Fellowship Church Lubbock

From Africa to America Part 2

2011-06-16T08:26:00.002-05:00

There are very few people that I admire more then Blu and Darbi Tidwell. The life of a missionary is not a glamorous or famous, there's no great pomp and circumstance when you come back home. It is simply a calling, a calling to live out something greater then yourself. Now not everyone has the calling to go to Africa and start an orphanage from scratch, in fact I think that call is for very few people. But all of us as regenerate believers have a call on our lives to sell out to something bigger then ourselves.

For Blu and Darbi they are committed not to helping orphans or providing resources for the surrounding villages, that would simply be a "good" act, rather they are sold out to the Gospel, they are sold out to the God of all creation changing men and women, boys and girls, from the inside out. People that will go out from there and make a kingdom impact. They are sold out to living out the Gospel that will leave a legacy of Gospel change, and because Blu and Darbi have been overtaken by that Gospel themselves, they were able to be obedient to the call of Christ on their lives.

So the question for us today is our we sold out, are we completely captured by the Gospel that it has changed us so much that we are willing to go where He calls, and do what He asks us to do? That question can only be answered by you, but I believe that when we are honest with ourselves and open about this that God can use this piece of clay to spread His message to other pieces of clay.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

From Africa to America

2011-06-14T12:41:00.003-05:00

Well here I am back in the states from another overseas adventure and in case you missed Sunday or have not had the time to listen to this week's podcast, I want to share some things that the Lord reminded me of as I was over there.

1. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 - The Gospel is priority #1. Getting the Gospel right matters, there is nothing more important in our lives then this. You cannot mess around with the Gospel, trying to make it fit into what we think or what we like. The Gospel of Jesus dying on the cross for the glory of our God and the good of His people, in accordance with the Scriptures, is the only thing that matters.
In Africa, as in America, if you mess around with this you risk men and women confusing the message of the Bible with something else, and therefore placing their trust not in the true God but something else.

2. Psalm 29 - Worship is a by-product of Gospel change. No one, man, women, boy, and girl can remain unchanged when they have a true and real, gospel encounter with God. The Scriptures tell us that we are a new creation, the old has passed away, behold all things are new.
That means our nature is changed, our mind is changed, our eyesight is change. We can no longer view things the same, we cannot see life the same way, sunrises change, the way we raise our kids, the way we read, everything becomes about worship. Not just Sunday mornings, but rather the entirety of our lives are about giving glory to the God of all creation.

Those are two things that the Lord gently reminded me of over the past two weeks. I hope that as you read these things you are reminded today and they encourage you in your walk with the Lord.

Come back tomorrow as I write on the third and final things that the Lord reminded me of as I was in Africa.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

God is Truth

2011-05-17T08:31:00.002-05:00

"And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.' John 17:3

God's truthfulness can be defined like this, He is the only true God, and that all His knowledge and words are both true and the final standard of truth.

God is truth, He does not merely speak it, but He is truth. He is infinitely perfect in all things, in power, in goodness, in spirit, in lordship over all time, from eternity past, into eternity future. He is the standard by which all things are deemed true. The only reason that we say something is true is because God, the source of all truth, has said it is true. 2 + 2 = 4 because God says it would equal that. God is therefore reliable and faithful in His words, and we can put our complete trust in the simple fact that if HE says it, He will accomplish it. He never makes promises that HE will not, or cannot keep, while we may say things we don't really mean, God cannot do that, He is the final standard by which all is judged.

Therefore we can know, that as we discover more and more about science, or the world, or the way things work, we are not discovering anything that God does not and has not already known about. All truth is God's truth, and we can rejoice in Him and glorify His name whenever we find anything that is true, as we grow in knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, and as we seek to glorify God in those areas, we are pleasing to Him.

So today may we strive to live lives that are a reflection of this truth, may we strive to be people who's yes is yes and no is no. Not because of consequences that may result from not, but because as we walk in truth and seek after knowledge we are reflecting our God to the world around us, and that is pleasing in His sight.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

God's Knowledge

2011-05-10T13:36:00.003-05:00

So what does God really know? I heard a quote from a well-know author, "In an attempt to secure the sovereignty of God, theologians have overstated their case, and left us with a chest-player God playing both sides of the board, making all His moves and all ours too. But clearly (clearly?) this is not so. God is a person (really) who takes immense risks. No doubt the biggest risk of all was when He gave angels and men free will, including the freedom to reject Him..."

Now there are so many things that I would like to say about God based on that quote, but we will have time for that later on in this series. The one thing that I want to focus on today is "God is a person who takes immense risks."

Does God really take risks, because for that to happen He would have to not know the future, He would have to be limited in His ability, and would be lying when the Bible, says, "all things work out for the good of those who love HIm..." How could HE know that, if He is a risk taker He is just as much in the dark as we are.

That line of thinking leaves us with a deist version of God, a clockmaker, who yes made everything, is a supreme, higher being, but who is not involved our moments, who cannot comfort us with real comfort.

So what does the knowledge of God really mean? Grudem states it like this, "God fully knows Himself (1 Cor. 2:10-11) and all things actual (Hebrews 4:13) and possible (1 Sam. 11-13; Matt. 11:21) in one simple and eternal act.

God is always and forever fully aware of anything that has happened, and will happen, He knows the grains of sand on a seashore, the stars in the sky, the hairs on your head, and He know them all at once. His knowledge is eternal it does not change or grow, nor can it. He does not see new inventions and say, "I never thought of that." He is and for always completely and full aware of what is happening and will happen.

Of course it will be hard to reconcile God's knowledge of everything and the degree of freedom we have in our choices, we will discuss this in more detail in a few weeks. But I will leave you with something that Augustine said, God has given us "reasonable self-determination." We need to not focus on what is beyond our control or knowledge and understand that right now we can trust in an all-knowing God, and that we should in each choice we make, think, choose and act.

I hope that helps to a degree define the knowledge of God, for more information and for a deeper study, please refer to J.I. Packer's classic, Knowing God.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

How Do We Respond to Osama's Death

2011-05-04T09:07:00.002-05:00

Well, if you are like me, you have had a few days to process the events of Sunday afternoon, and Monday morning, and maybe you are asking yourself the same questions, how should I, as a Christian, respond to the death of Osama Bin Laden. I turned on the T.V. Monday morning, to the cheers of a massive crowd in time square, and for those first few moments, I was joining in the cheers that an adversary of America, a man that wanted to do harm to my country, my family, and my faith was now dead, but then the more I watched, the more news reports that came out, the more my thoughts were, how should I, as a Christian, be responding to this news.

I was reminded in the Proverbs,"Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice, or the Lord will see and disapprove and turn his wrath away from them." Proverbs 24:17 What does that mean for me, because David would say also say, "as for the head of those who surround me, let the mischief of their overwhelm them, let burning coals fall upon them! Let them be cast into fire."

It seems that David is crying out from the depths of his heart, for God to be just. And so from that my conclusion, is this, we rejoice in the fact that God is just, that HE will be victorious. So are we happy that Osama is dead, that he cannot harm anyone anymore, yes. Should we we thankful to the men and women that put their lives on the line to defend our freedom, yes. Should we jump up and down and cheer as if our hope and rejoicing is in a country, and not in the Lord, by no means.

Our hope and our rejoicing is in the fact that we serve a righteous, just God, who put His wrath on Christ at the cross. I hope that our response will be sober, that we will rejoice in God, that we will remember the only difference between myself and Osama, as far as eternity is concerned, is that Christ's righteousness as been imparted to me, because of the work at the cross and faith in Him.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

The Nature of the Atonement Part 1

2011-04-21T09:07:00.002-05:00

Today we want to start to look at the nature of the atonement, and there are two aspects to examine, the first and the one we will look at today: Christ's obedience and the second, what we will look at on Good Friday: Christ suffering.

The Scriptures tell us in Hebrews 4:15- "For we do not have a high priest that is unable to sympathize with our weakness, but one who in every respect was tempted as we are yet without sin.

I Corinthians 1:30 - "And because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption..."

Philippians 3:9 - the goal of Paul, "and be found in HIm, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, byt that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.

Christ had to live a perfect life, He had to live in the perfect will of God, if He did not there is no life, there is no prefect obedience, there is no redemption, nothing to be imparted to me. Christ's obedience and fulfillment of all righteousness is what will be imparted to me, this is not simply being morally good, or just not doing those small acts of "sin," it is the miracle that I am made righteous because of Christ, because He did what I could never be able to do.

