Hey guys I am moving my blog to http://thejourneyawaits.wordpress.com so this will be my last time to blog on here. So follow me over there! Peace out!
A
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Increased Enthusiasm
We have all been called to build something with our lives. Some times we think that building our future, our homes, our marriages, our 401k, etc. is the important things in life. Don't get me wrong, I don't think that building these things are bad but I think that if these are our main priorities in life, where does God fit in the equation?
I believe that we are all called to take part in a massive plan that God is doing in this world. I also think that God specifically calls us to do specific things to grow and test our faith and the faith of others. I think that most people want to build a life that has every component exactly where it needs to be so they can say that my life is going great; everything is in order. But is it?
In the area of student ministry I constantly battle with building the student ministry. I struggle with building something through words or videos or games. A piece of me tells me that I have to do this to reach these students and that this is the only way to build your ministry. Then I kick myself in the head and say, "you're building what?"
Exactly. I have a vision. I have a dream. It will take alot of work. But ultimately, God does the building. There is no perfect video or perfect message that I can show or speak on that can do the amazing work of God in the hearts of students. Why do I have this urge to build this own my own? Sometimes this keeps me up at night because I want to see students lives changed and mentally/physically/spiritually I feel as if my enthusiasm is drained. It's hard to spread enthusiasm when physically and spiritually you are doing this by yourself.
I read something in the book of Haggai today that helped me and maybe it can help you as well. The nation of Israel was told to re-build the temple in Ezra and they started out strong but over time their enthusiasm dwindled and their priorities got in the way; what they thought was important. They said, "we can't build the temple unless we have our own houses to live in." Basically, they stopped the work because something else stepped in front of the passion and wonder they had for His temple.
I look at this and say to myself: there have been times where I have started strong but have looked at other things along the way and it has distracted me from the vision that God has birthed in me. I think that doing it this way and doing this that way will produce production in the ministry, but in all honesty I get sidetracked like the people of Israel. I stop the work that God has called me to do.
I am encouraged by the way that God handled the situation in Haggai when God proclaimed to the people that the reason you don't see blessings in your life is because your focus has been on yourself. You don't see me in your life because, you decided to go a different direction. But God chose to help them get back on track. He uses a prophet to spark some enthusiasm back into the heart of the leaders. It's so awesome to see that God is a God of grace but a God of direction and love. God knows what He wants; the problem is that we think we know what God wants.
Many times I feel as if I need a boost of enthusiasm to keep going. We all do at times. We need a re-fill on God's presence in our lives. I am learning that I need more prayer with God, more devotion time with God than the time I put in other small insignificant ideas. I have to always remember that there are small things that I can do to help build the student ministry but in all honesty, if my priorities fall on other things such as videos, music, games, perfect message, then I will lose my passion and wonder for God's people. God will build anything if it involves a passionate heart and a desire to see His glory known. May I never forget this.
I need to pray more, trust God more, ask for the impossible and allow Him to work through me to build His temple(student ministry).
I believe that we are all called to take part in a massive plan that God is doing in this world. I also think that God specifically calls us to do specific things to grow and test our faith and the faith of others. I think that most people want to build a life that has every component exactly where it needs to be so they can say that my life is going great; everything is in order. But is it?
In the area of student ministry I constantly battle with building the student ministry. I struggle with building something through words or videos or games. A piece of me tells me that I have to do this to reach these students and that this is the only way to build your ministry. Then I kick myself in the head and say, "you're building what?"
Exactly. I have a vision. I have a dream. It will take alot of work. But ultimately, God does the building. There is no perfect video or perfect message that I can show or speak on that can do the amazing work of God in the hearts of students. Why do I have this urge to build this own my own? Sometimes this keeps me up at night because I want to see students lives changed and mentally/physically/spiritually I feel as if my enthusiasm is drained. It's hard to spread enthusiasm when physically and spiritually you are doing this by yourself.
