Wonderful

Last night as we were in our corporate prayer time as a church Isaiah 9:6 came to my mind. It says this, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given and the government shall be upon His shoulders, and His name shall be called WONDERFUL CONSELOR, MIGHTY GOD, EVERLASTING FATHER, PRINCE OF PEACE."

The essence of this scripture is anticipation, the men and women of the Old Testament were told of the coming Messiah, and they waited eagerly for that appearing. Now if you are a parent do you remember the anticipation that you had as you were awaiting your child to be born. Can you think back to the emotions that you were feeling, there was excitement, some uncertainty, some of us just went completely nuts, and then the day came, and you held that baby in your arms, how overwhelmed was your heart.

Now think about anticiapting the Savior of the world, the prince of peace, the God man that would save you from what you couldn't save yourself from, how eagerly they must have look for His coming.

Today I wonder how much we are anticipating the return of Christ, when He will come and complete the restoration and reconciliation process that began at the cross and salvation? I think that as great as it is to think back and remember the birth, I believe that we should also be careful to think forward and have our minds drawn to when He will appear, and as the hymn says, "the clouds be rolled back as a scroll, the trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend."
May you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and may you rejoice this season that Christ was born, lived a sinless life, died brutally, rose again, and is coming again for His bride.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

HE is the Image

One of my favorite passages of Scripture to read, especially during this time of year is Colossians 1:15-20, this beautiful poetic passage really describes in detail who Christ is and why He came.

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything He might be preeminent. For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of His cross."

He is everything, in Him the invisible God was made visible. When we see Christ we see God. I just think that is amazing, the King of Kings, sends His son, the royalty of all royalty becoming nothing, in order that HE may be the one that reconciles all things to Himself and for His glory. SO during this season, the birth is awesome and all the traditions that go with the Christmas season are exciting, in the midst of all the hustle and busyness that comes with the season, take time to dwell here, that in the manger on that starry night, God became fleshed and dwelt among us the peasants. May that help us see the great Christmas carol, "JOY To the World," with more passion and zeal.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Remembering to Remember

As a pastor there are very few times when I just get to sit and worship in singing without any responsibilities to preach or lead. It makes those times when I do very sweet and very much needed. Last night was one of those occasions as I just got to sit and worship and be called back to remember the great God, that put His son on the cross because of my sins. I was called to remember the way that Jesus died not so that I could be a better person, or a more powerful speaker, but that He willingly went to the cross, because He desperately wanted to be obedient to His Father, and from that obedience God saves men and women, evil people like myself, and He rescues us from not just the acts that we commit that are deemed sinful, but He rescues us from a nature that is sinful.

Last night as I stood there thinking and remembering the God of the Bible, I was drawn back to Is. 53, one of the most beautiful but at the same time gut wrenching passages in the Scriptures. Here he writes in V. 4-6, "Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteem Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned - every one - to his own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all."

But watch this in V.10-"Yet it was the WILL of the Lord to CRUSH Him; He has put Him to GRIEF..."

When was the last time that you thought about this in worship. and you were consumed not by the songs, or the style, or the volume of the music, but you were consumed by and remembered that God killed Jesus, and that His wrath toward MY SINFUL NATURE is absorbed in the cross and His grace is made available to me through faith, belief, and repentance in CHRIST JESUS.

Last night that line of thinking hit me square in the face and affected me in a deep way for the first time in a long time, don't let it be to long for you, make for yourself opportunities to worship and remember the cross. May it have an impact on your mind and your body.

Song of the Week: BEFORE THE THRONE OF GOD- Shane and Shane version
LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Psalm of Praise

Sing this to yourself today and be reminded of the goodness of a God offers a hope and a future in Christ.

Psalm 150-

Praise the Lord!!
Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in His mighty heavens!

Praise Him for His mighty deeds; praise Him according to His excellent greatness!!!

Praise Him with trumpet sound; praise Him with lute and harp!!

Praise Him with tambourine and dance; praise Him with strings and pipe!!!

Praise Him with sounding cymbals; praise Him with loud clashing cymbals!!

LET EVERYTHING THAT HAS BREATH PRAISE THE LORD!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!

Cultivating Dependence on God

If you are like me, this is one of the things that I struggle with the most, how do I do this, because I am so easily drawn to rely on myself. Darrin Patrick offers some advice and I hope that this post gives you some help in cultivating a lifestyle that depends on the Almighty not just with our words but in all that we are.

Cultivating Dependence on God
Darrin Patrick » Church Leadership Heart Devotions
I appreciate Jack Deere’s paraphrase of John 17:26. “Father, grant me power from the Holy Spirit to love the Son of God like you love him.”

This must be our heart’s cry.


Depending on God through fasting
In addition to prayer, there are many other practices that cultivate dependence on God. One is fasting. Jesus calls us to fast in private, and he calls us to pray in private (Matthew 6:16-18). Note that our Lord says when you fast, not if you fast (v. 16). Implication: you should fast.

Fasting is a very helpful way to reduce distractions, focus on God, and cultivate a sense of dependence on him. Fasting is a way of sacrificing physical nourishment to seek spiritual nourishment. Start with a meal that you forsake in order to read and meditate on Scripture. Progress to taking a day where you use all meal times to read, pray, and enjoy fellowship with other believers. Don't make it too complicated; just plan it and do it.

Depending on God through meditation
Another helpful practice is meditation. I define meditation as thinking about and asking questions about what God has said in Scripture in order to hear how God is guiding us in our lives. Meditation allows the Holy Spirit to speak the truth of Scripture into our lives during our private devotions and reading of the Bible. I am not a guy who just starts praying and ends up in spiritual ecstasy. I need God's Word to break up the hard soil of my heart and open it up to the reality of God in my life. I use Scripture to guide me into prayer.

Mediation is turning God's Word into prayer.

Cultivating dependence on God
There are other practices that can help us cultivate dependence on God, such as memorizing Scripture, worshiping in private, taking a Sabbath rest, and serving others. Our focus should not be on what we are doing, but on realizing the reality of our nearness to God. “Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (Matthew 6:3).

When we focus on a list of practices, we can become legalistic, focusing either on how well we are doing or how poorly we are doing, and we miss the whole point. Besides, different people will find different practices helpful, so each of us must learn how to best cultivate dependence on the Holy Spirit for ourselves.

There is no formula: our goal should be simply to cultivate more of a dependence on God in our lives.

Cleaning Out or Covering Up

So today I was sitting in my office looking at my desk and how cluttered it was so I began to clean it off, now if you know me I am a streak cleaner, if I start I get into a rhythm and start cleaning everything, so from my desk I moved into my drawer, you know the place where you stuff everything when you are cleaning you desk off. WOW, I guess I hadn't looked in there in a long time because it was about to explode out, while my desk looked ok on the outside, my desk drawer was so unbelievably cluttered that I didn't even know what was in there. And I got to thinking how much this is like my Christian walk. We do a quick clean on the outside so that we are presentable to whoever but the reality is the stuff is still there it is just getting buried deeper and deeper under the mess of sin and guise of religion. I think that it is so easy and so much of our culture to strive and desire the quick fix that we rarely, if ever take the time to deal with what is really under the surface. Then this verse popped into my mind, 1 John 1:9-10- "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us."