So the question today as we look at this aspect of the atonement is, are you still trying to earn it, are you still trying with all your might, by yourself, to be good enough to earn the approval of the King. The truth is that we will never be able to, it is why the atonement is such a great truth, Christ earns it for us, because HE was spotless.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

The Necessity of the Atonement

2011-04-20T17:14:00.002-05:00

Wayne Grudem, poses a great question in his systematic theology book, was there any other way for God to save human beings than by sending His Son to die in our place?

I think to answer that question, we have to first realize that God did not have to save anyone, He could have chosen in His perfect justice to send each and every one of us to the rightful judgement awaiting us, just as He did with the angels that rebelled along with Lucifer. But here is the great news and the news that will cause us to rejoice, once God decided in His great mercy to save sinners, the atonement was absolutely necessary, and we will look at several Scriptures that will point us to this great truth. The atonement was not absolutely necessary, but once God chose to save people, the atonement and death of Christ were the only way.

The Scriptures are going to show us that this is the only way: Like we saw yesterday, Romans 2:26- "IT was to show that His righteousness at the present time, so that HE might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus."

Hebrews 9:22-23 - "Indeed, under the Law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood their is no forgiveness of sin. Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with rites, but the heavenly things with better sacrifices than these."

Hebrews 9:25-26 - "Not was it to offer Himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy place every year with blood not his own, for then HE would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, HE has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself."

Hebrews 10:4-6 - "For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Consequently, when Christ came into the world, He said, 'Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have your prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, Behold I have come to do your will, O God, as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.'"

Christ was the only way, there is no other way, it was absolutely what had to be done. And there is no other way to heaven, but through His blood, and faith in Him.

Tomorrow we will look at Christ's obedience for us in His life and in His death.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

The Atonement

2011-04-18T14:42:00.003-05:00

Atonement - the work that Christ did in His life and death to earn our salvation.

This week as we look forward to Easter Sunday I want to take some time to really think and dwell on the implications of the atonement. What does it really mean? What it necessary for Christ to die? My aim is that this week is that our spirits are quickened to think deeply about the work of Christ on the cross, that as we do Easter Sunday would be all the more wonderful, all the more beautiful, and cause us to worship all the more.

The first question that we want to aim as we move toward good Friday, what was the cause of the atonement. This question and the next two days will set a foundation to understand how important this work of Christ really is.

The Scriptures will point to two main reasons as causes for the atonement: the LOVE and the JUSTICE of God. The problem that we are running into over the last few years has been the desire, or rather the misunderstanding of the character of God. We have become a culture that has defined God by one attribute and that is love. YES!! God is love, but He is so much more, He is justice, righteous, holy, and when we fail to recognize these characteristics as a part of God, then we ultimately diminish who He is and the weight of the atonement.

Romans 3:23-25-"For ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of GOd, and are justified by His grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forth as a propitiation by His blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in His divine forbearance He had passed over former sins."

The wrath of God toward sin had to be satisfied so in His love for His people, and as a result of His holiness and justice He sent Jesus to die on that cross.

THis week as we move toward the cross on Friday and to the glorious resurrection on Sunday take time to meditate on God as just and love and may that increase your gratitude for the salvation Christ offers.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

God is Eternal

2011-04-13T07:50:00.003-05:00

There may be no harder concept to wrap our minds around then the eternality of God. I guess we could define it like this, "God has no beginning, end, or succession of moments in His own being, and HE sees all time equally vividly, yet God sees events in time and acts in time." Grudem

We see this in Scripture in verses like Psalm 90:2 - "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God."

Job 36:26 - "the number of His years is unsearchable."

To try and wrap our minds around the fact that God has always been, there has never been a moment when God has not existed, perfectly and completely in His triune being, can be a mountain to climb. But today I want to make a few quick remarks on why this doctrine is so important to the Christian and what encouragement and hope it offers to us as we strive in sanctification.

One thing that we must remember is that time does not change God. You and I change with time, we go from '80's big hair to whatever the current style is (well most of us), we grow up, we used to think that a big fat man in a red suit magically came down our chimney and put presents under our tree. We change our minds, what we thought was cool, acceptable, tolerant, etc, changes as we get older. This is not so with God!!! Time does not change Him, it has no effect on His being, perfection, purposes or promises. God never learns new things, He is not surprised by new trends or discoveries. He knows all things, past, present, and future. This is a crucial point for the believer, do we trust that God has it in HIs control and that though HE sees all time in the present, (HE sits above time), He still actively works in time and in the situations of life.

God created time, when He created the universe therefore He is not restricted as we are to a succession of moments, but rather God sees all, and is in all, His sovereign purposes will come to pass, every knee will bow and tongue will confess that He is Lord.

Yes, God's eternity can be something that we cannot grasp, but let us not write it off and never contemplate what that means for the regenerate, but rather let's meditate on His eternality, and let us stand in awe of how great He is.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Omnipresence

2011-04-07T12:13:00.002-05:00

God is unlimited and infinite with respect to time, He is also unlimited with respect to space. God's omnipresence can be defined like this:
God does not have size or spatial dimensions and is present at every point of space with His whole being, yet God acts differently in different places.

There are few verses in the Scriptures that communicate this principle better then Psalm 139:7-10 - "Where shall I go from Your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

There is nowhere in the universe where God is not found. He is not there in part but with His whole being He is present everywhere. He is not defined by spatial dimensions, He is not defined by His creation, but rather there is no place or time that can contain our God. We must guard from thinking that He is just super big, and that HE simply covers every area, that would mean that only part of Him is in one place and another part over there. No, God is everywhere present actively working.

This should give us confidence that there is no place that grants special access to God, rather HE is with us always. There does not have to be two or three gathered to pray or for Him to be present, He is already present. May we draw confidence and security that He is with us.

Herman Bavinck, in the Doctrine of God, sums up this doctrine like this:
"When you wish to do something evil, you retire from the public into your house where no enemy may see you; from those places or your house which are open and visible to the eyes of men you remove yourself into your room; even in your room you fear some witnesses from another quarter; you retire into your heart, there you meditate: HE is more inward than your heart. Wherever, therefore, you shall have fled, there HE is. From yourself, whither will you flee? Will you not follow yourself wherever you flee? But since there is One more inward even than yourself, there is no place where you may flee from God angry but to God reconciled. There is no place at all whither you may flee. WIll you flee from Him? FLEE UNTO HIM!!

May that give you joy in who you serve today.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

God's Independence

2011-03-28T14:41:00.003-05:00

Definition: God does not need us or the rest of creation for anything, yet we and the rest of creation can glorify Him and bring Him joy.

Paul states in Act 17:24-25- "The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is He served by human hands as though he needed anything, since He Himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything."
The implication being that God does not need anything from mankind.

Job 41:11 - the Lord says; "Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine."
Implying that there is nothing that we or anyone has ever created that does not go back to God first creating it.

Many think that God made human beings because He was lonely and needed the fellowship. If this were true then God would not longer be completely independent, because He need fellowship, and therefore said to the incomplete Trinity, let's make some rebellious, men and women that will constantly defile and blaspheme our Name.

Scripture however is going to tell us a different story, John 17:5 - during Jesus' prayer to the Father cries out; "glorify me in Your presence with the glory that I had with You before the world existed." John 17:24 also says, "Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given me, may be with me where I am, to see My glory that you have given me because You loved me, before the foundation of the world."

Wayne Grudem says it like this. "Theses passages indicate explicitly what we can learn elsewhere from the doctrine of the Trinity, namely, that among the persons of the Trinity there has been perfect love and fellowship and communication for all eternity." The Trinity, God 3 in one, means that there was no lack in the Godhead, there is no incompleteness, but rather the Trinity exists fully fulfilled and with infinite joy and glory that is given freely to each member of the Trinity.

God's independence is also seen in the burning bush, He tells Moses in Exodus 3:14- " I am who I am." God has always been, He has never not been, and He is self-existent, no one created Him, but He lives, He is totally unique from anything else that we know.

Some would say then are we important at all. To that I would say that we are in fact extremely important to God, He created us and He determined that we would be important and meaningful. It is something that we should delight ourselves in and why we strive to serve Him, love others, be a blessing to those that God has placed in our lives.