I read something in the book of Haggai today that helped me and maybe it can help you as well. The nation of Israel was told to re-build the temple in Ezra and they started out strong but over time their enthusiasm dwindled and their priorities got in the way; what they thought was important. They said, "we can't build the temple unless we have our own houses to live in." Basically, they stopped the work because something else stepped in front of the passion and wonder they had for His temple.
I look at this and say to myself: there have been times where I have started strong but have looked at other things along the way and it has distracted me from the vision that God has birthed in me. I think that doing it this way and doing this that way will produce production in the ministry, but in all honesty I get sidetracked like the people of Israel. I stop the work that God has called me to do.
I am encouraged by the way that God handled the situation in Haggai when God proclaimed to the people that the reason you don't see blessings in your life is because your focus has been on yourself. You don't see me in your life because, you decided to go a different direction. But God chose to help them get back on track. He uses a prophet to spark some enthusiasm back into the heart of the leaders. It's so awesome to see that God is a God of grace but a God of direction and love. God knows what He wants; the problem is that we think we know what God wants.
Many times I feel as if I need a boost of enthusiasm to keep going. We all do at times. We need a re-fill on God's presence in our lives. I am learning that I need more prayer with God, more devotion time with God than the time I put in other small insignificant ideas. I have to always remember that there are small things that I can do to help build the student ministry but in all honesty, if my priorities fall on other things such as videos, music, games, perfect message, then I will lose my passion and wonder for God's people. God will build anything if it involves a passionate heart and a desire to see His glory known. May I never forget this.
I need to pray more, trust God more, ask for the impossible and allow Him to work through me to build His temple(student ministry).
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Character and Reputation
Today was an interesting read in my devotional and I wanted to share it with whomever reads my blog.
The passage of scripture that I was reading from was Ezekiel 36:16-38. You are probably wondering why are you reading Ezekiel? Devotional dude!
So as I was reading this story I couldn't help but see that God's character is beyond reproach. But his reputation was being dragged through the mud. You see the people of Israel were being "cotton-headed-ninny-muggins" and not obeying God's law. So what does God the Father do, he sends them all away to their own corners for time-out.
But just like any child in a corner, they start to act out and get bored. The people of God still acted up. So God said you know what you are taking my name and causing other people to view me, the Creator of the heavens and earth as a weak God.
God said, no sir! not gonna happen as long as I am around, (Which is forever) so he does something that blows my mind. Something that he did not only for the nation of Israel but also for you and me. You know what he did?
He decides to demonstrate his holiness, power and mercy. God does all of this for us today as he did then, not because we deserve it but because God doesn't like it when his reputation is on the line. So how did he do this for us, today?
Well, just like God changed the hearts of Israel through restoration, he then washed the filth from their hearts giving them a new heart with right desires and removed the sin stone heart. But not only that He put His Spirit in them so they would obey the laws and do what is right in God's sight when he commands it.
How crazy is that? That God would care about his people that much. Even in the worse case scenario, God chooses grace. God chooses a better plan for them, even when they don't deserve it. Jesus came for us in the same way God came for the Israelites. Jesus showed us the same attributes of the Father.
So, a final thought: Our character is what we are but our reputation is what people believe we are. Is our character aligning with our reputation as leaders? Are we willing to show mercy, grace and love when situations seem to be dragging down your reputation? I think that then and only then will your true character shine through.
Aaron
Friday, December 3, 2010
Calling all parents
Hey parents how ya doing? Life going well? Job ok? Your kids doing good in school? Activities draining you right now? Holiday stress creeping in? Well, take a deep breath cause it will be ok.
This past week I have been hindered by a nasty flu bug/virus and it wasn't pretty. I had some time to think during that time, yes between the moments where I felt like puking and that my head was going to explode and guess what I was thinking about? Your students. Crazy huh?
