Some Favorite People

I took this picture on Mother's Day, last Sunday, with Donna's cell phone camera. Wow! What a looker! Did you notice the nice flowers? Someone must really love her a great deal! She's always been one of the greatest moms in the world, and now she's the world's greatest Nana too.

Yesterday, as we've done every year for five years, we sang a couple of our songs from this years musical for our church family, which this year is Fearless: The Story of Esther. I like to do this to get everyone in the family excited about what we've been working on for nearly three months now, and also to help motive everyone to hand out our promotional door hangers. Word of mouth, tickets, and door hangers, are how we promote the play, and it's worked pretty well so far.

I am really proud of how well the cast and crew are doing. We sang two of the praise songs from the play. This one is our closing song, which as you can see, requires some coordinated clapping. You'd be surprise how hard it can be too get fifty plus people to clap together - at the right time. They're great! It has been a wonderful year and I'm excited about seeing it all come together as we come down to the last two weeks. Wow! Last two weeks? OKAY - it's officially panic time!

Mommy, Look What I Brought You!

Parenting is for people mature enough to see tomorrow. That was a sub-point I made in Sunday's lesson. Since the context was about recognizing the long-term consequences of what we do, I kept it focused on the future. If I were to adjust it so it could be a stand-alone proverb - or as some say a Rootism, I would add something to make it more timelessly applicable. Parenting is for people who can treasure today, but are mature enough to see tomorrow.
Herodias, Herod's grudge-holding wife, used her daughter to get her revenge on John, but she also robbed her daughter of, what could have been, half of Herod's Kingdom! Unfortunately, many parents use their children for their own selfish purposes, and many rob their children of the nurturing they need to grow up into the giving, self-controlled, and thoughtful people who truly enjoy life and bless others.
I've said it many times, but since I used it again last Sunday, I want to mention it again. Who knows how long it will be before I get the chance again?
There are three things every child needs:
1. Unquestionable love (We love you no matter what!)
2. Clear directions (These are our values as a family - who we are!)
3. Consistent discipline (Clear boundaries, clear expectations, and no exceptions) - remember, parental discipline (teaching/guiding) leads to and is replaced by self-discipline. If the first doesn't happen, the second won't either. And tomorrow - the child/adult will suffer.
May your children bring you more than a trophy of bitterness on a platter.

The Why of Why!

The bigger the tragedy in life, the more we ask the question "Why?". We want things to make sense, to be deserved, justified, and explainable, but most of the time there is no clear answer to that three letter question. I would guess that it's the most asked question God hears from mankind. Even people who haven't talked to him, thanked him for anything, or even remotely recognized his presence, throw the question at God as more of an accusation than something they expect to have answered.
This past Sunday I addressed the horrible execution of John the Baptist and tried to answer the question "Why did it happen?" The easy part of the answer is found in the biblical record. John was killed because of 1) A weak, guilt-ridden King; 2) A self-centered mother; and 3) A misguided child. (Not the happiest of Mother's Day lessons to preach.) But then I concluded with the toughest part of the "Why?" by asking "Why didn't God intervene?" That's really the question isn't it? I mean, when a loved one dies from cancer, heart attack, or some terrible accident - we know the what, how, and why. What we really challenge God with is why he didn't step in, make an exception for us, and stop it!
I didn't offer an answer, but gave six questions to ask ourselves when we struggle to understand why God didn't intervene to save his servant John.
1. Why should he? (Who do we think we are to make such demands on God?)
2. How do you know he hadn't intervened many times already?
3. What was God thinking? (If you know - you're wrong!)
4. Why don't we understand that we must all die? (Like John, Jesus, Peter, etc. etc.)
5. Why blame God for man's evil treatment of man? (People have been doing that from the Crusades to the Holocaust.)
6. Do you think that John feels cheated? (I doubt he missed his meal of locust & honey,)
The real question "WHY" is why do we ignore God's love? And, why do we ignore eternity? If we didn't, we wouldn't be asking him "WHY".

I'm A Swinging Kinda Guy!

I wasn't going to do another blog this week, but I had a thought last evening that I didn't want to forget to share. I'd just finished mowing the lawn and I sat on our back porch swing to cool of and enjoy a cold bottle of water. It was overcast and windy, but for some reason the scene before me struck me as spectacular. Our pond was sparkling with shimmering ripples as the wind swept across it's surface. The water was a deep deep green and the grass all around the pond was like a field of emeralds. A half dozen ducks paddled around out in the middle of the pond looking like a bunch of children enjoying what the wind was doing to the water. Higher up from the pond, the huge pine tree limbs were waving their tribute to God's daily work of art - a tapestry I felt sure He put together just for me.
It wasn't the first time that this thought crossed my mind, but I couldn't help but be amazed, not only at God's artistry, but that he placed in our minds the ability to see and appreciate the beauty of this world He created and gave to us. Even in David's Psalm 8 praise of God's creation he didn't mention the blessing of some how knowing what you're looking at is beautiful. What does that tell us about our God that He put something like that in our DNA? Doesn't it peak your interest in Him as you realize it's part of being made in His image? While our "cousin" primates may have ninety-eight percent of our DNA, but I've never heard of one being amazed by the spectacular creation that surrounds them.
How wonderful is the ability to appreciate? How amazing is it to be able to stop, smell the roses, but then be in awe of their brilliant color, shape, and structure? How incredible is it that just sitting and looking can make us happy? The best part is knowing our Father made us that way.
While it opens up a whole huge range of things to think and speculate about, at the very least it has to make us realize that heaven was made by the same God. With apologies to my high school English teacher, Miss Smith, who is already there, WE AIN'T SEEN NOTHIN' YET!

My God And I

One of the most profound spiritual discoveries of my spiritual journey has been the realization that God is relational. Just pull out your concordance or click into Biblegateway.com and do a search of "God is ____" and see what pops up. Then study every description on the list about God and ask yourself, "What do they all have in common?" Every description about God involves some element of his loving nature that deals with his desire to be in relationship with man. Everything that God does is driven by that purpose. He created us to have relationships, like the Father, Son, and Spirit have, and through our physical relationships learn and see the need for a spiritual relationship with him. Like I've said many times lately, God is the most purpose driven being in existence. We can't possibly understand him and his plan if we don't understand that our Holy and loving Father wants us and wants us to want him!
Among the many things that this has seriously impacted in my life is how I interpret the Bible. From Genesis to Revelation, every word of every sentence must be interpreted through the eyes of a loving Father who doesn't do or say anything that isn't driven by his purpose. Whatever you read in scripture can only make sense when you see how it contributes to God's plan and purpose. Everything God did, from Adam and Eve, to Moses and the Law, and the sending of Jesus to earth, is all about what he has done to make a relationship with man possible.
This week in our staff meeting we read Hebrews 10 in our devotional time. I thought I really knew Hebrews 10 - after all, it's where my study of worship and the assembly began thirty-something years ago. But when we read, "Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way..." - I was overwhelmed - again - by how much God has done so that we could have a close relationship with him. How long did it take and how much did it cost for us to be able to be in the presence of God like only the high priest could do once a year? Wow! Am I reading a new book or what?

The Purpose Quiz

As part of the introduction to my lesson last Sunday, I was trying to make the point that we all REALLY DO have a purpose in life, one we are already committed to! The problem is that a deeper relationship with God just may not be part of it, or at least, at the top of the list. How do we know what our purpose is - or what we've MADE our purpose? I came up with five short questions that I called The Purpose Quiz. For this to work or be effective, the answers MUST be quick gut responses, totally honest, and not "church answers." (While at church, we have programed ourselves to always respond in the expected spiritual manner. Hmmm!)
Here is what I used Sunday. Remember - quick, honest, and non-churchy! Give your top/first three answers for each before you move to the next one!