Isaiah 62:3-5 serves as a great reminder: "You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord; and a royal diadem in the hand of God. You shall no more to termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate; but you shall be called My delight is in her, adn your land Married; for the Lord delights in you and your land shall be married... as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride so shall your God rejoice over you."

It is when we realize that God is complete, that He is in need of nothing, and there is nothing that I could offer that He could ever be in want of, that my life becomes about Him, rejoicing in a huge God that is not defined by man's definitions or thoughts, but He exists to bring Himself glory and that He has created me, that I may delight in Him.

Rejoice in a God that is in need of no thing, and is creator of all things.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Immensely grateful to Wayne Grudem for helping me understand this beautiful attribute.

Understanding the Lingo

2011-03-23T09:58:00.002-05:00

2 Timothy 4:3-4 - "For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suite their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths."

Paul is communicating something to his child in the faith, Timothy, be ready false teaching is coming. Some that is going to be easy to recognize and some that is going to be difficult to discern, and so he tells him in V. 5 - "... always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry."
He admonishes him to know the truth, and preach the truth, even when you are getting blasted.

Today we have the same charge, as false teaching surrounds us, and each day it seems to be something different and if we are not careful we can fall victim to the seductive language the devil uses to pull us in. I see so many blogs, Facebook posts, articles, blasting doctrines and religions, and men, faithful and unfaithful. How do we stay alert and guard against our hearts being deceived?

I think to answer that question we must look at the root behind why so many get deceived. I think so often it is those who don't understand who God is, what He is like, what pleases Him, and what does not please Him. And we take our assumptions about Him and create our profile of Him, and so often it is based not on what we read and study in the narrative of the entire Bible but our own personal feelings, and that is dangerous, because I know my heart and I know how wicked and self-serving it is.

So our answer to the question is, we must know who the Scriptures say God to be, I know simple right? But has the power to change how we see God and how we rejoice in Him, this is how Paul warns Timothy to be sober-minded and alert and how he warns us today.

Over the course of the next year or so we are going to look, two times a week into the character of God and the Gospel, and look to what the Scriptures as a whole say to this. I think so often we walk through assuming we know things that are not true at all. My aim in this blog is to explore and inform us, so that we may be sober-minded and ready to do the work of an evangelist.
We will lean heavily on the Scriptures and on faithful men to help us increase in knowledge and understanding. I hope that this is helpful and truthful, that it nourishes your soul and mind.

NEXT WEEK - 3/28- The Independence of God.

How did Love get Hijacked

2011-03-03T09:35:00.002-06:00

There has been over the course of the last week or so some controversy arise in the "evangelical" world over a new book to be released by emergent guru and Nooma creator Rob Bell entitled "Love Wins." The controversy centers around claims and statements that Bell makes in regards to hell and eternal separation from God. Let me preface this entire blog by saying I have not read the book (I'm not cool enough to get a pre-released copy) and I may or may not read it. In fact this blog post has little to do with Bell's book or the controversy around it, though based on what I see a word of caution and discernment is advised in reading anything from any man, especially one with such liberal views on Scriptures and the atoning work of Christ.

Enough with that, my message to us today centers around the response in our lives to reprove. In this case emergent minded men and women, I have not seen or heard anything from Bell, have blasted faithful men like John Piper, Justin Taylor, and a host of other solid men for their stance on this dangerous theology, claiming that these men are ravenous wolves, haters, and one blogger even comparing Piper to Vito Corleone.

My question is when did it become an act of hate to call out men that have massive influence when they are endanger of leading people astray. When did love become something that never has hard conversations or forsakes accountability so that everyone just gets along. When did we as a people become so sacred of someone telling us we are wrong? And when did it become wrong to examine our hearts to see if we did say something to offend or are in danger?

I guess this is what Paul faced when he called out the Judaizers in Galatians 1, or when Jesus rebukes Peter and calls him satan, or when the writer of Hebrews say in chapter 12, says that we should love and seek out discipline and reproof, for it shapes us and keeps us accountable to the walk that we so desperately want to see.

In using this example, I am simply stating that we have become a people who never want to be told right from wrong, we never want to love in a way that sometimes seems harsh but is meant for our good.

It is why we have men acting like boys when they are in their mid 30's, its why divorce rate is at an alarming high, it is why the pulpits in American have become a place for selling a bill of goods rather then teaching the loving, and sometimes harsh truth of the Scriptures and the glory of God.

Think about it, are you ok with someone calling you out, and are you quick to examine your heart or do you immediately get defensive? Are you prone to anger quickly or do you pray, seek counsel and clarity?

I will leave you with one good example of this, that came to my attention recently. John MacArthur, a faithful preacher, made a few remarks about a book written by Darrin Patrick entitled "Church Planter", where I believe pastor John misread and misunderstood the point, Patrick instead of ranting and raving and getting all his Acts 29 boys to hit the blogosphere he wrote a letter in response to pastor John explaining the passage and even going so far as to sit down with him and explain more.

I hope this is an encouragement to you to seek, reprove, rebuke, discipline, is ok, it is not something that we should run from, it will help keep us on solid ground, it will help keep us rooted and grounded in the rock and truth of Jesus. Seek out men and women that love you and desire the best for you and live in a place of humility.

Wisdom from the Proverbs

2011-02-22T13:23:00.002-06:00

In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,
and his children will have a refuge.

The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,
that one may turn away from the snares of death.

PROVERBS 14:26-27

Oh St. Valentines Day

2011-02-14T13:52:00.004-06:00

Valentines day is one of those holidays that produces very mixed emotions from anger, to jealousy, happiness, to ideas of romance, stress, a wide range of feelings for what seems to be a simple holiday. I want to write to you today an encouragement, whether you are single, married, have been married, I want to offer you a perspective that may help you not go to one extreme or the other, rather give us a hope to cling to, whether we love this time of year or hate it.

Love is a word that so often gets throw around on days like today, and it is a word that has lost its true identity, at least in the American mindset. We use this word to describe the awesome unity and bond that to individuals have made to each other, while at the same time using it to describe our favorite dish at Freebirds. The idea behind love is not a casual emotion, Hebrew men and women would never think of using this term to describe all that it does today. The idea behind love is a weighty one, one that we see in full effect in the example of Jesus as He lived, taught, died, and rose again. It is the essence of 1 John 4:10-11-"IN THIS IS LOVE, NOT THAT WE HAVE LOVED GOD BUT THAT HE LOVED US AND SENT HIS SON TO BE A PROPITIATION FOR OUR SINS. BELOVED, IF GOD SO LOVED US, WE ALSO OUGHT TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER."

This is the passage and the chapter that I believe best describes the weight of this emotion that we are commanded to be generous with. So this Valentines Day, maybe you have been hurt and loving someone is nearly impossible, start with focusing on the Father's love for you, the price poured out at the cross, start there and let Him teach you and show you how to open yourself to love those in your life. Seek Him in pray and throughout the Scriptures, and trust that His love will burst off the pages.

For you men and women that are married, especially the men, take you key today from Ephesians 5:25-HUSBANDS LOVE YOUR WIVES AS CHRIST LOVED THE CHURCH AND GAVE HIMSELF UP FOR HER." Make it an intentional effort to show her the love of Christ on display by the way that you serve her, speak about her, and care for her. Couples show your appreciation for one another by engaging each other, serving one another, talking with one another.

Valentines Day comes once a year, may we not think about love only one time a year, may this day be a reminder of the love that Christ has for us and has given to us to show HIm off. May you rest in Him today, and love because of Him.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Sanctity of Life Resources

2011-01-24T11:14:00.002-06:00

As promised yesterday, here a list of websites and resources that can help educate us and encourage us as we engage the battle over life and as we seek to be agents of hope and reconciliation:

www.gotquestions.org/abortion-Bible.html
http://www.dougbrittonbooks.com/onlinebiblestudies-cultureandsocietyinfluences/abortionoflifeinthewomb-sinandgodsforgiveness.php
http://www.ligonier.org/blog/abortion-the-moral-issue-of-our-day/
www.abort73.com
www.focusonthefamily.com search abortion

-Adoption-
www.bethany.org
www.lovingandcaring.org

I hope that these resources help you as you educate yourself on the issues that we are facing as a nation and that many girls face each day. I pray that we would remember we are agents of light and as we seek to connect our passion with direction, we would remember that this is about the Gospel, that Christ saves, that He came to this world to glorify the Father and provide a way to reconciliation. Join the voice.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Forsaking It All

2011-01-11T14:53:00.002-06:00

Matthew 13:44-46:
"The Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his JOY, he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding on preal of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it."

