Rattleback

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Ephesians 5:1-10 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.

The Bible clearly teaches that Christians are supposed to live different lives. Our hearts and lives are bent toward Christs and righteousness. We don't live perfectly, but, when we sin, there is a strong reaction from the Spirit of God that brings us to repentance. We're kind of like a Rattleback. It's a toy supposedly invented by the ancient Celts that is designed with a slight, almost imperceptible bend so that it will only spin in one direction. When you try to spin it the other direction, it stops, rattles and spins back the other way. Followers of Christ have been given a new heart that is designed to live a certain way, whey a Christian gets involved in sin, there is a "rattleback" effect in their heart and life that pulls them to repentance and back to a right relationship with God. If this is missing in your life, examine yourself, to make sure you are in the faith. (2 Cor. 13:5) There should be a rattleback every time you sin.

Hello, God loves you! - I'm 19 today!

I just heard that("Hello - God loves you!") when I called a friend's house in NC. - They weren't there but the person who was answered the phone that way - that's how they've been answering the phone for at least 20 years.


On this day in 1989, I knelt in a classroom at Lake Yale, FL and surrendered my life to Jesus Christ.
I never imagined where this relationship would take me. Because of God's forgiveness, I have worked with Middle School Students, Senior High Students, College Students, Singles, Revival teams, planted a Church, built or worked on churches in 5 countries, married an amazing woman, adopted a kid from Romania, went to school for 6 years for ministry and earned 2 degrees - (currently praying and preparing for a PhD) - this is a very long run-on sentence - I'll just stop, but the list could go on.

I'm really looking forward to talking to Mrs. Powers today. She's a friend who really loves Jesus and helps people see him for who he really is. Mr. and Mrs. P were a really important part of me coming to know Jesus. I just tried to call her and her Mom answered the phone the way they always answer the phone ... "Hello, God loves you". I think that's cool - I think it's cool that 19 years ago when I'd call their house, that's the same thing I heard. I'm really thankful for their consistency. I hope that 19 years from now, there's some preacher or missionary calling me to thank me for caring and sharing my life and Christ with them. Will there be anyone calling you in 19 years?

Hello?

God loves you.

I needed that

After a pretty tough week - we had a great day at Providence!
Great crowd even though several key families are on vacation.
Great attitude and spirit at both services.
Awesome food for lunch!
Great music - especially at Wards Creek - sad because it's Phil and Sunnie's last Sunday with us - (blasted William and Mary law school)
Good news - next week - Len's going to play guitar with us!
After church and lunch we went to the beach and there were a total of 22 folks from Providence out there - I don't think it was a coincidence that all of them are currently involved in small groups.
Waves were pretty cruddy - considering Fri and Saturday's swell - but being out in the water with everyone was tons of fun and the water was pretty clear.
Aaron and I actually got to save a couple people who were caught in a run out.
It's always a good day when you can be some one's hero.
Had a great supper with my family - topped off with Blue Bell ice cream in bed.

Life is good.

Thanks for a great day everyone - please keep praying for us this week!

ALMOST Sovereign?

So I'm sitting here getting ready for tomorrow while pretty much all my friends who surf are enjoying an epic day here on the first coast. I'm not complaining, that's just the way life is sometimes. There will be more days of good surf to come. I'll catch the next one. I'm not going because I'm pretty far behind and have a lot of work to do today. I'm behind because I've been trying to help someone for 6 years and they ended up in jail last week, I've spent most of this week, trying to find some help for them and get them set up to live on their own. I can't deny that there have been moments when I asked the "why" question to God - though most of my time has been consumed with the "what now?" question.

I read 2 scriptures and one paragraph from a book this morning that really spoke to my heart.

I even copied them into my moleskin/journal.

Here they are:

Ecclesiastes 11:5 - As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.
- conclusion - God is way bigger and smarter than me - I just need to trust Him.

Psalm 27:14 - Wait for the LORD; be strong and of good courage; wait for the LORD!
- application - ... Wait - be strong - wait for the LORD.

"Remind yourself that God is sovereign. He has everything under His control. He will have His way in His time, for His glory, which includes your life, your position, your future. Worrying over everything is a waste. He's got every detailed covered - every one.
Think of it this way - There's no such thing as God being almost sovereign." - (Charles Swindoll, Moses, a Man of Selfless Dedication, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1999, page 332)

So, today, I'm going to trust God, wait for him and rest in the fact that He is absolutely sovereign. I hope you'll do the same - not just today, but for the rest of your life.

Lessons from a dead guy

Oswald Chambers lived a long time ago. A compilation of his writings is the best selling devotional book of all time (I think) -

As some of you know - I've been going through one of the most difficult periods of my life the last few weeks - (keep praying for us!) I found Ozzie's devo for July 7 to be particularly encouraging - I hope you will too:

July 7, 2008
All Efforts of Worth and Excellence Are Difficult

Enter by the narrow gate . . . . Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life . . . —Matthew 7:13-14
If we are going to live as disciples of Jesus, we have to remember that all efforts of worth and excellence are difficult. The Christian life is gloriously difficult, but it difficulty does not make us faint and cave in—it stirs us up to overcome. Do we appreciate the miraculous salvation of Jesus Christ enough to be our utmost for His highest—our best for His glory?
God saves people by His sovereign grace through the atonement of Jesus, and "it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure" ( Philippians 2:13 ). But we have to "work out" that salvation in our everyday, practical living (Philippians 2:12). If we will only start on the basis of His redemption to do what He commands, then we will find that we can do it. If we fail, it is because we have not yet put into practice what God has placed within us. But a crisis will reveal whether or not we have been putting it into practice. If we will obey the Spirit of God and practice in our physical life what God has placed within us by His Spirit, then when a crisis does come we will find that our own nature, as well as the grace of God, will stand by us.
Thank God that He does give us difficult things to do! His salvation is a joyous thing, but it is also something that requires bravery, courage, and holiness. It tests us for all we are worth. Jesus is "bringing many sons to glory" (Hebrews 2:10 , and God will not shield us from the requirements of sonship. God’s grace produces men and women with a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, not pampered, spoiled weaklings. It takes a tremendous amount of discipline to live the worthy and excellent life of a disciple of Jesus in the realities of life. And it is always necessary for us to make an effort to live a life of worth and excellence.

Greatest Fear

Wow I just read this quote from Francis Chan's book - Crazy Love, on my friend Kevin's blog.

"Our greatest fear as individuals and as a church should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter."

Faith

Our faith is not in circumstances.

Our faith is in a person and his work - Jesus. Heb. 4:14-16 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Even if things don't turn out the way we want - God is still in control.
It's actually true that we can't see the big picture, but He does.
The best thing to do when you're going through a trial is to focus on God more than your trial and keep on going.


and, on a lighter note - I like this song - looks like I'm heading back to Baker County tonight -
Thanks for your prayers

Freedom

Hope you had a happy fourth - here's a video of some folks finding freedom - the guy at the end says - "We waited 10 years for you!" - kinda makes our impatience with God's timing, our country, or our circumstances look a little silly, doesn't it.

Raw footage of the Columbian hostage rescue - July 2nd.
Really cool details about the video here.

Charlie Graham and the next generation.

I went to Charlie Graham's funeral yesterday. You may not have heard of him before. He was a cabinet/furniture maker in Jacksonville, FL. I always heard my dad refer to him as "Chief". I have probably spent less than 24 hours with Charlie in my entire life, yet he has had a profound impact on me.

See, my grandfather wasn't really in the picture for my dad and his brothers when they were growing up. So, on Phyllis Street, three houses away, Charlie kind of took my dad and those boys under his wing. As far as I know, he was the most important male influence in my Dad's life.

My dad has been the most important male influence in my life. My dad is a man of integrity, with an incredible work ethic, who is always looking for ways to help others. That's the kind of man I want to be. I don't think my dad just developed those character traits on his own. I'm sure that the time Mr. Graham invested in my father helped develop them. I'm sure he didn't realize it or even think about it at the time, but the time he spent with my dad, eventually impacted my life, which is impacting my son's life. That's influence.

When you make a difference in one generation, you impact generations that you may never even see as they are affected by the influence you had on one person's life. God gives us opportunities each day to help, encourage, and set the example for the next generation. When we're faithful to do that, by default, we are affecting people generations down the line. Don't discount the affect your life has on others today.

Paul understood this - that's why he told Timothy as he left him to pastor in Ephesus -

You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. (II Tim. 2:1-2)