Fire Bones

Are You a Good Person?

2012-01-24T14:08:00.001-06:00

Got this from the guys a Living Waters (Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron)

They Laughed At Me

2012-01-10T09:24:00.004-06:00

Laughter is a funny thing. It is fun to tell a funny story or a joke and people respond with laughter. (It is not as much fun when you think you are telling a funny story and no one laughs, especially in a sermon). But laughter can have a darker side. It is not much fun when people are laughing AT you.

Few things are more embarrassing and hurtful than to have people laughing at you during a moment of failure. Come on, think about your own life -- this has happened to you, probably when we were younger. I have been on both sides-- the laugher, and the one laughed at. Not good, either way.

Have you ever gone out of your way to be nice, or to help someone--it goes wrong and they laugh at your expense? Imagine the pain and disgrace you might feel.

In my bible reading plan I came across this story about Jesus,

Matthew 9:23-25
"23 And when Jesus came to the ruler’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, 24 he said, “Go away, for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. 25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl arose. 26 And the report of this went through all that district. "

First of all, we should be careful projecting our emotions and experience into something similar that happens to Jesus in scripture. But, in this text Jesus is laughed at---and it's not good. The people are mocking Him with laughter. It is meant to be hurtful and to bring embarrassment. Why were they laughing at Him? He was coming to help.

Their laughter is unbelief and lack of understanding. No one can raise some from the dead? The girl had died, it was too late. But, it's not too late for the Author of Life. He has the power over life and death. He can do what seems impossible.

This text is highlighting the person and power of Christ, and the scorn He received during His life. He was laughed at.

I know that Christmas has past, but this is a Christmas text. Jesus willingly left heaven and allowed Himself to be subject to ridicule, scorn, derision. He allowed Himself to experience derisive laughter and humiliation from a people He was coming to help -- from a people He was coming to raise from the dead.

This text demonstrates the incredible depths of God's love that He would sink Himself into humanity and face being laughed at.

Making Out In Front of Death: Danse Macabre

2011-12-12T12:10:00.006-06:00

No music is being played, but a dance is taking place. The figure undulating to the mystical sound of it’s own making is not living. Its skin is like the weathered remains of a discarded scrap of leather from a boot makers shop. The tattered leather sucks into the bones that protrude like they would from an emaciated, starving child. The whole scene is odd, but what makes it even more odd is the facial expression. It’s odd because there isn’t much of a face. It’s more like a skull, shrink-wrapped in that shabby leather. And yet, there is a wicked looking smile of triumph. The creature is stark naked, except for a white sheet being used almost like a feather boa at a burlesque show.

There is a great contrast in this scene. There are different types of people standing next to these creatures. There is a king, a nobleman, a noblewoman, a worker, and a peasant. They are dressed, and although they are obviously depicted in attire from the middle ages, they look normal. And weaving in and out among these normal looking humans are these vile creatures, gyrating to some unheard sound of victory.

There are words spoken. One creature speaks to the Emperor, “Emperor, your sword won’t help you out, scepter and crown are worthless here, I’ve taken you by the hand, for you must come to my dance.” It’s speaks without fear, with finality, and gravity. Its words are heavy and carry a tone of glee.

How could something so grotesque be smiling? What kind of God-forsaken creature would be engaged in such a demonic looking dance?

It’s not a creature, it’s not a figure, it is Death—personified.

The Danse Macabre
That was a feeble attempt to describe an incredible piece of art called the Danse Macabre. I went into this old church called the Church of St. Nicholas in Tallin. The church is now a museum and houses some incredible artwork that dates from the Middle Ages. One of the biggest attractions is this incredible mural painting called the Danse Macbre.
A German painter and sculptor, named Bernt Notke, produced this mural in 1425. The mural was moved around over the years, and it didn’t survive intact after WWII. The Church of St. Nicholas is the final resting place for this mural.
It is a fascinating piece of medieval art. It is huge. This isn’t a painting you could hang in your living room. It is probably 50 feet long and 10 feet high. The mural is an allegory that depicts the universality of death regardless of one’s station in life. In the mural, death is personified in animated skeletal looking zombies who are dancing. In between death are people. The people start off from the most important of adults and then progress downward all the way to a child. In between each person is death in the middle of a dance.

Viewing
When you enter the museum, the natural flow of traffic leads you to the Danse Macabre last. So, I made my way around the room looking at the iconographic artwork, the medieval tombstones and caskets (the rich could purchase a place to be buried inside the church), the blasphemous depiction of God the Father, numerous crucifixes, and then the mural. As in most museums, there were some nice displays explaining the artwork. I was intrigued by this piece of art. It caught my attention as a depiction of an incredibly important truism. As Maximus says in the movie Gladiator, “death smiles at us all”. But, instead of smiling back we are faced with the truth that death is dancing the dance of victory.
The other striking reminder is that death dances regardless of who you are. It reaches out to the most prominent king all the way down to the lowliest peasant. Old, and young alike must face the reality of death. One cannot buy themselves out of the dance of death, or rule their way out of the way of death, or work oneself beyond the invitation of death. The universal reach of death is something that cannot be escaped by who we are.
Yes, the mural is grim, dark, and “macabre”. But, it is also true. Death is coming for us all.

Making Out
There were other people in the museum that day. I was reflecting on the important truth depicted in that painting. I am not sure what Mr. Notke’s intent was, but it seems to ignite a confrontation with our own mortality. Humanity is mortal. We will die. No matter who we are, or what our station in life, or what our level of success or failure – death is coming for us. There is nothing we can do about that. I believe that contemplating that reality is good – because it can drive us to the One solution to that problem.
About 12 feet back from the mural is a series of benches. Sitting on these benches was a young couple. A guy and his girlfriend, probably in the early twenties, in a full face lock – making out. What a great date! “Let’s go to the museum today and sit in front of death personified and swap spit.”
How ironic, and yet representative of most people’s awareness of mortality. They ignore it. They get more wrapped up in their immediate pursuits and pleasures than they do in reality and truth. I wonder if Notke saw the same thing in his day, and painted this mural in an attempt to awaken people to the inevitability of the dance of death.

Conclusion
As I noted earlier, this mural is incomplete. There is no conclusion. In my research I was unable to find if there even is a conclusion. Maybe Mr. Notke didn’t have one. The mural is just supposed to make us aware of our mortality. But, given the time it was painted, and that it is incomplete, I wonder if there is some type of conclusion.
Since there isn’t one that is known, I will give my conclusion. Everyone will meet with death. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you have or haven’t done – death awaits us all. The reason for our mortality is because of sin. “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23) There is nothing we can do to get ourselves out of this payment. We deserve death, both temporal and eternal, for violating the standards of an infinitely holy God. So God, in His great love, did something for us. He sent His Son, Jesus, who became man, lived a sinless life, and died on the cross taking the punishment for our sin. He gave His life’s blood to pay for our sin. He danced with death because He loved us. But, death could not hold Him. He turned the tables around. He brought death to death. He rose from the dead and dances the dance of life-- life eternal. It is only when we turn to the Victorious Risen Savior, that we can be rescued from our own Danse Macabre.
That is the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have an important task. To interrupt people while they are making out, to show them the reality of death and the solution in Jesus Christ alone. That is the only way that they can be rescued from their own date with the Danse Macabre.

Back here in our culture we’ve got a tough mission. We have to reach people with the gospel of Christ while they are busy making out in front of death. They are wrapped up in all kinds of things that distract them from the reality of mortality and the only answer is found in Christ alone.

(This is a picture of a portion of the mural in St. Nicholas Church Museum)

(In this pic you can see the museum layout a bit better. The benches that I mention are not in this pic, and I did NOT take this picture -- you are not supposed to take pictures in the museum, a rule which I followed most of the time)

For More info, you can check out these sights.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danse_Macabre (Wikipedia page on mural)

http://www.dodedans.com/Eest.htm (Danse Macabre Info)

http://www.ekm.ee/eng/niguliste.php?id=137 (Nigueliste Museum: St. Nicholas Church)

Leaving Estonia

2011-11-14T14:59:00.000-06:00

Teaching American Football

2011-11-14T14:57:00.001-06:00

Here we are in Freedom Square trying to teach some Estonian teens how to play American Football. They haven't quite got it yet, but we are all having fun.

Pastor Nathan Shares Jesus With Teens in Estonia

2011-11-10T14:47:00.002-06:00

Pastor Nathan and I bought three footballs and started a mini-sports camp to share Christ. The first day we had four kids, played football and told them about Jesus. The second day we had eleven. The third day there were 36!!

We are standing in Freedom Square in Tallinn, Estonia. These teens are probably hearing some basic truths about God that they have never heard before. In the video you will hear some of the kids affirm what Pastor Nathan is saying. They are the kids we had talked to the previous days.

Last Day

2011-11-10T01:25:00.001-06:00

Our last full day. Evangelism at the train station, football clinic evangelism this afternoon, and coffee shop group this evening. Plus, whatever other divine appointments the Lord has on store for us.

Be praying

Sharing Christ In Music

2011-11-08T13:30:00.003-06:00

Great day today. In this video Zach and Abbie are in a town square which dates from the 14th century (I think). They are on the steps of an ancient building and basically playing songs about the gospel. There were a couple of songs that they did that were pretty much the entire gospel. Several people stopped and listened to every word of the song. They basically got to use the talents that God has given them(music) and shared Christ with people. Amazing! God can use us if we are just available.

Monday Work

2011-11-07T13:19:00.003-06:00

Monday

2011-11-07T13:19:00.001-06:00

Lunch At Troika

2011-11-07T12:48:00.000-06:00

Colton Lino On Mission

2011-11-07T12:41:00.004-06:00

Colton on his first mission trip with his dad. He has been tearing it up, handing out tracts to any and everyone he can. In this video he passes one out to a man, and then the train engineer opens the window and asks for two of the tracts from Colton as well. If this doesn't inspire you to get out of your comfort zone for Christ, nothing will!

Steet Performance

2011-11-07T12:38:00.002-06:00

This morning we went to a train station. Zach and Abbie busted out the guitar and did some incredible music on the street. As people would pass by we would hand out fliers/tracts to them. All kinds of people came by; young, old, sober, not so sober...it was very interesting and productive.

By the way, Zach and Abbie are incredible!

What's For Breakfast

2011-11-07T01:08:00.001-06:00

2011-11-06T23:56:00.003-06:00

We are having church here in a side room of a church building that is close to 700 years old. We are half way around the world, in a foreign country with people, wait, I guess we are the foreigners. What could we possibly have in common? The Lord Jesus Christ saved us by His grace. That is something we have in common and for which we can join together to worship our Savior.

International Church

2011-11-06T23:55:00.000-06:00

Museum and God

2011-11-06T23:54:00.000-06:00

Leaning Estonian Culture

2011-11-06T23:53:00.002-06:00

Here we are at the Thompsons apartment learning about Estonian culture and having lunch.

Day 1 Report

2011-11-05T13:20:00.000-05:00

Overlooking Old Town Tallinn

2011-11-05T13:19:00.000-05:00

Made It

2011-11-05T03:34:00.004-05:00

OK, we are in Tallinn, Estonia. It was a long trip but we made it. Thanks for all the prayers, God is good. I was awake for about 32 hours with only one and half hour nap on the flight. So, we were tired. We finally got some sleep last night. Today our goal is to get our legs underneath us, do some orientation, planning, praying for all the work that comes next week. We will also get to meet and know the Thompsons and the rest of the team from Houston.

Finland, Bus, to the Ferry

2011-11-05T03:33:00.000-05:00

Estonia 11 -- Packing

2011-11-03T13:40:00.000-05:00

Gospel Precision

2011-10-24T10:15:00.003-05:00

In the tenure of my life in the ministry I have grown accustomed to people being inaccurate in their understanding and articulation of the gospel, and biblical doctrines. Correcting people is the difficult part. The difficulty is not in identifying what's wrong, but the manner in which correction takes place.

So, is precision necessary and if so when?

The gospel is simple. I've sinned, Jesus died and rose again, salvation comes by faith in Christ alone. That is the gospel in a nutshell, and it is fairly simple. It is simple enough for a child to hear, understand and respond. It is not necessary for someone to be able to articulate justification, propitiation, substitutionary atonement and other key related doctrines in order to receive salvation. They don't need to be able to articulate them, but they do need to understand those concepts as part of a sound, evangelistic, gospel presentation.

But, that does not mean understanding those terms and being able to articulate them is not important. I think that it is a vital part of growing as a disciple to learn, and be taught, not only the meaning of those biblical truths, but also how to articulate them. That is where precision is necessary.

It is also necessary in evangelism. This is especially true in the Bible belt. Churched people, who are still lost, have been inoculated to an imprecise version of the gospel, that probably isn't the true gospel. It is disturbing to me to run across people who have a church background and when asked about their relationship with the Lord give a works based answer to describe it. That happens to me all the time! That is where I have to be precise in my evangelistic efforts. This does not mean that I use big words, but that I am precise with the concepts those big words contain.

How do you accomplish that precision and still communicate effectively? That takes effort and work. One of the best ways to hone your precision is to explain the gospel, precisely, to younger people. Practice explaining justification to your kids. They need to hear it, and you need to practice communicating it.