How often do we confess, not just with our mouth, but with our heart, and deal with the sin that so easily distracts us from our pursuit of the Holy? I think none of us would say with our mouths that we have not sinned but how many of us live lives of confession and repentance. Today remember He desires to cleanse us, not just on the outside but deep on the inside, take your junk to Him deal with it and give it to Him and strive hard to put it to death and trust that He will move in your life so powerfully that you find yourself closer to Him and desiring Him more then you ever have before.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Trust

Lately the Lord has really been working me over in the area of trust. I have found my thoughts often taken and challenged with the question of who or what my trust is in. What are the things that I maybe even unintentionally found myself clinging to other then the Holy. And the revelation has been startling. How often do I trust in my own understanding, my own way of doing things, my family, politics, etc. I have easily taken what I can see and feel and clung to it. I wonder how many of you would say the same, that Christ, His Word, His commands have become secondary to the pressures and pulls of this world. I hope that this scripture gives you some encouragement to take stock of your soul today and see where you may be off and then work hard to train and discipline your mind to think well on the Gospel.

Psalm 40:1-5-I waited patiently for the Lord and He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon the rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord. BLESSED IS THE MAN WHO MAKE THE LORD HIS TRUST, WHO DOES NOT TURN TO THE PROUD, TO HOSE WHO GO ASTRAY AFTER A LIE! You have multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds toward us, no can compare with you!!`

This is such an encouragement, though it may take time, and though we will have to wait patiently on Him, He will come, He will hear and He will respond to us. May our trust not be in those things that are fading, those things that fill for a moment and then are gone, but today may we train our minds to trust that the Lord is good and does good, and if you have not may you trust Him with your lives and may your confess with your mouth and believe in your heart and may you be saved.

HE IS GOOD AND HE IS FAITHFUL-

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Psalm Encouragement

I hope that this week you would take this Psalm and meditate on it, chew on it, and be encouraged by it:

Psalm 142-

With my voice I cry out to the Lord;
with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord

I pour out my complaint before Him; I tell my trouble before Him.

When my spirit faints within me, you know my way!
In the path where I walk they have hidden a trap for me.

Look to the right and see: there is none who takes notice of me,
no refuge remains for me, no on cares for my soul.

I cry out to you, O Lord;
I say, "You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living."

Attend to my cry, for I am brought very low!
Deliver me from my persecutors, for theyare too strong for me!

Bring me out of prison, that I may give thanks to your name!
The righteousness will surround me, for you will deal bountifully with me.


Take these verses to heart this week, Christ is our great refuge that no matter how long we have strayed, or the places we have been He is our refuge and in Him we find our hope.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Preparing the Path

There is no other character in the New Testament, outside of Jesus of course, that intrigues me more then John the Baptist. This man grew up like any normal kid with 70 yrs. old parents, in a pastor's home, knowing the Scriptures and then, like many young men of that day going into the same business his father had, by becoming a rabbi. But here is where the similarities end and sheer conviction and obedience begins.

John starts his ministry not in some pristine pulpit, with thousands gathered to hear him but rather he begins in the desert, he sets up a box and begins to preach a message of repentance, and baptism for the forgiveness of sins, he addresses the inward character and not merely the outward. This was an unique message, since Jews did not get baptized, that was something that Gentiles did to become Jews, but John ushers in the Messiah, by saying it has nothing to do with your heritage it is all about your heart (Luke 3:7-9), this would later lead to his imprisonment and eventual death.

One of the things that absolutely fascinates me with John was his commitment to preach the Gospel and prepare the way for Jesus. No matter the cost, no matter the mocks and rebukes, even the imprisonment, John preaches well the Gospel. He points people not to a religion, that had become more about duties and obligations, but he points them to a terminal heart condition that needs a Savior to rescue.

How similar our job as the regenerate, we point people to the coming King, we point them to a Jesus who is reconciling all things to Himself, and we get to do this not for our own glory or praise but we have the great opportunity to deflect anything we get back to HIm (Luke 3:15-17). This is what I love about John so much, he had the opportunity to build himself a kingdom, but he did not, rather with every ounce of energy he pointed it to Jesus as the One who would save and redeem.

Today as you live on mission, remember John the Baptist and draw strength from a man whose ministry was not defined by numbers or growth, but by a constant pursuit and proclamation of the Gospel.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

6 Ways to Engage Culture - Jonathan Dodson

We live a world marred by sin and it is so easy for the regenerate to withdraw from culture in our attempt to abstain from sin. But I believe that Biblically this is a sin and we must strive hard to fight sin, all the while engage those who find themselves caught in its grasps.
In this post Jonathan Dodson shares with us wisdom in how to engage culture biblically and humbly.

Here are six ways to promote critical and redemptive engagement with culture.

Engage culture prayerfully. I'm not suggesting that we should actually bow our heads and recite a prayer before reading a newspaper or book, watching TV or a movie, or going shopping, though that certainly wouldn't hurt. Instead, we are to live life and engage culture in a spirit of dependence upon God; we are to pray without ceasing (1 Thess. 5:17). We should approach culture just as we should approach all things: prayerfully.
What should we pray? We should thank God for the gift of culture, confessing that all cultures contain truth, beauty, and virtue, asking Him to help us recognize and rejoice in these good gifts, which come down from the Father of lights (James 1:17). Alternatively, all cultures also disdain truth, beauty, and virtue. Thus, we are dependent upon God to enable us to recognize and reject those things that are harmfully false, ugly, and immoral. By asking God to give us the perspective of His Spirit, "the Spirit who searches out all things, even the depths of God" (1 Cor. 2:10), we can begin to discern between the things which are true, beautiful, and good and the things that are false, ugly, and evil.

Engage culture carefully. When approaching any given issue, from parenting to politics, we all have our biases. In order to engage culture well, we must strive to avoid the paths of both the sectarian and the secularist, of both blind rejection and uncritical acceptance. This will require careful investigation into the issues we face, taking the opposing view seriously and weighing its merits. Make a habit of hearing both sides of an issue before you baptize your opinions. Be slow to speak and quick to listen (James 1:19).

Engage culture biblically-theologically. Why hyphenate biblical and theological? Why not just say "think biblically"? Well, the plain fact is that the Bible does not explicitly address most cultural issues. It does not tell you who to vote for, which school to go to, what movies to watch, whether or not you should date, whether or not to abort your baby, or how to respond to cloning. Instead, the Bible offers theological principles which we can appropriate in order to form opinions and convictions about cultural issues. For instance, there is no verse in the Bible that reads: "Thou shalt not have an abortion." However, the Bible does inform us that God is the author of life and that to take human life is murder, which is prohibited by God. The circumstances surrounding abortion can be complex. A mother's life may be threatened if the life of the baby is not taken. The Bible does not say, "Preserve the mother's life." However, there are principles and practices in Scripture that can help us make wise decisions about cultural and ethical dilemmas.
The problem, however, is that we often start with cultural assumptions about what is right, beautiful, and good and go to the Bible to prove them. Instead, we need to bring cultural questions about what is true, good, and beautiful to the Bible, reflect on them theologically and then prayerfully, and carefully form our opinions. Don't begin with cultural convictions and end with biblical proof-texts; end with cultural wisdom by beginning with biblical-theological reflection. Start with the biblical text and reflect theologically on cultural issues. Move from Text to Theology to Culture, not the other way around.

Engage culture redemptively. Strive to connect your theological reflections regarding culture to redemption. We can redemptively engage culture in two ways: practically and positionally. To practically redeem, identify what is broken, what is in need of redemption, and take restorative action. Ask yourself questions like "How can I bring the gospel to bear on this issue?" or "How can I restore, forgive, or reconcile in this situation?" For example, if you come to the conviction that abortion is ugly and immoral, think about how you can help those who are suffering from the devastating affects of abortion. Don't just debate others. Volunteer at a crisis pregnancy center. Learn how to counsel mothers. Don't become self-righteous and inactive; practice your cultural convictions. Live them out redemptively.
Our practice should flow from our position in Christ. Our actions ought to reveal our redeemed identity, not form our identity. Consider the danger of mistaking your newly-formed habits for who you are. For instance, do you think of yourself now as an environmentalist or as a citizen of Zion with an environmental conscience? Do you draw significance from being a "pro-lifer" or from being new creation in Christ Jesus? Ask yourself, "Am I confusing my practice with my position?" or "Am I finding my significance in what I do instead of who I am in Christ?" Guard yourself from subtly allowing cultural convictions to take the place of your identity in Christ. Ground your identity in the gospel and your practice will be more redemptive and more honoring to the Lord.