This past wednesday night killed me because I couldn't be there to hang out with them. But God has placed some great leaders on Wednesday nights to step in and do the job when I can't be there. If you get a chance, tell Parish Austin, Elisabeth Smith, Kevin and Sheliea Lambing that you appreciate them. They do an amazing job putting up with me and sharing Christ with these students.
So, I know that was thrown in there but it was very much needed to be said. Without them we couldn't do the things we want to do. So back to your students.
I had some questions for you parents about students and their development during their time here at Grace.
My questions are:
1. What is the "end" result that you want to see happen in the lives of your student(s) after they graduate from high school and their time here at GBC Encounter Student Ministry?
2. Going off your answer from question #1, what is the best way for them achieve this result? Is it working? Why or why not? Be honest.
3. Going off your answer from question #2, do you think that the church is the primary place for this to happen or do you have another answer?
I ask these questions because I am curious how parents view the role of the church and the family. In some churches the family and the church are viewed as separate entities. If this is the case, then churches are missing an important piece between partnering with the family in seeing the lives of this generation change.
I say all of this because I think that as parents you ultimately want to see your students accomplish these three things in some shape or fashion:
1. You want your students to know that they are created to pursue a relationship with God
2. You want your students to know they belong to Christ and they are defined by what He says
3. You want your students to know that the reason they exist is to ultimately show and demostrate God's love to a broken world everyday
What if the church and the family combined in their efforts to make these things possible in every student and their families? Flash-forward 15 years from the age of your student, do you want to see them still living these core values as an adult? I think that you do. I know I want my kids to. When I have them.
We are on our way to making this a reality here at Grace Bible Church. We want to see the end result of our students grasp these three things and carry them with them throughout the rest of their lives. In their families, in their communities, in their future church homes.
So to wrap all of this up. As a parent, what can we do as the church to help you be the spiritual leaders of your students? Also, parents what can you do to provide your students opportunities to know that those three qualities are the foundation of your life?
I would love to hear your responses via email or responding to the blog. Take some time and think about this. Please ask questions, share your thoughts and feeling.
I am not going to stop making sure that our students leave knowing that that have a purpose and that there is a God who loves them. This is my passion and I want to see it happen. I believe that it can.
Aaron Smith
asmith180@gmail.com
This past week I have been hindered by a nasty flu bug/virus and it wasn't pretty. I had some time to think during that time, yes between the moments where I felt like puking and that my head was going to explode and guess what I was thinking about? Your students. Crazy huh?
This past wednesday night killed me because I couldn't be there to hang out with them. But God has placed some great leaders on Wednesday nights to step in and do the job when I can't be there. If you get a chance, tell Parish Austin, Elisabeth Smith, Kevin and Sheliea Lambing that you appreciate them. They do an amazing job putting up with me and sharing Christ with these students.
So, I know that was thrown in there but it was very much needed to be said. Without them we couldn't do the things we want to do. So back to your students.
I had some questions for you parents about students and their development during their time here at Grace.
My questions are:
1. What is the "end" result that you want to see happen in the lives of your student(s) after they graduate from high school and their time here at GBC Encounter Student Ministry?
2. Going off your answer from question #1, what is the best way for them achieve this result? Is it working? Why or why not? Be honest.
3. Going off your answer from question #2, do you think that the church is the primary place for this to happen or do you have another answer?
I ask these questions because I am curious how parents view the role of the church and the family. In some churches the family and the church are viewed as separate entities. If this is the case, then churches are missing an important piece between partnering with the family in seeing the lives of this generation change.
I say all of this because I think that as parents you ultimately want to see your students accomplish these three things in some shape or fashion:
1. You want your students to know that they are created to pursue a relationship with God
2. You want your students to know they belong to Christ and they are defined by what He says
3. You want your students to know that the reason they exist is to ultimately show and demostrate God's love to a broken world everyday
What if the church and the family combined in their efforts to make these things possible in every student and their families? Flash-forward 15 years from the age of your student, do you want to see them still living these core values as an adult? I think that you do. I know I want my kids to. When I have them.