The question that I want to raise today and one that I think we would do well to think on this week, what do you need to give up in order to embrace the truth of Christ, full on? Now that can be a question that you can take in many directions, but the one place we cannot take it is to easy street. I beleive that so often we fail to be all that God has us to be, to see all that He desires to show us, to experience all that He has for us, because we fail to be honest about the things that rule our life, other then the mercy and grace of Christ. Are we willing to be despised, rejected, scorned, are we willing to be pushed out of our comfort zones, for the chance to know HIm, for the chance to not just be consumed by knowledge but to be consumed by HIm.

What is it today that is holding you back from embracing Christ full on? May we recognize it, deal with it, bring it, leave it, and embrace a good God, with both arms.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Wonderful

2010-12-23T10:48:00.002-06:00

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

2010-12-02T11:14:00.002-06:00

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

2010-11-18T10:26:00.003-06:00

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

2010-11-11T10:36:00.002-06:00

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

2010-11-04T10:56:00.002-05:00

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

2010-10-28T10:14:00.002-05:00

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

2010-10-21T09:38:00.002-05:00

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

2010-10-07T09:46:00.002-05:00

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

2010-09-30T09:43:00.002-05:00

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

2010-09-23T10:05:00.002-05:00

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

2010-09-09T09:08:00.000-05:00

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

2010-09-02T09:07:00.002-05:00

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

2010-08-26T08:30:00.002-05:00

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

2010-08-12T08:43:00.002-05:00

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

2010-08-05T14:10:00.006-05:00

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

2010-07-29T09:58:00.002-05:00

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

2010-07-22T11:56:00.002-05:00

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

2010-07-15T10:59:00.003-05:00

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

2010-07-08T08:39:00.002-05:00

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

2010-07-01T08:38:00.003-05:00

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

2010-06-24T09:32:00.003-05:00

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

2010-06-17T10:45:00.003-05:00

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

2010-06-03T11:19:00.002-05:00

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

2010-05-27T09:29:00.002-05:00

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

2010-05-20T10:18:00.002-05:00

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

2010-05-13T10:27:00.003-05:00

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

2010-05-06T10:36:00.004-05:00

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

2010-04-29T09:52:00.006-05:00

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

2010-04-22T10:24:00.002-05:00

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

2010-04-15T09:28:00.005-05:00

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

2010-04-08T08:56:00.002-05:00

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

2010-04-02T10:14:00.002-05:00

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

2010-03-25T12:29:00.002-05:00

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.

2010-03-11T10:16:00.003-06:00

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!!!

2010-03-04T15:14:00.003-06:00

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

2010-02-25T09:52:00.002-06:00

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

2010-02-18T09:07:00.003-06:00

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

2010-02-04T09:38:00.002-06:00

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

2010-02-01T10:20:00.002-06:00

Pursuit Week 1

2010-01-28T10:23:00.002-06:00

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

2010-01-21T10:18:00.002-06:00

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

2010-01-14T09:15:00.005-06:00

"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

2010-01-07T10:25:00.003-06:00

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

A Pastor's Christmas Prayer

2009-12-24T10:10:00.003-06:00

Wherever you may be during this holiday season, I pray that you are overwhelmed by the Father's love for you. That as you bust into presents you are reminded of the greatest gift of all, the Father sending the Son to be the great redeemer. I pray that as you look at the blessings of this past year, you are quickly prompted to give thanks for that which you do not deserve, that which He has blessed you with. I pray that your mind is filled with deep thoughts of the Father and how His love for you flows to all those around you, whether family, friends, co-workers, the neighbors, your barista. May you express that love and appreciation to them, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven. May we not waste this Christmas season, on trinkets and toys, but may we suck the marrow out of it by rejoicing in all that is good, and shouting with the angels, "Glory to God in the Highest!!!"

Blessings to you and your family this Christmas season:

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Where does Ministry Happen? Part 6-The Ends of the Earth

2009-12-10T08:45:00.002-06:00

As regenerate believers we not only want to passionately pursue ministry here at home and where we are daily, but also we want to spread the supremacy of God among the nations. We need to be active in our involvement and participation in spreading the Gospel to those men and women that have not been afforded the opportunity we have been blessed with here in America. As we go we not only spread the supremacy of God to men and women who have never heard or seen the Gospel, but we get to see what God is doing all over the world and how much bigger this is then me and my life. I think the one thing that I walk away with from my overseas trips is how big God is, how it may not look the same as it does in the U.S. and that is good, if not better.

The reality is that God is going to spread His Gospel, He does not "need" us to do it, but He has asked us to walk in obedience, knowing that as we follow He will erupt more and more of Himself in our lives.

So we want to prayerfully consider where the Lord is asking and prompting us go, so that we may see the Gospel at work in our lives and those we minister to in hopes that it produces something back at home that ignites our hearts to love, cherish, and spread the Gospel more.

What is your role? Are you a provider, a goer, a prayer, the only part you don't have is to sit and do nothing.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Where Does Ministry Happen? Part 5-Local

2009-12-03T08:14:00.002-06:00

Most people think the only of missions as going overseas, or going on an extended stay to some remote African village. But missions opportunities exist in our own backyard. As a church we believe that we are to be a light to the city, to shine forth His glory and push back the darkness here in Lubbock. This can be a number of things, whether it is mentoring at a school, or serving lunch to the less fortunate, or a neighborhood block party. The reality is that mission opportunities exist all around us, and this doesn't mean you even have to do it through a "Christian" organization, rather be a Christian wherever the Lord allows you to minister and through your life and your words look for opportunities to spread the love of Christ to a city that needs Him, not more religion.

May we as a church body be in our city, may we love it, pray for it, and serve it, so that that the glory of God shines through the darkness and the religious guise that has bound this place. Look for opportunities, keep your eyes and ears attentive and then when the Lord shows you, be quick to move.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Where Does Ministry Happen? Part 4

2009-11-19T11:19:00.002-06:00

The 4th facet where we believe ministry happens is in the church. While we do encourage ministry outside the walls of the church building, there are many ways to serve the body here at FCL. Your passion for evangelism should be partnered with the encouragement of a local body, and commitment to that body. So many of us are running around from church to church, trying to get our "needs" met and the Lord, in His word, is calling us to join, be involved, receive encouragement from a body that is invested in you and knows you. God has given us specific gifts for the building up of the Body, that is the Church (1 Cor. 12, Romans 12). These gifts range from teaching, to leading, to organizing, to friendship, you name it. We are not to neglect the meeting together of the saints (Heb. 10:24-25), because it is here where we are encouraged in our gifts, where people see what we are good at and passionate about, and we are able to play well the role that God has given us. Paul reminds us, "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith" (Galatians 6:10).

The question then arises who really knows you, how are you letting yourself be known, that you may be an effective minister for the Gospel. May we strengthen and encourage each other that we may run our race well.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Where Does Ministry Happen? Part 3

2009-11-12T11:14:00.002-06:00

This week we will look at and examine the third area of where ministry happens in the life of the believer and hopefully examine the impact that we are having on the world around us.

In the SCHOOL OR WORKPLACE: God has placed you where you are on purpose. Paul tells those at the Areopagus that God has "predetermined the times and boundaries of our dwelling" (Acts 17:26). We are to be faithful in our work, as an act of worship unto God (Eph. 6:5-9). Our good deeds, our hard work, and faithfulness are all forms of evangelism (Matt. 5:13-16, 2 Thess. 3:10, 1 Peter 2:15).

As the salt and light to a lost and dying world we have been given the opportunity, through out jobs and schooling, to be an advocate for Jesus Christ. The regenerate believer should be excited that they have this amazing opportunity to show and share the love of Christ through the work that they get to do. You may think you are where you are because of a promotion, demotion, this was the only place that would hire you, etc. but the reality is that God has placed you there to show off His glory. Are the men and women that you are surrounded by everyday having our great God portrayed to them in a proper Biblical way, based on your hard work, and love for others. You may be in a difficult place and job right now, but our great Lord and Savior had purposed you to be there for such a time as this. Are you convinced of that. May you have a blessed week as you build relationships and show off His glory from 9-5.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

2009-11-02T10:27:00.000-06:00

Where does Ministry Happen? Part 2

2009-10-29T08:46:00.003-05:00

This week we will continue in our series where does ministry happen and look at another place where we as regenerate believers are called to be advocates and ambassadors for the gospel in each area of our lives.