Engage culture humbly. Recognize that you have much to learn from a given culture. Read, converse, and reflect on cultural issues with a teachable heart. Ask God to shape your convictions through whomever or whatever He wills. Avoid proud dogmatism and cultivate humble conviction. Don't put others down who believe differently from you. Consider others more important than yourself without surrendering your convictions. Yet, be willing to revise your opinions through a process of Text-Theology-Culture.

Engage culture selectively. Realize and embrace the limitations of your own time, experience, and interests. Spend your time wisely. Don't sacrifice time with God, church, or family in order to become more culturally savvy. Everyone has been created differently, to live a unique life. Make the most of your experience by redemptively engaging culture, but try to avoid making the experience of others your own. There are too many issues in the world for you to become an overnight expert on Christ and culture. Be selective about what you engage.

4 Ways to Know Your City

Jonathan Dodson Acts 29 Pastor - Austin, Texas

As we settle into our cities or as our churches grow, it can be easy to assume we have “a handle” on the culture of our city, suburb, or town. However, a good citizen-missionary never “arrives” in cultural exegesis but is always knowing, exegeting (studying & interpreting) their culture. To that end, here are some general and specific suggestions for continuing cultural exegesis:
1. Ask Questions
Ask your neighbors and fellow citizens lots of questions. Don’t interrogate them but show sincere, intentional interest in them and the information they possess. Anecdotal information about your city and fellow citizens is unbeatable.
Ask them the What, How, and Why questions: What do you think is broken in our neighborhood or city? What gets you excited about life? What do you think should be done about economic decline in our city? Anything you would like to change about your neighborhood?
Are you fulfilled in what you are doing in life? Why do you drive across town to do X? Why do you dislike traditional Christianity?

2. Read Local Authors
Read local and independent publications. Op-ed pieces in your local paper will reveal the local voices in your culture or city. Listen reflectively not aggressively. Allow yourself to learn from your city. After all, chances are you are a newcomer. History has much to teach us.
Don’t write off unimpressive, independent publications. Very often the stuff that looks like a waste of time contains some of the clearest voices from within your culture. Get local (not just national) opinions and reviews on movies, books, culture and politics.

3. Study Your City's History
Gather historical information on your city and neighborhood. How did your city evolve—geographically, architecturally, politically, commercially? The history of a city or town often reveals its profound strengths and deep idols. What political and cultural and economic issues have shaped the ethos and beliefs of your city?
Read local authors and histories. Look for commissioned writings by local universities on the city. Check out popular books on the city or even tour guides. Jump on a tour!

4. Enjoy the City!
Participate in local art, music, food, and business. Learn to love your city, celebrate its strengths, learn from her citizens, love her citizens! Support local business, go to art shows, listen to local music, eat local food. You should become an expert on local fare and fun! As you participate in local culture, do it reflectively. Consider why certain events, institutions, or groups flourish. Praise what is good, beautiful, and true. Bring the hope of redemption into what is not.

Message from the Prince of Preachers Part 2

God's Kindness Should Lead To Repentance
Charles Spurgeon The Prince of Preachers
The Forbearance of God: Click | View Series

Romans 2:4—"Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?"

God not only acts kindly to sinners, but when they misuse his kindness he labors to set them right (Isa. 1:18, Hosea 11:8). It is a sad thing that any who have seen God's judgments on others, and have escaped themselves, should draw from this special mercy a reason for adding sin to sin (Jer. 3:8).

God's Kindness Should Lead To Repentance

The forbearance of God should lead us to repentance. For we should argue that:
He is not hard and unloving, or he would not have spared us.
His great patience deserves recognition at our hands. We are bound to respond to it in a generous spirit.
To go on to offend would be cruel to him, and disgraceful to ourselves. Nothing can be baser than to make forbearance a reason for provocation.
It is evident from his forbearance that he will rejoice to accept us if we will turn to him. He spares that he may save.
He has dealt with each one personally, and by this means he is able to put it, as in the text, "God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance." He calls us individually to himself. Let each one personally remember his own experience of sparing mercies.
The means are so gentle; let us yield to them cheerfully. Those who might refuse to be driven should consent to be drawn.
O sinner, each gift of goodness draws you to Jesus!
Forbearance causes humble repentance to Jesus! Long-suffering waits and woos you to Jesus! Will you not turn from sin and return to your God, or "do you presume on the riches of his kindness?"

Charles Spurgeon

A Message from the Prince of Preachers

The Forbearance of God
Charles Spurgeon The Prince of Preachers


Romans 2:4—"Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?"

It is an instance of divine condescension that the Lord reasons with men, and asks this question, and others like it (Isa. 1:5, 55:2; Jer. 3:4, Ezek. 33:11).
God not only acts kindly to sinners, but when they misuse his kindness he labors to set them right (Isa. 1:18, Hosea 11:8).
It is a sad thing that any who have seen God's judgments on others, and have escaped themselves, should draw from this special mercy a reason for adding sin to sin (Jer. 3:8).

Honor God's Goodness and Mercy
A reverent sense of it will be a sure safeguard against taking it for granted.
It is manifested to us in a threefold form:
1. Goodness which has put up with past sin (Ps. 78:38)
2. Forbearance which bears with us in the present (Ps. 103:10).
3. Long-suffering which, in the future as in the past and the present, is prepared to bear with the guilty (Luke 13:7-9)

It is manifested in great abundance: "riches of his goodness."
Riches of mercies bestowed, temporal and spiritual (Ps. 68:19)
Riches of kindness seen in gracious deliverance, measured by evils averted which might have befallen us, such as sickness, poverty, insanity, death, and hell (Ps. 86:13)
Riches of grace promised and provided for all needs.

It is manifested in its excellence by four considerations:
The person who shows it. It is "the goodness of God" who is omniscient to see sin, just to hate it, powerful to punish it, yet patient towards the sinner (Ps. 145:8).
The being who receives it. It is dealt out to man, a guilty, insignificant, base, provoking, ungrateful being. (Gen. 6:6)
The conduct to which it is a reply. It is love's response to sin. Often God forbears, though sins are many, wanton, aggravated, daring, repeated (Mal 3:6).
The blessings which it brings. Life, daily bread, health, gospel, Holy Spirit, new birth, hope of heaven (Ps. 68:19).

It has been in a measure manifested to you. "Do you presume?"

Walking in Community

There are very few things sweeter or more rewarding then walking in true, gospel-centered community. Knowing and being known, having men and women that surround you with encouragement and push you to be all that the Lord has for you. However, there is also nothing more painful or messy then walking in true community, because it is here that our pride and self-dependency is challenged and meant head on. I believe that this is why so many of us shy away from true, real, gospel-centered friendships, we all want to be view perfect, despite the fact that we know that we are not, we would rather walk the way that we want to and abstain from being challenged, because then we don't have to confront the real issues in our lives.

I believe in community, I believe that it is more then Bible study, it is doing life together, sharing in the joy and hurts of authentic relationships. I believe this is what the church needs, to be effective ministers of the Gospel in culture today, we need each other, and not just casual relationships, but grace-driven friendships and that move us closer to Christ and deeper in sanctification.