Pastor Youcef Update

2011-10-12T10:25:00.003-05:00

It seems to me like the international attention and reports have opened a small window for Christian pastor Youcef. Youcef is the Christ follower set to be executed because he would not convert to Islam in Iran. The supreme court has ordered a re-trial. This looks to me like a "face-saving" maneuver. Whatever it is, I am thankful that God has seen fit to spare His life. Read an article about it HERE.

Read a letter from Pastor Youcef in prison in Iran.

Pastor To Be Executed

2011-09-28T13:36:00.002-05:00

I saw a headline that caught my attention. A Christian pastor in Iran has been arrested, tried and is set to be executed. What was his crime? Being a Christian and refusing to renounce Christ. You can read the article in this Fox News Report

Tertullian once said, "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church." When Christ followers are killed for no other reason than being a Christ follower the end result is the opposite of the murderers' intent. The murderers' intend for this to be a warning to others who might consider Christ and want to follow Him. It seems logical to think that, but history proves otherwise. In 2000 years, where the persecution is most extreme the gospel spreads the fastest.

Thankfully we live in a free country. We face some religious challenges, but nothing like they do in other parts of the world. As people of freedom and followers of Christ we should pray for our brothers and sisters who face serious threats each day simply for their relationship with Jesus. We should also pray for our "enemies". We should ask God to use the life of those persecuted to reach many with the gospel of Christ.

UPG's -- "You Shall Be My Witness..."

2011-09-22T10:31:00.003-05:00

Here in the buckle of the bible belt I've often said that you can't throw a bible down the street without hitting at least 2 churches. That is not the case in other parts of our country, but especially the world.

A UPG is an unreached people group. Here is the official definition from the International Mission Board Website (imb.org) "A people group is unreached when the number of Evangelical Christians is less than 2% of its population. "

Let's dissect that. People group - that is a group of people (duh) that share some commonalities. Like location, language (dialects), and other cultural commonalities. You can't just say a country, or nationality because that is too broad. Every country and nationality has within it smaller subsets of culture -- people groups. One country can be comprised of even hundreds of different identifiable people groups. Or, it could have just a few.

Unreached -- this phrase is used to describe "evangelical presence". Evangelical means different things to different people, but in this context it is used to refer to bible believing Christ followers who also believe in evangelism in that particular people group.

So, a UPG is a country/people group that has less than 2% that acknowledge to be bible believing Christians. Statistics vary, but here in America there are anywhere from 25-40% that acknowledge being evangelical(we will save a debate on the validity of those statistics for another time). This means if you are to walk up to a random person in America and ask them if they have heard of Jesus, they will probably say yes. If you do the same thing in an UPG they will probably say no.

In November I am going with a small team on a mission trip to Estonia. Estonia is an unreached people group. Less than 2% of the population acknowledge being evangelical. The overwhelming majority of Estonians are lost, unsaved, don't have Jesus, are heading to hell. God loves them just as much as he loves you and me.

The great commission of Jesus commands us to "go, and make disciples of all nations". It's not the great "suggestion", it is a command. It is important for us to realize that there are lost people right where we are, and that there are lost people all around the world. Doing nothing is not an option. People's eternity is at stake -- will we be obedient to the Lord who rescued us from our sin?

What's In It For Me?

2011-09-14T08:41:00.004-05:00

What's in it for me? That question may not be vocalized, but it is the underlying assumption for just about all that we do in this culture that we find ourselves in.

Every time you watch a commercial they are answering that question. Here is what our product has for you. Infomercials are infamous for answering this question. "These ginsu knives are only 19.99. But, wait, there's more..." Just in case you were thinking, "Is that all that is in it for me?" Well, no. You also get a pairing knife, a kitchen chamois, and and seed strainer.

I get junk mail all the time. Some company feels it would help their business to show me their product and tell me "what's in it for me". I also get lots of fliers for churches. Even these churches are telling me what their church offers. They do this because people that are looking for a church home are looking to have that question answered, "what's in it for me?"

That question is probably on a lot of people's minds when it comes to Christianity. "You say I should become a Christian, well, what's in it for me?"

If you listen to some churches, pastors, preachers, the answer seems to be everything. Health, wealth, peace, prosperity, good relationships, a better job, joy, absence of conflict, no difficulties. "What's in it for me?" Some portray the answer as "anything you want."

Now, there are lots of benefits to being a Christian. Some of the things in the list, if properly defined, are true. But, the answer is much shorter, more simple, and more essential. The answer to the question, "what's in it for me?" is JESUS. That's what we get when we become a true, biblical Christian. JESUS.

How come it seems like JESUS is not enough?! After all, He is the eternal God of the universe. He is the Supreme Lord. He is the Savior who gave His life to redeem us from our sin. He shed His blood so we might be forgiven and made right with God. His cross and resurrection was so we could know Him and have a relationship with Him. The answer is JESUS.

Is that enough for you?

Don't Be Good, Be Different: Moralism and the Gospel

2011-08-29T09:51:00.004-05:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about being a good person. It seems like a lot people's perception of the Christian message is that the goal is to produce morality. Come to Jesus, go to church, so you can be a better; man, woman, husband, wife, student, employer, employee...fill in the blank.

This culture does have a tendency to view church as another aspect of their overall morality.

The gospel does confront morality but from a very different perspective. In the gospel morality is the indication of our need for a Savior. Let me be more specific. The gospel informs us that our morality is an indication of a deeper seated problem. Sin is not the absence of good morals. The absence of good morals is an indication of a deep, internal heart problem -- we are at heart sinners.
This is not just splitting hairs - it is a fundamental distinction. The gospel also informs us that what we perceive as good morality in our life, really isn't that good. In fact, all of our perceived goodness/morality/behavior is the equivalent of a pile of dirty rags compared to the standard of a Holy God. The Savior does not come to make us better at morality. The Savior comes to eradicate the sin problem of the heart.

This means that the major message of the church should not be "we will make you a better person". Don't get me wrong, the church does have a mandate to address behavior, good deeds and morality. But this must be enveloped in the context of the gospel. Our good deeds, behavior and morality are indications of heart change, but never create heart change. If someone claims to have heart change, but the pattern of the behavior/morality does not reflect that it is legitimate to question that heart change.

A message of morality, void of an emphasis on the gospel of grace, only produces half hearted religiosity. It also leaves people frustrated. It is frustrating because it removes the source of power to truly affect life change -- God's gracious gospel in Jesus Christ.

Jesus didn't die on the cross so we could be better. He died so we could be different, distinct, separated unto God. And, that precedes and leads to the correct motivation for a different morality in our lives.

Took A Break

2011-08-22T10:05:00.002-05:00

Do you remember that philosophical question? "If a tree falls in a forest, and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?"

If no one reads your blog, and you take a break from blogging, does anyone notice? :)

I haven't kept up with my blog for a few months, but I think I am ready to post some more.

I took a break for several reasons. Probably the main reason was a combination of practical/spiritual. I felt like every attempt at having some type of devotional time with God was turning into "what can I share with others". From Bible reading, to praying, to whatever I was doing, it seemed to be drifting away from just being with the Lord, to trying to find a good nugget to share in a sermon, or a bible study, or a blog message.

There is a part of my calling as a preacher that necessitates such a mentality. I do have a responsibility to share a message with various audiences. I am always in "preacher" mode to some extent. When I hear a newsstory, or something going on in the world, my default is to analyze according to scripture and the upcoming message I am preparing to share. That is a good thing, and will never leave me.

The problem for me was that thinking was taking over my devotional time with the Lord. It is a very difficult challenge for me as a pastor/preacher to be intentional in simply spending time with my Lord and not just going through the motions in order to prepare a sermon or lesson. At times in my life I have done better with that than at other times. When i seem to be losing that focus it is important to do whatever is necessary to get things back into balance.

I am thankful for the grace and patience of the Lord. His steadfast love never fails.

Do You Know What It Says?

2011-06-06T11:40:00.003-05:00

"God helps those who help themselves." Where is that Bible verse? The answer--no where. It's not in the bible,and it's not true. Yet, so many people quote sayings that aren't even in the Bible.

A recent article on CNN is about that very issue.

This is a great article that highlights the need to actually know what the Bible says. You cannot know what the Bible actually says if you never read, or study it.

Food is Good

2011-05-24T09:45:00.003-05:00

Food is good. Food is not only good it is necessary. It is so necessary we will die if we go to long without food. Every morning I wake up and it doesn’t take long for me to begin thinking about food. What am I going to have for breakfast?
I have heard for years that “breakfast is the most important meal of the day”. I don’t know about the science of that statement, but it seems to make sense. My body needs to fueled so that I have the necessary energy to go through the day.

Food is critical to a properly functioning body. This effects every part of our life. My brain, emotions, and muscles are all directly impacted by the intake of food.

I cannot live without food. That is why we think about food many times a day.

Jesus said to the disciples, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” What? The disciples were confused. They began to talk among themselves. “Hey Peter, did Jesus stop by 7-11 while we weren’t around?” “I don’t James, there was a grocery store back a couple of miles. Maybe he picked up a sandwich at the café.”
Wrong! That is not what Jesus is talking about.

“Guys, listen up…my food is to do the Father’s will and to finish the work.” (John 4:34)

This is in John 4. That chapter starts out with the classic encounter between Jesus and the woman at the well. He told her that He was the living water. Now He tells the disciples that His food is to do the Father’s will.

You can’t live without water, and you can’t live without food. That is the comparison Jesus is making.

Food is compared to doing the will of the Father. Jesus’ was nourished, energized, filled up, strengthened, and enlivened by doing the will of the Father.
Food is not optional, how come we so often approach obedience to God’s will that way? It is not optional. True, I may continue breathing and living today without focusing on the Father’s will – but that is not truly living. It is a poor substitute for the true, abundant life that God has for us. True life is when I walk with the Father in His will.

Food is good. Food is necessary. Every morning I wake up and think about food. Every day I must eat food. God’s will is good. God’s will is necessary. Every morning I should wake up and seek to submit my spirit to the will of God. Every day I must seek the will of God.

Did you know that God’s will is actually better than food? There is a level where the analogy between food and God’s will breaks down. It is possible to view and use food incorrectly. You can become a glutton of food, which is a sin. You can eat too much, or too much of the wrong thing. You can overeat and become overweight.

Not so with God’s will. We are supposed to be gluttons of God’s will. There is no such thing as overeating God’s will. The problem is not becoming obese on God’s will, but becoming too thin. So, watch what you eat when it comes to actual food, but don’t ever be complacently satisfied with knowing and doing the will of God.

In Evil Long I Took Delight

2011-04-26T10:37:00.003-05:00

Here is the poem by John Newton that I quoted on Easter Sunday:

In evil long I took delight,
Unawed by shame or fear;
Till a new object struck my sight,
And stopped my wild career.

I saw One hanging on a tree,
In agony and blood;
Who fix'd His languid eyes on me,
As near His cross I stood.

Sure never till my latest breath,
Can I forget that look;
It seem'd to charge me with His death,
Tho' not a word He spoke.

My conscience felt and own'd the guilt,
And plunged me in despair;
I saw His blood my sins had spilt,
And help'd to nail Him there.

A second look He gave which said,
I freely all forgive,
This blood is for thy ransom paid,
I died that you may live.

Thus while His death my sin displays,
In all its blackest hue,
Such is the mystery of His grace,
It seals my pardon too.

With pleasing grief, and mourful joy,
My spirit now is filled,
That I should such a life destroy,
Yet live by Him I killed.

Rob Bell Reviews

2011-04-19T11:12:00.003-05:00

The more I reflect on Rob Bell's book "Love Wins" the more disturbing it becomes. In fact, it is downright dangerous and cruel. That's right, cruel. It is cruel to see people heading towards danger and to tell them that it's not that dangerous.

Instead of continuing my review, there are some much smarter, wiser people that have done that very thing. Here are the best reviews.

John MacArthur is doing a series of blogs on Love Wins

Here

Here

Here

Dr. Al Mohler has a good review

Here

Frank Turk also has a good open letter to Rob Bell

Here

Mud Run - Pics

2011-04-11T09:58:00.006-05:00

The race was in the shadow of Downtown Fort Worth. We started next to Lagrave Field...home of the Fort Worth Cats.

Brett and I before the Race

Some post race pics:

Mud Run - Post Race Recap

2011-04-11T09:38:00.004-05:00

I survived!! And... it was awesome! The race was very challenging...I was sucking wind...the obstacles were a blast...and I had a great time with my pastor friend Brett Storseth...who, by the way, won! He led the race from start to finish! Incredible.

The race started off with a good mile run. There were a couple of small obstacles, just enough to get your heart pumping and weed out the really slow runners. The first major challenge was a swim across the Trinity river. I don't know what was the bigger challenge; swimming with army boots on, or trying not to think about what toxins were in that river?

After that swim there was a good 50 yard scramble up a steep hill. From that point on cardio was the issue. I had to slow down a few times but kept a decent pace. I think I finished 7th in my wave.