In your community group: God created us to function with deep relationships, there is evidence throughout the Bible of this, from the Israelites in their tribes, to Jesus taking 12 men and doing life together, to the church in Acts, and constantly built up by Paul as he refers often to the body and each part playing its role well, and how the hand cannot function outside of the body and what good is it to have eyes if they have no head to go on.

One of the best ways to serve is through loving others in your community group and building rich community through service and sacrifice (Acts 2:42-47). Most of the churches effective at pastoral care and assimilation report a great majority of people who became active in a community group setting before ever stepping into the church building. People have a tendency to belong, and then believe. We desire that men and women feel connected to the body and see each other loving and serving one another through study, prayer, fellowship. This is the basis of the church, this is when it functions well and the church experiences real growth, depth first, then width.

So what opportunities do you have this week to invite someone who may not be involved in a church, or who doesn't know what it means to be the body, or needs to see it functioning in the Biblical way. May our Community Groups be a place where men and women see the church on display.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Where Does Ministry Happen?

2009-10-22T08:47:00.004-05:00

In today's church culture it is easy for us to think that "real ministry" happens only inside the walls of the church building. But I think that the Bible teaches us something much different, that God intends ministry to happen wherever the believer is present, and for the most part that is outside the walls of the church.

The church has become a country club, keeping the ministry inside, but according to 2 Cor. 5:18-20-the apostle Paul clearly teaches that we, all regenerate believers, have been given the ministry of reconciliation, that is God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

With that said where then does this ministry take place, over the course of the next 6 weeks we will look at the various areas the Lord has given us to be ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The first we will look at is: THE HOME

God wants us to have integrity in our homes. You cannot go far in the Bible until you see this. Gen 3:23-25-from the beginning man has been charged to lovingly lead their households, this thought however is not limited to Genesis, but is a theme that runs throughout the Bible, (Eph. 5:25, Eph. 6:4, 1 Tim. 2:8). Women are called then to care for and lovingly witness to their husbands and children (Eph. 5:22, 1 Cor. 7:14, 1 Pet. 3:1). And children are called to honor and obey their parents (Ex. 20:12, Eph. 6:1-3). This is a serious thing, for the Scriptures say that one can even be disqualified from church leadership due to a neglect of ministry in the home (1 Tim. 3:4-5). This even applies to those that are not married or those who have yet to have kids, how are you preparing to be the godly mother, father, husband, or wife, right now?

In the end the world doesn't need more talk from Christians, they need to see how the Gospel effects and changes our lives and that starts with how we minister in our homes when no one is looking.

How are you leading today in your home to show that God is utmost in your affections? What actions are you taking?

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thoughts on Trust

2009-10-15T11:27:00.002-05:00

Simple today, not at all complicated. Do you trust Christ? Do you trust His Word? Do you trust that He still works today? If yes, then why? If the answer is no? Why? For most of us it will be yes but only in certain areas. Why do you think that is? If we were honest wouldn't it be the areas that are easy that we find ourselves trusting Him, and not in the hard or difficult areas. The question I have is this: is that trust? Is that the real definition of trust? Today is not a long blog, but today I hope that what it does is drive you to your knees, to plead with the Father to strip away any area where you are walking in the strength of your own mind and where you have chosen your way and not His.

Today is about you, for the glory of the Father, it's about dealing with your heart, and maybe there may be some healing in your life and in the lives of those around you, and may your walk with Christ be strengthened by deeper faith in Him.

"Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie!" Ps. 40:4

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thoughts from Gal. 2:20-21

2009-10-08T09:26:00.003-05:00

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose."

That is a great verse and most of us, whom are regenerate, sitting out there would say, yes that is the life of a true regenerate believer. That is the way to live life. But how many of us cling to the law and think that our performance in this life, our cleaning our act up, is what makes God love us more and save us. I think that if we were to be real we cling more to this life then we would really like to admit. The life of the Christian is one that is captured by the Gospel, and what this verse says is not part of that life, all of it. The Gospel message encompasses the whole not the part, but so many of us live a life bound to what we think God should do. So we give Him a part of it over here, and maybe even go to a C.G. on occasion, and help with the Thanksgiving breakfast, but are there not those parts of life that we chose just to hold onto because we "know" best. This verse is encouraging in this fact: that God has a life for us far beyond anything that we could ever think or imagine. But it is not the life that the world would deem "successful," it is life marked by suffering and persecution, moments of joy and also deep sorrow. But Paul is telling the Galatians that no matter the circumstances that occur in this world, God in His amazing sovereignty has purposed you to live not for yourself, to find joy not in what you can accumulate but in what you can give. And he says that as we do this life begins to make sense and joy is not fleeting based on the circumstances but on the one that conquered death and life.

So today are you seeking to lay all of your life down at the feet of the Savior, or are you making excuses to not be in fellowship, not be growing, or not trust Him that He says those who lose their lives will save them. Where are you today? Oh I pray that we would see our lives are not our own, but Jesus bought them with a great price and He wants it all.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Abide-Thoughts from John 15

2009-10-01T08:51:00.001-05:00

In my personal time of study this week there just seems to be a common theme that arose in everything that I have faced, what does it mean to abide? This theme is constant in the Scriptures and one that deserves our utmost attention. John 15 speaks on this with great clarity, and amazing relevance.

V.4-Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

So if Jesus says that we cannot bear any good fruit unless we abide in Him we must know what it means to abide. Here is how I would describe what it means to abide: to continue in daily and personal relationship with Jesus, this is characterized by trust, prayer, obedience, and joy.

Let's break those down a little bit:

Trust-where is your trust, do you trust that in all things, no matter the circumstances that arise, or the bumps in the road, that Christ is good, that He does good and is truth. You cannot trust Him only with the good things of life, we must trust His sovereignty over all things.

This allows us to go where He desires us to go and do what He desires us to do. This is a key element to the Christian walk, it is why men and women all throughout history have died for the gospel.

Prayer-What does your prayer life look like, is it a wish list of sorts, a montra to state, or is it a way of life, where you are trying to line your life up with the way that things are. Are you seeking in your prayer life to draw closer to Him, that He may lift the fog and that you may see clearly what He is doing.

Obedience-to what? V.10-His Word-once you have prayer and trusted and God has opened your eyes to see the truth, are you walking in obedience or are you running away from the simple, uncomfortable things He is asking you to do. Here's a bit of advice, God doesn't always ask us to do things that come easy, often they are painful but in the end produce life and movement.

Joy-are you walking in joy? Joy that cannot be stolen by anything this world throws at us. Joy that is produced only by trusting in the King of Kings, praying to our Father in heaven, and walking in obedience to His call. That is the joy that cannot be sustained by sheer will or positive thinking, rather by a life that abides in Christ.

Today may we strive to characterize ourselves as men and women who abide in Him and do all that we can to make Him our supreme affection.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thursday Thoughts-GOD DID!!

2009-09-24T10:01:00.003-05:00

There are certain truths in Scripture that when we understand them, even just a little bit they erupt in our hearts a zeal for the name of Christ, one on those truths is found in one of my favorite songs of all time, God Did by Shane and Shane, this song describes for us that which our Savior has done for us and what He then has called us to, I think that we would do well to meditate on these words, to let the truth of the message saturate our hearts and produce in us a zeal to see His name lifted up, no matter the cost.

Growin’ up I overheard All the grown ups sayin’ You better be prayin’ And sayin’

All the right little things At the right little times And I had it down At least on the outside
I’d put my best side forward I could smile with the best And dress like the rest
Of the messed up church folk singin’ a song

Are you sitting down With all your sin and shame all stored up Are you ready to live
For what the law could not do God did

Could it be that morality Got the best of you and me Got us thinking That we’re on the brink Of a drink of the cup that’s all filled up With the cross havin’ even a little to do with us
It was His day It was His way To the glory of His grace Took our disease Enough to please The Father of lights To bruise Jesus

Maybe do’s and don’ts Were made to show How much we do And don’t ever make it

I hope that today this resonates with our soul, that He is our hope, because of what He did, that maybe today we lay down our pride, and embrace what He has saved us from and saved us to. Let these words read you, may they push you deeper into His Word, that you may serve Him deeper, and love others stronger.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

2009-09-17T11:16:00.000-05:00

Thursday Thoughts-Pursuit of Holiness

2009-09-17T10:04:00.004-05:00

If you are like me there are certain things in your life that are there that you hate, whether it is the way that you react in a tough situation, or how you react to someone cutting you off on the Loop, or that you find yourself not leaning on the Lord as often or as well as you should. The reality is that most of us today find ourselves in these positions, but the sad fact is that for most of us this has just become a way of life. We say things like; "I know that I shouldn't react that way but it's just who I am." or worst we compare ourselves to others, "I know I struggle here, but at least I'm not as bad as he is." And sin has just become something that has lost it's weight and has left many believers feeling far from the Lord, unable to figure out why the Bible doesn't speak to them or why they are in a "desert" season. And for some of us it's because we have walked out of the oasis and into the barren wasteland. Now I know that there are certain times that God leads us into the desert seasons to grow us and refine our walk, but a lot of times we walk ourselves there and then wonder why we can hear the voice of the Lord clearly.