We see this worked out in Acts 2, as they were together and as they didn't pretend that everything was always good, as they dove into the work together, as they shared good food together, as they fellowshipped around the table, and as they shared their lives with each other, the Gospel began to be seen and heard by the world around them and Acts 2: 47 says, "And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved."
PEOPLE GOT SAVED!!!! That is the point of the whole thing, that through our lives, through authenticity, we make the gospel of God known and God saves men and women, for His glory, and our excitement.

So today ask yourself this question, and I BEG you be honest, if you are not involved in community, why not? What is hindering you, and what steps can you take to begin to cultivate gospel-centered relationships?

And if you are involved, take time to take stock, how is it going, how has my life been different over the last six months, how has the Lord used community to grow me and how can I duplicate this to others in need of authentic relationships.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Missional Community

There are certain things at FCL that we want to be apart of our DNA, things like the Word of God, in the Scriptures, community, prayer, fasting, and missional living. These are things that by no means we do perfect but by the grace of God we are moving deeper into and becoming better at.
Recently Jonathan Dodson, pastor of Austin City Life and author of FIght Clubs, came to Redeemer Church here in Lubbock and did a conference on Missional Living. The message was both inspirational and practical in helping you define effective ways to reach our community with the Gospel of Christ. I pray that you would take the time to listen to the message below, by simply clicking the link. Even if you only listen to 10 min a day until you are done, I believe it will benefit for you to take the principles and advice and experiment on how you can apply it to your life and context.

http://www.redeemerlubbock.org/#sermon:420

I pray that you are encouraged and have a renewed vision of how to reach those in the church that need community and those outside our body of believers.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Song of the Redeemed

I love hymns, I love deep hymns that are rooted in the truth of God's Word, and the one that I love the most is, "It Is Well." This song has shaped me and comforted me through most of my adult life. I believe that it is so powerful because of the place from which is was birthed, out of the deepest possible pain. Maybe you have heard the story but if you haven't let me share it with you, and may today it be a source of comfort, but also may it spur your faith on and give you a place to stand. You may not be facing a difficult time in your life right now, things may be good, but life is going to tell us those times are coming and we would do well to begin to build our foundation on the rock that is Christ.

The story goes like this: "Horatio G. Spafford and his wife, Anna, were pretty well-known in 1860’s Chicago. And this was not just because of Horatio's legal career and business endeavors. The Spaffords were also prominent supporters and close
friends of D.L. Moody, the famous preacher. In 1870, however, things started to go wrong. The Spaffords' only
son was killed by scarlet fever at the age of four. A year later, it was fire rather than fever that struck. Horatio
had invested heavily in real estate on the shores of Lake Michigan. In 1871, every one of these holdings was
wiped out by the great Chicago Fire.

Aware of the toll that these disasters had taken on the family, Horatio decided to take his wife and four
daughters on a holiday to England. And, not only did they need the rest -- DL Moody needed the help. He was
traveling around Britain on one of his great evangelistic campaigns. Horatio and Anna planned to join Moody in
late 1873. And so, the Spaffords traveled to New York in November, from where they were to catch the French
steamer 'Ville de Havre' across the Atlantic. Yet just before they set sail, a last-minute business development
forced Horatio to delay. Not wanting to ruin the family holiday, Spafford persuaded his family to go as planned.
He would follow on later. With this decided, Anna and her four daughters sailed East to Europe while Spafford
returned West to Chicago. Just nine days later, Spafford received a telegram from his wife in Wales. It read:
"Saved alone."

On November 2nd 1873, the 'Ville de Havre' had collided with 'The Lochearn', an English vessel. It sank in only
12 minutes, claiming the lives of 226 people. Anna Spafford had stood bravely on the deck, with her daughters
Annie, Maggie, Bessie and Tanetta clinging desperately to her. Her last memory had been of her baby being
torn violently from her arms by the force of the waters. Anna was only saved from the fate of her daughters by a
plank which floated beneath her unconscious body and propped her up. When the survivors of the wreck had
been rescued, Mrs. Spafford's first reaction was one of complete despair. Then she heard a voice speak to her,
"You were spared for a purpose." And she immediately recalled the words of a friend, "It's easy to be grateful
and good when you have so much, but take care that you are not a fair-weather friend to God."

Upon hearing the terrible news, Horatio Spafford boarded the next ship out of New York to join his bereaved
wife. Bertha Spafford (the fifth daughter of Horatio and Anna born later) explained that during her father's
voyage, the captain of the ship had called him to the bridge. "A careful reckoning has been made", he said, "and
I believe we are now passing the place where the de Havre was wrecked. The water is three miles deep." Horatio
then returned to his cabin and penned the lyrics of his great hymn.

The words which Spafford wrote that day come from 2 Kings 4:26. They echo the response of the Shunammite
woman to the sudden death of her only child. Though we are told "her soul is vexed within her", she still
maintains that 'It is well." And Spafford's song reveals a man whose trust in the Lord is as unwavering as hers
was.

It would be very difficult for any of us to predict how we would react under circumstances similar to those
experienced by the Spaffords. But we do know that the God who sustained them would also be with us."

No matter what circumstances overtake us may we be able to say with Horatio Spafford...

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul!

It is well ... with my soul!
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

May our faith be grounded and rooted not in the outcome of outward circumstances, but in the fact that our great God and King is triumphant and He will keep us from falling, He will hold us up and He will deliver us from the fire of affliction.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE and be blessed today

article taken from www.biblestudycharts.com/a_daily_hymn

Grace-Driven Prayer

I have never meant someone who has said, "I pray all that I need to," or "I am really good at prayer." Prayer is just one of those areas of the Christian walk that is tough, one that I don't think we will ever fully comprehend or master, but it is none the less important. I think that so often prayer is driven by what we feel we want. We lay out our petitions before the Lord, "be with Susie, and little Jimmy and be with my dog, etc." And so often we come to the great throne of God with our burdens, as He has asked us to, but so often our hearts are driven more by our need than by His grace, and we become burned out and distracted from the end goal of prayer and petitioning, which has and always will be to drawn nearer to the Father.

He tells us in His word, come to me all you who are burdened and heavy laden and I will give you rest. For prayer to be something that we grow excited about and dive into more and more, it has to have a proper heart and mind going forth. I have thought of 3 things that characterize grace-driven prayer.

1. A proper perspective of God-WIthout this we are doomed. God is not santa in the sky, He is not our fairy-god father, He is not the genie from Aladdin. We do not snap and God is forced to answer, He is supreme, He is sovereign over all things, HE is GOOD. We may not understand all His ways, Is. 55:8-9, but we know and trust that all His ways are right and just, Hosea 14:9. God is above all powers of this earth, He is not bound by the same things we are and He knows the beginning from the end. This mindset starts us off on the right foot, knowing that in all things are God is greater then anything and He is unchangeable and He is the standard for truth.

2. A proper view of ourselves-Matt. 11:28 says that we are weary, we must know that we are finite, that we are in need of help, that we cannot do this on our own strength or power. That we are the ones in need of saving, that we come before Him humbled to be in the presence of the almighty. Having this mindset helps us to come before the throne of God without feeling entitled or arrogant. We know that we have been saved and that He is in the end, through all the trials and fires, going to refine us for His glory and our good.

3. Believe that He answers-Ps. 118 shows us this clearly. When we call on the name of the Lord we believe, with our whole hearts that He will hear us and He will answer. That He loves when His children petition His throne with a right mindset. We believe that He is wiling and able to do far beyond what we expect or hope for. Remembering that the answer may not look the way we wanted it to, but we know that He heard and answered it for our good and His glory.

I think so often of Job as the example for proper grace-driven prayer. He knew who His God was, and when His world came crashing down, he had a firm foundation that would not curse God, and when the Lord built Him back up, he had the same foundation to not be arrogant in all his stuff. He saw who he was, and yet He believed God would answer him though it didn't look like it all the time.