1. I worry most about... (top three?)

2. If I could afford it, I would... (top three?)

3. I wish I had more time to... (top three?)

4. In the next six months, I hope to... (top three?)

5. When I die, I want my family and friends to know that I am the proudest or most thankful about... (top three?)

How we answer these five questions will tell us what we have made our purpose in life. What we've done and what we plan to do is our purpose - what drives us - what's most important to us. Our answers tell us what we think about, spend our money on, spend our time doing, what our plans our, and what we think our legacy will be. See any themes? What kind of things tend to rise to the top of each list?
There is a good chance that most of what we care about is important to God too. The real question is - where does our relationship with God fit in to all this? Jesus put it into perspective for us when He said, "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?" (Matthew 16:26) Maybe another way to put it could be, "What good is a purpose in life that doesn't help you live with God for eternity?"

Rehearsals and Nesting

While we began rehearsals for this year's musical Fearless: The Story of Esther the first week of March, we were all on stage for the first time this past Thursday. This year's musical has 24 songs being sung by the chorus, the nobles, the maids, and some individuals, and this week we put them all together for the first time. It went really well, but it's still frightening to think that we have to pull it ALL together in just over four weeks. Esther was a lot more complicated to turn into a musical than you'd think. Still, I'm very proud of how well everyone is doing and how incredible all the music is coming along. These are some of my favorite praise songs that we've ever used. Hope you get to see it.

Both of these pics are of the closing two songs. You can't tell it now, especially with so many scripts in hand & on the floor, but the right half of the group are the Hebrew people and the left are the court of Xerxes. Costumes will help - I hope.

While I won the bird battle on the back porch, this dove won with a nest on the edge of our brick wall just to the left of our garage door. Even with us going in and out on foot and in cars, or when I mow the lawn, she doesn't budge. She must be sitting on eggs. Notice the little bit of decoration she has added to the color of our bricks.

Caution: Serious Radical Stuff!

I put the above Power Point slide up at the beginning of my lesson last Sunday after talking about how concerned I was that we weren't truly communing, fellowshipping, sharing, and interacting with our Lord's Support the way they did in the New Testament. After all, Paul's point in 1 Corinthians 10 & 11 is, if you can't use the Lord's Supper for what it was intended for - don't take it. If it's not about the Body - don't do it!

The reason I put that slide up was not to generate doctrinal panic or combat. I quickly put the next one up that had a huge red NOT across the top of the above slide. I did it to illustrate the principle that emotional reactions depend on our expectations. Some were thrilled and excited to think about such a change in how we do communion, and others, I'm sure, were close to having a heart attack just thinking about "violating" such a sacred "act of worship." I would guess that a few people, especially the few who come in so late they usually miss the communion anyways, had no reaction at all. It all depends on our expectations.

It was just an illustration, and I alleviated all hopes or fears quickly, and hopefully got my point across. But how do I really feel about making such a change? If it were up to me - and it's not, and if it could be done without masses of members keeling over with apoplexy - which it probably can't, I'd do it in a heart beat!

The way we do our communion in our assemblies in no way resembles what the early Christians did, and doesn't accomplish the purpose for which Jesus gave it - at least not very well. In Acts 2, 20, and 1Corinthians 10-11, the Lord's Supper was simple, was part of a larger meal, and was a tool to build relational intimacy as they shared, confessed, and encouraged one another as the family and body of Christ. Koinonia, the Greek word for fellowship, was never the mysterious, introverted, sacramental, every-member-lost-in-their-own-meditation-act-of-worship that we carried over from Catholicism. It is a togetherness, interactive, one-another-focused tool that God gave to His people to help them grow in love for Him and for one another. God doesn't do anything that doesn't contribute to His purpose of helping us have a deeper relationship with Him.

Frankly, while what we do isn't bad or wrong, and through focus and concentration we can get something good from it, it just can't cause the intimacy and build love for one another that God intended. The size of the group restricts it, our traditions won't allow it, and our time limitations make it unpractical.

In my humble opinion, it would be a much more effective tool in a smaller group setting like a Bible class, or even better, a small group meeting in someones home. For the reasons already mentioned, I wouldn't suggest changing anything, but there is NO reason the Lord's Supper can't be used anytime or place that Christians want to truly commune with one another and God.

A Gnawing Witness?

When I was a child, I remember having this gnawing emotional indigestion telling me I should be good. I managed to ignore it or drown it out with the darker voice telling me "Do what feels good now!" Fortunately, it was a persistent gnawing, even when I challenged it with teenage rationalizing and young adult logic. Even when others were impressed with my "goodness" and helped me feel better about ignoring the gnawing, I was comfortable with the knowledge that I was "gooder" than most - after all, I was a minister, a presenter of the Truth, and a living example of what they should all hope to become (yes, again that is sarcasm). No, I wasn't a blatant sinner, a social bad guy, or even any different than anyone else struggling with evil, and I knew I had to depend on God's grace rather than see the day of perfection arrive. But the gnawing continued. There were things, mostly of the heart and mind, that robbed me of the complete peace a true relationship with God supposedly brings. Who knows when you're struggling with things like pride, selfishness, lust, and prayerlessness? God. He's pretty persistent, and - I guess, a pretty good "gnawer".
It's been a lot of years ago, but I remember when things changed - the gnawing went away - and that peace finally came. It happened when personal character became more important than personal comfort, and personal integrity became more important than popular acceptance. It happened when secret sins stopped being secret to God, which they never where, and Christ-like consistency replaced church-like correctness. Most of all, the gnawing of God went away when the presence of God was embraced.
At some point in every one's life, personal character, integrity, and consistency must to become a higher priority than all the distractions of life, the world, and Satan. Solomon learned and spoke of that around three thousand years ago. It has to be the best "wrap-up" of all time. He said, "Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." (Eccl.12:13-14)
We have a purpose, and we will have accountability. That's enough to gnaw at any body, but this is a gnawing that Tums can't help. The only way to stop it is to pay attention to it. It's a character issue.

Eureka!!!

And old buddy of mine (JV) sent me this picture, and at the risk of offending many who check out my blog, this was the caption under the picture:

"And thus, dear students, we have arrived at the formula for understanding women."

I emailed him back and told him "That'll preach!"

Loveless Christians?

Jesus said the world would know we belong to him when they saw that we loved one another. So loving one another is the most important distinguishing characteristic of the Body of Christ. That also means that loving one another is our purpose, our goal, and the single most important quality He wants to see in His church. He didn't say that the world would know we are his disciples if we "seek and save the lost," though that is certainly something we must care about doing. He didn't say the world would recognized us as His people if we were the MOST doctrinally correct group on the block, thought it's clearly important to follow the Holy Spirit's writings, which also include the fact that "love covers a multitude of sin." He certainly didn't say the world would see us as His followers if we "do church" just like they did it in the 1950's - or the first century for that matter. Love for one another is the spiritual billboard that shouts to the world that WE BELONG TO JESUS! It's how we learn to know God, draw close to God, and build our relationship with God! Growing in love for one another is not A ministry of the church but THE ministry of the church. It's not an activity but a pursuit, a purpose, and a goal!