We have a saying here at the church, actually it was stolen from a friend of mine who is also a pastor, "We want this to be a place where it is ok to not be ok, it's just not ok to stay there."

The truth of this statement is that it is ok to have struggles and doubts and sin that keeps coming back, and YES, it's even ok to be open and honest that we struggle, the only thing is that some of us believe that it stops there. The second half is the important part!! As we see our sin and recognize those blind spots, we must war against that sin. In 2 Cor. 7:1-Paul speaks to the church and he admonishes us here, "Since we have these promises (6:16-18) let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, brining holiness to completion in the fear of God."

I love this verse because it tells us to war over sin and violently pursue holiness. To not sit back and go, "oh well, I just guess this is my cross." But rather we wage war by the grace of God on those things that steal our affections for Him. This is the weight of the Christian walk, God has made us alive and calls us from death to life and therefore has called us to action.

Are you taking action today? What are you doing today to put to death the desires of the flesh and allow the Spirit to overwhelm every area of you life? That is the question, are you pursuing Christ in all that you say and do?

The answer is not always easy, but the great news is that we are not alone, we have a body that is here to wage war TOGETHER, and bring about holiness. That is awesome news !!!

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thursday Thoughts-Lessons Learned From John Owen

2009-09-10T11:04:00.001-05:00

John Owen is one of my favorite Puritans, ok I only have read like 3, but he is my favorite. His all consuming passion was the glory of God and his life was marked by that pursuit. Owen was a pastor in the 1600's, yet his life calls out to us today to take seriously the pursuit of our Heavenly Father. The following are quotes from this incredible man of faith:What amazed me about this man is that in the midst of all his activity his passion was not public performance, but personal holiness. He said,

My heart’s desire unto God, and the chief design of my life ... are that ... universal holiness may be promoted in my own and in the hearts and ways of others.

What better preparation can there be for [our future enjoyment of the glory of Christ] than in a constant previous contemplation of that glory in the revelation that is made in the Gospel.

For Owen the pursuit was for what God was doing in his life, what the Lord was stripping away, and what he was becoming, that he may pursue the Lord and call others to do the same. His passion for the supremacy of God is something that we all can learn from. I would challenge you today to think hard and think often of those areas where the Lord is asking you to wage war against and be sensitive to what He is doing in your heart. My experience is that when the Lord confronts you on areas for sin, and take a step to the left you have two choices:

1. You make a deal and say no I really don't want to deal with that, or let that go, and so you say instead I will run as fast as you can to the right. And so we busy ourselves with anything and everything deceiving ourselves into thinking we are following the Lord, because of all the stuff that we are doing, all the while we are growing further away from Him.

2. We take the step to the left, we engage our sin, we wage war over it. We call on friends to help us, by prayer, encouragement, and accountability, and we seek with all that we are, leaning on the strength of our holy God who conquered sin and death on the cross.

Today may we not be passive with our pursuit, but may we wage war that His name may be lifted high.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thursday Thoughts-What is the Gospel?

2009-09-03T10:40:00.001-05:00

There are certain things that we take for granted so often in life, air, food, simple necessities, etc. As a pastor one of those areas was the Gospel, you just assume so often that men and women living in the Bible Belt know and then can communicate the Gospel message, that message that has brought us from death to life, that message that changed our very nature. But this is something that I no longer am taking for granted, the attack on the gospel has been around for thousands of years, even in the Bible we see men enter the church at Galatia and begin to distort the Gospel, combining faith and works. To our own day where it has become less about the personal effect, that we are sinners and more about a broad, non-offensive creator. When you lose the message of personal repentance, based on the cross of Christ, you lose the Gospel.

So my goal is to help us here, to inform us, to give you confidence that when the Lord grants you the opportunity to share the powerful message you are ready. Here it is:

Jesus Christ is the Gospel!!! The good news of His birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension to the right hand of God the Father. The cross of Christ stands at the center of our faith. It is His substitutionary and atoning death on the cross that satisfies the wrath of a just and holy God, toward a sinner like me. He is the great mediator, it is by His work done on the cross that clothes believers in righteousness. His death empowers the believer now to good works, until the consummation of all things when He one day returns again. The gospel, this message centered around the cross, is available to those who in true repentance place their faith and complete trust in the saving message of Jesus Christ on the cross.

There it is the message is centered around the cross and nothing else. It is about Christ and no one else, and it is for His glory alone. So today may the Lord open your eyes to see His gospel and open doors to share this message of hope and salvation.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thursday Thoughts-Have you been Captured by the Gospel?

2009-08-27T09:27:00.002-05:00

Last night, during our corporate prayer time I was reflecting on my day and the Words I had studied and read that day in the Scriptures and the thought came to my mind, "have I been captured by the Gospel?" Like has this all loving, redeeming gospel of Jesus, taken over me. Then I got to thinking, what does the Gospel do when you are captured by it? I then started to think of one man, Paul, a man that was an enemy to the cross, opposing it and those who chose to follow it. He may have killed people, but in the end before we were saved, we were all enemies of that beautiful cross. And I started to think about what he stats in Phil. 3:3-11-where he makes such statements as, v.7"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." And again in v.10,"That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and may share in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death."

Now these are some powerful statements from a man who once persecuted the church, now he is saying I will die for Him. That is the power of the gospel, it changes us, it so overwhelms us that it changes all of us. It penetrates the heart, mind, and soul, every part of our being, changing the very essence of who we used to be(an enemy of the cross), to those that would die if called.

This is why it is so dangerous to add anything to the gospel, any time you add something to the gospel, i.e. prosperity gospel, liberation gospel, social gospel, it ceases to be the gospel, because our center focus shifts for the Jesus of the Bible and onto our circumstances.

So today may we declare that He is all we want, no matter the circumstances, no matter how the picture looks, it times of great prosperity and in times of great lost, may we rise to echo the statements of Paul, it all is rubbish, the only thing that matters is knowing Him.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thursday Thoughts-Back-to-School

2009-08-20T11:30:00.002-05:00

Oh my gosh I cannot believe that it is already time for school to start, the routine ensues and the madness begins. This year my prayer for our families is that you do dinner. No, not McDonald's in your car on the way to whatever, really use that massive table, in that room you hardly go into. I pray that this year would be one that we really do life together. Teaching, challenging, mentoring, checking up on, leading our families closer to Christ. Let this year be one that you take advantage of a meal. The Bible has some things to say about dinner and the sacred aspect it should play in our lives. Jesus chose to spend His last moments with His disciples around the dinner table, loving on them. The church in Acts went from house to house, celebrating the goodness of God.

It may seem insignificant and you may "not have time" for it, but as you make it a priority, may the depth of your love for Christ, for who He is and what He has done, grow you closer and closer to Him. As you sit around the dinner table this year, let this verse be one that comes to mind often:

One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare

your mighty acts, on the glorious splendor of your majesty...