So today may our prayers be grace-driven, may we pray because of what He has done and what He has yet to do.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Thoughts From a New Dad

So there I was sitting in a long hallway, the world had stopped and it just hit me, "I'm going to be a dad tonight." Now I knew I was going to be a dad, I just thought it would be a little later, I guess your never really ready for that. Thoughts came rushing into my head from everywhere, finances, my wife, how Calvin was going to be, and in the midst of this whirl wind of emotions the world seem to slow down and the voice of the Lord became to resonate in my heart by reminding me of a verse I had read many of times, it is one of those coffee cup verses, but one I never really stopped to think about, and let it affect me this way.

Philippians 4:6-7-"do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

What a great verse, to know that our minds can do crazy things, they can take us to really dark places, that so often I am prone to let my mind take me to the worst case scenario, and I can begin to fret and think that things are never going to be any better, this verse says that by prayer, by talking to my Father, by being intentional about my prayer life, that He will guard my heart and my mind. This is not a magic potion that makes your situation easier or turn out the way you want it, but what it does do is it allows us to put our hope and faith, not in ourselves or anything of this world, but it changes our mindset to place Christ as preeminent, that He becomes our hope and He is our great sustainer.

I don't know where you find yourself today, or in what situation you find yourself. I do however know that with prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving we can see Christ as good, not just in the good or easy times but in all times. So today may we take this verse from coffee cups and into our hearts. And may we today guard our lives and doctrine.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Mercy and Merit

This week as I was reading on some of the blogs that I follow, this one really stuck out to me as encouraging and challenging at the same time. Take the time to really mediate on these words and what this implies for your life.

Mercy & Merit
Justin Holcomb Director of the Resurgence

The clearest message of Jesus and the deepest message of the Bible is “God’s mercy, not our merit.” When it comes to our salvation we are neither saved by our merits nor justified by works. We are justified—declared righteous before God—solely through faith in Jesus Christ because of God’s mercy and Christ’s merit
Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury and leading figure of the English Reformation, describes justification by faith in his sermon entitled A Sermon of the Salvation of Mankind by Only Christ Our Saviour from Sin and Death Everlasting:

"This justification or righteousness, which we so receive by God’s mercy and Christ’s merits, embraced by faith, is taken, accepted, and allowed of God for our perfect and full justification… For all the good works that we can do be imperfect, and therefore not able to deserve our justification: but our justification doth come freely, by the mere mercy of God; and of so great and free mercy that, whereas all the world was not able of their selves to pay any part towards their ransom, it pleased our heavenly Father, of his infinite mercy, without...our...deserving [it], to prepare for us the most precious jewels of Christ’s body and blood, whereby our ransom might be fully paid, the law fulfilled, and his justice fully satisfied. So that Christ is now the righteousness of all them that truly do believe in him. He for them paid their ransom by his death. He for them fulfilled the law in his life."

Cranmer died for this belief. At age 66, on a rainy Saturday morning, March 21, 1556, he was taken down from the pulpit at St. Mary’s Church in Oxford as he was preaching and driven to the center of town where he was burned at the stake for his convictions.
Our justification is due solely and completely to the mercy of God, a mercy Cranmer described as “great,” “free,” and “infinite.”

RePlanting a Church

I am amazed at what the Lord is calling FCL to, a new era in the life of our church. We have been given this crazy opportunity to be apart of something big, where we are more than a meeting place, with cool ideas, cool music, relevant messages, but God is calling us to be a place for the hurting and the lost, to be a place that shares the truth of the Gospel message in a way that makes Him look glorious and His name supreme. This is not about FCL or me, or any of our other pastor's, this is about the name of the Lord, this is about His glory being what consumes us.

This fact has driven me through hard times and through times when I think it would be easier to hang up the preaching jeans. In an age where success is determined by numbers and growth, it is easy to become discouraged and forget what He has called us to. But the reality is that the Bible calls us to depth, it calls us to pursue Him as our one and only. This is what Paul reminds us in Philippians 3:7-8-"But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ..."

If I could sum up my desire for myself and for our FCL family and for the church world-wide that would be it. To see men and women growing close to Christ, placing faith in Him, and that pushing us to follow Him. So as we begin a new season for FCL, one that I pray will produce this mindset, I ask for your support and partnership, for your unity in prayers, in the Gospel message, and for your faithfulness and consistency in difficult time. That we may be men and women of the Word, not creativity or ingenuity, but may our strength and passion be found in the glory of God going forth.

With our dependency and hope in the Lord, may this be what we encourage one another toward, and may we look back and be able to say with Paul, "I want Christ more then anything."

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Song for the Week

I was sitting in Starbucks this morning meditating on the Scriptures about to meet with a young man that I have been walking through the Word with for several months, and this song came on over my ipod and the words really stirred my heart and made me think about our great and steady, all-powerful God. I hope that you would read the words, meditate on the Scriptures and maybe buy this song if you don't already own it, and that it would stir your heart for the Lord.

The Scripture that it reminds me of is Psalm 63:1-4-for some reason when I read this I think about how great and worthy He is of everything.

"O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; m,y flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. SO I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will life up my hands."


Worthy of Affection-Shane and Shane

Deliverer you brought us out of the miry clay
You set our feet upon a rock and you made us say
Holy is the Lord
We would declare your thoughts about us one by one
It'd be too many to count so we simply come
And sing of your great love

So we sing..We lift our hands and sing!

You are worthy of affection
Your the radiance of all of His glory
Let adoration fill this place
You hold everything together
By the word of your immovable power
We sing a song of praise!

We are the broken down and we are the beaten up
But what could stop us from a song of unending love?
Holy is the lord
You are a treasure, the hope, the bright and morning star
You are the lover of our soul and you've won our hearts
We sing of your great love
So we sing
We lift our hands and sing!

BRIDGE
Worthy are you Lord
Worthy are you Lord
O worthy are you Lord
Of all Praise
All Glory to you Lord
All Glory to you Lord
All Glory to you Lord
Forever More
Forever More

Holy are you Lord
Holy are you Lord
Holy are you Lord

I pray this song stirs your heart today as you read and listen to it. You can purchase the song at: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/worthy-of-affection/id337436409?i=337436568&ign-mpt=uo%3D4

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Lessons From Zambia

Well here I am back in the states trying to get my sleeping pattern back to normal, after a 10 day stint in the bush of Africa. I have been trying over the last few days to think about those things that the Lord worked on in my life and in the life of our team that was there. There are some many things to share, and stories of lives that the Gospel has changed and seeds that were planted and others that were watered, that I could tell you and fill up this blog with, but the one thing that I want to focus on today comes from a chapter in Psalm that the Lord led me to during my devotion time.

Ps. 92:1-5-It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High, to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night. To the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre. For you, O Lord have made me glad by your work; at the work of your hands I sing for joy. How great are your works, O Lord! your thoughts are very deep!!

I think I read this Psalm every day and every day it blew me away. We got to see the work of the Lord in Africa, through the poverty and trials, there was an overcoming joy. The work of the Lord that I was able to encounter this trip was what happens in the life of someone who has been absolutely captured by the Gospel of Christ. The way that it changes everything, the way feelings and emotions change, the way relationships change, the way the world around is viewed differently. I was privileged to see this first hand in a country where there is not much, by worldly standards to be joyful in.

Then it hit me, this is how it is suppose to be everywhere, whether we live in Lubbock or Choma, Zambia, we have the same reason to rejoice and be joyful, Christ has saved us from an inevitable eternal death. He has plucked us out of the very hands of death, and set our feet on the solid ground. So when the Psalmist says, "I will declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night..." This is what He is talking about, salvation, that God would give us another day to serve Him and shout to the world His great mercies and grace.