How arrogant and worldly is it for us to turn loving one another into an extra-curricular church activity, or a side benefit of fellowship? How much does it sadden God when we let anything in our church life become more important than loving one another? Whatever causes a person to leave a congregation, other than normal transitions in life like moving and transfers, is something that to them is more important than the love they have for one another. When someone mentions that they left a church because of something they didn't like in "the worship," they are saying whatever it was is more important to them than the loving relationships they have with the church family. As far as what Jesus wanted His church to being doing - they didn't "get it."

It's sad to see how much we've failed to understand the real purpose of the church, and how so many folks think "doing church" has little, if anything, to do with building loving relationships. I am so thankful for those who do - get it! I have a terrible mental picture of Christians standing before God at Judgment reciting all the "ministries of the church," and all the "acts of worship" they performed every Sunday, and all the neat "outreach tools" they invented and used, and God holds up His hand to stop the religious resume' reading and asks, "Yes, but did you love one another?" The Christians, with blank looks on their faces, stare at him and say, "Do what?"

Buildings vs. Evangelism?

A long time friend of mine got a bunch of us preacher-types involved in an email discussion last week. The topic he tossed out was whether we believed the church spent money on facilities and staff salaries that could, and maybe should, be going to evangelism. At the very least, the premise was that the church spends too much money on buildings and staff - especially when compared to evangelism. I added my email to the discussion, but here are some thoughts that I didn't totally share.
There are few things in the church that members become more myopic, if not struck with selective blindness, than when it comes to church buildings and staff salaries. I can't tell you how many times through the years I've heard the "righteous indignation" of members who ranted about how much is spent on "administrative costs, employees, and facilities" rather than "the really spiritual" stuff like mission work, benevolence, and local evangelism.
First, I have to avoid the temptation of seeing this as a personal attack on my ministry, my value to the Kingdom, and a slam on our church family. Deep breath - count to ten - pray for guidance and patience!
Second, it's a fact, people judge the church, its staff, its office, and its facilities by one standard, and that is "What have you done for me lately?" If they don't see or hear about what happens, and/or it's not important to them, then it doesn't exist. Many members have no idea how much goes on at their building every day, or what their church office does for the church, or what their staff and elders are doing. They only know the building is used for a couple hours on Sunday, the preacher only works on Sunday, and the elders only have meetings. Be careful laughing at that. I feel confident that Satan laughs at it constantly. He loves it when members view God's work through selfish eyes.
Third, church facilities are not a waste of money and space if they are being used to teach God's Word, edify members, support the hurting and the needy, building love for one another, and are seen by the community as a force for good, a place for healing, and a place to connect with God. Yes, we're often not very practical or utilitarian about what we build, and yes, we tend to follow cultural and traditional models of what a church building should look like, but when they are humming 24/7 with good works that glorify God, they become tools not temples. And I have never seen my office staff do work that was "purely administrative" or self-centered. Everything the office does is to support this family of believers and the ministries we're involved in. In the business world facilities and offices may not be "the work of the company" or what the company produces, but that isn't true for a church family. As far as staff and staff salaries go, that's too big a subject for this blog. I'll just say this, if a staff person isn't worth the salary agreed upon with the church leaders, they should be lovingly removed. God said the laborer is worthy of their salary. It's up to godly people to evaluate and decide if that's true.
Finally, at least for this blog, evangelism is always available to use as a guilt whip. The most spiritual person on the planet can be made to feel guilty about needing to do more. Let me ask this question: If we took the hundreds of thousands of dollars we spent on our facilities and staff salaries, and got rid of all of it/them, and used the money for evangelism, would we really have a lot more conversions? If members where not being taught by capable and inspiring ministers, and we had no central location to connect with our community, rally the family, and build one another love, would we have more baptisms each year? I love "house churches"! We call them One Another Groups, but it's wonderful to get together with a larger family and give, praise God, and be encouraged - and pool our resources as a church family to carry out the Lord's work.
More money won't increase evangelism. Sharing the Gospel increases when godly people have a passion for Jesus that they can't hold back. It doesn't take more money for every member to be the witness for God that He called them to be.

The Final Steps

At the risk of boring those who are not family folks with my porch again, I just wanted to let the world know that it past Final Inspection yesterday morning. I finally found time to redo the larger steps you see above - since they failed the first time. I'm sure family will immediately notice the HUGE difference in the top step that is now five eighths of an inch taller. I now have three steps that are about 7 and 5/8 inches each, and I'm sure that will prevent all manner of accidents from happening. (If you're new to my blog - yes, that is sarcasm!)

I was also able to get the side steps done and you will be happy to know that they are 7 and 5/8 inches each exactly & equally. Ironically enough, the inspector who has done all the other inspections, including the failing of my original steps, retired in March and the new guy who did the final yesterday never even pulled out his measuring tape. It's nice to have it over and behind me so I can move on to the things I really want to do to the porch. I have to admit, it was fun figuring out, measuring, and cutting the six new stringers for the two stairways. Stringers are those angled board that the step boards rest on. If some one had "splained" to me back in high school how important math would be in working on my house, I would have paid better attention. Any way, it's ready for family and friends to come visit and sit in the shade and enjoy the peaceful pond and critters. Of course, we've been doing that for several months now - but avoiding those dangerous steps that were off by an inch.

Does Anyone Know What TIme It Is?

I have come to accept the fact that there are things in life that I am obsessive about. I'm not OCD about them, but there are things that I have to daily repeat my mantra "It doesn't matter" regularly. I like to think that most of the things I'm obsessive about are things that are important enough to be worth the focus I give it. In truth, I don't think having routines or set ways of approaching things as being obsessive or "set in your ways." To me, things are driven by logic and and efficiency. I want to do things in the most time sensitive and economical way. I am obsessive about not finding out later that something could have been done a lot quicker and easier than how I did it. Most of the time, my routines come from a desire to not want to waste time thinking about how, when, or why I do something. We all chose our routines because they work for us and they give us a sense of direction without making EVERYTHING a huge decision.
How would you function if your watch, phone clock, and all other clocks were removed? I've thought about leaving my watch off, but I know I'd look at my bare arm over and over again all day. I've wondered about being obsessed with time. My wife jokingly accuses me of "eating by the clock" and not hunger. (Oops, it is just about time for lunch!) I usually divide many of the tasks that I do each day by blocks of time I want to give to them, and I do know that once I've decided on a time for something - it becomes LAW for me - and I have to remind myself "It doesn't matter" - and I relax.
I've decided to not feel guilty about using time. It doesn't own me, I just choose to use it to provide structure to my life. It helps me organize and be efficient. It helps me be a better steward of the time and talent God has given me. It helps me work better, but it also helps me relax - when the time comes, and it helps me put limits on when and how long I watch TV, read, use the computer, or work around the house. I would put my work ethic and effectiveness against any ones, and using time as a tool is an important part of that.
I'm excited about seeing what heaven will be like since it will be timeless. Will I spend eternity checking my bare wrist?

Bird Battles

It started a little over a week ago. Our resident robins, and they are "Legion", decided that our new porch would be a great place to build their nest for the Spring. Last week, one mama robin had half a nest constructed on one of our beams in a matter of minutes. I've torn down about three half finished nests as they move from beam to beam, after I've tacked a bag on it to discourage them. I really hate for them to work so hard on something that I won't let happen when they can be doing the same work somewhere else - somewhere safe. But they are a persistent bird. They return over and over with mouths full of nest making materials and they have the hardest time trying to figure out why "their spot" is not available anymore. After trying to make plastic bags work for several days, I finally found a better deterrent - empty coffee containers that I've been saving for future painting plans. They are great for putting a little paint in and they have their own built in handle. Anyway, they worked great as a nest building deterrent. The robins, even this morning, are landing next to them, with mouth-fulls of grass, and wondering what these things are doing covering their nest sight.

I have three coffee containers and one bag on four of our beams. The one beam at the end of this picture is too far from a rafter for them to use as a nest sight. It offers no protection from the wind. They're not dumb.

You can see the befuddled robin on the railing. You can't see her mouth-full of grass. She is at a loss as to why that red thing is covering up her nest. If you look hard to the lower right you can also see one of our resident rabbits eating our grass.

This is a zoom pic through our window (with shades) so it's not so clear, but you can see the material in her mouth as she stares at the coffee can on her post. This is at the other end of our porch from the picture before this.

Now, back to the other end of the porch - the mama robin finally gave up and just dropped her nest material on the railing. It's hard to not let them build their nests on our porch, but it's not safe and I don't want bird droppings all over my porch either.

I am so amazed at their persistence and dedication. God made them to seek a nesting place this time of year, and they are totally focused on doing what He created them to do. It truly reminds me of something I share often. Man is the only thing in all creation that can and does chose to not do what God created him to do. But then again, man is the only thing in all creation that God wants an eternal relationship with, and love must always be a choice.

What's The Motto With You?

Back when I was coaching the Jr. High basketball team in TN, I developed a short motto or mantra that I said to the kids at every practice. It was a threefold goal or purpose statement that described what we were, or should be, all about. Have fun, do your best, and glorify God. I really liked the simplicity, accuracy, and biblical focus of each part. I have used that as our purpose statement with our musical each year since we first started it, five years ago. I still really like it. It has become a life purpose for me. I believe it is what Jesus would tell us, if he were talking with us and giving us a simple focus in life. He does want us to enjoy life, and if we are his lights - his ambassadors - we should seek to do our best at whatever we do - from basketball to Bible Action to being "a living sacrifices" for him. When we do that, he will be glorified!
We are what we believe and what we believe comes from what we tell ourselves. This is something we can tell ourselves that will keep us focused on our loving Father, who has been driven by a desire to have a relationship with us before he said, "Let there be light." The secret to truly doing all three - having fun, doing our best, and glorifying God - is being in love with the One who loves us so much.

PS. Brothers of the "cloth" - it's an easy three point sermon too! It'll preach!

A Blooming Monday

We spent a fun day yesterday taking Donna's mother ("Mither") to see the Missouri Botanical Garden. It is such a beautiful place with so many wonderful colors, smells, and sights. We did a lot of walking, but it was so neat to see so many different rooms of God's creation in such a small area. The above picture was in the large domed tropical forest setting and was full of all kinds of plants from all over the world. It was hard not to pause at this beautiful waterfall and think about the thousands of places just like this that few if any humans have seen.

This picture was actually taken just outside the entrance to the tropical building. These flowers were spectacular, even with a little overcast sky. It was a good place for a mother-daughter picture. It is always a blessing to have "Mith" visit us. She is an incredible godly lady who has been a source of encouragement to me and caused me to never tell a "mother-in-law" joke. I still remember thinking to myself, some thirty-eight years ago, that Donna was just like her mother and that made me look forward to being together for a long, long time.
We also had a really nice lunch at the little restaurant they have there, but the best part of the day was stopping at Fritz's on the way home and having some frozen custard. Hey - we did a lot of walking, and besides, my Concrete had pecans in it, and that's nearly health food!

The Non TN Titans

I just got back from seeing the movie Clash of the Titans. The best word I can think of to describe it is entertaining - especially if you like actions movies like I do. It was a neat remake of an oldie. It's amazing what they can do now with all the new computer graphic stuff they can put into movies. It's hard to tell the real from the computer generated.
The movie just reminded me of a point I was making yesterday at our monthly Preachers Meeting. As the title of the movie proclaims, it's all about the gods of mythology, who seemed to thrive on toying with humans and making their lives miserable. No one would admit it of course, but I think many folks think of God in a similar fashion. Many have no idea why He would give commands, make laws, and require obedience in carrying out things that seem to have no connection to anything except exalting Him. Many see God as coming up with all kinds of hoops for man to jump through and wonder if He gets some perverse pleasure out of putting burdens on people.
Our God is love. Everything He has ever done and will do, comes from His character as a loving Father. No, He doesn't toy with anyone, and He's never given man anything that was merely a hoop to jump through. What He does is always for a reason and He said that reason was to bring about a relationship with us.
Talk about Clash of The Titans? What about the clash of religious people who have no idea why God commands and requires what He does and why He gave things to us to help us? God is the most Purpose Driven being in existence. It would dramatically help us all if we truly took the time to figure out why God has done the things He has done. It will change the way we do what we do in His name! We might even start seeing things He tells us to do as tools to use rather than acts to perform.

A Short Review

A Brief Summary From Sunday Mornings Lesson:
Once upon a time a nice young girl named Holly was given a copy of the Bible to study. She was happy to receive it as she sat down on her bench to read it. Immediately she began to be uncomfortable on the hard wooden bench. She stopped reading as she squirmed trying to find a comfortable way to sit. Soon she just gave up and left the Bible sitting on the bench.
A nice, not so young man named Glenn was given a Bible to read and he eagerly carried it to his rocking chair and began rocking and reading. He was really enjoying it - until he started getting tired from rocking. And then the sun was beating on him and he got hot and uncomfortable. He was torn between wanting to continue with the reading, and quitting to get away from the sun and rest from the rocking. He laid the Bible on the end table and gave up.
Then there was a sweet girl named Kiva who received a Bible which she took straight to her big, comfortable easy chair, and she just relaxed and enjoyed every moment spent with the Word. But then, a guy named Steve started showing her the Headlines in the newspaper and telling her about all the things in the world to be worrying about. Then came Danny with his Cabela's credit card telling her how much nicer life would be if she was wealthy enough to enjoy such a luxury. They were joined by OD who was flashing his I-Phone in her face and appealing to her desire for the newest "thing". At first she ignored them, but then she began to listen, and gradually she closed her Bible and was carried away with their shiny offers.
When Jerry took his Bible and sat in his office chair, a chair you work in, he not only enjoyed his study, but he internalized it. Soon he felt compelled to find three others to join him and study God's Word together. One sat on the bench, one on the rocker, and the other in the easy chair, because - it's not where you are when you receive the Word, it's where you go with it! It's about staying on the journey and growing.
(Another version is found in Mark 4:1-20 - and a BIG THANK YOU to all the impromptu actors who helped me Sunday.)

Deep Dirt?

The parable of the Sower is certainly one of the best known parables in the Gospels. I would guess that most Christians would include it if asked to list five parables from memory. It's an unusual parable too. Every physical thing in it symbolizes something with spiritual significance. And unlike other parables, it's not really about the Sower, but the soils he sows the seed in. It is full of imagery that every person of Jesus' day would understand because they'd done it and seen it all their lives. The four soils represent four different ways the Word of God is received by people, so it is Jesus' explanation for why people respond to His message they way they do. The most amazing thing is its timelessness. The reasons why the Seed doesn't take root and grow in the lives of many people are the same today as then. Maybe that is why Jesus questioned and warned his apostles when they asked him to explain it to them. Remember what He said? "Don't you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable?" (Mark 4:13) Ouch!
Isn't He saying that this parable represents the essence of God's plan for redeeming man? All God can do is put His offer out there and make His love known to us, but it is up to the individual to take that seed into their heart. This parable is showing us the preeminence of the heart in having a relationship with God. The condition of the heart transcends any external actions of the body. However, when the word is heard, received, and taking root in the heart, it produces crops that can only come from God's Word. The heart that truly seeks God is what He is looking for. Like Jesus said, if we don't understand that, how can we understand anything He told us?
(FYI: My favorite phrase in the parable is found in Mark 4:6, "...they withered because they had no root." - that'll preach!)