The worst obstacle: we had another swim across the Trinity, up a small bank, and then about a 150 yard plod through a mud bog of a feeder creek into the Trinity. The mud was sloppy, thick, and sticky. It was hard to walk through, I fell several times, and it would suck your feet down. The worst part was the stench - it had that putrid, old pond/sewage type of smell. It was exhausting to get through that bog.

The best obstacle: lots of them were fun...the mud crawls...cargo net...the platform jump into a pit of water...all were a blast and I wanted to do them again. I think my favorite was more of an accomplishment. It was the 9 foot wall. It was just far enough in the race that I was pushing for air and I hadn't thought about or practiced how to get over this wall. So, I ran and jumped and was able to get a grip with my hands...arms mostly extended, but I was stuck there. No momentum. The only thing I could think to do was throw my left elbow over the top...then I basically swung my legs up to the top...flipped head over heels...and landed on the other side on my feet...how did I do that? It hurt and I have a good bruise on the underside of my left arm as a badge of honor. But it was getting over that I enjoyed the most.

For most of the race I was in between groups. The really fast group, Brett and 5 others, outpaced me, and I was a good distance ahead of the group behind me. So, I got to run and do most of the course by myself. I kind of enjoyed that...just pushing myself...enjoying the challenge...it was fun.

Brett finished and came back to cheer me on and run alongside of me. I think he was a bit surprised that I was as far along as I was. It was a good encouragement to keep going and finish the last few obstacles strong. I did and my finish time was 1 hour and 24 minutes. Pretty good for an old fart.

Reflecting on the whole thing: the race was a great motivation for me to workout consistently in the few months before. I feel like I am in good shape - that is always a good thing. I love to compete...that was fun. It was a great challenge...and I got to do it with a friend.

When is the next one?!

Mud Run

2011-04-07T10:34:00.004-05:00

This winter a friend introduced me to adventure racing. Perhaps a bit foolish, I decided to sign up for the DFW Mud Run. It is a 10k race with about 30 muddy, wet, challenging obstacles.
The race is this Saturday, April 9th.
There are two divisions, the competitive division and the non-competitive one. I like to compete, but that division ran on Sunday morning and I was unwilling to give up a Sunday to do that. So, I will compete in the non-compete division. Maybe it will make me look better.

I have always been athletic and worked our fairly regularly, but I never did much endurance running. I know that 10k is not that far for many, but will be further than I have ever run at one time.

I have been training now since about late January and have received some great advice from a few friends. My friend Dave Elliot (check out his blog here) gave me some good tips and advice. By the way he does another type of adventure/endurance racing that makes a 10k look like the salad before a 5 course steak dinner. My brother in law, Chuck, who runs the fitness boot camp (see here) has also been training me.

I feel like I am ready, but I know that I am not going to be too fast. My friend Brett Storseth, who got me into this, (pastor in Wichita Falls see here), has done lots of these and is going to smoke me at the mud run.

I feel like I am in good shape. Better shape than I have been in a while. It seems that I need something to motivate me to be consistent -- competing and not looking like a fool is some good motivation for me.

I'll let you know how it goes after Saturday.

2011-04-01T08:25:00.004-05:00

Continuing our discussion of hell and justification...

In Jesus, and Him alone, the Justice of God is satisfied, and the Love of God is extended.

This leads us to consider a couple of other questions. If Jesus' death satisfies justice why is there still a hell? Does this mean that everyone automatically goes to heaven?

The belief that everyone goes to heaven is called universalism. This is essentially the position of Rob Bell. (His position is a bit more nuanced, but boils down to universalism)

You can come to that position, but just not from scripture. Jesus was clear that not everyone ends up in heaven. In fact, he says that most people will not end up in heaven.

But, if Jesus died for justice why do some still go to hell? The answer is that the gift of acquittal must be received in order to appropriate its benefits.

The biblical requirement for receiving the gift of pardon is repentance and faith. Jesus took the punishment, offers the gift, and gets to set the terms necessary for one to receive His gift. That is repentance and faith.

We must be clear about this. Reception of a gift is not a work to earn the gift. In fact, repentance and faith are a gift from the grace of God as well. If someone does not appropriate the pardon Jesus purchased then they forfeit its benefits forever. This is a tragedy. The gift is available and hell can be avoided. All one has to do is receive their pardon by grace through faith. If they don't, they will spend eternity in hell.

Imagine this: a person, JQ Everyman, has been walking down the broad path of life. JQ Everyman is handcuffed with his arms behind his back. He walks down a long hallway and comes to two doors. One door is big, broad. It is already opened. He can see down the path that this big door leads to. It is a broad path and there are lots of people ambling down this path. But, there is another door in front of JQ Everyman. It is a much smaller door and it is shut and locked. He is convinced that this door is the door to real life. But he can't open it, or go through it. It's locked and his hands are cuffed.
The owner of the door does something that JQ Everyman couldn't do for himself. The Owner comes and unlocks the door, and takes off his handcuffs. The Owner even opens the smaller door. JQ Everyman can see down this road. It is smaller, there are not as many people walking down it, but what he sees is truth, life, the Owner's invitation to walk with Him.

Then JQ Everyman turns away from the Owner and walks through the big door down the broad path that leads to destruction.

The story and analogy is far from perfect, but it is a bit similar to heaven and hell. Yes, Jesus satisfied the demands of a Just God and extends the love of God. But, if a person does not appropriate that by grace through faith/repentance, then they are walking down the broad road to destruction.

The jail door has been opened, the way to freedom is available if man would but repent and believe in Jesus. If not, they will spend and eternity in hell.

See Matthew 7:13-14

For review: God is Just and Holy. He would be perfectly justified in offering no one the opportunity of a relationship with Him and going to heaven. This because we are sinners. The fact that there is a way to be justified by Jesus Christ is the amazing love of God. He is both perfectly just and loving.
One cannot make a sound, biblical argument for the position of universalism.

Coming up next: some more thoughts about the reality of hell.

Argument From Justice - Part 2: Jesus and Justice

2011-03-29T11:27:00.006-05:00

God is Holy and we are not. God is Just and His justice is perfect. He cannot allow crime to go unpunished for that would be unjust. The just punishment for our sins against a holy God is hell. That is what humanity deserves.

This means that there is a problem. The Bible talks about heaven. How can God remain Just and yet allow any sinful human to avoid hell and go to heaven?

Jesus is the Answer!

Jesus Christ took the punishment in our place. He paid the price we owed. In Jesus, God's justice was satisfied perfectly. Through Jesus a sinner can be acquitted while justice is upheld. Only God could devise such a perfect and amazing plan.

Here is how it works:

First of all, some might wonder why can't we pay for our own sins during this life? Is it possible for someone to do enough good deeds to balance out their sins against God? If that is possible then we could atone for our own sins. Maybe we could go so far to think that if we gave our life as a payment for our sins, wouldn't that be enough to procure acquittal?

No! Justice requires equitability. It must be equitable. Our good deeds, and even our very life is not an equitable payment for our sins. The reason our good deeds will never be good enough is because our sins have an infinite characteristic to them. Our sins are a violation against the infinite holiness of God. Equitability would require an payment, or sacrifice, that contains an infinite payment. As humans we are finite. Our good deeds are measurable and finite. Our own life is not an appropriate sacrifice because it is not infinite in value. This is a critically important truth that people need to grasp. You cannot pay for your own crimes against a holy God!

The problem we have requires a solution that is capable of meeting the infinite characteristics involved. This is where Jesus comes in. He is the infinitely perfect sacrifice to pay the punishment for our crimes. His life, and His life alone, can meet the requirements for the punishment of sin. Jesus is God. He is perfect in holiness and righteousness. He became man in order to die for our sins. He lived a perfect life and never sinned. When He willingly died on that cross He was the infinitely acceptable sacrifice for the payment of sins. The immeasurable quality of His person is what enables Jesus to satisfy the payment not just for my sins, but for others as well.

So, in Jesus, and only in Jesus, the justice of God is satisfied and His great love/grace/mercy are extended! Wow!

This raises some other questions: If Jesus' death satisfies justice why is there still a hell? Does this mean that everyone automatically goes to heaven?

Answer -- stay tuned!

The Argument From Justice

2011-03-28T11:15:00.003-05:00

My dictionary app defines justice as “rightfulness, lawfulness, equitableness, or moral rightness.”

Granted that there are flaws in the justice system in America, it is still one of the best in the world. There is no system of justice in this world that has ever been perfect because they all involve fallible humanity. That is why there are occasions where the guilty go free and the innocent are punished. And yet, America has one of the most just systems in the world.

Let’s consider some hypothetical situations regarding justice. Consider a capital murder case. The criminal has committed multiple murders, brutally killing seven innocent victims. There is no doubt to his guilt. His fingerprints and dna are linked to all of the crimes. There are eyewitnesses to what he did. Guilt is not in doubt.

Then there is an unfathomable turn. The judge decides to pronounce the man innocent, and to let him go free. (remember this is s hypothetical)

If that were to happen people would be incensed and outraged. How could a judge who is supposed to uphold justice do such a thing?! That is criminal in and of itself. That is the opposite of justice. That criminal deserves the full punishment of the law. Such a judge would be downright evil to allow such a situation to occur. He would be thrown out of office at the first opportunity. We would not stand for that.
There has been a lot of discussion lately in the news and in the world of the internet about the Biblical concept of hell. The catalyst for this discussion was the release of a book by Rob Bell called “Love Wins.” In this book Bell is battling against the biblical idea of a real hell. His attack is nothing new(good review here). Many have wondered, “how could a loving God send people to hell?”

Besides the fact that the scriptures are unmistakable clear in teaching the reality of hell, let’s consider the argument from justice.

It is a flawed task to compare the justice of man with the justice of God. His ways, are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts( Isaiah 55). For all the imperfections of human justice, God’s justice has no imperfections. He always does what is perfectly just. He can do no different.

People would be outraged if a human judge let a guilty mass murder off free. And yet people are outraged that God would NOT do that. God would be just, rightful, equitable and lawful. He is the epitome of true justice.

The response that people give to that would sound like this, “Yes, but we are not all murderers. What about all the innocent people? Do they really deserve hell just because they don’t accept Jesus?”

God would not send an innocent person to suffer for all eternity in hell. And yet the Bible is clear that hell will be filled to the brim with all kinds of people. This raises a more important question. Are there any innocent people in hell? Are there any innocent people?

The answer to both of those questions is “NO”. There are no innocent people. Let that sink in. There are no innocent people. Some might object, “I am not a mass murderer. Sure, I may have told a white lie, and do some things I shouldn’t have, but surely there is a difference between me and a mass murder?”

There is no difference. Compared to other humans, you might be a bit better. But the standard we are measured against is not humanity but God. God is infinite in Holiness and Perfection. His law is the perfect standard. This means that even the slightest infraction of His law is a crime against the infinite measure of God’s goodness. We are worse than mass murders.

That is why we deserve hell. That is why hell is a place of eternal torment. Our crimes of sin against God are infinite in measure. Justice requires equitability. The only equitable punishment would have to be eternal in measure. That is why hell is an eternal punishment.

That is true justice. For God not to do that would make God bad, and an evil judge. He is Holy, Righteous and Just. That’s why hell exists.

Coming: Part 2 – Jesus and God’s Justice

He Is Worthy of Worship

2011-03-14T13:53:00.003-05:00

A quote from A.W. Tozer,

"Sometimes I go to God and say, "God, if Thou dost never answer another prayer while I live on this earth, I will still worship Thee as long as I live and in the ages to come for what Thou hast done already. God’s already put me so far in debt that if I were to live one million millenniums I couldn’t pay Him for what He’s done for me."

Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small,
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my life, my soul, my all.

Oh, the wonderful cross
Bids me come and die
And find that I may truly live

Thank you for the cross!

Tsunami Tragedy and the Gospel

2011-03-11T17:19:00.002-06:00

The news of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan are devastating! It is grieving to hear of so many lives lost and shattered. It should move us followers of Christ to pray.

This Sunday our church will set aside a portion of our corporate worship service to pray in light of this news.

It should also remind us of something else: the time is now to share the gospel! Tomorrow is no guarantee! The loss of life is tragic. The loss of eternal life is even more tragic! God has graciously saved me and given me His gospel -- how can I hold that in? How can I not speak of the Only One who can truly rescue people from the despair of their sin?

We have a biblical responsibility to help those in their time of need - to ease physical suffering. We also have the responsibility to tell them the good news of Jesus Christ.

We are in urgent times -- the only answer, the only hope is the gospel of Jesus Christ!

What Get's You Excited?

2011-02-23T18:02:00.002-06:00

(This is a blog post from Pastor Tim Wheeless)

Tomorrow morning we will gather with our church family to worship our God and praise the Lord Jesus Christ. In our worship center almost every other chair has a Bible underneath it so that those who need a copy may follow along as our pastor preaches. They are even welcome to take a copy with them if they do not own one. Many in the service will use electronic copies on their phones or other devices. Upstairs, on the youth hallway, it is inevitable that I will find a Bible left lying around in the game room or in another classroom, left there by a teen who got distracted and forgot to take it home. The same thing will happen in the lobby as adults engage in conversations. One will be left on a counter or bench. Our lost and found gets full of Bibles that have been left behind never to be claimed again. Maybe they have multiple copies at home so leaving one behind is no big deal. But that's just the point isn't it? It's become no big deal.