Ps. 145:4-5a

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thursday Thought-We are Not our Own

2009-07-30T10:42:00.002-05:00

A couple of weeks ago one of my heros in the faith celebrated his 500th birthday. Yeah I know, he's not alive how can he be celebrating his birthday? It was his desire for more of the Lord, his tireless work to breakdown the Scriptures, and leave this earth working out his salvation with fear and trembling that still lives on, and still convicts me, and is there to show us the example of a man consumed by the Father. John Calvin is a fascinating figure, whose life was lived not for his own gain, but for the glory of God and the good of those around him. Last week as I was reading a book I came across this quote from Calvin, that stuck with me, I mentioned it in staff meeting last week, and I think we would all do well to read and examine our hearts in light of this statement:

"If we are not our own (1 Cor. 6:19), but the Lord's, it is clear what error we must flee, and whither we must direct all the acts of our life. We are not our own: let not our reason nor our will, therefore, sway our plans and deeds. We are not our own: let us therefore not set it as our goal to seek what is expedient for us according to the flesh. We are not our own: in so far as we can, let us therefore forget ourselves and all that is ours. Conversely we are GOD's, let us therefore live for Him and die for Him. We are God's: let His wisdom and will therefore rule all our actions. We are God's: let all the parts of our life accordingly strive toward Him as our only lawful goal(Rom. 14:8). O, how much has that man profited who, having been taught that he is not his own, has taken away dominion and rule from his own reason that he may yield it to God!! For, as consulting our self- interests is the pestilence that most effectively leads to our destruction, so the sole haven for salvation is to be wise in nothing through ourselves but to follow the leading of the Lord alone.

So today may we ponder, this thought deeply and live to show that we are all His. If you get a chance this week check out Ps. 51, it's a great one. Have a great week and see you Sunday!!!

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thursday Thoughts: May the Vision Of Him

2009-07-23T11:15:00.006-05:00

There are certain songs, that when I sing them, I find myself falling on my knees before my God. As we were in the mountains this weekend I heard one of those songs, Shane and Shane's Vision of You. Now I have heard this song a countless number of times but for some reason this time was different, I actually heard the words and saw the mountains and the creation and it made sense to me. The chorus goes like this:

Awaken what's inside of me, Tune my heart to all You are in me, Even though You're here God come. And MAY THE VISION OF YOU BE THE DEATH OF ME, and even though you've given everything Jesus come.

It is that line, "may the vision of you be the death of me" that hit me so hard this time. It was seeing Him in His creation that let me realize, for a moment, how big my great God is. And at seeing that came the desire to lay my life, my thoughts, my will, my desires at His feet that He may be glorified in me in some small way.

My prayer for us this week is that we are a church that feels the weight of those beautiful words and strives, oh how we will not do this perfectly, but may we strive to live a life humbled before a huge loving and just God. Imagine if the world around us saw a church in love with a real and powerful Jesus that changed everything about us. May we continue to strive after this and may we look to each other for encouragement. I love you guys and can't wait to see you Sunday!!!! Have a great end to your week.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

P.S. here is a link to the song above if you have never heard it before: (simply copy and paste into your browser).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4_uNCEhmN4

Thursday Thoughts Week of July 9-16- Lifestyle

2009-07-09T09:26:00.002-05:00

This week we want to look at the 4th and final installment of our blog-based core values, over the last few weeks we have looked at each core value and how they build on each other, and how they are not meant to dwell apart from each other, but to compliment each other to grow us into disciples hungry and desperate for Jesus. Today we want to look at the final one that ties all the rest of these together, LIFESTYLE.

Life is meant to be lived in the truth setting freedom of Jesus Christ and as we see His life we are called to follow and do likewise. We believe that the two most important lifestyle characteristics that can become part of our lives are two of the most important to the early church, PRAYER AND FASTING, Acts 2:43.

Prayer as we understand it is not just mere words but rather something that transcends our everyday life and bleeds over into everything that we do. It is constant communion with the Father, it is about laying all that I am, have, and desire at His feet. Prayer is about focusing on the holiness of the Father, it is about coming into His presence with a Christ-centered mindset that He is all we need. Prayer is about living a life that is constantly on our knees, humbling our hearts, where we say "amen" but it doesn't end there. Prayer moves us from a casual knowing about God into a deeper heart understanding of our great Father, Matt. 6:5-13.

Fasting is not merely the absence of food, but rather to abstain from anything that distracts me from experiencing the revelation knowledge of God to its fullness. It is the simple act of us saying that nothing here on this earth is more important than my pursuit of Jesus, and it becomes our way of mourning for the return of the King of Kings, Mark 2:19-20.

I pray that you are having a great summer, but no matter where you are or what you are doing, my prayer is that you are seeking and striving to live a lifestyle that seeks to serve, and love our great Lord and Savior.

See you in a couple of weeks

Brandon

Thursday Thoughts Week of June 25-July 2-Missional Living

2009-06-25T14:05:00.002-05:00

This week we take a look at Missional Living, what does it really mean, how do we do this is in the real world. We have, over the last month looked at 2 other core values, and without those as our foundation, 1. remembering that Christ is our treasure, He is the Word of Truth, and 2. that we are encouraged in community to spread the truth, this can go very bad, or get off the intended track God has set forth in His word. So with that in mind let's examine what it means to live missionally.

Life was never meant to be compartmentalized, yet so many of us walk around in a life filled with areas that rarely bleed over into each other, we have our family box here, and our work box over here, and we keep our Jesus box over there on the mantle. We however, believe that Christ came to show us that life is meant to be lived intentionally. That He has made us for a specific end, namely to glorify Him in everything that we say and do. You see the Bible is clear in Ps. 139:13-16 that God was intentional when He formed us and therefore we should live our lives with that same thought in mind. He has placed us into specific places in this world; jobs, neighborhoods, gyms, coffee shops, etc. Life therefore is not random and each place that we are was designed to a place where we are living, serving, walking out our lives in the same way Jesus did, thinking of the Gospel and doing all we can to be a witness to that truth.

Therefore we believe that we are to be in culture, we are to befriend the unregenerate, to form relationships with those outside the kingdom that we may look for opportunities to share the Gospel, to live lives that point to Christ.

So may we engage this week, may we seek out the lost and dying and may we, in the name of Jesus, offer them living water. May we not spend all our time hidden in the Christian subculture and may we be salt and light of the great Gospel, and then leave the rest in the hands of a holy and sovereign God.

I hope you have a great weekend and can't wait to see you Sunday, this week we will be in Eph. 4 and 1 Cor. 12-13, take some time to read. Love you guys and see you soon.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

FRIDAY NIGHT DATE NIGHT-June 26

2009-06-24T14:17:00.002-05:00

That's right!!! Just a reminder that this Friday, marks our first Friday Night Date Night, this is a time for you and your spouse to take some time away from the kidZ and enjoy a night just the two of you. I feel so often if we are not careful and are not intentional we can lose that connection, the intimacy, the communication. So here is what you do, bring your kidZ and drop them off at the church around 6:30, go get dinner, run errands, see a movie, and relax. Susie will be here taking care of your kidZ through a Bible lesson designed to engage them and teach them. Then pick up your little ones anytime before 10:30. It is our belief that a strong home is made by a strong marriage and we want to do all that we can to help strengthen that area of your lives. I hope you would take advantage of this time. RSVP with Susie, susie@fellowshiplubbock.com, We love you and are passionate for families.

Thursday Thoughts-June 11-18-COMMUNITY

2009-06-11T09:26:00.002-05:00

This week I want to examine that second element that encompass our Core Values, Community. Community is one of those themes that runs all throughout the Scriptures, beginning with the creation of man and women, and extending into Israel and the First Century church. It seems that God has place a massive emphasis on men and women growing together and doing life together. This is a concept and idea that is being challenged in our very individualistic society, my problems are mine to deal with, my life is my life, and in this shift we have learned to rely more on ourselves and our ideas. While God did create each of us different, with different personalities, and preferences, He did not create us to let those things terminate on us alone, nor did He intend for us to bear those burdens alone. So often we take our God given individuality and turn it into pride, leading most of us to think that our problems are something that we need to deal with. This has left our society in shambles, marriages crumbling, because we are too proud to ask for help until it's to late, our children rebelling, because we have lost sight of what is central, depression on the rise. This was not God's intention from the beginning, for people to live secluded lives apart from any meaning contact, rather He intended a group of people that shared a mutual love and servant's heart for each other.

So that is the fight we face in a world that tell us it's all about you, we must fight to defend what the Bible stands for, a people unified under one cause, seeking to walk out one purpose. Philippians 2:1-11-lays out the mindset that you and I are to be striving for, the same mind that our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus had.

Let me ask you a question, where do you turn when the bottom drops out of your life? Or when you face an issue that is embarrassing, or even scandalous?

This week I want you to ponder this idea, what would a church be like if it operated in unity and selfless humility, Phil. 2:1-11. Let us not simply think or dream about it, let's become such a place!!!!!

