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Archive for the ‘Hope’ Category

Called to Share

Posted in Church, Community, Formation, Grace, Hope, Uncategorized on February 23, 2016| 1 Comment »

sharingThis coming Sunday we will be discussing the importance of sharing.  I remember as a child, I was taught to share.  The lessons weren’t always pleasant because there is something inherent in us to want to keep things for ourselves.  I would like to think that as we grow up, we get better at sharing.  But sadly, I think that we just get better at masking our selfishness.  It is a constant battle to put other people’s interests above our own.  But that is what we are called to do as believers.

Unfortunately, often times this reluctance to share prevents us from sharing the most important news of all.  We, as believers – as followers in the Way, have the message of hope and rescue.  We hold the key that will unlock the chains that imprison individuals – chains of fear and isolation, chains of guilt and depression, chains of emptiness and low self-esteem – the chains of sin.

The Gospel is the message of rescue.  It is the news people need to hear.  The good news is that Jesus has made a way to free us from the chains that hold us down.  And we have that news.  Not only do we have that news, we have been given a mandate to share it.

Paul tells us in Romans 1:8 that people all over the world were talking about the faith that the believers in Rome had and how that faith was encouraging others and making a difference in their lives.  Acts 2:47 tells us that because of the faith and actions of the first believers, God was adding daily to their numbers.

There is something contagious about faith lived out.  Something powerful happens when people actually live out what they say they believe.

Live out your faith and share what Jesus has done for you with someone new today.

Be a blessing!

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Our Tie to Possessions

Posted in Formation, Hope, Uncategorized on February 22, 2016| Leave a Comment »

We have been working through the book of Ecclesiastes on Wednesday nights.  It is not known as the source for inspirational thoughts for greeting cards.  Solomon was at the end of his life, reflecting back on all his accomplishments.  He thought about his fame, his wealth, his knowledge and his abilities and came to the conclusion that whatever is done on earth is meaningless.  The old adage, “You can’t take it with you,” is just as true today as it was for Solomon.

We have a tendency to strive for recognition and fame or to work to gather up wealth and status.  While the saying, “he who dies with the most toys wins,” may be a cute consumer driven philosophy, the raw truth is that he still dies.  The question I want you to consider though has more to do with living.

Solomon, in all his wisdom, realized that possessions to do not bring real meaning.  Only a life lived for God brings fulfillment.  So our tie to possessions becomes a chain.  And that chain restricts us from finding real and lasting meaning and chokes out the life God intends for us.  Our focus must be on what lies beyond this life under the sun.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-21:

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

May we never be so tied to possessions that our possessions chain us to a life with no meaning!

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Intended Purpose

Posted in Formation, Hope, Motivational on February 17, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Last September, I was back on the campus of my alma mater for a meeting.  As I drove down Ambler Street headed to the school, I saw a portable sign with an interesting message.  It was one of those signs that can be pulled around and then placed where you want it – the kind you can change the message by manipulating plastic letters.  The message was so intriguing that I turned around and went back to take this picture.

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This image has inspired me each and every time I have thought about it.  The owner, out of frustration, changed the message on the sign to address the circumstances.  The purpose of the sign is to communicate – to promote – to inform.  But due to the vandalism, that purpose was diverted.

Earlier this week I talked about purpose (you can read that post here).  How often do we get distracted and move away from living out the purpose for which we were created?  How many times per day do we allow our circumstances to pull us away from what is really important?

Stay focused.  Yes, there will be situations that pull us away.  There will be a current that will cause you to drift.  But stay focused on your intended purpose – serving God with all you have – and when you lay your head down tonight, you will be able to do so knowing you have made a difference.

Be a blessing today!

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It’s a Beautiful Thing

Posted in Formation, Hope, Motivational, Uncategorized on February 15, 2016| Leave a Comment »

This morning I was out for a run.  It was early and the sun was just coming up.  The air was clear and the temperature was perfect.  I was about three minutes in when I noticed a dog down the hill.  The brain process began.  Do I turn around so as not to have to deal with the possibility of being chased (I was struggling Dog runningenough to run as it was)?  Do I slow down as I get to him and try to befriend him?  Do I run past and ignore him in hopes that he wouldn’t notice the huffing and puffing of what must sound like a water buffalo with asthma?