Too often we take for granted that we have the written Word so readily at our disposal. We have no concept of what it is like to not have accessibility to the Scriptures, to have to listen to someone tell you what God's word says and not be able to read it for ourselves. We forget that men died so that we could have the written word and study it for ourselves, intimately knowing our God and listening to Him in our hearts and minds. We have taken so much of this for granted. Perhaps, if we could go back and witness what it must have been like to read the written word in our own language for the first time ever we would have a deeper love for Scripture, a more earnest desire to study it and to love God's word. While we can never go back and see God's written word in our own language or hold it again for the first time we can see how others respond when they receive Scripture in their language for the first time.

The Kimyal People Receive the New Testament from UFM Worldwide on Vimeo.

Bible Readig Plans

2011-01-15T11:31:00.003-06:00

It's time again to renew our commitment to the word of God. A follower of Christ is led, taught, encouraged, rebuked, trained, and protected by God through His Word.

Far to few people who call themselves Christians have actually read the Bible. Don't let that be you. Read God's Word this year.

Here are some options:

1. Read through the New Testament.

2. Read through the entire Bible.

I began to develop my own plan, and realized I was about to reinvent the wheel.

Here is a great website that has a link to some downloadable reading plans.

http://www.navpress.com/dj/content.aspx?id=138

NavPress Reading Plans

Westboro - Not Baptist or Christian

2011-01-12T15:40:00.003-06:00

I hesitate to even mention the evil folks of Westboro Baptist. They crave any attention or publicity that they can get. But, I want to make clear a few things in regards to them because some people might get confused by their name.
This group of people, and their cult like leader Fred Phelps, have made a name for themselves by protesting with very offensive signs at the funerals of soldiers, politicians and officials. This last weekend there was a tragic shooting of a congresswoman. She lived. Six others died, including a nine year old girl. There are reports that the group from Westboro is going to come and picket at these funerals. ( I have since seen conflicting reports about whether they will or will not picket at this funeral)
I won’t detail what their signs say, but they are very offensive and completely inappropriate for people who are grieving at a funeral.
I want to set the record straight. Although they claim the name ‘baptist’ they are NOT a part of the Southern Baptist Convention. In fact, they are not officially a part of any brand of official Baptist organizations. They are completely their own independent group( I won’t even call them a church, because they aren’t a true church).
Beyond that, I don’t think that they are even Christian. Their actions do not reflect a group of people who understand the gospel of Jesus Christ and are seeking to follow Christ. For example, Jesus himself said that the greatest commandment is to love God and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself(Matthew 22:37-39). The actions of Westboro are completely devoid of any real vestige of true, Christ-like love. Jesus modeled compassion. Jesus did speak the truth, but He was always demonstrating love and compassion. These folks at Westboro are not following Christ’s example. I doubt whether they are truly Christian.
We do live in a free country. I have the freedom to write and speak about my objections and opinions about anyone. Freedom means that crazy people get to have their right to free speech as well. Freedom also comes with responsibility, which these people at Westboro seem inclined to ignore. Set aside Christian values for a moment, common decency should keep these folks from picketing at the funeral of a little girl! Come on! Grow up!
This group of people exhibit some clear signs of being in a cult. A cult has one dominant, authoritative leader, an aberrant teaching, and an antagonistic philosophy. This group is run by one man. What he says is law – that is a hallmark of a cult-like leader. The members of this church are made up primarily of his family members. They have a weird, antagonistic philosophy. There are some clear comparisons between this man and David Koresh.
It is also unfortunate that they chose to use the name ‘baptist’. It bothers me that someone might associate who I am as a baptist with what these people at Westboro stand for. I do not want to be lumped in with those nut-jobs.

Here is a great quote from Christian apologist and blogger Phil Johnson:

It is unfortunate that in the media (and thus in the minds of many non-Christians) the Fred Phelps family have become the representative face of religious opposition to homosexuality. For the record, they are not Christians at all. They are gospel-corrupters who have exchanged the gospel of Jesus Christ for a twisted message of fierce, ungodly hatred.

The true gospel is good news about forgiveness and cleansing from every kind of sin—from homosexuality and heterosexual fornication to white-collar sins such as greed and fraud (1 Corinthians 6:9-11). But the Westboro Baptist heretics have exchanged the gospel for a graceless, hopeless harangue that is an embarrassment and an affront to true Christians—and a gross insult to both the Person and the work of Christ.

Such gospel-twisting is expressly condemned in Scripture as the profoundest kind of blasphemy, a desecration of the Name of Christ, and a more horrific crime against God than any sexual perversion. See Galatians 1:7-8; 2 John 7-11.

Christmas Charity

2010-12-22T16:44:00.002-06:00

Tis the season to give. I often remark about the incredible lengths our culture has gone to commercialize Christmas. That topic is kind of like the proverbial “beating a dead horse”. But, what about charitable giving? Have you noticed how ubiquitous ads for giving to charities have become near Christmas? I have. It’s everywhere.

Of course, the Salvation Army has been doing this for a long time. Frankly, I find the bell ringing workers really annoying. Lose the bell, please. I also feel sorry for these people. They have to stand outside, no matter what the weather, and ring that bell for hours. I am sure that aren’t getting paid much, not enough to endure that agony. But, a job is a job.

I guess other charities have caught on, because it is no longer just the Salvation Army. Every good charity is asking for your donations. I have heard ads for the following: homeless shelters, food banks, cancer support/research, military personnel, military families, toys for tots, educational programs, chemical dependency groups, oversea orphanages, Angel Tree, and much more. Our church participates in the Lottie Moon Christmas offering for International Missions, and in collecting canned goods for our local food banks.

And the great thing is, people give. I don’t know if it has always been this way, but it seems like these charities are asking and more and more people are giving. It seems to have become part of our culture for families to put charitable giving as a part of their Christmas budget.

This is a good thing, right? I definitely think that generosity is a good thing. It is even a biblical thing. It is a requirement for Christ followers to be generous and seek ways to assist those in need. Yes, I know that some people give just to receive the tax break on their IRS returns. But, I am glad that we live in a generous culture.

But, a couple of things trouble me. I don’t want to discourage people from giving to these worthy causes, but I do want to point out a couple of issues for consideration.
The Bible is pretty clear that giving is not enough. The motivation behind the giving is what counts. God looks at your heart first, and then what is in your hand. Well, don’t people who give demonstrate a good heart? Yes, but the biblical motivation is not just goodness or even concern for our fellow man – it is a recognition of the Lordship of God in our lives. It is also a recognition that all that I have comes from the grace of God. I am afraid that many give to charity, but not from a heart that is honoring God as Lord.

This brings me to another issue. I think that people like to give to charities at this time of year because they think that it is adding to their own intrinsic goodness, or mitigating their own intrinsic badness. I encounter this all the time – people think that they are or have to be good in order to have some type of standing with God.

No one gets into heaven because they gave to charity! God doesn’t analyze the financial books of your life to determine if you can enter His presence. Giving money to charity makes you a good person on a human level, but it does nothing for you on a spiritual level. For all our righteous deeds amount to a pile of filthy, disgusting rags in God’s eyes. We are spiritual wretches, sinners in the hands of an angry God, deserving His condemnation for violating His holy character. Giving to the Salvation Army or collecting canned food cannot erase our spiritual condition. The grace of God through Jesus Christ appropriated by repentance in faith is the requirement for right standing with God.

So, as you consider charitable giving this Christmas , take a moment and check your heart. That’s what God is looking at.

Praise Him For The Incarnation

2010-12-20T14:05:00.002-06:00

Praise Him for the incarnation,
for the word made flesh.
I will not sing of shepherds
watching flocks on frosty nights,
or angel choristers.
I will not sing of a stable bare in Bethlehem,
or lowing oxen,
wise men trailing star with gold,
frankincense, and myrrh.
Tonight I will sing praise to the Father
who stood on heaven's threshold
and said farewell to his Son
as he stepped across the stars
to Bethlehem and Jerusalem.
And I will sing praise to the infinite, eternal Son,
who became most finite, a baby
who would one day be executed for my crime.
Praise him in the heavens,
Praise him in the stable,
Praise him in my heart.

writen by Joseph Bayly.

It's God's Fault

2010-11-29T08:43:00.004-06:00

I am an avid football watcher and fan, but I do recognize the sports shortcomings.

One thing that drives me crazy is when I see some athletes attempt to show some signal of their faith into the game. Let me clarify. I want genuine Christ followers to play their sports in a way that honors the Lord and shines the light of their faith. What I don't approve of is being fake about this, or trying to shoehorn some demonstration into a situation where it doesn't fit.(See Deon Sanders).
Let me give you an example. As I was watching my beloved Aggies play the evil longhorns on Thanksgiving, I noticed something. Every time that the longhorn punter was about to kick, he made the sign of the cross over himself. Is kicking a punt so dangerous that you have to prepare your soul for eternity? (MLB batters do this a lot, too)

Yesterday, an athlete won the all time knucklehead award for faith and sports. His name is Steve Johnson and he is a wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills. On one play he was wide open in the end zone. The pass sails right to him and hits him in the hands. He dropped it! It happens, even to the best.

But, it's not his fault! It was God's fault. This is what he tweeted after the game:

"I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!!" "YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!! EVER!!! THX THO..."

Wow! This is no joke. He really tweeted this, which means he really thought this. Nice of him to mention his praise and thanks to God while he is blaming God for dropping the pass.

My pastor in college always said, "You can't fix stupid".

"By the mouth of a fool comes a rod for his back." Proverbs 14:3

Sharing Christ Around The Globe - OCC

2010-11-18T10:08:00.003-06:00

Imagine a child who has nothing. Christmas comes-- no presents at all. Imagine something worse - a person never knowing the Lord Jesus Christ. Is there a way to address both of those problems? Yes.

It is called Operation Christmas Child. This fall our church has participated with this incredible outreach opportunity with hundreds of other churches. The process is simple. Pack a shoe box with toys and items for a kid in an underprivileged part of the world. That shoe box will be loaded with gospel story in their own language and then the child will get the gift.

It is about more than making a kid smile with a simple gift. It is about giving them the greatest gift of all time - Jesus Christ. Countless souls have been changed by this outreach.

I am thankful that we had the opportunity to be a part of the Great Commission of Jesus Christ. I pray that the boxes that go out will be used by God to bring scores of people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Needing a Savior

2010-11-15T08:33:00.003-06:00

All human beings enter the world as sinners and condemned because they are sons and daughters of Adam (Rom. 5:12-19). Sin blinds human beings to their own wickedness and tricks people into thinking that they are righteous. Sin is not merely a matter of peccadilloes or mistakes. Human beings are fiercely rebellious and stubborn, which is captured in the metaphor of being stiff-necked. The sin of human beings is manifested supremely in the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth. All enter into the world spiritually dead toward God and heading toward physical death and judgment. By nature, humans are children of wrath and rotten trees. From birth, they are under the dominion of the old age of the flesh instead of the new age of the Spirit. They are a brood of vipers instead of children of God.

The power and depth of sin function as the backdrop to God's saving promises, for such promises represent astonishing good news, given the devastation that sin inflicts on human beings. With the coming of Jesus Christ, the era of salvation and deliverance has dawned; with the death and resurrection of Jesus, the tyranny of sin and death has ended."

A quote from Magnifying God in Christ by Dr. Thomas Schreiner, page 172.

Vote

2010-11-02T10:03:00.002-05:00

I voted! It is my privilege as an American and my responsibility as a Christ follower. My guiding principals in voting are determined by my first allegiance - to God and His Word. Not my pocket book, not my comfort, not my preferences.

We also have a biblical mandate to love and pray for all of our leaders, even if we didn't vote for them.

Massive Story - The Gospel

2010-11-02T09:56:00.004-05:00

An exerpt from Al Mohler's book, He Is Not Silent
When Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 5:21 that "for our sake Hee made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God", he is talking about a cosmological reversal that is beyond anything we can understand. If our people think of the gospel as a small story in which they get to befriend Jesus and walk alone with Him in a garden, if they don't understand what a massive thing their salvation from sin really is, theen we are robbing them of the gospel.

Every time we preach, we need to create dissonance in the minds of our hearers. We need to declare their own wretchedness, our sin, and our powerlessness, and we need to admit frankly that we can't solve this problem. And then we proclaim the gospel. We show our people how God himself did what they were wholly unable to do. We tell them that the problem of sin was only solved when the sinless Son of God died on the cross as a substitute for His people. (page 101)

Massacre at Church

2010-11-01T15:04:00.002-05:00

Headlines in many newspapers are recounting the story of a ruthless massacre of a specific group of people in Iraq. Did these people deserve it? Had they broken some laws? What were they doing to provoke such an attack? Nothing but worshiping God. Muslim extremists, terrorist, walked into this church and murdered 58 people simply for being Christian.
Terrible story! What these attackers don't realize is that the "blood of martyrs is the seed of the faith"(Tertullian said that). It just seems to be the way it works. They more they try and stop the spread of the gospel, the more it spreads.

Spend a moment, read this article, and pray for believers in Christ that are being persecuted all over the world.

http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/11/01/2593238/iraqi-christians-mourn-after-church.html

Making a Mormon My Brother

2010-10-22T09:38:00.004-05:00

The next two days I will receive extensive training from the Interfaith Evangelism Program sponsored by the SBTC. The emphasis will be learning how to lovingly and effectively share the true gospel with Mormons.

In my life the two most difficult groups to share Christ with are Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses. These two cult-like religions are difficult because they use Christian terminology, but with different meanings. The God, Jesus, and faith that these systems discuss are NOT what is found in the Bible. Most people don't recognize the difference. I have heard statistics that most converts to Mormonism and Jehovah's Witnesses come from Baptist backgrounds. That is extremely troubling and impresses upon me the need to disciple and educate my own church what the Bible actually teaches.

I am also excited to learn some things that can help me in my encounters with people from these groups. The people that I know and have met from these two religions are great people! I have a lot in common with many of them. I also have a responsibility to love them in Christ and share the true gospel with them for the salvation of their souls.

People Need The Lord

2010-10-20T09:44:00.002-05:00

A quote from David Platt's book Radical

"A majority of individuals supposedly saved from eternal damnation by the gospel are now sitting back and making excuses for not sharing that gospel with the rest of the world." page 75

Scary Moment

2010-10-19T10:22:00.002-05:00

The last part of our trip home from vacation contained one of the scariest moments I have ever had on a plane.
We were on a flight from Tampa to DFW, been in the air for about 15 minutes. Then there was a loud boom, and the plane shuddered. Everyone gasped, but then the plane just kept on course. No one knew what happened.

So, what happened? An engine blew!!!!! The pilots eventually told us that there was an engine failure and we were turning around for Tampa. The fire trucks would be waiting. They had to shut down all air traffic and we actually landed on the takeoff runway because the pilots didn't want to risk circling for the landing strip. Later, while waiting in the terminal, Michelle saw the plane being towed and the back end was charred black.

While in the air, it took me a few minutes to grasp that something was wrong. At that moment I began to pray. I wanted to live, but if God wanted to take me, I was surrendered to His will. Then I thought, should I stand up and shout out the gospel to all these people on the plane? Then I was thankful that my daughters hadn't caught on that something was wrong. They would have panicked.

I thank God for getting us down and home safely. And I also thanked the pilots for doing a great job landing a plane with a blown engine.

At least life is never dull!

Vacation 2010

2010-10-18T13:52:00.003-05:00

Last week was vacation time. I intended to blog and stay in touch while on the trip, but was completely unplugged. No phone, no internet. Probably, a blessing in disguise.

We spent 7 days on a cruise through the Caribbean! It was a wonderful trip. While we were only gone 7 days, the travel schedule required me to miss 2 sundays in a row. This is the first time I have ever done that in my pastorate. A break is always a rejuvenating time, but it also reminds me of my love for what God has called me to do, the place the Lord has led me to be, and the people to whom I am called to shepherd. All that to say, I had a great vacation, but I am glad to be back.

The great part about our cruise was the minimal expense. Michelle earned a trip for 2 through her Arbonne business. For minimal cost, we added the girls and turned it into an incredible family vacation. We got to travel the seas, visit a tiny Island called Labadee, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel. There was never a dull moment and we got to spend some incredible time together as a family. What a blessing!

There were many highlights. In the Grand Caymans we got to swim and snorkel with stingrays. The girls absolutely loved it. Petting and feeding these incredible creatures was an awesome experience.

I am thankful to the Lord for my family and the bonding time we got to spend together.

Alcohol and Teens

2010-09-29T09:24:00.003-05:00

Last night I attended a very informative meeting sponsored by S.P.A.R.K.(Students & Parents Against Risk to our Kids). This group seeks to raise awareness about many issues that pose risk to teens. They are concerned with all kinds of things from Internet danger, eating related illnesses, drugs, and alcohol. Last night was focused on alcohol and drug use issue among teens in Southlake.

Here are some of my notes:
It doesn't matter how good of a parent you are, and how good your child is, the will be tempted to use drugs and alcohol at some point. It's starts in 7th grade, and only gets more intense from there on up.

One local police officer was present who works with teens every day at the schools. He said that teens are exposed to the temptations of drugs and alcohol in some form EVERY DAY!!!!

Other notes:
- From the police officer, "Friends will make you or break you in high school."

- Most popular drugs: alcohol (number 1), inhalants, prescription meds

- Most common place to use these: at home by far, then at parties.

- All types of kids use alcohol, a quote from the police officer, "If you took all the kids out of the National Honor Society who use, there would be no NHS."

- Parents, you have to give your kids an excuse to say NO to their friends and these temptations.

- The cool thing in Southlake is for parents to host a party, and serve all the kids alcohol. Yes, these wonderful parents take up car keys. But, THIS IS ILLEGAL. It is against the law for you to serve any other kids alcohol. And any kid found with alcohol will receive a minor in possession.

- Penalty for a parent hosting this type of party: $4000 fine, up to 6 months jail, 6 months suspended license.

- If a parent does host one of these parties, and then a kid gets hurt, alcohol poisoning, or drives off and kills someone, that parent is liable.

- Minor in possession, or consumption: $500 fine, 8-40 hours community service, loss of drivers license for 30 days.

- A minor cannot go to a party and be the "designated driver". That is against the law, and they will receive a MIP.

- Other problems that are associate with teen parties where alcohol is present: assault, alcohol poisoning, sexual assault, property damage, drug use, rape.

- New fad, "pharmy party" - kids go to a party, swipe a bottle of prescription medication from their parents cabinet, dump them in a huge bowl like jelly beans, and start popping the pills.

- Most parents just don't know or care about teens and alcohol. S.P.A.R.K. held a conference on eating disorders and Internet dangers and had 400 people attend. At the one on alcohol 22 people came. (including me)

- If parents don't educate their kids about these issues at young age, they will be educated by other kids and peer pressure.

Please Accept Me

2010-09-21T10:01:00.003-05:00

Have you ever had to plead for something? Have you ever had to really cajole someone into going somewhere with you?
Kids do this all the time, with no shame. "Dad can we please, please, please go to the water park (or fill in the blank with the latest, greatest thing)?"

I think that is how some people present our Lord Jesus. That He is pleading and cajoling people to accept Him. Is Jesus saying, "would you please, please, pretty please, accept me into your heart?"

Listen to this quote from David Platt's book, Radical,

"We have taken the infinitely glorious Son of God, who endured the infinitely terrible wrath of God and who now reigns as the infinitely worthy Lord of all, and we have reduced Him to a poor, puny, Savior who is just begging us to accept Him. Accept Him? Do we really think Jesus needs our acceptance?"

The infinitely worthy Savior doesn't need acceptance, He demands surrender.

Too Common A Converstation

2010-09-07T10:02:00.004-05:00

The following is a fictional conversation. It is one that I don't think would go over very well in our church saturated yet passionless Christianity culture. See what you think.

Person 1: So, you are a follower of Christ, a Christian?

Person 2: Yes, I am.

Person 1: Do you pray?

Person 2: Well, not really.

Person 1: Do you read and study the Bible?

Person 2: Well, not really.

Person 1: Have you joined and are you serving in a church?

Person 2: No. Not really?

Commentary:
You can claim to be Christian all you want, but if you don't walk with the Lord in prayer(meals don't count), if you don't walk with the Lord through His word, and if you do not walk with the Lord by serving His church, then are you walking with the Lord? Are you a follower of Christ? Not really.

Church That's Cool vs. Church That's Real

2010-08-16T10:00:00.004-05:00

I read a fascinating article in the Wall Street Journal about churches trying to be "cool" to attract young adults.

Here is the link to the article; The Perils of Wannabe Cool Christianity, by Brett McCracken

Here is the bottom line, McCracken says this:

If the evangelical Christian leadership thinks that "cool Christianity" is a sustainable path forward, they are severely mistaken. As a twentysomething, I can say with confidence that when it comes to church, we don't want cool as much as we want real.

If we are interested in Christianity in any sort of serious way, it is not because it's easy or trendy or popular. It's because Jesus himself is appealing, and what he says rings true. It's because the world we inhabit is utterly phony, ephemeral, narcissistic, image-obsessed and sex-drenched—and we want an alternative. It's not because we want more of the same.

Powerful Word

2010-07-30T09:30:00.004-05:00

After Jesus' resurrection from the dead he appeared to two disciples who were traveling on the road to Emmaus.(found in Luke 24:13-35) The disciples were saddened by the events of the previous few days because they didn't understand. Jesus anonymously comes alongside them and listened to their contemplations about the events surrounding His crucifixion.

Then Jesus is going to teach them. He is going to show them the truths about what happened, about himself, about who He is and what really happened.

It is at this point that Jesus had a variety of powerful tools in his arsenal to explain and show. He is, afterall, the resurrected Lord. He has conquered the grave and sin and death. He is the God of creation. He could have shown them the power that He exhibited in creating the world. He could have explained what it felt like to be risen from the dead. He could have chosen so many different avenues. But what did He choose?

Look at verse 27, Luke 24:27 "And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself."

Jesus chose to use scripture. Specifically, the Old Testament scripture. He makes an incredibly profound statement. The message of the Old Testament is about Jesus. And, that message, found in scripture, is fully sufficient for explanation and understanding into the person and work of Jesus Christ.

What is true of the Old Testament is also true of the New. And, this is where it comes to hit home for us. We have everything we need to facilitate our relationship with God in His Holy Word. The scriptures are not just a book. If Jesus uses the scriptures the way He did, we would be wise to follow His example.

Follow Jesus

2010-07-28T11:58:00.002-05:00

Lord of the Sabbath - Who Is Jesus

2010-07-28T11:30:00.001-05:00

The fourth of the ten commandments relates to the Sabbath. God’s people in the Old Testament were required to set aside this one day to honor God as a reminder that every day they were to live in such a way to honor God. I don’t want to talk about Sabbath issues, but want to point out something about the relationship between the Sabbath and Jesus.

Exodus 20:8-11 is the commandment for Sabbath keeping. It is fairly lengthy in comparison to some of the explanations of the other nine commandments. The scripture explains to us the importance and source of the Sabbath. To summarize: the Sabbath is rooted in God’s creation. He created and order this world and the seventh day represents the completion of God’s creation. The Sabbath is created by God for man. The Sabbath is for man to honor God. The Sabbath is not as much about a day as it is about God.

The Sabbath became a huge issue for the Israelites.

Hold that thought: now let me take it another direction.

Who is Jesus? That is really the pivotal issue that differentiates true Christianity from various other religions, doctrines, and systems.

Biblical Christianity is clear that Jesus is THE ETERNAL GOD.
Not everyone holds to that. In fact, other religions all say something about Jesus but stop way short of affirming He is THE ETERNAL GOD.

Islam – Jesus is a prophet
Judaism – Jesus is a good teacher
Mormon Theology – Jesus is divine, a god, but not THE ETERNAL GOD.
Jehovah’s Witnesses – say something very similar to Mormon theology.
Atheism – Jesus was a great man.

How do we determine the answer to the question, who is Jesus? The best approach is to look at what Jesus claimed about himself. Did Jesus claim to be THE ETERNAL GOD?
Now, fast forward to the New Testament and Jesus. The religious leaders hated Jesus. One of the constant confrontations that occur is caused by things that Jesus does on the Sabbath.

One of these incidents occurs in Matthew 12:1-8. Jesus and his disciples did something on the Sabbath and the Pharisees throw a hissy fit. How could Jesus do such a thing? Jesus gives a clear argument and concludes with this statement, Matthew 12:8 For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”

The disciples and Pharisees would understand this statement as shockingly clear. Jesus is claiming to be the creator of the Sabbath, the owner of the Sabbath, the One to whom worship is due on the Sabbath. It is not just a claim to divinity, it is a claim to be THE ETERNAL GOD. The 4th commandment is based on THE ETERNAL GOD’S creation of the world. Jesus says, I am He. Jesus never claims to be a separate God. This is an admission that He is the God of the Old Testament. And, He is the God of the New Testament and the God that has always existed. Wow!

How do the Pharisees understand and respond to Jesus? They want to kill him. They don’t want to kill him because he claims to be a good teacher or prophet, or just a divine person. But, because He claimed that He is THE ETERNAL GOD.

Here is what that means for you: You cannot accept Jesus as just a good teacher. You must accept and live your life in such a way that recognizes and honors the truth that Jesus is THE ETERNAL GOD.

An Example To Follow - Dr. Jack MacGorman

2010-07-26T22:20:00.002-05:00

Today was the first day of my last year of course work for my DMIN program at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. At the beginning of each semester a guest is brought in to address the entire program. Today it was Dr. Jack MacGorman.

I had Dr. MacGorman for a class on 2 Corinthians when I was working on my masters in 1998. Today, he gave some incredible insights and a fantastic example for me to follow.

Dr. MacGorman is 89 years old. Here are some of the highlights that stuck out to me from today.

Here is a quote from Dr. Mac about his age, "Anyone indebted to God for his mercy and forgiveness as I am needs a long life to say, 'thank You'". Wow! What an incredible perspective and truth.