So today, may we, despite of our current circumstances, whether good or bad, rejoice and sing praise because He offers to us a new life in Him.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Zambia Team

This Saturday 8 of us from FCL will be boarding a plane in Lubbock and landing Monday afternoon in Lusaka, Zambia. This will be followed by a 4-5 hour bus ride into the area where we will be working and doing ministry. As I think about this trip and the amount of work that the Lord has for us to do, I cannot help but have visions of the little faces that will one day be running rampant in that orphanage. I think of the way that they will be taught, and the things that will be afforded to them. I think about the stories that will come from the kids who's lives will be affected at NEW DAY. So as you think about our team this week, pray for us for sure, we covet those prayers. But more then us, lift up the leaders Blu and Darbi Tidwell, lift up the workers that will come to minister there, and pray for those little faces that will one day be involved in that place.
This is about so much more than just building buildings and encouraging missionaries, this is about playing a small part in what the Lord is going to do in Zambia. This is a part that each one of us gets to play, whether we are going or whether we are staying and praying. Please don't take lightly the call that God has placed on your life, we get to see and hear what He is going and that is something to rejoice in.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE
Go to http://www.newdayorphanage.org for more info on what is happening in Zambia.

Jonathan Edwards on Worship

There are few theologians that have help my understanding of the great joy there is in following Christ, than Jonathan Edwards. His thoughts on the Scriptures are so deep and profound and help us to understand the great glory of God in a new way. The Bible is clear that God is seeking those that will worship Him: John 4:23-24-"But the hour is coming and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and truth."

God is seeking men and women that will engage Him with the mind and emotions, He is our priority, we come into worship focused upward, this is what allows us to enter into worship in spirit and truth. Divine worship has always been the occupation and sustenance, the priority, of the believing soul.

This is what Jonathan Edwards' life was lived for. We would do well to read and meditate on Ps. 140-150 and think well on this statement from the life of Edwards, as to where our hearts are when it comes to worship.

"I had vehement longings of soul after God and Christ, and after more holiness, wherewith my heart seemed to be full and ready to break...I spent most of my time in thinking of divine things, year after year; often walking alone in the woods, and solitary places, for meditation, soliloquy, and prayer, and converse with God; and it was always my manner, at such times, to sing forth my contemplations... prayer seemed to be natural to me, as the breath by which the inward burnings of my heart vent."

I challenge you this week to think, when is the last time that you have meditated on how big God is, how glorious His creation is, and when is the last time that your heart burst forth into song or deep prayer. Divine worship is our priority, it is our aim. May we dwell this week on our great God. And may it stir our hearts to shout His glory.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Faith and Obedience

This week I want to examine the story of Abraham as told in Hebrews, here is the father of all that would believe, what was it about this man's life that made him a member in the "hall of faith."

Hebrews 11:8-10-"By faith, Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God."

Can you imagine one day God says to you, "Pack up the suburban." "Where are we going?" "You'll know when you get there." Now for me, a guy who likes to know step by step what I'm doing and who would be ok if God laid out His plan for my life and let me know in advance, this blows me away. Abraham, who was very established and doing well where he was at, packs up the station wagon and hits the road.

This speaks to the action of faith. At some point our faith has to become more then the words that we speak or ideas that we know, it must result in obedience to the one that our faith is in. Obedience is the daughter of faith, it is what is birthed out of our trust in God. Obedience is the true sign that we believe God, and we trust that what He says He will do, He will do. Faith believes and confesses, but it is also move to action. The weight behind what Abraham does is why he is mentioned here, God became more then a mere concept to him, He became someone to follow.

Today, are you walking in faith, not just by words, but has that faith in God and His promise activated a living, breathing, moving obedience to what God has called you to?

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Walking with God

As many of you know I have been in Hebrews for the better part of this year and have stalled out many times to think and dwell in certain areas, well here I am again, stuck in a section of Hebrews chapter 11 that has totally gripped me and caused me to wrestle with a lot of my own issues and ask some tough questions of myself. You may know Hebrews 11 as the "Hall of Faith" a compilation of ordinary men and women whose actions and belief in God the Father and the coming Son propelled them to extraordinary things. And they have been given to us as a cloud of witnesses to encourage us and challenge us. Well one man has really peaked my interest, and that man is Enoch.

Hebrews 11:5-6, tells us this about Enoch; "By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him."

Now maybe you are not familiar with the story of Enoch, so here is his Old Testament blurb; Genesis 5:21-24-"When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him."

That is a crazy story, right? Here is a guy who walked so closely with God that one day God just took him off the face of the earth and into heaven, I think we can all agree this doesn't happen very often right? So what does this mean for us today? Because let's be honest most of us are not going to go home this way. What is Enoch telling us, how is he witnessing to us?

The chief end of Enoch's life was to glorify God, this pushed Enoch to walk with a tremendous amount of faith, that God was right there. We see two things from his life as mentioned in verse 6 of Hebrew 5: The first, faith must have an object, you must have straight who He really is, who is God and who is Jesus? And second, faith must also turn to God as the one who saves, this is not a works based salvation, but one that finds it's total dependency of Christ, and His work on the cross.

To please God, means to make much of Him, to seek Him for life, forgiveness, and a relationship, it is a walk with God. And like Enoch we will not taste death, this earthly shell will, but not the eternal soul, because Christ has overcome the grave. May we today walk with God.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

National Day Of Prayer

Today is the National Day of Prayer, I pray that we take our cue from Paul in his letter to his son in the faith Timothy:
1 Timothy 2:1-3-First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be made of all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior..."

Our duty as regenerate believers is to lift up those who God has allowed to be in authoritative positions. So today I would ask you to lift up our local officials, our state and national government, that they may be infused with godly wisdom, that their decisions would be made with a pure heart, without malice, or deceit, that they would honor the people they have been elected to speak for.

Remember that it is our God given responsibility to pray and daily lift up those, knowing that God has asked us to, and trusting in Him.
Proverbs 21:1-The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He will.

May the Lord bless you today and keep you and may He cause His face to shine on you.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Testimony of Encouragement

There are very few men in the ministry that have effected my methods, and heart toward ministry then Matt Chandler. He has always been a powerful preacher, and a gifted pastor. His messages are filled with the sovereignty of God over all things, rejoicing in suffering, and living with a deep passion for the Lord. But no message has been more powerful then the one that he is living right now. Matt collapsed on Thanksgiving Day, a massive seizure and was later diagnosed with a fast growing form of brain cancer. His battle with this devastating disease has afforded him the opportunity to not just talk about his belief but live it out as the world watches him suffer well.

Take the time to click on the link below and listen to this message, I pray that it would encourage you and cause you to think well on life and the greatness of God.

http://vimeo.com/10959675

May we pray well for Matt's healing, for the Village Church, and those who will be saved because of his testimony. Love you guys!

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE
BG

Thoughts from Hebrews

Today I want us to look to the end of Chapter 10 and gain some encouragement from the writer for the situations that we may be facing in our lives today, that today you may walk in a renewed hope in your Savior:

"Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, 'Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.' BUT we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their soul."
hebrews 10:35-38

I think that this passage, and all of Chapter 10 in fact, is wrapped up by James Montgomery Boice; "Victories in such sufferings are eternal in the same way that the victory of our Lord upon the cross is eternal. Our sufferings endure for a moment, but they achieve an eternal victory. They point to the truth and grace of God forever. I am convinced that in the farthest reaches of heaven, in what we would call billions of years from now, there will be angels who will look on everyone who has been redeemed by Jesus Christ and thrust into spiritual warfare by Him, and they will say; 'Look, there is another of God's saints, on who triumphed over evil by the Lord's power!!' Revelation 12:11-12 describes how they will exclaim of our great victories over Satan: 'They overcame him (Satan) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!!' In achieving those eternal victories, we who love the Lord Jesus Christ will have indeed been more than conquerors."