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Thursday Thoughts Week of May 28-June 4-The Word

2009-05-28T11:05:00.002-05:00

There are places that we must start, for the runner it is at the starting line, for the cook it is with the ingredients, for the believer it is the Word. Col. 3:16-admonishes us to let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly. There is a reason for this being the starting point, it is the starting point of the Bible, Gen. 1-God spoke, John 1-The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. So we believe that the Word is expressed in a two-fold manner:

1. The person of Jesus Christ, we can read all the Scripture that we want and still not know who Jesus is, John 5:39-40-Here He tells the Pharisees that they search the Scriptures thinking that the Law has the life, but Jesus reminds them that the Scriptures are about Him, they speak of Him, and they lead people to Him.

2. Thus with this mindset we believe in the perfectly inspired Word of God, every word was written to reveal the character of a huge God to finite man. And so we preach this Word, we talk about this Word, and we get really excited about this Word, because it leads us to Jesus, who as John 14:6 says is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father but through Him.

So how do you walk this out:

1. Through the teaching of the Word, making sure that we are devoting ourselves regularly to the preaching and teaching of God's Word.

2. Through meditation, by not just reading Scripture but lingering, chewing, digesting the Word of God, that we may know it.

3. Studying, this goes hand in hand with meditation, both go further then mere reading, it means finding some good, God-centered study material, and set aside some time to pursue the Father by reading and examining the Scriptures.

This is why we believe the Word is so important it is the revealed word of God to man, it is God in the flesh, so may we love the Word and may we search it to find Jesus.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

The week of May 7-14

2009-05-07T14:39:00.004-05:00

Here are the exciting things going on at FCL over the next few weeks:

1. The youth golf tournament is just around the corner, May 16th. If you are willing and able to help we can use you, whether to sponsor a hole, play, help set up, anything, you can help, email Jerry, jerry@fellowshiplubbock.com, and let him know, or see him Sunday morning.

2. CAMP SIGN-UP!!!!! Sign-ups for youth and children's camp have started so reserve your spot now, for more info email Jerry or Susie, jerry@fellowshiplubbock.com susie@fellowshiplubbock.com.

3. Please remember the Hope Pantry as you are out shopping, remember that we are now accepting gift cards as well.

4. The worship ministry is looking for participants, if you are abled and equipped contact David, david@fellowshiplubbock.com and set up a meeting time with him. Also we are looking for volunteers in the technical ministry, if you are interested contact David as well.

5. We have placed some useful website resources, these sites deal with doctrinal issues, church issues, gives you advice on Bible study methods, they are invaluable resource and great to explore, check them out.

That about wraps it up for this week, I hope that you pray about and seek ways to serve in your church. This week we will be in Eccl. 10:2-11:6, take some time this week to read over it, and look forward to seeing you this Sunday.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

THis Week at FCL

2009-04-23T08:31:00.005-05:00

This week I want to make you aware of some things that are upcoming here at FCL:

1. This Sunday morning starts our 2nd Covenant Membership Class of the year, it begins at 8:30 a.m. in Pastor Brandon's office. The class will run three weeks, if you are interested in covenant membership, or simply want to know more about the church this is for you.

2. May 2nd we will have our first ever Parent's Connection Dinner, this time is for those of you who have children between toddler, and 5th grade, to inform you of what the summer holds and keep you up to date with all that your children are learning and how you can encourage their growth at home. They will meet at 6 p.m. at 50th St. Caboose. Email Susie at susie@fellowshiplubbock.com to reserve your spot.

3. Sign up for this years addition on children's and youth camp begins in a week and a half, starting making plans for June 16-19.

4. Our next installment of the Pursuing Him series will begin May 31st at 8:30 a.m. This series will study the aspect of prayer and how we are to pursue our heavenly Father in prayer. The class will run 5 weeks, make plans to attend now, sign up by emailing us at fcl@fellowshiplubbock.com.

May the Lord grant you wisdom today as you seek Him and press into His heart. Let us not be a place of mere cultural converts but of true Biblical Disciples.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Sunday Morning Community Group

2009-04-22T13:45:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that the Sunday Morning Small Community Group will NOT meet this Sunday the 25th. We will see all of you at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, May 3rd.

Basking in the Glory

2009-04-07T11:19:00.003-05:00

Well like it or not April is already here and Easter is here wow!! What a year it has already been for us. This week is set aside for us to celebrate and rejoice as a family, both local and universal in what Christ did on the cross. We hope to see you Sunday as we celebrate and remember in a very cool way.

Here are a few items to remember throughout the upcoming weeks and ways that you can actively be involved in your personal growth and our growth as a church:

1. April 19th Eric Barbee will begin a Sunday morning Community Group that will begin studying 1 Timothy. The group will begin at 8:30 and go until 9:45-what a great opportunity to be involved if you are not yet in a Community Group.

2. April 23rd we will begin our next Covenant Membership Class-This is for those who are interested in finding out more about the church, our beliefs, why we do what we do, and for those who seek to covenant with us in membership. The class runs three weeks and meets in Brandon's office. If you are interested in signing up fill out a communication card and drop it in the joy box or email us at fcl@fellowshiplubbock.com.

3. As always remember the Hope Pantry. As you are out shopping pick up some of those items or if you are running short on time just get a gift card and drop it in the basket on Sunday, any amount will help.

May the Lord grant you the vision and wisdom to see Him clearly this week. I'm looking forward to seeing you on Sunday for a time of celebration and reflection.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

This week at FCL

2009-03-31T09:41:00.002-05:00

I wanted to bring your attention to some things going on here at the church be in prayer over them and search out ways to be involved yourself:

1. Golf Tourney-May 16-Email Jerry at jerry@fellowshiplubbock.com if you are interested in playing or sponsoring.

2. The Hope Pantry-our weekly ministry to the middle school-shop intentionally

3. New Community Group-beginning April 19-led by Eric Barbee-if you are interested see or email him at eric@fellowshiplubbock.com.

4. Easter Service-join us on Sunday April 12 as we celebrate and remember our Lord's Death and Resurrection, and how that empowers us to serve and love the world around us.

Verse for this week: Romans 8:1-3-There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin an death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh could not do.

Thank you JESUS!!!

2009-02-26T13:04:00.004-06:00

Golf Tournament Fundraiser

May 16, 2009

All proceeds benefit FCL Youth Ministry

Please call the church office for details regarding team sign-ups,

volunteer & sponsorship opportunities.

806-687-3253

SAME POWER

2009-02-09T10:25:00.004-06:00

The song we sang yesterday in church really is the message summed up, "the same power that conquered the grave lives in me." I think that if we are not careful what we can boil this year down to and the resolutions that we made is will-power. I can do it, the problem with that is historically that has not worked, because the power of my will will so fail, probably within 2-3 days and I find myself starting over thinking that somehow this time it will be different.

Here is the encouragement today: We no longer need to depend on our will, the great news is that we find our strength in the cross, where our sins past, present, and future are paid for. The object that we fix our eyes firmly on is the author and perfecter of our faith Jesus. Rest in that fact today, His love for you does not depend on your performance, but rather His.

With our eyes firmly fixed on Him let us run after Him, that is the greatest joy. Have a God-saturated day.

LOVE GOD LOVE PEOPLE

Brandon

Hope Pantry

2009-01-26T13:21:00.001-06:00

Please do not forget about The Hope Pantry. This is an amazing opportunity to impact our local community. You can bring your donations to the church during regular business hours or on Sunday mornings. Below is a list of items that are regularly collected. Any item that is kid friendly and shelf stable is very much appreciated.

* PopTarts * Ravioli * Canned Soup * Canned Fruit * Ramen Noodles

* Crackers * Peanut Butter * Jelly * Mac N' Cheese

Welcome to the world of Blogging

2009-01-15T14:16:00.000-06:00

We want to welcome you to the FCL blog page, feel free to look around, leave us a comment or just enjoy your time spent here on our page. It is our goal that as you read this from Lubbock or Colorado or anywhere in the world that you see what the Lord is doing here at FCL. We desire to use this page to keep you updated on events and happenings here at the church, as well as from time to time give you an opportunity to hear from your pastors on all things from religion and doctrine to movies and great places to eat.

It is our desire that through this page that you see the passion and desire that we have for Christ in all things, and that our desire is to inform you and inspire you through the Gospel to live a Christ filled life. Thank you and check back with us in a week to see what's going on here at FCL.

Brandon

Lead Pastor