Time To Move On

Php 3:13-14 NIV Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, (14) I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

We had, what I believe to be, a pivotal moment in our church this weekend. We celebrated two major mile stones, one pointing to the past and the other pointing to the future. First we celebrated our 80th anniversary as a church. We recalled the many things the founding of the church and those who were a part of that. We also reviewed the building of our current facility over 20 years ago and the trials and triumphs associated with that. It was fun to look at the old pictures, hear the stories from those who were there, back in the day. It was good to see how God had led those who have been involved over the years. But, we can't live in the past.

The second big event of the weekend was the symbolic burning of our mortgage. We were blessed by a substantial, unexpected, sum of money and it was used to pay most of our mortgage and we were able to gather the remaining balance in just a couple of months. The arrival of this money was absolutely a God thing! With the payoff of the mortgage comes freedom, with freedom comes choice, and with choice comes responsibility. We were faced with the knowledge that God had given us freedom and it is our responsibility to exercise that freedom for the Glory of God and the mission He has outlined for us. In short, we have no more excuses for not moving forward for the Kingdom of God!

What is true for the church is also true for the believer. Whatever we feel about our past, whether it be pride, shame, regret, or a combination of these three, we need to lay our feelings aside, take up our cross, and move forward. It is when we are constantly looking to the past that we often stumble because we do not see our path clearly as our focus is rearward. If we are moving forward to meet the challenges head on then we are more confident of our footing. According to the scriptures, when we accept Christ as our savior we are a new creation, the things in our past no longer have a hold on us, the future can place no restraint on us, so, deal with the pain or pride of the past and then move forward!

But then, what do I know, I'm just a rodeo clown!

A Fresh Start

Did You Miss Me?

After I started this blog back in September of 2008 I quickly found out that I really didn't have the time to keep it up. I have recently entered into semi-retirement. One of the things that I want to do with my newly acquired spare time is write. I am in the process of refining my skills and have decided to use this blog as my outlet for the time being. Hopefully you will notice improvement in my style and content as time goes by. For the time being my goal for this blog is to simply have fun writing!

What Day Is It?

Thus far, this semi-retirement thing has been just a little confusing. I am working at the church two full days each week and Sundays, of course. For the first couple of weeks my sense of timing was completely thrown off kilter. I showed up one week early for two different meetings, and then spaced off several other events. It is like my ability to read and follow the calendar was disrupted. Because my wife had retired a short while ago, the week days off all seemed like Saturdays! It took me a couple of weeks to get past this challenge.

Now What?

The next thing I had to do was figure out how I would spend my time. I wanted to avoid both becoming too busy and just doing nothing. One of the main reasons I am taking early semi-retirement is to be able to spend more time with my wife and to be able to have the time to do some of the things I wanted to do, but couldn't because of time restraints. It's funny how you can dream about all those wonderful plans for retirement and yet, when you actually get there, things don't seem to be as easy as they looked as you were dreaming.

Does Writer's Block Hurt Much?

I have managed to begin working on writing. I have done some research online into resources I might be able to use to get started and have begun to do some of the writing exercises suggested by the various writing websites I have chosen to work with. Thanks to my wonderful wife, I have a dedicated writing space that allows me the seclusion I need to think and yet gives me a wonderful view of the surrounding countryside. I have also started to keep notes of various things I notice around me to be used as ideas for writing projects. I have brushed up on my typing skills and my grammar. I have chosen to write short stories to start, with an eye for possibly stringing some of them together into a larger project at some point. At this moment, the most difficult thing for me seems to be getting my 62 year old brain to function in the creative mode after having to operate in the logical mode for so many years. With time and patience this should resolve itself eventually.

See You Later?

For now I am both excited and just a little nervous about actually getting started! So, as we make this journey together, please be patient with me, after all, what do I know, I'm just a rodeo clown!

God Will Provide!

Did you hear President-elect Obama's speech on his economic recovery package on January 8th? He made one very important point in his speech that I believe that just about everybody can agree on. Our nation is in some very serious economic trouble and things will most likely get worse before they get better. His solution is for the government to lead the way out of this crisis and for us as citizens to do our part to make things better. Giving our newly elected president the benefit of the doubt, let's just assume that through government leadership and citizen participation, we can get ourselves back on good, solid economic footing in say three or four years. What do we do to cope with things while we are going through this recovery period? I am not an economist, so I am not going to venture a guess as to just how bad things will get, but I do believe they will get worse.

As a Christian, what is my best course of action during this period in our nations history? I'm glad you asked that question! God makes some things pretty clear in the Scriptures regarding our economic health.

I was reading in Genesis, chapter 22, this morning during my private devotions. this is the account of how God requires Abraham to offer his son Isaac, the son of promise, as a sacrifice. Yes, that means exactly what it sounds like. God had commanded Abraham to kill Isaac as a human sacrifice! Now, there are many lessons in this passage of scripture, however, I want to concentrate on God's provision. If you will recall, Abraham and Isaac, along with two of his servants, gather the wood and fire for the sacrifice and head off to the mountain. When they arrive Abraham has the two servants stay behind, and has Isaac carry the wood for the altar up the mountain. Now, Isaac is not blind, he notices that they have the wood and the fire for the sacrifice, but no lamb for the sacrifice! He asks Abraham where the lamb is and he simply tells Isaac that God will supply the lamb for the sacrifice. Once they reach the place on the mountain where the sacrifice is to take place, Abraham prepares the altar and he places Isaac on the altar. Now the scripture says that Abraham bound Isaac and laid him on the Altar. That indicates to me that Isaac may not have been exactly a willing partner in this transaction! Anyway, as Abraham raises the knife to deliver the killing blow to Isaac, an angel of the Lord intervenes and stops him. God tells him that he was being tested, and that he has passed the test. Abraham then spots the ram that God has provided to complete the sacrifice. Abraham then names that spot on the mountain, The Lord Will Provide.

From this account, we see one of the character traits of God revealed in one of His names Jehovah-jireh, the God who provides. It is this principle of God as our provider that I want to explore today. Have you ever heard anyone say "God helps those who help themselves"? Well, grab your concordance and find the passage in the Bible that says that. Okay, put your Bible down, I'll save you the time, it is not in there. Let's take a brief look at what God does say about receiving His divine provision.

One of the first things we can see from Genesis 22 is that God provides for those who obey Him. Now please understand, God can provide for anyone, anytime, anywhere, as He pleases, because after all, He is God! Having said that, there are many passages in scripture that indicate that He will give priority to those who choose to consistently obey Him over those who choose to disobey Him or obey him sporadically. Even our government expects obedience to the law of the land in return for it's help and provision!

One of the areas we are to be obedient in return for God's provision is tithing. When we give God a tithe we are to give him 10% of everything that we receive as income. In return He promises several things. According to Malachi 3:10 if we are faithful in giving our tithe he will open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that we will not even be capable of storing! Furthermore, in verse 11 he promises to "...rebuke the devourer for your sakes", in other words, he will keep Satan from taking away the 90% you have left after tithing. Let me ask you a quick question here, do you feel like your job or your income is in jeopardy during these rough economic times? Who do you think is behind that? That's right, Satan, the devourer. Some believe that tithing is an Old Testament requirement and that under the new covenant we are no longer bound by that command. That is an argument for another time perhaps, but for now, just take a look at verse 6.

I don't want this to turn into a lengthy article, and there are many good books written about the how to live in God's provision. Let's just quickly look at the principle of Sowing and Reaping. First, let's look at sowing and reaping in the natural realm. When you plant one kernel of corn you get a corn stalk that yields hundreds of kernels of corn in return. The same thing holds true for anything else that you plant in the natural realm. Now, if you plant NO corn kernels how many do you have waiting for you at harvest time? Right, zero, zilch, nada! Oh, by the way, if you want to reap corn you have to sow corn, if you want wheat you sow wheat, etc. So, now you get the point, you have to sow something to reap something.

So, how does this work in the spiritual realm? Let's take a quick look at just a couple of scriptures to get us started. You can look some more scriptures up later to help you better understand God's provision.

First let's look at Luke 6:38, " Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again." Here Jesus gives a pretty solid picture of what He believes about giving. If you give, you receive. Pretty simple isn't it? While He doesn't explicitly state it, you can surmise that if you don't give, you don't receive!

The Apostle Paul, in 2 Corinthians 9:6&7 tells us "(6)But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. (7) Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver." He simply says that whoever sows much reaps much. He also goes on to say that is is an act of the will and it is to be done cheerfully, not under duress.

Well, I've rambled on long enough! Needless to say, if we want God's divine provision during these challenging economic times we need to be obedient in paying our tithes and liberal in our offerings!

But then, what do I know? I'm just a rodeo clown! Until next time, may God richly bless you, your family, and your ministry unto Him!

Your servant in Christ Jesus,

Pastor Bob

I'm Back - I Guess

I just noticed that my last post was November 11, 2008! I apologize for being "checked out" for such a long time. It seems that I get all these great ideas to write about, but by the time I sit down and begin writing I forget what I was so excited about earlier and just stare at a blank screen. I am not the most disciplined writer on the block, but I will try to do better in 2009.

I was reading in Genesis for my morning time with God and came across the story of Lot and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. It is the familiar story about how, after spending some time visiting with Abraham, two angels of God travel on to Sodom to destroy that city, while Abraham negotiates with God to save his nephew Lot and his family. While in Sodom they have a difficult time getting Lot and his family to leave so they can destroy the cities. finally they basically have to drag Lot out so they can do their work. As part of their instructions to Lot and his family they warn them not to look back. This is key to what I want to write about today.

One of the key principles of the Christian faith is that when we receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior we are "born again" or given a second chance in life. When Lot and his family fled Sodom they were told not to look back. Lot's wife disobeyed and lost her life, the Bible says she was turned into a pillar of salt!

In 2 Corinthians 5:17 the Apostle Paul tells us that when we receive Jesus Christ our old life passes away, everything becomes new, we become a "new creature". I don't know about you, but that says to me that if my past is wiped out and I have been given a fresh start as a "new creature" then God expects me not to look back at my past with either regret or a longing to return to my old sinful ways. Furthermore, in Philippians 3:13-14 he tells us that we need to forget the things that are past and reach forward for the things that God has for us in the future. We are to press forward toward the goal that God has set for us, His high calling for our lives. It is not always easy to do these things, in fact it can be down right difficult at times. That is one reason that we need our Christian brothers and sisters to lift us up in prayer in order that we might succeed in this. It saddens me when I see a brother or sister in Christ, whether they be a new convert or a seasoned saint, spend so much time looking back that they miss the glory and blessings of God that are in front of them. It makes it even worse when they look back at their past sin and return to their old ways!

Okay, lighten up Pastor Bob! Once again we are presented with a new year, a "fresh canvas" to paint a brand new picture on. I don't really make New Year's Resolutions, however I do set goals for myself at the beginning of each new year. This year my chief goal is to spend as much of my time as I can looking forward to what God has in store for me and walk through the doors He opens and do the work to prepare for His high calling! My prayer for you is that you will do the same.

We have so much to look forward to as Christians. Every day of our walk with Jesus Christ is a grand adventure that can be filled with excitement and wonder. We miss so much if we choose to live our life looking back.

But then, what do I know? I'm just a rodeo clown! Until next week, may God richly bless you, your family, and your ministry unto Him!

Your servant in Christ Jesus,

Pastor Bob

Thank You For Serving Our Country!

From the Greatest Generation to the Latest Generation, how does one adequately thank all of the men and women who have set aside their lives for whatever period of time to insure our continued freedom? Whether they served willingly or grudgingly, they all deserve our sincere thanks and respect. I want to take a moment to personally thank all of my fellow veterans for their service to our country!

Quite often a lot of attention is paid to those who have given their lives in the defense of our country, and rightly so, however, I want to point out that while some died in defense of our country, all of America's Veterans sacrificed some part of their lives in the defense of our country. It should never be forgotten that just because a soldier, sailor, airman, or Marine did not actually enter into combat during their tour of duty, they all lived with that potential! Furthermore, while we are honoring our veterans today let us not forget that the families of our veterans are also worthy of our honor as they too made sacrifices for the defense of our country.

So, whether you are a member of the Greatest Generation that served during World War II or a member of the Latest Generation, serving today in Iraq and Afghanistan, or of the Generations in between, I want to personally say "Thank you so very much and may God greatly bless you and your family for your service to your country!".

But then, what do I know? Until next time "Ich bin ein rodeo clown!".

So, When Are You Going To Get That Donkey?

As I was doing my devotional reading this morning I ran across the passage in Mark 11:1-7 where Jesus instructs two of His disciples to go the village and obtain the donkey that He will rine into Jerusalem during His triumphant entry. This seems like a pretty simple story on the face of it. Jesus dispatches two disciples to get a donkey, the two disciples get the donkey, Jesus rides the donkey into Jerusalem. End of episode. There's just one thing that sort of makes this into an event that is important to us as modern day disciples of Jesus Christ. The disciples were given no money to buy the donkey, they were simply given authority to obtain the donkey by their master. When they found the donkey and proceeded to untie the animal and lead it away, some of the crowd challenged their right to the donkey! Their reply was that "The Lord has need of him", and with that, they were allowed to proceed.

I have read this story many times before, but have never quite processed it the way I did this morning. I have been listening to a series of messages by Mark Batterson from the National Community Church in Washington, D.C. entitled "Chasing the Wild Goose". In this series Mark talks about some of the things that stop us from reaching our full potential in our service to God as we chase the Holy Spirit or The Wild Goose. He likens the things that hinder us to "cages". I have become more aware of the various "cages" in my own life. One of the strongest cages for me is the cage of unbelief or perhaps more accurately, under-belief! When God calls us and sends us on a mission, such as fetching the donkey, He gives us the authority and the resources necessary to succeed in the mission. the two disciples didn't have to worry about how to come up with the cash to purchase the donkey, they didn't have to even argue with the folks who challenged them, they simply accepted that Jesus had given them the authority to take the donkey and they stated as much, the left with the donkey! God does the same thing for us as modern day disciples! He gives us a mission then gives us the authority, in His Name, and the resources to complete the mission. Why can't we just accept that and ten move out and accomplish the mission?

Sometimes I look back at all the times that Jesus has given me a mission and I failed to accomplish that mission because I didn't trust Him to give me the authority and resources to do what He has called me to do. I tend to become discouraged when I think back on those times and feel like He will not be inclined to give me any more missions because I have failed too many times. It is about that time that Jesus gives me yet another chance to get it right! Praise be to God that He is the God of second, third, fourth, ... chances! It is my simple prayer that the next time that Jesus sends me out to fetch the donkey that I will accept the fact that He has given me the authority and resources I need to return with that donkey!

Well, I guess that is enough for now, but then what do I know? Until next time, "Ich bin ein rodeo clown!".

The Sky Is Falling - Now What?

I turned on the TV this morning to one of the morning shows so I could get my day started right, you know, you can't start your day without partaking of the mindless dribble offered up by the morning shows! Of course, the main topic of discussion was the failure of the US House of Representatives to pass the "Greedy Corporate CEO Bailout Bill". Imagine that, our House of Representatives could not get a bill passed, what a suprise! Now, I understand that we are in a financial crisis, I am not trying to minimize that, however, I do need to ask the question, "If you are a Christian, who would you rather depend on to bail you out of a financial crisis, the US Government or God?" Who do you imagine has more resources and a better track record? Hopefully, this "crisis" will serve as a wake-up call for all of us to not get into debt in the first place and not to depend on the banks and government to take care of our needs but, instead to begin to honor God with our Tithes and offerings and then take Him at His word when He says:

"Bring your full tithe to the Temple treasury so there will be ample provisions in my Temple. Test me in this and see if I don't open up heaven itself to you and pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams. For my part, I will defend you against marauders, protect your wheat fields and vegetable gardens against plunderers." The Message of GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies. "You'll be voted 'Happiest Nation.' You'll experience what it's like to be a country of grace." GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies says so." (Mal 3:10-12 MSG)

Well, I guess that is enough for the first dose, but then what do I know? Until next time, "Ich bin ein rodeo clown!".