We are on our way to making this a reality here at Grace Bible Church. We want to see the end result of our students grasp these three things and carry them with them throughout the rest of their lives. In their families, in their communities, in their future church homes.
So to wrap all of this up. As a parent, what can we do as the church to help you be the spiritual leaders of your students? Also, parents what can you do to provide your students opportunities to know that those three qualities are the foundation of your life?
I would love to hear your responses via email or responding to the blog. Take some time and think about this. Please ask questions, share your thoughts and feeling.
I am not going to stop making sure that our students leave knowing that that have a purpose and that there is a God who loves them. This is my passion and I want to see it happen. I believe that it can.
Aaron Smith
asmith180@gmail.com
Monday, November 15, 2010
Paintball and body aches...
Wow, I had a great time yesterday with the students at Grace. I mean it can't get any better than firing off some paintball rounds at some kids, legally! But it was a great time for some of the guys to get to know each other and for me to hang out and get them as well. But it was a busy day for me with preaching two services and also teaching the middle school class in between then sacrificing my body on the paintball field. So why am I writing this: not for a pity party but if I had to do this every week, I would. I loved it. Even though I didn't want to get out of the bed this morning.
God is doing great things here. I mean out of the 15 guys that went yesterday with us, 3 students were new faces. God is drawing students to His church and it's exciting to see the work that has been put in place turning heads so to speak. There is much rebuilding to do. I love the book of Nehemiah. If the people can rebuild the walls in 52 days then God can rebuild this church and student ministry to gain glory and honor. I just want to be a part of the building process and see students and families re-united in one accord glorifying God. Pray with me that this small part of the body of Christ will rise up and take hold of the task at hand. God has great potential for His people, it's up to us to reach it!
Aaron
God is doing great things here. I mean out of the 15 guys that went yesterday with us, 3 students were new faces. God is drawing students to His church and it's exciting to see the work that has been put in place turning heads so to speak. There is much rebuilding to do. I love the book of Nehemiah. If the people can rebuild the walls in 52 days then God can rebuild this church and student ministry to gain glory and honor. I just want to be a part of the building process and see students and families re-united in one accord glorifying God. Pray with me that this small part of the body of Christ will rise up and take hold of the task at hand. God has great potential for His people, it's up to us to reach it!
Aaron
Friday, November 5, 2010
Worship please!
in the midst of many churches today the issue of attitude towards worship rears it's ugly head for some churches every Sunday morning. play this song, they don't do it like I used to sing it or maybe that's not the problem. maybe it's my problem and yours. i am reminded of a psalm this morning that brings a hopeful understanding to the nonsense we sometimes make of worship: ourselves. if you were to read psalm 84 with an honest heart and reflected on the true nature of why this man worshipped God, I think quickly we would, well at least I did, see that sometimes our hearts are not even merely close to where they need to be on Sunday mornings or even more importantly 24/7.
read the chapter below and if you heart is not set on truly glorifying God in your day-to-day walk and if your focus is set more on you and your needs on Sunday mornings than the King, then my response is why even come. when we come to worship ourselves, we have no need for God and we better understand that God will not hear our plea unless full attention is given unto him and our hearts are set on his face. with much love i eat these words myself. come on church let's focus our eyes and be excited that we have the chance to proclaim the name of God! that's all.
How lovely is your dwelling place,
O Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
2 I long, yes, I faint with longing
to enter the courts of the Lord.
With my whole being, body and soul,
I will shout joyfully to the living God.
3 Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow builds her nest and raises her young
at a place near your altar,
O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, my King and my God!
4 What joy for those who can live in your house,
always singing your praises.
Selah
5 What joy for those whose strength comes from the Lord,
who have set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
6 When they walk through the Valley of Weeping,
it will become a place of refreshing springs.
The autumn rains will clothe it with blessings.
7 They will continue to grow stronger,
and each of them will appear before God in Jerusalem.
8 O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, hear my prayer.
Listen, O God of Jacob.
Selah
9 O God, look with favor upon the king, our shield!
Show favor to the one you have anointed.
10 A single day in your courts
is better than a thousand anywhere else!
I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God
than live the good life in the homes of the wicked.
11 For the Lord God is our sun and our shield.
He gives us grace and glory.
The Lord will withhold no good thing
from those who do what is right.
12 O Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
what joy for those who trust in you. (NLT)
Aaron
read the chapter below and if you heart is not set on truly glorifying God in your day-to-day walk and if your focus is set more on you and your needs on Sunday mornings than the King, then my response is why even come. when we come to worship ourselves, we have no need for God and we better understand that God will not hear our plea unless full attention is given unto him and our hearts are set on his face. with much love i eat these words myself. come on church let's focus our eyes and be excited that we have the chance to proclaim the name of God! that's all.
How lovely is your dwelling place,
O Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
2 I long, yes, I faint with longing
to enter the courts of the Lord.
With my whole being, body and soul,
I will shout joyfully to the living God.
3 Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow builds her nest and raises her young
at a place near your altar,
O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, my King and my God!
4 What joy for those who can live in your house,
always singing your praises.
Selah
5 What joy for those whose strength comes from the Lord,
who have set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
6 When they walk through the Valley of Weeping,
it will become a place of refreshing springs.
The autumn rains will clothe it with blessings.
7 They will continue to grow stronger,
and each of them will appear before God in Jerusalem.
8 O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, hear my prayer.
Listen, O God of Jacob.
Selah
9 O God, look with favor upon the king, our shield!
Show favor to the one you have anointed.
10 A single day in your courts
is better than a thousand anywhere else!
I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God
than live the good life in the homes of the wicked.
11 For the Lord God is our sun and our shield.
He gives us grace and glory.
The Lord will withhold no good thing
from those who do what is right.
12 O Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
what joy for those who trust in you. (NLT)
Aaron
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Ground control to Major Tom....
Like the intro? Yes, it doesn't make sense. But it got that song stuck in your head didn't it? Anywho, well what's new with me. Well I'll tell you.
Recently, I have been re-reading a few books. I would consider you reading both of these books with caution! The first one is called "Radical" by David Platt and alongside of it I started reading "The Hole in our Gospel" by Richard Stearns (President of World Vision) joined with an awesome message about "contentment" this past Sunday morning and adding all of that together my mind and my heart are changing. I want to give more. I want to serve more. I want to go more. The more that I read and see in life, I understand that it has less to do about me. It has all to do with the world. The other people who don't know that God is desperately seeking them and has made a way to know Him through Christ.
And I wonder how many times we forget that it is a privilege and honor to know Christ but also to be associated with Him means that it demands a life of sacrifice and humility? I thank God everyday for the blessings that I sometimes so easily take for granted. As I look and see around the world, their are millions of people who would love to have the liberties and freedom that I enjoy. So, what do I do about it?
I have decided that every three years or less that I am gonna go. I am gonna save money and go. I want to go and tell people about Christ around the world. But not just save money and go but give more money. What good is it sitting in my bank if people need food and water? So, it starts this Spring Break in Haiti. My wife and I are going to serve and to meet the needs of the people in Haiti. I want to feel what they feel and see what they see. I want my eyes to be opened further than what I see here in America. So, I will go.
What if we could stop for a second and analyze our lives, our churches and take a look beyond ourselves and see that we could do more. No, I am not one of those political nuts or extreme rally persons, but I do think that we are so narrow-minded when it comes to how many people don't know Christ. Last time I checked, everyone was called to continue the mission of Christ. In case you forgot or need a slap in the face it's: Love God will all your heart, mind, soul and strength, Love your neighbor as yourself and Go and share the Gospel with the nations. How are you doing with that?
Aaron
Recently, I have been re-reading a few books. I would consider you reading both of these books with caution! The first one is called "Radical" by David Platt and alongside of it I started reading "The Hole in our Gospel" by Richard Stearns (President of World Vision) joined with an awesome message about "contentment" this past Sunday morning and adding all of that together my mind and my heart are changing. I want to give more. I want to serve more. I want to go more. The more that I read and see in life, I understand that it has less to do about me. It has all to do with the world. The other people who don't know that God is desperately seeking them and has made a way to know Him through Christ.
And I wonder how many times we forget that it is a privilege and honor to know Christ but also to be associated with Him means that it demands a life of sacrifice and humility? I thank God everyday for the blessings that I sometimes so easily take for granted. As I look and see around the world, their are millions of people who would love to have the liberties and freedom that I enjoy. So, what do I do about it?
I have decided that every three years or less that I am gonna go. I am gonna save money and go. I want to go and tell people about Christ around the world. But not just save money and go but give more money. What good is it sitting in my bank if people need food and water? So, it starts this Spring Break in Haiti. My wife and I are going to serve and to meet the needs of the people in Haiti. I want to feel what they feel and see what they see. I want my eyes to be opened further than what I see here in America. So, I will go.
What if we could stop for a second and analyze our lives, our churches and take a look beyond ourselves and see that we could do more. No, I am not one of those political nuts or extreme rally persons, but I do think that we are so narrow-minded when it comes to how many people don't know Christ. Last time I checked, everyone was called to continue the mission of Christ. In case you forgot or need a slap in the face it's: Love God will all your heart, mind, soul and strength, Love your neighbor as yourself and Go and share the Gospel with the nations. How are you doing with that?
Aaron
Friday, October 22, 2010
It's raining.....
Well, it's been a few weeks since I last posted. Let's do a recap. I preached two services on evangelism, saw Alabama lose to South Carolina, had an awesome student messy game night and now I am recuperating from the madness. I think I finally got all of the shaving cream out of my ear. Ah, the joys of being a student pastor.
But something is on my mind. I sometimes feel as if I am trying to sell Jesus to students. Like Jesus is something like a car. Here is all of the nice parts about becoming a Christian and you should jump aboard. I am not saying that my faith is wavering or I am confessing something blasphemous, I am just wrestling with that thought right now. Don't know what to think about it but I don't think that it is bad.
I just feel that sometimes there is more to it than me telling the students about Jesus. I mean I know that relationships are important and having key leaders involved in the lives of students but am I missing something? I know it's not about flashy lights and the best worship team in town. I mean the Bible speaks for itself and we are just vessels to expand it's meaning and presence in the world by living out the words on the pages.
So, what to do? I am realizing that I need to stop relying so much on my teaching abilities and start working on more of the hands-on abilities. Recently, you would have heard me say it's all about the "heart knowledge not the head knowledge" meaning that it needs to come forth in action. But sometimes it is hard to do such things when everything is resting on your shoulders. I think that my problem is that I rely too much on ministering to kids and not actually living out my faith in my community. Do I really stop to listen or talk with people about Christ? I feel sometimes as if my job alone is supposed to do all of that and I don't think I am right. Yes, students need to hear about God but so do others in our community.
So, my prayer is that God would reveal to me ways to get our students living the words of Christ through actions in our community. It's great to have them all meet on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings but I think we need a more hands-on approach. While teaching and preaching is one of my strong suits, getting actively involved is where I struggle. I think we all struggle in this area. Can you admit it?
Aaron
But something is on my mind. I sometimes feel as if I am trying to sell Jesus to students. Like Jesus is something like a car. Here is all of the nice parts about becoming a Christian and you should jump aboard. I am not saying that my faith is wavering or I am confessing something blasphemous, I am just wrestling with that thought right now. Don't know what to think about it but I don't think that it is bad.
I just feel that sometimes there is more to it than me telling the students about Jesus. I mean I know that relationships are important and having key leaders involved in the lives of students but am I missing something? I know it's not about flashy lights and the best worship team in town. I mean the Bible speaks for itself and we are just vessels to expand it's meaning and presence in the world by living out the words on the pages.
So, what to do? I am realizing that I need to stop relying so much on my teaching abilities and start working on more of the hands-on abilities. Recently, you would have heard me say it's all about the "heart knowledge not the head knowledge" meaning that it needs to come forth in action. But sometimes it is hard to do such things when everything is resting on your shoulders. I think that my problem is that I rely too much on ministering to kids and not actually living out my faith in my community. Do I really stop to listen or talk with people about Christ? I feel sometimes as if my job alone is supposed to do all of that and I don't think I am right. Yes, students need to hear about God but so do others in our community.
So, my prayer is that God would reveal to me ways to get our students living the words of Christ through actions in our community. It's great to have them all meet on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings but I think we need a more hands-on approach. While teaching and preaching is one of my strong suits, getting actively involved is where I struggle. I think we all struggle in this area. Can you admit it?
Aaron
Friday, October 8, 2010
Less of me....
So, to inform you of something you may not think that pastors think about is the fact that sometimes we do want to see people in the seats of our churches. There I said it. It is discouraging sometimes because you wonder what is going on? Am I not saying the right things, doing the right games, playing the right videos? While these things can be important to drawing people and entertaining them, do they really matter? For the longest time I have been, for lack of a better word "brainwashed" into thinking that we had to put on a show for people and then tell them about God's Word. Or that I had to present it this way because if I do and the lighting hits just right then, then that person will understand why they need Jesus in their life. Really? Can I draw students by my voice alone? Can the stupid video impact a student's life for eternity? Can that fog light really help me see Jesus?
I have come to this conclusion. That stuff is great and all but the power of God is way better! (I took that from Kanye, get it?) I feel that we focus way too much on saying the right thing, preaching the right thing or entertaining the masses so they can be awed and ewwwed to come back to our services. Since when did the Bible need flashing lights and high energy worship to make sense? Why do we need these things? I think that God wants to move without those things and will if we allow Him to.
You know I heard the other day that the Bible stands alone and doesn't need anyone to doctor it up or dress it up for people to understand. It's plain and simple. The truth is right there. Well, I don't understand what it says? Well, have you read it? Reading a passage from Leviticus about sacrificing animals is probably not the place you need to start. My point is this and I will quit rambling: do we not trust in the power of God to do great things? I mean God is wanting to do amazing things in our lives and the lives of others but do we want that? Are our minds caught up in the flashiness of putting on a production or are we allowing God to draw men unto Himself? Here's the thing I have learned, well still learning, is that God will provide you people that are hurting and need Jesus. What are you going to do with them when they show up? Point them to the flashy lights or point them to the Light that points to forgiveness?
Trusting in God is not easy, in fact it's a huge risk but whom else would you put your trust in? God will provide if you ask. He will move if you ask. He will show you amazing things if you ask. Do you want it?
Not I but Christ,
Aaron
I have come to this conclusion. That stuff is great and all but the power of God is way better! (I took that from Kanye, get it?) I feel that we focus way too much on saying the right thing, preaching the right thing or entertaining the masses so they can be awed and ewwwed to come back to our services. Since when did the Bible need flashing lights and high energy worship to make sense? Why do we need these things? I think that God wants to move without those things and will if we allow Him to.
You know I heard the other day that the Bible stands alone and doesn't need anyone to doctor it up or dress it up for people to understand. It's plain and simple. The truth is right there. Well, I don't understand what it says? Well, have you read it? Reading a passage from Leviticus about sacrificing animals is probably not the place you need to start. My point is this and I will quit rambling: do we not trust in the power of God to do great things? I mean God is wanting to do amazing things in our lives and the lives of others but do we want that? Are our minds caught up in the flashiness of putting on a production or are we allowing God to draw men unto Himself? Here's the thing I have learned, well still learning, is that God will provide you people that are hurting and need Jesus. What are you going to do with them when they show up? Point them to the flashy lights or point them to the Light that points to forgiveness?