Today may you endure, may you joyfully enter the world and speak and sing and dance for the goodness of God in your lives, trusting that He will work for good, whether here or in eternity, all for those that Love Him. May our faith be increased today and may we find ourselves set ablaze by the promises of Christ.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Thoughts from John Calvin

There are very few men who were more God-centered in their thinking on life, salvation, regeneration then John Calvin. He is a hero of mine, not because of his doctrine, or the church that he led, though both have had tremendous influence on my own ministry, but rather it is his thoughts on God that cause me to have deep admiration for this pastor. The level that Calvin thought at and then lived out is a testimony to a life that was wrapped up in the glory of God going forth.

For Calvin, his life was marked by making much of God. 1 Corinthians 6:19b-20a says, "You are not your own, for you were bought with a price." In response to this Calvin writes:

"If we are not our own, but the Lord's, it is plain what error we must flee, and to what purpose all our deeds must be directed. We are not our own, therefore neither our reason nor our will should guide us in our thoughts and actions. We are not our own, therefore we should not seek what is expedient to the flesh. We are not our own, therefore let us forget ourselves and our own interests as far as possible. But we are God's own, to Him, therefore, let us live and die. We are God's own; therefore let His wisdom and will dominate all our actions. We are God's own; therefore let every part of our existence be directed toward Him as our only legitimate goal."

I pray that you would take hope and encouragement from this, we are God's own, He bought us with a price, and we are called to live for Him. Meditate this week on Romans 12:1-2, how does your life look like this? Let it stir your affections for God to a new depth and a renewed desire to see Him glorified in all you say and do.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

The Essence of Fellowship

In my personal study time I have been in Hebrews and I have had an abrupt stop in chapter 10, especially verses 23-25, it has caused me to think deeply on what the church is and is not.

V.23-25-"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit or some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."

The writer is telling us here is how you grow, here is how you continue to mature in your faith and press into Jesus, you do it together, you do it with other believers. This is the essence of what fellowship is, it is more than meeting for coffee, or sharing a laugh, but identifying with people where they are and then encouraging them in their walk with Jesus and allowing others to do the same for you. This is what we desire our church to be, a place where this is not something we do but rather who we are.

Common misconception in the American church today is that if I put in my time of Sunday's then I get all I need, the problem with that is the Bible. While Sunday morning attendance is valuable and for many the first step in the right direction, we are called to much more, we are called to be a part of a body. We are called to sow into others lives and allow ourselves to be sown into. The body of Christ is men and women who have covenanted together to do life together. It is men and women that are vulnerable with each other and honest, in order that the world may see through us the light of the Gospel.

My question today is are you apart of a body, are there people in your life that you are pouring into, and are you allowing people to pour into your life and encourage you when you are down or listen when you have a question?

This is the essence of fellowship, may we be this church.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Good Friday

Today is simple, may we look deeply at the Cross, may it engage our hearts and our minds and may we today be quickly reminded to praise the Lord and give thanks for what happened here. Meditate on this with me today:

"And they brought Him to the place called Golgotha. And they offered Him wine mixed with myrrh, but He did not take is. And they crucified Him and divided His garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. And it was the third hour when they crucified Him. And the inscription of the charge against Him read, 'The Kind of the Jews.' And with Him they crucified two robbers, one on His right and one on His left. And those who passed by derided Him, wagging their heads, and saying, 'Aha!! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself and come down from the cross.'

And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, 'ELOI, ELOI, LEMA SABACHTHANI?' Which means, 'My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?' And some of the bystanders hearing it said, 'Behold, He is calling Elijah.' And ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, 'Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take Him down.' And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed His last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood facing Him say that in this way He breathed His last, he said, 'Truly this man was the Son of God!!!'"

I pray that you have a wonderful Good Friday.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Dwelling at the Cross

On Sunday we looked at the Cross, we examined our place before it, I challenged you this season as Easter rolls up on us, and everyone from Discovery Channel to Comedy Channel will be trying to solve the mystery of Jesus, to think deeply on your state before the cross. To pray and seek, to meditate on who you are before the cross, that you may gain a proper perspective on the reality of what is actually happening at the cross and that we can get what this season is about.

I pray that as you dwell here and as you think well this season, that your heart explodes with gratitude, praise, and excitement because of what He purchased for you. The world does not need more good church folk, what this lost and dying world desperately needs to see is men and women that humbly serve others, that have an excitement and a joy for life, and that don't find their meaning and worth in this perishing world. I pray that the cross becomes life and power to you this season, that you behold the glory of God in the cross and you are forever wrecked and changed for Him. I think it is here that the Gospel is not something we do, but it becomes who we are.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

The Pathway of God.

Yesterday I was having lunch with a good friend and mentor and I was explaining to him the season of life that I find myself in and he was able encourage me with a scripture out of Jeremiah 10:24-25 and today I hope that I can encourage you wherever you find yourself in this life.

Jer. 10:24-25-says, "I know O Lord, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps. Correct me, O Lord, but in justice not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing."

This verse is saying that there are three ways to find your path in life, three ways to try and do things.

1. To find it on your own, this is the independent man or woman that blazes their own trail and tries hard to find fulfillment in anything and everything they can.

2. To listen to other people tell you where to go, this is the passive person who usually is so unconfident in himself or herself that they are fearful to make any move, so they just let others tell them where to go.

3. To submit your steps and will to the Lord and allow Him to use the first two in the right Biblical sense. In our lives the Lord will, out of His great mercy, strip away areas where we cling to our wisdom and our way of doing things, so that we may better follow Him. The word says, "there is a way that seems right to man and in the end leads to death." God will take us to the end of ourselves, He will strip our pride away, He will even remove people for a season to allow us to lean not on our own understanding but on Him.

Then He says, "I am the WAY, truth, and the life." He is our way, the only way to finding fulfillment and meaning in this life. He is the one that made the tracks and He is the hand that guides the train. You may be facing a season where everything is going well, or everything seems to just be piling up like a bad car wreck, ask yourself, "how is the Lord asking me to trust Him today, and how can I follow in obedience." That brings Him glory and us ultimate good.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Pursuit Finale!!!

So here I am standing in a make shift coffee shop in LA, thousands of pastors streaming by me, talks of doctrine and grace, theology floods the conversations, and the only thing that I am thinking is pursuit. I see it in these men, I hear it in there voices, I see there desperate desire for their churches to not just be places where people gather once a week, but rather the desire to see a place that transforms men and women and those men and women go forth equip with the Gospel to share and play a part in the spreading of the Gospel.

I hope that this 40 days has been great, and whether you are wrapping up tomorrow or Saturday, I pray that you have been confronted with the Gospel and I pray that it has changed you, I pray that it has taken you to places of depth and love for your Savior, I pray that you are asking how can I use my gifts and play my part well in the church Christ has called me to.

My deepest desire for FCL is that we are a place that is marked by the Gospel, that we are a place that sees our city through the eyes of Christ, and that we love well those who Christ has called us to. What a great task and one that cannot stop after 40 days, but one that must be walked out in our everyday life.

