want to be
This is your life
Is it everything you've dreamed it would be
When the world was younger
and you had everything to lose
Don't close your eyes
Don't close your eyes
Yesterday is a kid in the corner
Yesterday is dead and over
This is your life
Are you who you want to be
This is your life
Are you who you want to be
This is your life
is it everything you've dreamed it would be
when the world was younger
and you had everything to lose
Don't close your eyes
Don't close your eyes
This morning, as I was driving in to work, the song "This is Your Life" by Switchfoot came on the radio. As I listened to the song, I felt God speak to me through these lyrics (printed below from this site). God is calling us to live for today -- not to live in the past or to live in the future -- but to live in the here and now.
Too often, we get trapped in the past. We relive things in our lives -- mistakes we have made, sins we have committed, good times with family and friends -- and spend all our time looking back and not looking at the present. I see a lot of churches like this, so caught up in history and tradition that they do not realize that they are not leaving a legacy for the future but are merely living in a legacy of days gone by. Living in the past keeps you from moving forward with God. It limits what He can do through you because you are not willing to move ahead.
After the resurrection and ascension of Christ, the disciples remained in the city of Jerusalem. True, they experienced Pentecost, but by and large, they just remained locked in the past, remembering Jesus and what He had done and not moving forward. Jesus had told them to "Go and make disciples," yet they sat there statically waiting for disciples to come to them. Finally, God allowed persecution into their midst to send them out into the world.
Likewise, we can be trapped in the future. I work with lots of older adults who are living for retirement. They walk through life with blinders on, not caring about their job or their life, but concentrating on living only for the future, for the day "they retire." Their whole existence is wrapped up in what they will do in the future, not what they can do now.
We do that a lot with our life situations. We say things like, "when I get that raise," "when the kids are grown," "when school is out," etc. Living for the future. Putting all our eggs in a basket that may never come. In the parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12:16-21), Jesus warned us not to live for the future but to live for Him in the here and now. In verse 20, God says, "You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?"
We are not promised tomorrow. We are not promised our next breath. So, if we are to serve God, then we must live for today and for the present and quit putting off things until tomorrow that we can do today. Likewise, we have to quit living in the past and live for God today.
Look around you right now. Who is there that needs to know that you love them? Who is there that needs to know that God loves them? Where can you serve God at this moment? What needs can you meet for others in Jesus' name? Live for the present and not for any other times. God described Himself to Moses as "I Am," not "I was" or "I will be" but "I am." We need to live for Him now and not in the past or the future.
Artist: Switchfoot
Album: The Beautiful Letdown
Song:This Is Your Life
Yesterday is a wrinkle on your forehead
Yesterday is a promise that you've broken
Don't close your eyes
Don't close your eyes
This is your life and today is all you've got now
And today is all you'll ever have
Don't close your eyes
Don't close your eyes
This is your life
Are you who you want to be
This is your life
Are you who you want to be
This is your life
Is it everything you've dreamed it would be
When the world was younger
and you had everything to lose
Don't close your eyes
Don't close your eyes
Yesterday is a kid in the corner
Yesterday is dead and over
This is your life
Are you who you want to be
This is your life
Are you who you want to be
This is your life
is it everything you've dreamed it would be
when the world was younger
and you had everything to lose
Don't close your eyes
Don't close your eyes
Wednesday, June 01, 2005
What a Great Book!
For those of you who read this blog on a regular basis, you know that I am a voracious reader of both Christian fiction and non-fiction. I recently finished the three book series by Ted Dekker -- Black, Red, White -- and found it fascinating. Since I read them as they came out and had to wait months between volumes, I am going back to re-read them now at one sitting.
But, I just finished one of the best Christian fiction books to hit the market in recent years. Frank Peretti just released "Monster" after a six-year hiatus between major novels. This book is masterfully written, with an emphasis on character development and a not-too-heavy handed portrayal of the Christian world view of the characters. This book will appeal to Christians and non-Christians, and should rise to the top of the New York Times bestseller list soon.
I don't want to discuss the plot here to avoid spoiling the surprise ending for future readers, but suffice it to say that this is a page-turner. I completed the entire novel in less than three days, and put it down sadly, because I wanted to keep reading.
If you are not familiar with Frank Peretti, check out "Monster" and then read some of his earlier novels, especially, "This Present Darkness," "Piercing the Darkness," and "The Visitation."
For those of you who read this blog on a regular basis, you know that I am a voracious reader of both Christian fiction and non-fiction. I recently finished the three book series by Ted Dekker -- Black, Red, White -- and found it fascinating. Since I read them as they came out and had to wait months between volumes, I am going back to re-read them now at one sitting.
But, I just finished one of the best Christian fiction books to hit the market in recent years. Frank Peretti just released "Monster" after a six-year hiatus between major novels. This book is masterfully written, with an emphasis on character development and a not-too-heavy handed portrayal of the Christian world view of the characters. This book will appeal to Christians and non-Christians, and should rise to the top of the New York Times bestseller list soon.
I don't want to discuss the plot here to avoid spoiling the surprise ending for future readers, but suffice it to say that this is a page-turner. I completed the entire novel in less than three days, and put it down sadly, because I wanted to keep reading.
If you are not familiar with Frank Peretti, check out "Monster" and then read some of his earlier novels, especially, "This Present Darkness," "Piercing the Darkness," and "The Visitation."
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