Creating Space

After putting pictures of my newly finished basement on my web page year before last, I couldn't bring myself to take pictures of what it looks like right now. You see, we finally got around to cleaning out the storeroom section of our basement, because it was packed with boxes and stuff -most of which hasn't been unpacked or seen in over five years now. I did put a picture up a few weeks ago of our newly cleaned out small storeroom that we turned into Donna's new pantry, but this is the big storeroom - which is about a quarter of the basement. Yesterday, Donna was finally able to finish with the loads of Christmas stuff - I'm talking thirty-seven years of collected decorations - some we haven't had out in decades - and were able to cull it down to a manageable heap about the size of a washer & dryer. Yeah! Then we started in on the rest. Now we have a huge pile of things for Goodwill, and we've made several trips to Mr. Dumpster. Nevertheless (isn't that a great word?), our basement is covered with piles of stuff, as we sort, separate, and travel down memory lane with each box we open. Let me share a few observations.
* What we remember is absolutely dwarfed by the magnitude of what we've forgotten about! (Of course, I knew that, but I'd forgotten it.)
* It's amazing how some little "thing" (i.e. figurine, cup, picture, etc) can trigger the opening of a whole section of the past you haven't thought about for years.
* It's amazing how much "stuff" you accumulate that you can't remember anything about, much less why you've kept it so long.
* Many memories don't disappear just because you refuse to keep some little memento in storage.
* Letting go of something that triggers an important memory is worse than pulling teeth - and it doesn't matter that you haven't seen it in years.
* Forget about one picture being worth a thousand words - why do so many make you feel a thousand years old?
* Why do I have the sinking feeling that all the space we are freeing up will soon be filled with more stuff?
* Wow! How can you look at how much you have to store (not use - just store) and not think about how much you've been blessed through the years?
* Okay, I'm a preacher, but more than anything else, I'm a sinner - saved by the grace of God. And you know what REALLY amazes me? Because of Jesus, my sin storeroom is empty!

Movie Recommendation

We watched Taking Chance last night. I friend let us borrow his DVD of this HBO made movie, and all I can say is you need to see it. It is a true story of a Marine officer asking to be the official representative for the Marines in taking a Marine who was killed in Iraq back to his family in Wyoming. The things he experiences in terms of caring and patriotic Americans expressing their appreciation for the sacrifice will truly move you. It's a real story about a real Marine named Chance Phelps. The story was originally the officers After Action Report that he was required to turn in when he finished his assignment. It's powerful and makes you feel good about what our men and women are doing, but also how our country cares and respects them. I kept thinking, "What a difference from the days of Vietnam!" - praise the Lord!

(I saw it at Target the other day. I'll have to go back and purchase a copy.)

Next - the porch swing?

When I walked into our house yesterday, I immediately saw "Denny" Crane standing just off our back porch. I was really surprised to see him/her so close to our house. He/she has been all around the pond this spring, and seems to be spending the better part of every day there, but he/she has always kept their distance from the threat of people. He/she has been doing a lot of sunny as well as hunting fish in the pond. I think it's the same crane, but it could be several cranes, who all look just a like, dropping in at different times. Who'd know? The only thing I could think of as to why he/she was so close to the porch is that the new wood radiates heat from the sun shining on it. I put a temperature gage on one of the posts, but once the sun starts working on the porch, it's always way higher than the actual temperature because of all the warm wood. He/she only let me snap two pictures before he/she flew ot the opposite side of the pond to sun over there. I'm amazed that he/she could see or sense my movement through the door window and in the darkened house. They've got awesome eye sight, which is why they don't miss many times when they stab the water with their long bills and come up with a fresh little pond perch for dinner.
I'm sure there's a lesson there somewhere, but I just wanted you to see one of the reasons why we really like where we live and why I build our porch. Oh, and there's some neat people here too!

More Pep Rally Talk

In the introduction to my lesson Sunday, I made a statement that was actually in my book Unbroken Bread almost fifteen years ago. I believe it even more now than I did back then. Here is what I put up on the Power Point screen Sunday morning. The preeminence of the assembly guarantees constant battles, dissatisfaction, self-centered members, and church hopping. I went on to point out that it causes several things:
1. A loss of focus and purpose - because we have completely forgotten what the purpose of the church is (not to mention worship, spiritual tools, and loving one another).
2. Mountains become mole hills - as we change our priorities from drawing closer to Jesus to keeping people happy, providing predictability, and maintaining our traditions.
3. There is little or no spiritual growth, even if our numbers increase.
4. Leaders are too busy putting out or preventing fires to be purpose driven.
5. We completely reversed God's plan when receiving replace giving, which how most people view the Sunday morning assembly time. (Talk about obvious red flags?)
What I didn't say, partly because I forgot, and partly because it was only the introduction to the lesson and not the lesson, was that the worldly tradition of elevating the Christian assembly to the dominant act, event, or focus of the church is unbiblical, Pharisaical, and spiritually shallow. The only other thing I would, or should have added, is that because of the historical elevating of the assembly, and it's history as a bloody battlefield, we define ourselves doctrinally, spiritually, and culturally by our assembly rather than as loving disciples of Jesus. Most people would disagree with that, but all you have to do is ask them what it takes to become an "official" un-asterisked member of their congregation (i.e. agreement on baptism and the "Acts of Worship").
All that being said, I love our assembly time! However, until we get every member to understand that it's our pep-rally and not "who we are" as children of God, it will continue to be the number one reason why members get unhappy, upset, up-in-arms, and out the door looking for a church that "meets their needs".
And FYI, the lesson was about Jesus getting "in the face" of the Pharisees to let them know they were missing God's plan and purpose for the Sabbath. (Mark 2:27 - 3:6)

Word of the Day!

There are few words in the English language that mean more to me than the word integrity. Okay, I still have to check the dictionary to remember if it's g-r-e or g-r-i, but that's a spelling weakness and not a character weakness. One of the reasons I love the word/concept so much is because of a favorite saying about it that I've known for so many years I can't remember where it came from. Isn't that the definition of originality? No, integrity forbids me from taking credit for it, but it has sure stuck in my heart through the years. "Integrity is the gift you give yourself." God has given the greatest gift of all time. Even many non-Christians know what John 3:16 says. But even God's wonderful gift of His Son, with all the love and grace it provides, remains conceptual if we don't honestly internalize it and allow it to motivate as seekers of Him. Integrity is internal honesty that drives us to consistently seek to please Him whether anyone sees it or not. It's Being Real about having a relationship with Jesus. It's when knowing that God is pleased becomes enough of a reason to do what's right. That kind of integrity is where the peace that passes worldly comprehension comes from.
Let me crank it up a notch with this observation. Your integrity is only as strong as your sense of self worth. People who don't feel good about themselves, don't do good things to themselves. That is the true irony of Christ-like unselfishness. Many think it's the result of being crushed, weak, and spineless, but it really comes from a God-given sense of self worth that makes it okay to give, be thoughtful, serve, and even sacrifice for others. Poor self worth comes from and causes self-centeredness. A self-centered person isn't interested in integrity unless displaying it furthers their personal interests.
God wants us to feel good about ourselves, unless we have something feel guilty about. When we accept His forgiveness and understand His grace, and what that says about how important we are to Him, we have joy, peace, and are motivated to share it. What's the bottom line? Our self esteem - real self esteem that lasts - can only come from God. As unworthy sinners made into worthy children of God, we are overwhelmed by love and honestly draw closer to Him. He loves us, we love our self, and are able to honestly love others. That's spiritual integrity. That's God's plan - remember? Love God and love others AS you love YOURSELF. (As quoted by Moses, Jesus, Paul, Peter, James, & John)