I opted for the last option.  As I neared him, he spotted me easily – I’d like to say that my stride reminded him of a gazelle but I’m sure that wasn’t it.  By the time I got within 20 yards of him he began to bark and run toward me.  I continued on as if he wasn’t there hoping my heels and calves would be safe.  As I ran by he nipped at my shoe once but for the most part, he just barked and ran along side me until I got past his home.

As I started up the hill, I replayed the scenario in my head.  The dog was doing exactly what he was created to do.  His instinct is to protect his home.

I rounded the corner and it hit me – we are created for a purpose.  That purpose should come naturally for us.  We will never feel  more alive and fulfilled than when we are functioning within that purpose.  When our passions, skills and talents all line up with the task at hand it is a beautiful thing!

So today, look for ways to work within your passions and strengths.  Realize that God has created you just as you are for a purpose.

Now . . . to find a new running route . . .

Be blessed today!

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Learn From the Past and Move Forward

Posted in Formation, Grace, Hope, Uncategorized on February 10, 2016| Leave a Comment »

I had the opportunity to speak in the chapel service for our school this morning.  My instruction was to cover one sentence of the model prayer Jesus gave us in Matthew 6 – verse 13; “lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”

As we look at the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples to pray, we see just before this plea to protect us from temptation, a request to forgive us for our shortcomings.  There are things in our lives we can’t change – decisions we have made that we can’t change – words we have said we can’t un-say.  For those things, Jesus teaches us to ask for forgiveness.  We learn from our mistakes and humbly ask for forgiveness.Praying at Sunrise

But moving forward, now we can do something about that.  We can make good decisions moving forward.  We can watch we say and do for the rest of this day.  So Jesus reminds us to ask for forgiveness for the past and then ask for direction and protection moving forward.

Here are three things we can learn from this petition in verse 13:

  1.  God will guide us and give direction if we seek it.  James 1:13-15 tells us that God does not tempt us.  We are tempted by our own evil desires and lusts.  But Jesus reminds us to pray for God to lead us and guide us away from temptations.  So our prayer should be for his guidance.
  2. We can’t do this on our own.  If left to our own, we will fall prey to our own desires.  Without God’s guidance, we will allow our focus to drift away from God and toward instant gratification and our own lusts.  James 1:15 says, “after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”  We need God to guide and protect us.
  3. God is fully capable of delivering us from evil.  Evil is anything that takes our focus away from God. When we allow God to guide our steps, we will be led away from temptation and protected from evil.

Father, we humbly ask for your forgiveness for our shortcomings up to this point and pray that you will guide our thoughts, words and actions this day.     Amen

Be blessed today!

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Commitment to Growth

Posted in Church, Community, Hope, Uncategorized on February 9, 2016| Leave a Comment »

This past Sunday, we began a new series in our services together entitled, Church 101.  We church_101-title-2-still-16x9
are going back to the basics of what it means to be the church.  God’s church is made up of God’s people – followers in the Way.  So if a church is to be a vibrant church, it must be filled with vibrant followers.

The first step to being a vibrant follower is a commitment to growth – growth in our understanding of God, growth in our relationship with Jesus and growth in our relationships with others.

As we continue to grow in our understanding and knowledge, our relationship with Jesus grows as we experience his truth lived in out in our lives.  And as our relationship with Jesus matures, our love for one another grows.  We begin to see others as Jesus sees them.

God’s plan A for the redemption of the world is the church.  Commit today to be the church God expects by committing to be a vibrant, fully engaged follower.

Be a blessing today!

 

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The Best Resolution You Could Make

Posted in Community, Formation, Grace, Hope, Uncategorized on January 21, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Are you a goal setter?  How about a resolution maker?

Here we are 3 weeks into the new year.  Statistically, most of us have already given up on our resolutions.  In another week or two,  the guilt will set in as we begin to beat ourselves up over how we can’t seem to stick to  that diet or that overzealous exercise regimen we set for ourselves while still under the influence of a food induced euphoria almost a month ago.

I’m not knocking the genuine recognition of the needed improvement in taking care of one’s self.  But I wonder if we have put the same emphasis on our spiritual health?  How many resolutions were made to spend more time in prayer or scripture reading?  How many resolutions were made to do a better job of loving God and loving others in 2016?