His testimony is something like this. He was born in Nova Scotia in 1920. In his early 20's he desired to go to a prestigious college and get an advanced degree in Liberal Arts. But, he contracted a serious illness and became severely ill. He was in a hospital for months in excruciating pain. While in that hospital he realized that his greatest need was not for a baccalaureate degree from an esteemed university but a Savior to rescue him from his sins.

As he recounted his salvation story he was visibly moved with a sincere gratitude and joy. It seemed like the initial joy of salvation had never diminished in over 65 years!

As I sat there listening to this 89 year old saint testify to the scriptures, the faithfulness of God, with sincere humility it was striking. I have seen lots of elderly people who seem to check out on their faith and desire to work and serve the Lord. Dr. Mac was truly grateful that the Lord had seen fit to give him life, and he was not going to waste that opportunity. He was going to use it to glorify His Lord. I pray that I can follow that same type of example.

He taught on the difference between law and grace from Galatians and it was powerful. Maybe I'll share some more in a later post

Relax, It's Summer

2010-07-20T10:50:00.003-05:00

Not hardly! There is always something going on, and I think I like it that way.

Here's a taste of what has been going on:

The other day I walked into the living room to find all of my ladies with an open Bible diligently reading, studying and answering questions in a bible study workbook. I love to see things like that! This summer Michelle has two outreach, discipleship bible studies going on at our house, one for each age group of our girls. It takes a lot of effort, organization, patience, and prayer to disciple and reach out to these girls. I am amazed at her faithfulness to the great commission. My daughters have a great example of what a woman of faith looks like.

I am busy with church and with preparing for my two weeks of seminary study. This summer we are intensivley studying the parables. There is a lot of work that goes into my seminary class. Some of it is more enjoyable than other parts. But, what I thoroughly enjoy is being pushed and challenged to dig deep into God's Word and learn from it and learn how to apply it in my life and ministry. I will be slammed and exhausted at the end of the my summer class, but I am sure that I will have grown and benefited greatly.

Other things: the girls are staying busy this summer doing volleyball stuff, and diving team, violin, piano,lots of reading, and even some math work. We do have a short vacation planned before school starts and I cherish those family times.

It is important for us to make sure that we have appropriate balance in all of these things. Sometimes that is hard to achieve, but I feel like we are on the right track.

I praise God that the life of a Christ follower is never dull!

Great Commission Project

2010-07-03T10:16:00.001-05:00

Every day for a week First Baptist fed lunch and shared Christ with about 125 kids. Here is what that looked like.

Churches Serving Churches for the Kingdom

2010-06-21T20:59:00.003-05:00

What kind of church would invest significant amounts of time and resources to help another church?

This actually does happen occasionally, and I know of several churches that do this. This last week I got to experience this first hand, and it was amazing.

This last week a team from Northeast Houston Baptist Church came hundreds of miles, used lots of financial resources, and worked hard to serve the people of First Baptist Southlake and our missionfield here in Southlake.

As I was reflecting on what happened last week, I was blown away by the servanthood of NEHBC and this mission team. Why would they do such a thing?

The answer is because they know that they serve more than just their church. They know that every church is about kingdom growth above and beyond anything else. This week NEHBC was used for the advancement of the kingdom of Christ. That took place outside of the boundaries of their own local congregation in Houston to another congregation in Southlake.

Two different local churches, two different geographical locations, two different personalities, but ONE PURPOSE – the spread of the gospel to the glory of Christ.
It is easy for us as individuals to become self centered. It is also easy for churches to do the same thing. But, what the Great Commission requires is a different focus, a kingdom focus. I am thankful for the cooperative effort that took place last week.

There are many people today that have a negative view of churches. If they could have seen what I saw last week, I think their perceptions might change drastically.
I saw a great cooperative adventure between First Baptist and Northeast Houston Baptist. There were so many people from these two churches that worked and served alongside each other for the advancement of a kingdom agenda. Seeing the people of First Baptist work hard for the gospel, and the same thing from those of NEHBC was incredible. That is the work of God.

I am grateful to the Lord for all that NEHBC has meant to me personally, and to this church that God has graciously called me to pastor here in Southlake.

VBS 2010

2010-06-18T11:41:00.000-05:00

Pastor Tim's feat of strength!

VBS 2010 - Video

2010-06-15T22:37:00.001-05:00

VBS 2010 - Pics

2010-06-15T08:52:00.005-05:00

VBS - 2010 Update #1

2010-06-14T20:47:00.004-05:00

First night of VBS was AWESOME! We had a really great time, the kids had fun and learned a lot about the gospel.

If you didn't make it to the first night, it's not too late. Come on tomorrow from 6-8 p.m.

The Youth Mission Team from Northeast Houston Baptist Church hit a homerun! They are an awesome group of people. Way to go everyone!

By the way, pics and videos are coming!!!!!

VBS 2010

2010-06-11T19:01:00.002-05:00

Big Week Next Week
Our Annual Vacation Bible School Starts
It will be each evening from 6-8 p.m. for ages 3 all the way through high school.
Bring your children out for a great time!
This year is going to be extra awesome. We have a youth mission team coming from Northeast Houston Baptist Church to assist in the VBS and some other ministries as well.

Here are some common questions I get about VBS:
1. Is there a cost? No. It is a free ministry from our church to the community.
2. What if my kids can't come every day? No problem. Bring them to some or all of the days.
3. Do I need to register? Yes. You can do that when you bring your kids the first time.

If you need more info, go to our website here.

Come back here and to the website often as I will try and keep a running post on how it's going.

Anything But Jesus

2010-05-25T13:28:00.003-05:00

I was flipping through a book that caught my eye at B and N the other day. The title was "Stuff White People Like" by Christian Lander.

Here is one that I zeroed in on:

"White people will often say they are 'spiritual' but not religious. This usually means that they will believe in any religion that doesn't involve Jesus."

Even here in the insulated Bible Belt people are becoming more and more like this. They will go to church, you can talk about God, but don't really be one of those Jesus freaks. Don't be one of those intolerant, radical followers of Jesus.

It's o.k. to say that you have Jesus in your heart as long as you don't really do what He says, or follow His example.

I think this is becoming more and more prevalent even among church goers. Church is o.k. Let's sing about Jesus, just a little. Say a prayer or two, hear a motivational talk from the "lead pastor". But, don't take any of that stuff too seriously. Especially not the rabid way Jesus said we should be to truly follow Him.

Lander's book on this chapter goes on to say, "The most popular choices include Buddhism, Hinduism, Kabbalah,and, to a lesser extent, Scientology. A few even dip into Isalm, but that's much rarer, since you have to make real sacrifices and actually got to a mosque. For the most part, white people go for religions that produce artifacts and furniture that fit into their homes or wardrobe. They are also particularly drawn to religions that do not require a lot of commitment or donations. When a white person tells you, I'm Buddhist/Hindu/Kabbalahist', the best thing to do is ask how they arrived at their religious decision. The are most likely to involve a trip to Thailand or a college class on religions."

Interesting thoughts!

God's Calling and the American Dream

2010-05-14T11:30:00.003-05:00

From Dr. Albert Mohler's commencement address at Southern Seminary regarding the calling of a minister of the gospel.

"The American dream does not fit this calling. That dream calls for years of preparation to be followed by formal qualification, decades of professional accomplishment, and a happy retirement. Our hope today must be that these ministers of the Gospel will never retire, for the ministry is never accomplished. They may in due time be redeployed, but never really retired — never ready to rest and merely collect a pension or cash in their retirement accounts and live a life of leisure. They are to serve to the end, learn to the end, teach to the end, and be faithful to the end."

Search For Significance

2010-05-13T11:44:00.003-05:00

The pop Christian world has been overly concerned about making people feel good at the exclusion of the rest of the gospel message. There are books, seminars, conferences, churches, preachers, and sermons that all focus on making people feel good in the name of God.

I have an aversion to such pseudo-gospel pop psychology preaching. I think it is dangerous and leads people away from the necessary understanding and response to the complete gospel.

But, contained within the true Gospel of Christ is the truth of significance and value.

Significance and value are not merit based, but it is intrinsic. I am a sinner, God does not value that. But, I am also His creation. You and I are created by God and IN HIS IMAGE. That means that we have an intrinsic value to God. That is one of the reasons He desires to redeem us from our sin.

There is more evidence of significance and value. The cross of Christ. The cross of Christ is God’s wrath being poured out on Jesus because of my sin. I deserved that wrath. Jesus took our punishment. In addition to that, and because of that, the cross is a statement of incredibly profound love. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son.” “This is how we know what love is: Christ laid down His life for us.”

Love is value and significance. Therefore, the cross of Christ is proof of value and significance.

God values me and sees me as significant. But, this is not like the self esteem packet that was sent home for my 5th grade daughter from her school(for real). The value and significance that God places on me is not so I can puff out my chest. It is not some type of psycho-therapeutic “I am a great person” message. It is greater than that! The worldly self esteem drives a person to a high mountain so they can shout to the world, “I am great, look at me.” The significance that God sees in me drives me to a high mountain so I can shout, “God is great, look at Him.”
It is humbling, motivating, inspiring, comforting, and convicting to understand from the true gospel that God places significance and value in me and you.

Books I'm Reading

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

Here is my current reading list. This will change when I get my syllabus for my summer doctoral program.

This book was recommended to me by Peggy Osborne. It is actually a business book on communication. I have just started it, but so far it is fascinating. It is really about effective communication and how to increase the odds that your message will be retained by your audience. How to make your ideas stick.

I have actually avoided this book for a while. It has been recommended by several women and my impression was that it was some sort of "chick-flick" type book. But, I have had several guys recommend it as a very powerful story. So, I think I'll give it a shot.

I have already read this book, but I am working my way through it again. It is basically a book on personality traits. The book gives you a system to ascertain and understand someone's personality and how they best like to communicate and behave. I would love to be able to "read" people better so that I can be better at communicating with them. It is also interesting.

The Value of the Number 1

2010-04-28T16:12:00.001-05:00

1, uno, one…a pretty simple number and concept.

I was recently reading the report of the Great Commission Task Force of the Southern Baptist Convention. True, some of it was a bit tedious, but there was some very compelling thoughts as well.

Consider these numbers:
There are 6.8 billion people in the world. Nearly 4 billion of those people have little to no access the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In America there are about 340 million people. A safe estimate is that 258 million of those people are lost.

Those numbers grip me!

Listen to what Ronnie Floyd writes, “To the degree we grasp lostness will be the degree we are willing to do whatever is necessary to penetrate it. If we do not understand lostness intellectually and theologically we will not change nor will we do what must be done to penetrate it. I am convinced we have not only forgotten what it is like to be lost, but we act as if lostness does not exist, there is no real hell, and many times, conduct ourselves as Universalists.”

That is right on! Lostness does exist and to ignore it is the equivalent of depraved indifference.

Imagine I am walking my dog and come around the corner to see an accident. A young boy has been struck by a hit and run driver. The boy is bleeding there in the street with very grave injuries. He is in desperate need of help. I am there, I see it, and I do nothing. If I do nothing that is actually a crime. I can be charged by the law for “depraved indifference”. I saw the situation. I knew the need. I could have called for help, or administered first aid. But, since I did not, that is a crime.

How much of a crime is it to know that according to the words of scripture that there are people who are lost and dying? They are in a grave situation. I know first aid. I know the gospel of their salvation. I am aware of their condition and can do something to help. To do nothing is a crime. It is a crime against those people. It is a crime against God.

The numbers are staggering, but what I need to focus on is a smaller number. It is the number 1. Just one more. I can’t share the gospel with 4 billion people. But, I can share the gospel with one. And then I can share the gospel with just one more. And then, one more, and one more. There is one person who needs someone to stop and render the spiritual aid of the gospel. Am I going to be the 1? Are you going to be the 1?

Stephen Hawking IS An Alien

2010-04-25T17:43:00.006-05:00

Stephen Hawking is the premier paragon of anti God atheistic thought. Fairness requires me to mention that he is undoubtedly a brilliant intellectual. Unfortunately he has used his God given intelligence to theorize, write and popularize attacks against God.

Hawking's has postulated various ideas that attempt to show that God's existence has no part in rational thinking. Hawking's has said things like their is no creator, that God is unnecessary, irrelevant, and that we just don't need him.

A recent article has come out in which Hawking says that he believes alien life form exists. His mathematical calculations of the size of the universe lead to the conclusion that the probability of a life sustaining environment exists is extremely high. Basically, Hawkings believes in the existence of aliens.

How ironic? If we look at the complexity of the universe, our world and the intricacies of things like the human body, according to those like Hawking there is still no probability of an intelligent Designer or Creator. But, do some math and aliens exist. Makes perfect sense!(sarcasm intended) God cannot exist, but aliens can! That's brilliant!

I wonder if it is possible to be so intellectual that you actually cease to be rational?

Here is another option. The word 'alien' means 'stranger/foreigner' in one dictionary definition. Hawkings ideas and postulations seem foreign to common sense and rationality. That would make Hawking an alien.