Old Fairfax Friends

It was a wonderful blessing to have Dave and Becky Hinckley staying with us this past weekend. They are good friends from our days with the Fairfax Church of Christ where we had a terrific thirteen year ministry. Our kids basically grew up there, the congregation experienced some phenomenal growth, and I personally was able (allowed) to grow as a minister as they encouraged me to challenge the status quo. Those were some great years, and frankly, our decision to leave there and move to Texas in 1990 is one of the very few life changing decisions that I've looked back on with some doubts and some wonder about the wisdom of our choice. I think God had a plan for us and for them, so I don't regret it, and I am immensely thankful for the great memories we will always treasure.
I've said all that to say that it was nice to just spend a bunch of time with Dave and Becky, sitting around the dinner table, talking about what has happened to everyone over the last twenty years. Becky is the person who taught Donna sign language back in the early to mid-80's and she and Dave have been primary leaders in helping their Hearing Impaired ministry grow and become a vital part of the Fairfax family. We drafted Becky to interpret my sermon on Sunday morning, which just proves that no good vacation goes unpunished.
Isn't it awesome to have church family all over the place? We may have worked in four different congregations, but we still have close friends from each of those experiences. There's going to be a lot of catching up to do in heaven.

Two Types of Sermons?

I do a three mile fast-paced hike nearly everyday. It's a good workout, and what I like most about it is - I can think while I walk. I never did much of that in all my years of running. All I thought about was getting done. Now the problem is remembering all the things I think about while walking. I try to write them down in my journal as soon as I walk back into the house. Last week, I figured out all the main points for my sermon on Sunday while walking. Fortunately, it was a very familiar passage and an easy one to meditate on. It was nice to just reflect on it awhile instead of just needing to come up with something to put on paper.
Yesterday I was thinking about preaching. Not a specific sermon, just the whole process of sharing a message from God's Word. I've always used - not so much a formula, as they are - rules to follow. My goal is to be simple, logical, and biblical. I want to take scriptural teachings and make them easy to understand, and rationally worth accepting.
Yesterday I found myself deciding that there really are only two types of sermons: sermons that make you think and sermons that make you stink. Thinking sermons cause you to - well, think, reflect, examine, and do some soul searching. Stinking sermons help you see your sin and challenge you to do something about it because all sin stinks to God - even if we think our "little, insignificant, socially acceptable" sins smell okay. They both include levels of encouragement, convicting, teaching, and enlightenment, but the goal is to either bring about change or generate the thinking that will bring about spiritual growth.
Of course, you have to think to know there's a stink, and if you stink it should make you think about how not to stink. And sometimes the sermons stink, so you don't think, and that creates more stink, so I think it's best to think before you stink and it's always best to help others think about their stink as you think about your own. What do you think?
I think I'll go for a walk.

Sabbath Lessons

Few verses of scripture have changed me, compelled me, and even haunted me over the last twenty years as Mark 2:27. Jesus declared, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath." It rocked my spiritual world long ago, and it continues to do it today. If something so central to Jewish thinking, and such an intricate part of the Law - hey, it's one of the original TEN - can be declared by Jesus to be a tool to use not a ceremony to perform or a sacrament to meticulously follow, how did we ever allow things he gave us as tools, to help us grow in love and build spiritual relationship, to become "acts of worship," rules to follow, and rituals to be obeyed? And we took those very same things, and made them tests of faith, symbols of truth, and defining elements of discipleship!
Back in the 1970's I first discovered that what I'd always been taught about worship just flat wasn't in the New Testament. Worship is a life given in sacrifice to God. The Christian assembly/fellowship is simply an equipping and encouraging event. There's no formal worship, no holy time or place, and no day that's not "the Lord's day." It rattled everything I thought, believed, and preached. We are not - must not- be defined by our assembly, but by our passion for living for Jesus!
It has been a huge soul-quake again for me to look at all the things God has given us to help us grow - as tools, not acts, rituals, patterns, or laws to obey, but tools to help us help each other grow in Christ. This paradigm shift is incredible because I've started to see things he have us as resources, possibilities, options, and choices He has gaven us to use to build a deeper relationship with Him.
If you want to have fun - I mean a real spiritual, tradition busting, mind-bending, eye-opening - experience, just write out Mark 2:27 and leave blanks where the word "Sabbath" should be. Now go back and place any of God's tools in those blanks and listen to how it sound. Here's an example. The Lord's Supper was made for man, not man for the Lord's Supper.
It may not change what your church family will do during communion next Sunday, but it should change the way you think about what you're doing when it takes place. Jesus was providing us with a tool to use not a ritual to perform!
Go ahead - fill in the blanks, and see what it says to you.

Finally, Out of the Closet

This may not mean much to anyone but our family, but we finally got around to "trying" to organize the rest of our basement. If you've been checking on my blog the last couple years, you know that year before last I finished out our basement. Two areas that went untouched were the two store rooms. The small one (above) is were I've been keeping all my hunting gear, and the large one, about a fourth of our basement, was the big store room holding furniture, Christmas stuff, boxes, and odd stuff. It was full and in desperate need of attention. Most of the stuff in it, the boxes, were/are things we haven't unpacked or seen in over five years - some longer. So it's kind of like doing an archaeological dig. Every box is a discovery full of memories - all of which makes us forget our vow to be ruthless about our stuff and get rid of most of it.
Donna is standing in the - now - clean pantry, with new shelving which is three quarters filled already. She can now put all her extra kitchen stuff, some too big to put upstairs, and also have all her Christmas dishes on shelves (one entire unit, by the way) so it will be much easier to get it out this next Christmas. The remaining shelf will be for non-perishable foodstuff and supplies.
For family, my hunting stuff now, temporarily, resides atop the queen size bed, and the rest of the finished basement is covered with Christmas stuff and storage stuff we are still organizing and deciding what goes to trash, Goodwill, repacked, or to the real owner - one of you.
There is still a ton of stuff in the store room, but the goal is to get this all done in the next few weeks. I still want to build a small closet for all my hunting gear.
In the meantime, it's nice to be able to actually walk around in the store room. I can already see the day, Lord willing, when we might have a bathroom downstairs.

Church Potato?

Donna took this picture Sunday. This is how I shared my "You may be a couch potato if" list. I didn't stay like this, though it's not a bad way to preach.
So after talking about couch potatoes, I transitioned into the idea of Church Potatoes. What are they? Remember my definition of a couch potato (see last blog)? "Mindless watching while neglecting more important things." Let's see, mindless watching...? And neglecting more important things...? That'll preach! It did. Here are some of the "not so funny" characteristics of a Church Potato. (This was all just my introduction to a lesson on Mark 1:35-45)
You May Be a Church Potato if...
* ...you're thinking "I'm here and don't ask me to do anything else!"
* ...you want to be entertained and not do any of that "one another stuff" - like love, encourage, forgive, etc. etc.
* ...you like predictable formats with no surprises or challenges! (Now what's the purpose of the assembly again?)
* ...you have no intention of doing anything like studying or praying until next Sunday!
* ...you'll spend more on lunch today than on your church family this whole week!
* ...you know what you believe, you just don't know why or where to find it!
* ...you look like church people, but you have no time to be a disciple of Jesus!
* ...you are already counting the minutes until you can get out of this place!
* ...you don't want spiritual meat, just comfortable milk! (see Heb.5:11-6:6)

Ouch! I'm not interested in picking on anyone or unnecessarily making anyone feel bad or guilty. I am very interesting in challenging all of us to be honest and, as I said Sunday, move from being a Church Potato to being like the Bread of Life.
I actually did have a joke about looking more like Jesus than Mr. Potato Head, but I didn't use it.

PS. FYI: If you don't get a message about our new email address, it's the same prefix but it's no longer charter.net it's gmail.com

A Spud Dud

On Sunday I introduced my lesson for the morning by talking about Couch Potatoes. It's a touchy subject because we're all Couch Potatoes at certain times in our lives and would probably like to be one at times when we have to do things we dread doing. But that was my point. I defined being a Couch Potato, not by time spent in front of a TV, but by a sedentary and negligent lifestyle. My actual definition is: A Couch Potato is the mindless watching of TV while neglecting more important things. I confessed to being an occasional or selective CP, but pointed out that watching educational channels, like the History Channel, doesn't count - because it's learning and that counts as work. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!
Anyway, in my usual desire to keep things light so I can later on "lower the boom," I came up with ten Jeff Foxworthy-type descriptions of a Couch Potato. The point of the lesson was challenging some to quit being Church Potatoes. I'll share some of those descriptions later. They're not funny at all. Until then, I hope you enjoy the following.

You may be a Couch Potato if...
1. ...you've learned to completely ignore your sore rear-end from sitting so long watching TV.
2. ...for you, every food commercial qualities as educational TV.
3. ...you've completely mastered football cheerleading from a recliner.
4. ...you've watch TV so long that you're starting to like the Becky's Carpet commercials. (If you're not from SL, just think about the most obnoxious local advertisement where you live.)
5. ...you've learned how to mute the TV when your spouse talks to you, but you're still reading the lips of everyone on the TV screen.
6. ...you know exactly when you will need a bathroom break during tomorrow nights TV viewing.
7. ...you call channel surfing - exercises!
8. ...if you blame an exciting golf or bowling show for making you eat more.
9. ...during a technical problem when your TV is not working, you start feeling the need to take up drinking, smoking, or using Valium.
10. ...a recliner, a TV tray, a bowl of popcorn, and a Big Gulp are all part of your funeral instructions.

Going For Gold!

Okay, I've always been a sucker for all the hype about the Olympics. I love watching highly trained competitors, who have spent years preparing for this one chance to win gold and nearly always overcoming some set-back or obstacle, throw all caution to the wind - beating all the odds - and crossing the finish line or completing their run or routine one-one-hundredth of a second or point ahead of the rest. I love it, but it really stresses me out! My stomach gets tense as I watch them compete, hoping they don't have that one slip, fall, or accident that will totally destroy all their hard work and years of preparation.
I love the passion of the Olympics too. Their desire to do their best, to represent their team, family, and country, and to stand on that metals platform is so strong that it brings out seemingly super-human performances. And when they win - wow - the joy, the screams, the cheers, the tears, and the emotions that are so strong they can't give a coherent response to the reporter who always asks the same crazy question, "What does it mean to you to win a gold metal?" Duh! They're crying and too choked up to talk! What do you think it means?
Wouldn't it be fun if Children of God showed the same passion about our victory, that means eternal streets of gold, as the Olympians show about a little gold metal on a ribbon? Someone groans, "Salvation is a lot more serious than an Olympic game." I wish more of us where even half as serious about running our race as those Olympic competitors are about theirs. And where is it written that salvation is so "serious" that outward expressions of passion are inappropriate? We've got "joy unspeakable" and "peace that passes comprehension" not to mention the fact that we "rejoice always".
I've mentioned to my church family several times that I think we're all going to be surprised to see how angels rejoice in heaven. Our reaction when someone is "born again" and added to the Kingdom of God looks like a funeral wake compared to the singing and dancing God's angels are doing in heaven.
I love to see people who are passionate about what they believe and what they do. I like to see people who are emotionally connected to God and who are emotionally overwhelmed by his grace and love. Truth be known, our inhibitions come from our traditions and peer pressure. If winning an Olympic metal makes celebrations and tears expected, how much more should victory in Jesus and receiving an imperishable crown bring out a passionate response in us?
Next time someone asks you what you're doing, tell them "I'm going for the gold! Want to join the team?" Just say it like you mean it!

Rust Doth Corrupt!

One of the saddest things that I have seen through the years is spiritual leaders who stop learning. While it's sad to see that in any Christian who claims to be growing, it is especially sad when it is someone who is guiding others, setting the example, and supposedly growing in wisdom. On the other hand, it's thrilling to see "older" Christians who seek out new ideas, read mind-stretching books, and go to things that will challenge and enlighten them. Show me a church leader who constantly reads good spiritual books, and I'll show you a man or woman of God who has something to give and share with others besides more tomb paint.
My son-in-law's father is an incredibly busy doctor with patients, staff, facilities, and hospital work that demands a great deal of his time, and he's also a shepherd for his church family. One of the things I admire most about him is his thirst for knowledge. He reads and studies constantly! He reads new and old books, text books, and theology books that would have me snoring in five minutes. And you know what? All their children are the same way. He knows the values of keeping his mind growing, learning, and stretching!
I share him as an example because I've always believed that the mind is like any other organ of the body. When it comes to our bodies, especially as you age, the old axiom is true - "Use it or lose it!" I recently read a great article in the latest AARP Magazine (I'm barely old enough) about fending off aging problems like Alzheimer's and other problems of dementia. Recent studies are proving, "The more you work your mind, the greater your cognitive reserve. And the greater your reserve, the greater your ability to withstand the inevitable challenges of aging." (p.48 "Boost Your Brain Health")
I especially like the statement, "...the healthy brain gets stronger with age." That says it all when you're trying to figure out why some people become smarter, sweeter, and changeable with age, while others become grumpy old men or women. What is it they say in that commercial? "The mind is a terrible thing to waste." It's even worse to let it get rusty with age!
Use it or lose it!

I Said It, I'll Do It!

There was a guy in the Bible who made a pretty strong declaration of dedication, but shortly after that, when it came time to follow through with consistent choices, he caved in like a stepped on aluminum can. I don't think for a moment that he was exaggerating or lying when he made the declaration, but he obviously wasn't speaking from where his true level of commitment was. Peter was like all of us. He though he was ready to follow Jesus even to death, but, well - like Jesus said that same evening, "The spirit was willing but the flesh was weak."
Here's the principle I'm thinking about: A dedicated decision, can and should remove the challenge of choices. Once you decide where you stand and what you will and won't do, the choices are made - or should be.
For me, the highlight of each day on our recent cruise was sitting down to that first class dinner with Five Star cuisine, and being surrounded by good friends to share it with. It doesn't get any better than that! (Within reason - of course!) For the first several evenings, one of the first things that happened involved one of the stewards offering us a choice of wines from the ships huge inventory of wines. I'm not anti-wine, a prohibitionist, or even a religious prude when it comes to any Christian's right to have a drink of any alcoholic beverage. For some people in some cases it might even be a good idea, but I don't need it, want it, or like it. Give me ice tea every time over sour grapes, slurred speech, and all the potential wrong things that can happen. The larger decision was made long ago, so there was no need to turn it into a choosing situation. Before long they didn't ask, the wine list was removed, and the wine glasses weren't even put on the table.
On the other hand, why is it that at every meal, and often times between meals, I find myself calculating, rationalizing, and justifying the consumption of massive amount of calories that I know I don't need and that will ultimately hurt me? And, by the way - like Peter, I've made declarations of dedication to healthy living that didn't last anywhere near as long as his did before I totally caved in. I hear the words of Paul, "Wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from" making declarations that come from wishing rather than true commitment.
Truth be know, we're all probably better at making declarations than we are at committed living. I guess that is why God wants us to understand His love, His patience, and His forgiveness. With His help and forbearing nature, being a child of God and deepening our relationship with Him may be as much about "get up and keep moving" as it is "running the race set before us". As we grow in Him, the divergent lines of declaration and dedication come together, and His peace that is greater than words truly begins to take hold of our life.
Why did I write this right before lunch?

Parable of the Master Mechanic

The young couple had heard all about how good and dependable the mechanic was at the little garage/gas station down the street, so they felt comfortable about leaving their car to be repaired while they shopped at a nearby store. When they returned, the smiling mechanic met them out front, and pointing to their car parked beside the station, he told them it was fixed and running beautifully. They were overjoyed and felt strongly that their faith in the mechanic was well founded. It's nice to have a Master Mechanic taking care of you. Like we've all experienced, he asked them to follow him back into the office so they could settle the bill.
The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so he led them through the garage area to get to the office. Once in the garage, however, they stopped as he walked on into the office. "Wow," they exclaimed as they looked at the garage. "What an amazing facility!" They just couldn't take their eyes off of the neat machines, colorful pipes, and shiny tools all around. It's like their feet were glued to the concrete floors. They were really taken with the magnificent edifice to auto repair. And then they really started noticing the tools even closer. All kinds of shapes, sizes, colors, and styles. They could only stand in amazement thinking about how those tools could and should be used. They touched them, they were in awe of them, and they discussed, and even argued about, how they were supposed to function. They were totally happy and content just focusing on the tools and the facility. They were so enthralled that they forgot all about following the Master Mechanic. He was sadly waiting for them to get back to their task of following him. Tools and facilities are great - when used to carry out their purpose, but they are nothing when they're not used by the Master Mechanic.
Verily, verily I say unto you, to let any tool become more important than the Master Mechanic is to miss the purpose of tools. That will always make Him sad and cause the competition to cheer.

It's Not About Numbers!

There are very few things in my spiritual and professional life, which to me are the same thing, that has evolved and changed more than my view of church growth. I have written a lot about that in the past and I don't want to rewrite it all here, but the bottom line is, I concluded several years ago that we have been seriously infected by a virus known as "the world's view of church growth." We still define success by numbers and try to rationalize it away by spiritualizing it with "we only care about numbers to the extent that it's talking about souls." That's church-speak! If we aren't adding numbers to our attendance and contribution, we feel like we're failures or uncommitted, or if we want to soften the judgement, we say we're "stuck at a plateau" and need to come up with something to "get us over the hump." We didn't get those words or evaluations from the Word of God. In fact, just writing a blog like this will cause some people to say or think "he must just be making excuses for not growing."
No, I see growth in my spiritual family like I've never seen it before because I'm looking at something different than attendance and contribution charts. I'm looking to see who and how many in my church family are becoming more like Jesus. Becoming more like Him is the ONLY church growth challenge the Holy Spirit gives us! In Eph.4:15, our job is to grow in Christ, and Peter called on us to "...grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." (2 Pet.3:18) Too many of us have been trying to grow churches with little interest in helping individuals grow in Christ. We want to attract more than we want to guide. We want to invent gimmicks rather than build godliness. We want to know the secret formula that will impress others rather than follow the simple formula of loving one another!
This is what I believe causes real church growth. Four principles that are probably best seen as a cycle.
* Growth is directly related to, and determined by, congregational morale.
* Congregational morale comes from a spirit of love.
* A spirit of love comes from building relationships.
* Love is the singular quality that Jesus said identifies us as His disciples.
So, what are you doing to foster church growth? Just ask yourself, what are we doing to help our members love one another?

From Cabo to Chilly

From this...

...to this - in just hours. Quite a shock to the system to step out of the airport in St. Louis into cold, wind-blowing snow after spending all those days in summertime temps. But, the BIG WINTER BREAK was everything we hoped it would be. It's nice to back, even if it's sixty degrees colder.

By the way, the top picture is at Cabo San Lucas and it is the REAL "Land's End" at the tip of the Baja Peninsula.

Normal blogs to follow starting next week.

Last Full Day at Sea

It's the last full day of the cruise, so we are relaxing, buying the last of our ship-taken pictures, and getting ready to pack this afternoon so we can literally hit-the-deck-running tomorrow morning. The above pic was yesterday morning just after we anchored off Cabo San Lucas. It's a beautiful place, with incredible beaches and lots of water wildlife. We saw whales, dolphins, and seals, and tons of pelicans. It was so much cooler and dryer there. It's dessert all around Cabo and it's literally at 'lands end'. We really enjoyed it. Isn't she good looking?

While some of our group was on a whale watching tour, this group walked the town looking for good shopping deals. Donna, of course, is taking the picture. It was the most enjoyable place to walk and shop in on the whole trip.

This is Donna and I and a thorny friend we found in town. Speaking of whales, have we mentioned how much we've been eating? Oh my, it's been so good, but we must pay for it with exercise and diet when we get back.

Donna is not this white! In fact, she is a little sunburned. Our waiter is de-shelling her lobster and prawns - allows us to dip it in the butter faster. It was sooo good - non-fat too - NOT! Lord willing we will arrived back in St. Louis about 7:45 tomorrow night. I hear they're expecting snow and rain there tomorrow - ouch! Have I mentioned how nice the mid-winter vacation to a warm place is? We're already planning the next one for 2012 - believe it or not. It will take that long to pay off this one and save for the next, but it's worth it!

God bless. Next week I'll be back to the usual blog-grind.

PS. Spell check isn't working so all mis-spelling is the fault of Blogger - Ha!

Huatulco & Acapulco

This was right after we finished doing the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 5k on the ship this morning. It was neat. A very different way to do this great cause than we've ever done it before. It's been a nice & easy day at sea today.

This is the harbor at Huatulco, Mexico. It's a little resort town with a beautiful beach. We did a tour their that was interesting, but not much history. Still, what a beautiful place.

Yesterday we were in Acapulco and ended a long, rather boring tour by getting to see the famous cliff divers. This is just one of our pictures of the seven guys who dove off the cliffs. It was worth the price of the tour to just see this. Awesome. Two dove from the top at 130 feet. Like I said, we were hoping for a splash and not a splat!

This is the whole group leaving for yesterday's tour -minus Don Rose who is taking the picture. It's has really been a fun group to travel with. We are in Cabo San Lucas tomorrow, so I'll try to do one last blog w/ pics on Thursday. It takes so long to down load the pictures that this blog will be one of the most expensive parts of the trip. Ha! Who cares! God bless.