We are only 3 weeks into 2016.  It’s not too late to make the best resolution you could ever make for 2016.  Join me in refreshing your commitment to spend time with God daily in prayer and in the sacred text.  God will honor your commitment with joy and peace.

Stick with it!

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Joy Is Found In Relationship

Posted in Community, Formation, Hope, Uncategorized on January 20, 2016| Leave a Comment »

This past week the mornings came early. But nothing gets the day going like a strong cup of Dominican coffee and a cool breeze blowing through the open-air roof top perch overlooking the northern part of the city of Santo Domingo. I have always heard that Las Vegas is the city that never sleeps but I am pretty sure Santo Domingo stays awake most of the night as well – or at least the dog next door does.

While the city may be the loudest city I have ever spent time in, the people have to be some of the most hospitable and joyful people I have ever had the pleasure of walking with. I visited the beautiful island of the Dominican Republic for several days to get a glimpse of what God is doing there among the faithful believers in that country. We visited orphanages and schools, churches and homes – and without exception, God was at work in the lives of his servants.

I have walked among people in many different counties in my lifetime and I am always reminded that true joy comes not from material possessions but from a relationship with God lived out in community with other followers in The Way.

It really doesn’t matter what we acquire in this lifetime. Material possessions wear out, break or just become out dated. Money gets spent and can cause more relational problems than it solves. Fame doesn’t last and neither does authority and power.

The only nugget left in the sieve when our lives have passed through it’s screen is our relationship with the Father and the relationships we developed as a result of knowing him. On the surface, that seems harsh. But the glorious truth of the matter is this: when we place our priority on the most important relationship in our lives – our relationship with God – then all else becomes joy (Matthew 6:33).

 

Seek after God today!

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Stay Salty

Posted in Church, Community, Formation, Hope, Uncategorized on January 8, 2016| Leave a Comment »

SaltIn Matthew 5 we have one of the most profound sermons ever delivered to humanity. Jesus saw a teachable moment and he made the most of it. What has come to be known as the Sermon on the Mount is recorded here in this chapter. Jesus was the master teacher. His words changed the direction of humanity and they still have the same effect today.

In verse 13 of this chapter, Jesus used a common, household item to make a very concrete statement of our role as followers in The Way. He told his followers gathered on that hillside that they were the salt of the earth. Salt is something used in a number of ways. It gives flavor to what otherwise might be a bland dish. It can also be used as a preservative, helping to prevent things from spoiling.

In the first century, salt was viewed with a bit more significance than we might see it today. But the point of Jesus’ message was that we, as believers, should exist to bring taste to a tasteless world and the hope of preservation to a world void of hope. We are called to be salt.

But when salt loses it’s saltiness, it is of no value. For us to be effective in our service, we must not lose our saltiness. We must stay close to the only one who can bring taste to a tasteless world and hope to a hopeless existence.

Stay salty!

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The Best Year of Your Life

Posted in Formation, Hope, Uncategorized on January 4, 2016| Leave a Comment »

The beginning of another year – an arbitrary line drawn in time marking the end of one increment of measurement from another.  There is nothing really special about the day.  It is just another day – like the one before and the one after.

The significance comes not in the 24 hour period but in the idea that we are beginning another era.  We leave the past year with its joys and struggles and turn to a new year, hopefully a bit wiser.

This is a fresh start – a clean slate.  We can make this year the best year of our lives or it can be just another year stacked on the pile with all the others.  It is really our choice.  You may be saying, “Yes, but what about all the unforeseen circumstances that are going to come my way.  How can I be assured that this will be the best year yet?”

While it is true that life is going to happen over the next 365 days, it is just as true that God is in control of all of it and his strength will see us through those struggles that come our way.

The way to make 2016 the best year ever is to focus daily on your relationship with Jesus.  When your sights are set on Jesus and following him in The Way, all else is woven into the fabric of the year.  As we remain in him and draw ever closer to his heart, life takes on vibrant meaning and purpose.

So commit this day to remaining in Jesus and 365 days from now, you will look back and say, “I think that was the best year of my life so far!”

Be blessed today!

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