Every Square Inch

2010-04-15T11:20:00.002-05:00

"There is no neutral ground in the universe; every square inch, every split second, is claimed by God, and counter-claimed by Satan."

C.S. Lewis

Grab A Tiger By The Tail

2010-04-09T13:01:00.003-05:00

The little kids rhyme says this, "Eenie, meenie, minee, mo...my momma told me to pick the very best one, and you are NOT it."

When it comes to Tiger Woods it depends on what you are talking about. I used to be a fan of Tiger, and now I am just fascinated by him.

As Tiger made his return to golf and the mother of all golf tournaments -- The Masters, I have been paying attention. What is undeniable already is the dude can play some golf. He is an incredibly talented golfer! The best ever!

As I watched the coverage yesterday of his first tee shot I listened to the crowd roar with applause and cheer at the sound of his name. And I wondered why? What are they cheering for? Tiger has now become the most notorious serial adulterer of our generation.

I was hoping he would shank his shot and miss the cut. Someone who would so trash his marriage, wife and kids, I have a hard time rooting for.

I have heard a lot of people and commentators say that we should just move on. That his infidelity is his private life. The American people are forgiving. He has done rehab and is trying to keep his family together, and get his life back in line.

So, why don't I feel that way? My pastor from college has always stated something that I think is true. Before restoration can occur in some one's life, their repentance needs to be as notorious as their sin that led to the downfall. I think that is true.

Sure, Tiger has started down the right road. But, he has not had nearly enough time for his repentance to equal the enormity of his scandalous sin. (Besides, it's not repentance if you don't turn to Christ.) Tiger missed about 4 months of golf. It was during the off season, which he doesn't play much anyway. He probably only missed 3-4 tournaments that he would have normally played. That's not enough.

Plenty of people disagree with me, that's fine. But I still hold this principal as true: repentance needs to be as notorious as the sin. He may win the tournament, but he is still a loser.

A Pastor's Big Day

2010-04-04T08:17:00.003-05:00

I need help! That is an understatement. I always feel the intense expectation of Easter Sunday. I realize that the Lord has placed in my lap a task that I am incapable of doing. Preaching the gospel. I was awake at 3 a.m., then 4a.m. and then about 5:15 a.m. for good, because of the anticipation of this morning. I have been praying, and realize in all the hustle and bustle I should have been praying more.

So whats the big deal?

The big deal is that Jesus is alive. The big deal is that I truly believe that people's souls will be changed for all eternity today.

There are 3 categories of people that will attend Easter services at churches this morning.

#1 - The soundly save and walking with Christ. My hope and prayer for them is that the service and message from God's Word will be used of the Lord to draw them in worship of Christ, to edify, the encourage, to press them in even closer to Christ. What a glorious opportunity for them.

#2 - The nominal. There are always people who make an appearance each Christmas and Easter. Some people make jokes at their expense. "See you next year." I don't want to brow beat these people, Christ died for them too. I do pray earnestly that this Easter might be different for them. I hope that the Lord would open their eyes, and that they would get right with God. They are missing out on way too much to continue in the direction they are heading.

#3 - The Lost. Lost people will go to church. Some know they are lost, some think they are saved and they are not. They go to church because it is the cultural thing to do, or they were raised that way, or their spouse makes them. I don't care why. I thank God that they go. I see their eternal destiny before them. I pray for their salvation.

Those three things weigh upon my mind and soul. I want thing to be just right, down to the smallest detail. I want this so that there will be the least distractions to keep people from the stated goal above.

All of that is why I need help? Not your help. The Lord's help.

Lord, do a might work according to Your Will. Pour out yourself in power, strength, grace and mercy. Remove distractions, doubt, the influence of the enemy and the world. May the glory of the true gospel shine in the darkness.

Good Friday

2010-04-02T07:14:00.004-05:00

In evil long I took delight
Unawed by shame or fear,
Till a new object struck my sight
And stopped my wild career:
I saw One hanging on a Tree
In agonies and blood
Who fixd His languid eyes on me
As near His Cross I stood.

Sure never till my latest breath
Can I forget that look,
It seemd to charge me with His death,
Though not a word He spoke:
My conscience felt and own'd the guilt,
And plunged me in despair,
I saw my sins His Blood had spilt
And helped to nail Him there.

Alas I knew not what I did
But now my tears are vain,
Where shall my trembling soul be hid?
For I the Lord have slain

A second look He gave which said,
"I freely all forgive;
This blood is for your ransom paid,
I die that thou may live"

Thus while His death my sin displays
In all its blackest hue,
Such is the mystery of grace,
It seals my pardon too.
With pleasing grief, and mournful joy,
My spirit now if fill'd
That I should such a life destroy
Yet live by Him I kill'd

John Newton

A Life of Obedience

2010-03-31T10:03:00.003-05:00

I have been reading some classic works by Andrew Murray lately that have been very edifying. Let me share a thought from his little book on Obedience with you.

The beginning of the Bible has the account of Adam and Eve. Here are the elements: a paradise, a tree, and a command to obey. Man chose to disobey and the effects of sin entered the world. Paradise was lost.

Much of the rest of the story of redemption is how paradise is regained. Revelation tells us that paradise contains a tree - the tree of life.

Listen to what Murray writes, "From beginning to end, from Paradise lost to Paradise regained, the law is unchanged: it is obedience that gives access to the tree of life and the favor of God. How was the change effected? The Cross of Christ. From disobedience at the beginning that closed the way to the tree of life, to obedience at the end that gained entrance to it again, that which stands midway between the beginning and the end is the Cross of Christ. Romans 5:19 says, "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous."

What is the command that we are to obey to regain the favor of God? Repent and believe. Mark 1:15 records the words of Jesus' first sermon, "Repent and believe the gospel." Acts 17:30 says, "But now God commands all people everywhere to repent." It is only when you obey the call of Christ to repent and believe, truly believe, that His blood atones for your sin and Paradise is regained.

A Variety of Outreach

2010-03-28T19:09:00.003-05:00

One to one witnessing, handing out tracts, passing out invitations to church, prayer walking, putting fliers on doors, door to door surveys, block parties, VBS...
The list goes on of ways outreach can be done. Sure, some are better than others. Some are more effective, some are less efficient. Some are more direct than others. But, one thing is sure, something is almost always better than nothing. Nothing is the worst form of outreach. Nothing is a terrible way to share the gospel. Doing nothing when God says do something, is a sin.
We should care enough about what God says, what God commands, and about the lost world around us to get out there and do something.
Make an effort this week to reach out.

I - Nothing

2010-03-15T11:17:00.003-05:00

One of my favorite chapters of the Bible is John 15.

The last several weeks I have been working my way through this chapter and a little book by Andrew Murray called "The True Vine". I have thoroughly enjoyed it.

John 15:5 says, "I am the Vine, you are the branches. If a man abides in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."

Here are some provoking thoughts on these verse.

- I can do nothing. As much as I can raise a man from the dead, can I give myself divine life (A. Murray paraphrase)

- Knowing the truth, that I can do nothing apart from Jesus, results in dependence. It means that my only option is to fully depend on Jesus for everything.

- This does not lead to apathy and resignation. I don't just sit on the couch and do nothing. No. Abiding leads to a fruitful life. A fruitful life is a life lived, a life of action. But the action, the life are lived by the power of the indwelling Spirit who works in and through the one who is abiding in Jesus.

- Abide in Jesus = much fruit
- Apart from Jesus = nothing

At the end A. Murray writes this prayer, "Lord, I gladly accept the arrangement. I-nothing, You-all. My nothingness is my highest blessing, because You are the Vine, that gives and works all. So be it Lord! I nothing, ever waiting on Your Fullness. Lord, reveal to me the glory of this blessed life."

Easter T.V.

2010-03-15T11:06:00.003-05:00

It's getting to be that time of year. As Easter approaches many people try and capitalize on the interest in the holiday. One thing that annoys me is how the media portrays Easter as some controversy about Jesus. Pay attention to some of the major t.v. stations and even some major magazine publications (like Time) in the next several weeks. You will see many shows about Jesus, the Resurrection, or something to do with religion. Most of these shows are more like the "Da Vinci Code" than real journalism.

I have already seen a couple of show titles like "The Real Jesus", "The Fake Jesus" trying to get an audience. I haven't seen all of these shows, but am pretty sure I know what the gist will be. Jesus isn't what the Bible really says He is.

I have seen a few of these done by 20/20 and 60 minutes type t.v. shows in the past. They always have experts on these shows. What is almost humorous is that these so called "experts" are rarely mainstream experts. They almost always represent some fringe element on the liberal side of theological academia. Why? They are more sensational. The more sensational and far fetched the ideas, the better chance of gaining an audience.

The truth of the matter is this: the most reliable and historically credible information about Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection, is the Biblical record. So, before you take some phony "experts" da vinci like conspiracy rubbish about Jesus, go to the real source and see what it has to say.

Mardi Gras and Alcohol

2010-03-04T11:34:00.006-06:00

O.k. I am about to open a can of worms and see where it leads.

The subject of alcohol is a hot topic and is like wading into a minefield. Let me proceed cautiously.

First of all, I don't drink alcohol. The last time alcohol entered my system must have been through some cough medicine, maybe. I'll explain why in a bit.

Honestly, I just don't get it! What is so appealing about alcohol.

On my flight to Mardi Gras there was a group of women sitting behind me on the plane. They were on their way to party at Mardi Gras. They were giddy with excitement and chatted together the entire flight. They major topic of discussion and laughs was about all the alcohol they were going to consume. They were absolutely bursting with anticipation about alcohol.

Is it really all that? Maybe it is, and I just don't know. That is not what my eyes witnessed with the thousands of people intoxicated at Mardi Gras. They looked miserable to me.

Alcohol at Mardi Gras is like sand on a beach. It is everywhere, comes in every type imaginable, and can be consumed through many odd different contraptions.

At about 11:45 I saw this one guy stumbling towards me. Around his neck was a plastic looking fishbowl. Inside this rather large fishbowl was some type of pink alcoholic concoction. It had a lanyard around it so that the fishbowl hung at the the guys chest. It had a large straw that reached up to the mouth so they guy could drink from the fishbowl hands free. Human ingenuity is so amazing!

He was blitzed and drunk. He started talking to us, and I think he might have been speaking in tongues. He made no sense, his words were not just slurred, they were barely recognizable. There is no way this guy is going to remember what he did the next day. He probably got sick, killed many brain cells, was in serious danger of alcohol poisoning, and could have been easily taken advantage of. That does not sound like fun to me.

I bet he woke up with a hangover, sobered up, and then laughed with his buddies about how much fun he had, even though he couldn't remember any of it. That is either ridiculous, or I am missing something.

Why do people love alcohol so much? Why does our society worship at the alcohol altar? Seriously, alcohol is a god. It is an idol that people worship.

I'd be willing to compare my sober fun to anyone's alcohol fun. I have had more fun with Christ followers, even doing ministry, that I think far surpasses the "fun" people were having at Mardi Gras. I know that following Christ is not about having fun, but it does have moments that are incredibly fun. I don't just mean humorous, I mean that I have been hysterical with laughter and having an absolute blast. And the best part, I remember all of it.

I don't need alcohol, I have the joy of Christ.
I don't need alcohol to unwind from a tough day, I have the peace of Christ.
I don't need alcohol to liven things up, I have abundant life in Christ.
I don't need alcohol to quench my thirst, I'll just drink water.

It's just not necessary!

Need Antibiotics

2010-03-04T11:25:00.002-06:00

Just a blog fyi,
My computer is in bed sick with a terrible cold - I have a virus. My computer is in the shop hopefully getting repaired.

It's amazing how attached we can become to technology. It has been weird navigating through life without my laptop - amazingly I am still alive and making it!

By the way, these jokers that create these viruses need to be caught and have needles slowly inserted underneath their finger nails.

I do have some more blogs coming, so stay tuned.

Tiger's Sex Rehab - Really?

2010-02-19T18:42:00.003-06:00

Tiger Woods has been in a sex rehab facility for his addiction to sex for 45 days and is scheduled to go back for more.

In his confession and apology today Tiger talked about his reasoning for his behavior. He said that he felt entitled to it. It seems that his fame, money, and power presented him with easy opportunities to commit adultery.

What is sex rehab? I am sure that some people might have a legitimate addiction, maybe. But, not Tiger Woods. I am not buying it. His reasoning has nothing to do with an addiction. Entitlement and fame are not indicative of an addiction.

What do they do in Tiger's sex rehab? Tell him its wrong. Do they have classes on keeping your pants on? Did he learn ten steps how not to contact a high end prostitute? Did they try and find something that happened in his past that caused him to cheat on his wife and kids? Did they discuss how to avoid hotel rooms with voluptuous women?

Think about the logistics that were required for Tiger to hook up with all these women. It took some serious forethought and planning for him to get in a place where he could have sex with these women. It wasn't that spontaneous. It was calculated and planned. That is not addiction, it is stupidity.

Tiger doesn't need sex rehab, he needs sin rehab. He may be able to alter his behavior, but he cannot change his sinful heart. Strength of will is not going to overcome his sin. A 12 step program will not overcome his sinful nature. Buddhism will not solve his sin problem.