So my encouragement as we leave this time, may this study birthed something in you that cannot be contained, may the lessons you have learned not stop, but may they continue to affect you and the life of those around you. BE in the WOrd, LOVE the WOrd, and then LOve others because of what He has done in you. You have been such an encouragement to me and my life, may we continue to grow into the church Christ intends us to be.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Pursuit Week 5

This week we have been talking about living a lifestyle where there is a radical commitment to Christ, one that has overtaken the very parts of us that we try so hard to close our hands around. In my personal study time this week, I have been forced, by the Father, to examine each and every area of my life, I have been faced with the tough questions and wow, has he been gracious in the midst of the pruning process. I have been forced to look at my pride and my ego and how much that steals and derails me from the lifestyle that Christ so desires me to have. He is so good to send us the trials of life, so that we are forced to answer those question, are you taking up your cross, are you enduring shame, rejection, hard times, so that you you may embrace the joy that He has for you. Do you really believe the Scriptures when it say, "all things work together for the GOOD of those that love Him." I pray that we see the lifestyle that Jesus is calling us to is not a hobby, it's not one where we can follow Him when we want. It is a radial, excited, sometimes hard, but always joyous life, that screams HE IS ENOUGH!!!

The song that is playing right how is, "The More I Seek You." And the first verse say, "the more I seek you, the more I find you, the more I find you the more I love you..." That as we seek Him in all things we will be filled up daily with Him overflowing love, and just when we think we could handle anymore, He presses it down, and fills us to the brim again. That is exciting and cannot be duplicated by some study, but only by Him as we deny ourselves and follow Him.

Today my prayer for the church and for you is that we believe this, that He is good, and that He is not far from us. May He take deeper roots in our hearts.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Pursuit Week 4

Well here we are just over half way done with Pursuit. Wow it seems like it hasn't really been that long. The Lord is teaching me so many things, and reminding me more and more of who He is and that He is good. This time has been one of the hardest times of intense study that I have had, Satan has really come against me in several ways. Which as hard as that is and as many nights have been very sleepless maybe, just maybe we are doing something right here. Maybe He is purging us as with fire. 1 Peter 1:6-7-In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith---- more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire----may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Is that not encouraging, that the testing of our faith, the various trials that we go through is not the Lord dealing harshly with us but showing us His great mercy, that as we face those areas of life that are hard and those attacks from Satan and as we focus hard on the Father, He will produce in us praise and glory and honor for Him. And that praise will be deeper then when things come easy and without the bumps in the road.

So maybe today you are in that boat, you are striving to be faithful and it seems that every decision you make is the wrong one, take heart HE IS DOING SOMETHING IN YOU !!!! Hold fast to the Word and be faithful in prayer and in the end you will see the revelation of Jesus like you never have before. I love you all more than you know. May God continue to grow us into the image of His Son and may our praise be loud, even if it is in our tears.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Pursuit Week 2

Life sometimes throws you curves, it puts a bad taste in your mouth. Sometimes life is just plain hard. I have had one of those weeks, one where you have 1 victory and what seems to be a thousand defeats. I thank the Lord for this Pursuit study especially the one that we read last night. Psalm 119:103-"How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!!" What a great truth to be reminded of in the midst of trials and tests, that His words, the very words of God to man put that sweet taste back into our mouths. Yes we will cry and yes there will be hard times, sorrow and grief are realities in life, but the promise of this verse changes us into those that grieve but not without hope.

When you are having those tough times and discouragement seems to abound, remember that you can view those things through one of two lights, the way the world grieves, without hope, or as those who have a risen, victorious King, who sometimes leads His children into the desert so that they may lean all that more on His strength, and trust deeper in His providence.

Today may you read and taste the words of the Lord and may they put that good, sweet taste back into your mouth, that God is good above and in all.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Pursuit Week 1

Well we are halfway through the first week of our Pursuit study and I don't know about you but wow, it has been really good for me. It has helped me refocus on what He is doing in my life. How gracious he has been to reveal to me the areas where I have strayed and how He is calling me to deal with those issues that He may deepen my love for Him.

A couple nights ago Annie and I were talking and in the middle of that conversation it came to my realization that without me even knowing it that my trust had slowly and almost untraceably shifted from being in Him to being in myself and it was a wake-up call to really do some soul searching and ask some tough questions of myself.

His great grace was shown in that revealing, I could have continued to walk in un-trust and disobedience and been completely unaware, but He allowed me to see it and confront it and be broken that I may grow deeper in my trust for Him.

How is your week going, do you have stories and testimonies of what He is doing in your life? We would love to hear about them. I think that it does the soul well to see where God is moving in our lives and then tell those stories to others that can rejoice in His glory through what He is doing in our lives.

If you have a story shoot us an email, fcl@fellowshiplubbock.com or leave a post here.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Pursuit

This week marks the beginning of our 40 days of prayer and fasting that we are calling Pursuit. The question has been raised why do this, shouldn't these things be something that we do on a regular basis, the answer yes. But for so many, myself included, our affections for Christ are being robbed by the good, we have pulled our focus off of a Holy God and filled that hole with T.V. and sports, work and family, all good by nature, after all God created them, but so often perverted by me. I think that some times we need a wake up call, a time to refocus our desires to see where our heart lies. Have your affections for Christ drifted from where they were? How is your prayer life? Have you gripped your hands around this world so much, that life is a serious of meeting and play dates? This happens to all of us and I think that we would do well to take some time and examine our hearts, Paul in fact calls us to labor in prayer, to do the painful work of self-examination.

The prayer behind Pursuit is not some gimmick or catchy thing we can do to grow a church wide, but to grow us deep. Our end is not a building, or money, or attendance, our end is Him, our desire is that our lives become a pleasing aroma in His nostrils.

So whether you attend FCL or not, whether you are right where you feel you need to be with Christ, or you have drifted, would you join us in our pursuit of the Father's heart.

Each week I will be posting that weeks devotional, I pray that you would look over it, that you would examine your heart and see what stolen your affections for Him. Knowing that He is good and as we seek Him, He will be found.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Weeping Over Haiti

"The message today is simple, God is good. I do not understand tragedy of this magnitude, I do not understand why God would allow this. But what I do know is that God is good, that even in tragedy and in weeping and in the heartache, God is still good, and just and righteous and gracious. I am reminded of a C.S. Lewis quote, "God whispers in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain: It is His megaphone to a deaf world." So I thank the Lord for those who are already there ministering, providing water and relief and I ask that you join in our prayer for the Haitian people, that God would awaken the dead hearts of those that need the Gospel. And that through the tragedy of living in a fallen and broken world, the Lord would be seen as glorious. He is good, may we cling to that even when we can explain everything. And today may you hit your knees for the people racked by tragedy and heartache. May the Lord be their comfort and peace.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thoughts on a New Decade

The start to a new year, the beginning of a new decade, so many things running through my head it is crazy. How will this year be for you? As I spent a lot of time in prayer this holiday season, I was so encouraged by what the Lord revealed to me. The way that He has His hand on us, and the way that He will show Himself faithful this year. There is one word that continues to flood my mind as I think about life, church, etc. PURSUIT!!! That word has a lot of meaning packed into it, it describes a full on effort, pressing ahead toward a goal. Webster defines it as: to follow in order to overtake.

This year for me and for the church will be marked by what we are pursuing, what are we striving to overtake, what are we running after? The reality of life is this, all of us are pursuing something, we are putting forth energy and effort to lay hold of something in our lives. What is that for you? If you were to sit down and look at your life and be honest where is your pursuit found? My prayer this year is that we would be 1 Cor. 9 men and women. In verse 24-26 Paul gives us some insight into his pursuit. Do you not know that all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self -control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified.

For Paul, he knew what he was pursuing, and he disciplined his body to pursue the true prize. He didn't say this was easy, just like working out, it took self-control and determination, but he knew what he wanted his life to be marked by, the Gospel of Christ, and he did all that he could to lay hold of that.

So today may we be aware of where our pursuit it and may we discipline our lives to pursue the Holy. I pray that this year marks a time of excitement for you, and a year where you are totally dedicated to the pursuit of Christ is your life. In a few weeks we as a church will give you the opportunity to start the year off this way. Be on the look out for more details.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon