Cross off that name!

God is good! Wow, what an incredible understatement. Last night I lethargically showed up at Journey. Tired and grumpy from camping at East Lake over the weekend, I came with no great expectations. Thinking I would just go through the motions and go home. Well, a funny thing happened. The Holy Spirit showed up and stole the show. While we were praying before Journey started, I sensed something change in me. I started to get excited about what the night might hold. Our "Journey moment" turned out to be the launching point for the Holy Spirit. There were three people who shared a great experience with the Lord over the weekend. But the one that was just stinkin awesome was Mike's story. Mike led his best friend to the Lord in Nebraska, and he was the first to cross off a name on the prayer board! For me, that was what it's all about. It was so awesome to see Mike get so emotional over what had happened with his best friend. To cross a name off the prayer board with a bright red marker signifies that Mike's best friend is no longer lost, but is now going to dance with Jesus in heaven! He is a brother in Christ now. What an awesome thing.

To top it off, "rev." Keith was back and delivered as always a great message. We took communion, worshiped the King, and finished off the night praying and singing. It was a great night. The diversity of the people make me smile. We are not a church, we are "the" church. It's so cool to see the "body" all come together. Old, young, homeless, hurting, scared, abused, confused, unsure, all of it. Yes...God is good!

Tomorrow May Never Come

I got a call the other day from an old high school friend who said a mutual friend of our had died. Even though I hadn't talked to him in over 20 years it still hit me hard. In high school Marty & I were very good friends. Marty was voted best looking in our class and had everything going for him. He turned to a life of drugs after school and continued to spiral downward until his life ended with a heart attack. At the time of his death he was living in a tent behind the Dairy Queen we all used to frequent so often. I think a few of the reasons this hits me so hard is the "friend" who called to inform me of Marty's death used to be my best friend, and now he is divorced, and listening to his words, has shut God out of his life and it's all about him. Also, I don't know for certain, (only God knows for sure) but would be surprised to know that Marty was a Christian. That being said, when we die here on earth, that's it. It's final! The final part I'm talking about is that we don't have another chance to make our decision to follow Christ. We don't get to say "wow, that bright light over there is real, and I'll take door number one!" That's it, final!

We sure talk alot about being doers and not talkers, but my prayer is that we reach out to our friends who are not Christ followers. We can't convince them to follow Christ, only He can do that, but at least we are doing what He asks us to do. It breaks my heart to think that Satan probably got one of my friends. It also pisses me off. I wish, now in hindsight, that I would have reached out to Marty a long time ago. This serves as a belated wake up call to action in the army of our Lord Jesus Christ. I think one of Satan's greatest victories is the complacency he indwells in us Christians. Satan is the great deceiver, beware. Don't' let complacency run your life. Jesus tells us in Revelation "I am coming quickly." Our time is short here, lets make the most of it.

Acts 5:42

And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.

Stuck

This week is my week to introduce the question to our group the SBS. Here is the pre cursor to my question:

Jesus says He would rather you be hot or cold than lukewarm. He despises a lukewarm Christian; He wants to spit them out of His mouth. When you first become a Christian you are “fired up” so to speak. Then during your sanctification process we become stagnant for whatever reason. Stuck if you will. I can think of many reasons why we become stuck, but what do you do to get unstuck, and how do you get to the next plateau in your Christian walk? The real crux of this question is a heart check for us all. Are we stuck in the middle right now? It makes me think of a book I read clled Your God Is Too Safe, that talks about being in that place, or in between might be a better way to state it. What do you do to get out of the mire and muck and stagnation of your walk with Christ and increase your sanctification?

So here is the question:

How do we get past the stagnant point between salvation and sanctification?

My Answer:

One, is we have to cut out the distractions in our life that interfere with our "Jesus Time" by that I don't mean to join a commune and lock your self in a room and pray and read your bible 24/7. What I mean, is that there are probably things we could re-evaluate and tweak a little. For me it could be TV or the computer. Between the two, I probably spend an average of 4 hours a day engrossed in one or the other. What if I spent a quarter of that time in prayer, or in my bible?

Two: We have to see Jesus for who He really is. If we sit down and shut up for awhile and just meditate on who Jesus really is, we should fall over backwards in our chairs! We have (or at least I have) become so comfortable and complacent about Jesus that He becomes just another name we throw out there. We need to recapture the awe and reverence of who He really is. How about for starters, the creator of everything! We get to have a dialogue and conversation with this Jesus...and He listens, and He cares!! Do you grasp that?!!

Three: involve yourself. Surround yourself with other Christians who are fired up! For example, if you want to get good at skiing, you surround yourself with people who are passionate about skiing, who are good at it, practice all the time, devote themselves to getting better at it. You wouldn't or shouldn't expect to get better if you go once a month, or go with someone who is just starting out.

In conclusion the best way to get "unstuck" and move forward is to realize who Jesus is, and what He has done for you. If that doesn't get you unstuck and motivated, you better check your pulse. Your "christian" pulse.

SBS Question of the Week (my belated answer)

How do we look different from the world according to our faith in Jesus Christ?

Unfortunately, many "Christians" don't look any different from the world. They just blend right in. In a long answer gone short, I would have to say by our love. I know that's a churh-ey sounding answer, but that is what Christ wants us to convey to others. What is the "love" that Christ describes? Check out 1st Corinthians. You, know, love is patient, love is kind... Unfortunately the great deceiver is out there knowing how to supply "counterfeit" love to those who seek acceptance. Draw close to God and you will look and feel different. And that my friends is a cool thing.

Journey to East Lake

Today Journey journeyed to East Lake. We went to help out Dave & Kathy Jones. Freinds of ours from church who own the resort. We got 1/34 buildings painted before we ran out of paint. All in all a good time was had by...well...all! Here is a slideshow of some pics from today. Kudos and thank you's all the way around for everyone who pitched in and helped.

37 pics in all

Who Cares FRIDAY!

Today's feature post is on Cow Tipping! Cow tipping is an art in itself. For years many have engaged in this heightening activity. Young children dream of it during their algebra classes, sort of like a rite of passage. It began many years ago, when a young boy of the name of Tipper McCoy decided to make a cow more comfortable as it slept. Thinking that standing while sleeping was cruel and unusual, he set out one night to give 'ol Betsy a rest. Tragically, Tipper fell into a thick cow pie as he tried making his way back to his warm bed. He ended up going to the hospital with a severe paranoia of cows.

Here are some suggestions of what NOT to do while tipping a cow.

Do not wear red. Bulls are in the area.

Do not tug on the tail to check on sleeping status.

Do not make "moo" sounds. This only aggravates them.

Do not try to ride the cow like a horse.

Do not try to milk the cow.

Do not make friends with the cow. Remember, you are there to TIP the cow, not buy it a drink.

Do not eat a burger in front of the cow.

Other Suggestions

If the fence is making a buzzing sound, do not attempt to cut.

If the fence is making a buzzing sound do NOT attempt to relieve yourself on it.

Make sure you bring the good truck. This is supposed to be done quietly. Do not have a truck that backfires like a rifle. Cows will awaken.

Make sure it IS a cow. If it has horns, and no udders, Back off with caution.

Wear high boots, not flip flops.

Who Cares?!

Absolute Faith

SBS question of the week presented by Mr. Jack Collins. Alias Sgt. of arms.

Is it possible for us to have absolute faith? What can, or better yet should, we do to help us come as close as humanly possible to absolute faith?

This is really a great question! This is my second time writing my answer, and I've done a complete 180. Yes! I do think it's possible to have absolute faith. Absolute by definition is pure, perfect, unquestionable, unmitigated. I may not have the faith to walk on water like Peter did, but I had faith enough to believe that Jesus is the Christ and ask Him to be my personal savior. (that's about as good as any place to get an Amen!) To help us come closer to absolute faith we need to believe in our hearts and confess with our mouths that Jesus is who He says He is. We need to be doers not just listeners. We need to step out of our comfort zones and let God show us trials that we can only overcome through our faith (real faith) in Him.

James 1:2&3 says - Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

James 2 :14 says - What good is it , my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?

Who Cares FRIDAY!

Confused? Don't worry. This week this post of Who Cares FRIDAY is for us men. I have some facts that if as men you arent' aware of...this will be invaluable information. You see, men and women communicate in different languages Hunh?!? LOL. Here are some key phrases that you should know. What's taken me years of trial and error (because I'm married) I am passing on to you to learn quickly and effectively.

A Translation Manual

It's your decision = "The correct decision should be obvious by now."
Do what you want = "You'll pay for this later."
We need to talk = "I need to complain."
We need = "I want"
I'm not upset = "Of course I'm upset, you moron!"
You're so manly = "You need a shave and you sweat a lot."
This kitchen is so inconvenient = "I want a new house."
I heard a noise = "Get up and see what it was."
Do you love me? = "I'm going to ask for something expensive."
How much do you love me? = "I did something today you're really not going to like."
I'll be ready in a minute = "Ill be ready in 30 minutes."
What's wrong? Nothing = "Everything."

Fine = "Definately not fine"
How about going out for dinner? = I didn't make anything, I forgot"

I'm really tired tonight = " Your'e not getting any tonight"

Who Cares?!!

Stuck in Neutral?

The question this week for the SBS was given to us by Mr. Holiday. The question is this.

My question, dear friends, is twofold: can to much of a morally neutral thing be eternally bad; and are there morally neutral things in your personal life that Christ is asking you to get rid of, or remove - things he just wants out, even though there is nothing evil about it?


Morally neutral. Hmmm. Let me break this into two parts, then bring them together. What is moral or morality? It is a barometer used to gauge right and wrong, or good and evil. Neutral, to me, is going nowhere, spinning my wheels and not moving, not engaged if you will. So now put the two back together, and I think moral neutrality means you are neither good or bad, just copacetic, or doing nothing.

So are there morally neutral "things" or moral neutrality in my life that God wants me to get rid of or change? A resounding yes. For me wiping out moral neutrality would be to engage Christ. Example. Don't be complacent and comfortably numb as the Pink Floyd song says. If you had and employee, would you want them to just punch the clock each day and go through the motions? Would you be happy with that? Of course not, just as Christ doesn't want us to be complacent. Oh we're not necessarily doing anything bad, but not good either. Stuck in neutral. Morally neutral that is. Engage Jesus Christ and get in gear.

5 for 50

Our small group was killer tonight. It's obvious to see the Spirit moving in the heart of these young adults. It's exciting to see how Jesus is working and changing lives. One thing we discuss is how we should get off our butts and actually do something and not just flap our mouths and try to impress others. Usually our Christian friends. Well, I would like to throw down a challenge to anyone so inclined. I have a friend,Tom Davis. Tom is an esteemed author who has written some excellent books. One of those books is called Red Letters. Read it. He is the president of an organization called Children's Hopechest. They work with orphaned children in Russia, Africa, and places around the world. Some starving, some with AIDS, some with seemingly no hope.

Check out one of his campaigns called 5 for 50. Here is a chance for you to step up and help someone. To read some of the stories that are posted on Tom's blog will make you tear up, and also realize how great we really do have it here, and all of our bitchin' and moanin' really falls on deaf ears to the rest of the world.

I hope if after you peruse the links in this post, you too will be moved. If the Holy Spirit so moves you, then help out in whatever way you feel led. If some of the stories don't tug at your heart strings , then you better check your pulse. At the very least you will be aware of what's going on and can pray. There is power in the name of Jesus.