There is only one rehab that will cure Tiger Woods of his addiction to sin. The solution is repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

Tiger's Post Modern Trouble

2010-02-19T18:17:00.004-06:00

Why did Tiger feel compelled to make a confession and apology?

Our culture is one of post modernity. Post modern thought is hard to define, but it seems to be dominated by relativism. Everything is relative. Nothing is certain. There is no truth. There is no objective morality. What is right for you, is right for you, and need not be right for everyone else.

One of the areas of society that has been attacked by post modern thought has been the institution of marriage. All kinds of groups have brought attacks upon the traditional idea of marriage. These attacks are not just about gay marriage. Open marriage, delayed marriage, and even serial promiscuity seem to be no problem anymore. If it feels good, do it. If it is good for you, then it can't be wrong.

So, why did Tiger withdraw from golf, go to rehab, and make an apology? Seriously, did he do anything wrong? Infidelity is not illegal. Yes, he may have broke some minor law by paying for prostitutes, but many think that prostitution should be legal anyway. So he is a serial adulterer, that is not so wrong is it?

Apparently there is something very wrong with what Tiger did. He knew it. If he didn't think it was wrong in his conscience he wouldn't have tried to hide it for so long. I have heard some people say that Tiger's infidelity is not a big deal because there are many other guys on the PGA tour who do the same thing. But, they all keep it secret. They all try to hide it just like Tiger tried. Because they know intuitively that it is wrong. Their shame in hiding their behavior is evidence that somewhere inside they know what they are doing is wrong.

There are exceptions, there always is. Some people are so depraved that they openly engage in all kinds of promiscuity and infidelity with no remorse. But, the norm is that a promiscuous life is not a virtue. Adultery is not viewed as a positive character trait.

The post modern person can try as hard as they want to live a carefree life of relativity. But, for most, it is a losing battle against their God given conscience. Furthermore, it just doesn't work, and they know it.

Romans 2:14-16
For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.

Mardi Gras - Trip Report Pt 1

2010-02-15T16:08:00.002-06:00

I have safely returned from the Who Dat? nation. Thanks to all who prayed for me during this short, yet intense trip. Over the next few blogs I plan to give a report of what went on and some of my thoughts about the trip.

Sunday and early Monday were very eventful. It started on Sunday morning as I went with a team from our church to do our monthly nursing home ministry where I preached to them. We then returned to our church and I preached the morning service there. I had to leave as church was ending in order to catch a flight at Love Field that would take me to New Orleans.

There was already another team there from Northeast Houston Baptist Church. They had been there since Saturday and had already been praying and sharing Christ. Pastor Sonny and Jaime D. and the other teammembers are solid, faithful Christ followers. I would eventually meet up with them and Pastor Nathan, Tim, Bill, Blayne and a slew of gospel sharing women from NEHBC. What a great team they are.

I got to the French Quarter at about 4:30 p.m. I spent the next 8.5 hours on the streets praying, observing, handing out gospel fliers, sharing Christ, eating, and lots of walking.

I was really looking forward to being there, but also felt a lot of nervousness and wondered what I would do and say. But, I was trusting the Lord, and that is always a good thing.

There were scores of people everywhere doing all kinds of things. As I walked around I would pray for these people and asked God to do a work in their lives.

As I did this I would attempt to hand out gospel fliers to people. Some would take them. Some would not. I had some people tell me "thanks". I had some people say things that were not gracious.

At one point I handed out a tract to two guys. They stopped and asked me,"what is this?" All of a sudden I have an opportunity to tell them what it is all about. For about 5 minutes I got to share the entire gospel with these two guys. They asked a couple of questions, seemed to be thinking about what I said, and then they left. I may never know this side of heaven what the result of that encounter might be. But, I praise the Lord for the opportunity to dispense the message of Jesus.

Mardi Gras Mission

2010-02-13T11:19:00.004-06:00

Tomorrow evening I will embark on my second trip to New Orleans to work the streets during Mardi Gras.

Mardi Gras in N.O. is one of the largest parties in the world.(Biggest is in Rio De Janeiro). Hundreds of thousands of people will come to NO from all over the states and all over the world. The will drink gallons of alcohol, get wasted, get naked, engage in all kinds of lascivious behavior and sins. (doesn't sound like fun to me)But, these are not the scum of society, they are your neigbhors and co-workers. They are not evil, they are lost and need a Savior.

I will not be partying, I will be doing the work of an evangelist. Lord willing, I will hand out tracts and start conversations in which I can share the message of Christ with anyone I can.

Does this work? Is this effective? Is this just a waste of time? After all, they may not even be sober.

First of all, Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. Well, here they are. Jesus did not come for those who do not need a physician, but for those who are spiritually sick. Well, here they are.

Is it effective? Absolutely yes, from a certain point of view. I have already been convicted of the Lord that I need to be in much prayer about this trip. Me being drawn closer to the Lord - that is effective. I will get the opportunity to share my faith and be obedient to the Great Commission. That is effective in my own life.

But, is it effective in reaching the lost and bringing them to a saving knowledge of Jesus? The answer to that question is maybe.

I think this type of Christ sharing is like shooting a machine gun. You put out a lot of bullets and hope something gets hit. Or, it is like fishing. You make lots of casts and hope to catch something. Or, to use a biblical illustration, it is like sowing seed. Much of that seed might fall on useless ground. But maybe, just maybe, the seed of the gospel of Jesus might just fall on good soil. Soil that comes to faith in Jesus, and yields a bountiful harvest of fruitfulness for the glory of Christ.

I don't know what God might do. Imagine a scenario like this. I put a tract into the hands of a man from Timbuktu. He is drunk, has no idea what's going on. He wakes up the next morning and sobers up. He can't believe what he did the last few nights. He finds a piece of paper stuck in his pocket. He pulls it out and reads it. It is the gospel tract telling him about Jesus Christ. He realizes how deep his sin truly is. The man gets on his knees, repents and places his faith in Christ. Then he goes home and tells his family about Jesus - they come to faith. He goes on to live a life that glorifies God and leads many others to the throne of grace.

Could something like that happen? Absolutely. And since that is a possibility, that is all that matters.

Snow At My House

2010-02-11T09:40:00.003-06:00

Heaven and Hell

2010-02-09T14:40:00.003-06:00

The great attraction of heaven is the unbroken presence of Christ.

The great pain of hell is the unbroken absence of Christ.

(which includes the eternal torment of hellfire, and is a place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.)

Tim Tebow Superbowl Ad

2010-02-08T12:36:00.003-06:00

With all the hoopla leading up to the superbowl, the debate about Tim Tebow's ad caught my attention. All the pro abortion groups were all over the media complaining in some form or fashion. Even though, they had never seen the ad.

When I saw it during the superbowl I thought it really made all those complaints look foolish. I think the story of Tim and Pam Tebow is compelling and amazing.
Here is the ad, and be sure to go to the Focus on the Family website to see the whole story. It's great.

Don't Forget Being Saved: The Tragic Story of Abraham Shakespeare

2010-02-01T10:37:00.005-06:00

Abraham Shakespeare was a humble man of with not much means. He was an assistant truck driver and still lived with his mother in a rural area near Tampa, Florida. He didn’t have much and never really did. An article in the AP writes that he could hardly read and had a criminal record.

His friends reported that they were pleased when they saw Abraham join a local church. He seemed to have a new interest in spiritual things. He was even baptized at the church.

It was shortly after this that Abraham’s life took another turn. He won the lottery. Literally, he purchased and won $30 million dollars from the Florida Lottery. He took the lump sum payment and instantly pocketed $17 million dollars. Whoa!

And that is exactly what everyone who ever knew Abraham thought. They showed up in droves at his door with hands outstretched. He was generous and did give some of his wealth away. He bought a million dollar home and other things.

It was then that Abraham got into a relationship with a swindler named Deedee. She pilfered his money, and then took his life. Abraham went missing and was recently found. He was buried 5ft below ground, in a slab of concrete – dead!

That is not even the most tragic part of this story.

Listen to this quote, “Meanwhile, friends and family puzzled Friday over Shakespeare's rapid rise and fall. Jones said his friend lived a humble life, and just before he bought the winning ticket he joined a church and was baptized. "When he won the lottery," Jones said, "he forgot about being saved."

1 Timothy 6:9
"But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction."

Matthew 13:7; 22
“A sower went out to sow, and some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them…
“As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.”

AP story here.

Here is a link to the story from the NY Daily News

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2010/01/06/2010-01-06_30m_lottery_winner_abraham_shakespeare_feared_murdered_for_his_jackpot.html

It's not a difficult story to find, all you have to do is google search abraham shakespeare.

Sext Messages and Teens

2010-01-25T08:48:00.003-06:00

What is on your Kids or Teens Phone?

Attention All Parents: Caution!

Tim Wheeless, a friend and youth minister, recently posted about the dangers of kids and cell phones/iphones/portable electronic devices.

Read it here.

I did some of my own research and interviewing and found out that the danger is real. Kids are so technologically savvy today. It is just a part of their life and they can do things quicker and easier than many adults.

There is nothing inherently evil about having a cell phone. The danger comes in how it is used.

It is absolutely a piece of cake for sexually explicit messages to find their way to your kids device. You child doesn’t even have to be a hooligan, and someone else, who is, could send them something you wouldn’t want them to receive.

One teen told me that someone they know, logged onto a computer, accessed pornography, took a still picture of that pornography with their cell phone, and then texted the images to all their friends. So, there were kids walking around school during a passing period checking out the grossest form of pornography. It is that simple, if not easier. Some phones have the capability to peruse the internet at will and that kid has portable, instant access to a plethora of pornographic sites.

The danger is images, AND words. Kids have their own sexually explicit, crude and profane text lingo. Sexually explicit rumors can be spread in a fraction of a second. Inappropriate pictures are taken with these phones and then those images sent with a terrible message attached.

This is happening every day and not just with the oldest of teens. There are kids at the elementary school who already have an iphone or some other cell phone. It seems like some parents are just unaware of what it is they are putting in their child’s hands.

What is the solution? Obviously, the safest solution is NO cell phone for kids. But, I am also a realist. Cell phones are not going away and there are some legitimate reasons a teenager would need a cell phone.

The next step is vigilance on the part of parents. It’s your phone. You paid for it, you own it. The rule should be that you have the right to check and know everything that comes to and is on that electronic device. And then, you need to check it. You can view the messages and should. You can view the pictures and should. Parents need to restrict, limit and check what occurs on that device.

To be honest, I don’t know if that works or not. My kids don’t have phones yet, but I am sure these issues are not too far away.

Here is a link to an article and survey from CNN on the subject. Click here.

Southwestern Gets Some Dead Sea Scrolls

2010-01-21T08:15:00.003-06:00

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth recently acquired some pieces of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

You can read an article in the Star-Telegram about the acquisition.

The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in the late 1940's in some caves beside the Dead Sea. The writings found were well preserved and contained some of the oldest copies of the OT scriptures ever found.

What is so significant about the scrolls? By the late 1940s we had the Old Testament for a long, long time. But, the majority of copies of the OT text were not nearly as old as the scrolls found in Qumran. What is remarkable is that the Dead Sea Scrolls confirm that what we have is an amazingly accurate copy of the OT.

I can't wait to view them the next time I am down at the Seminary.

Privacy Please, Pt 3

2010-01-19T10:30:00.003-06:00

“No church for me, because my faith is private.”

Another way this excuse manifests itself is with church. Some people have quit the church and their reasoning is “my faith is private”. These people are claiming that they can have a private relationship with God and, therefore, do not need to go to church.

People have a plethora of excuses for avoiding church. There are also some wrong reasons for attending church. There are two false ideas that I battle against when it comes to church.

False Idea #1 – Church is my ticket to heaven. This is false, and yet many people buy into this idea. They go to church a lot, but they do so because they think it somehow earns them credit towards heaven. This is patently unbiblical.(Eph. 2:8-10) Salvation is not found on a church attendance chart. Salvation is found only through the blood of Christ. Attending church cannot save anyone.

False Idea #2 – I don’t need church, faith is a private matter. This idea is the other end of the spectrum. People who espouse this idea don’t want to go to church and rationalize it by the claim that “faith is private”. This, too ,is false.

This group of people really don’t want to be inconvenienced with church. It is too much of a chore to get up so early on a Sunday morning and spend a couple of hours worshiping the God who loved them so much that He gave His life for their very soul. They don’t want to be bothered with fellowshipping with other believers who need their help in their walk with Christ. They don’t want to waste time being obedient to God’s command to assemble with His family. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

No! This excuse is one of selfishness, pride, and laziness. It is unbiblical. Church is not optional and your faith is not that private.

It might sound like I am trying to have it both ways. On one side I am saying that just going to church is not good enough. On the other side I am saying that if you don’t go to church that is not good enough. How do I answer that charge?

It is really rather simple. If I have been bought by the blood of Jesus Christ who died for my sins to save my soul; then obeying Him in all matters, including church, is not a chore and it is not a check mark. It becomes a privilege that I can obey my Lord, worship Him among the family of God, and be involved in His service to others.

If your faith is THAT private, it might not exist.