Trusting in God is not easy, in fact it's a huge risk but whom else would you put your trust in? God will provide if you ask. He will move if you ask. He will show you amazing things if you ask. Do you want it?
Not I but Christ,
Aaron
Monday, September 20, 2010
hopefully this hurts you more than it hurts me...
My heart is troubled. Why? I think we expect to much from our students. We think that we truly understand what is happening in their lives. We think that giving them their space will make the relationship better. Saying all of this, I think that parents of students, and I say this with much love because I have none of my own, are deceived. What are you talking about Aaron? Well, yesterday during our second service, I heard that over 65% of Christians who have a Bible don't read it. Wow. Really? So, my mind automatically raced towards my area of ministry and I wonder how many students read the Bible? The numbers can't be good. Can they be better than 65% of adults?
So here is my dilemma. How do we fix this? How do we get our students interested in reading God's Word? My thoughts are, it starts at home but then I sound naive and judgmental. I know that the environments where students are at today are not healthy, but that is all the more reason to have them study God's Word right? I think that it starts with adults, not knowing how to read the Bible and then teaching their children. I think that we rely too much on the church to fix our children. Can it become more of a pit stop in the every day journey of our lives, instead of a day care? Last time I checked the home is the spiritual place of growth.
If you know me, please hear me when I say all of this, I am not calling out any of your children. But, maybe this is the moment where you can sit down with your children and truly ask them when the last time they read the Bible was? Stop reading my blog and go grab your students!! All I know is that it is harder for me, as a pastor to teach students the Bible when they have no idea what it is and how to open it and these are students who have professed Christ! Well, Aaron that is your job. Uhm, no. I am just a small piece in the bigger picture of your students lives. I love being that small piece but if you are just counting on me to magically transform the lives of students, then we are all in trouble. That may hurt. I say it with love.
I take full responsibility of guiding them on how to get plugged-in to a small group and make sure that we give them the best opportunities to expand their walk with Christ, but this is not an everyday deal. I only have them twice a week. How many times do you have them?? There has to be help from the other side. Do we really want our students to know God? Then, let's push them to want to know Him. Don't just say you need to read the Bible, read it with them, Discuss, dialogue and for goodness sake pray for your students!!
My passion is to see students grow closer to God through the Word and living out their faith in Christ. I know that parents want the same thing too. Can we put down the remote, open the Bible, put our foot down, show them who Jesus is, pray for each other, view church as a refueling station in the long journey with Christ and then do it all over again?? I think that we can! I know we can! It will take some sacrifice but it should be a sacrifice that is worth taking! Here again, no name calling, just a piece of reality that breaks my heart....I hope that one day we can turn this ship around because right now as a universal church body, we have hit an iceberg people and students are drowning. Can that be today? I am praying for all parents and students of our church and churches in this nation. This is a critical issue and WE can do something about it!
Aaron
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Don't get burned...
As I look at my relationship with God, I can see that sometimes I tend to do whatever I please, whenever I want to because "it my party and I'll cry if I want to" but in all reality I am setting myself up to be burned. I feel that many times the things that I choose to do or say or watch come from an innate desire to please myself, rather than please my Father. While I know that the contents of my actions are extremely dangerous or hot or unholy, I chose to do them anyways. Why is this? I think that I can relate to Paul when he talks about how he wants to do what is right but does wrong. No matter how hard he tries, he fails. He knows what the right thing to do is but something within him pushes him towards the dangerously, hot cup of coffee(insert your own device here). Could we chose to slow down and remember that sin is unholy and displeases God?
I think that many times we get caught up in the moment. In that moment we find ourselves making a choice on whether or not to make the right decisions. So basically we all have the opportunity to chose the right course of action but we would rather get burned instead. Have you ever had hot coffee spilled on you? It burns. It hurts. It is painful. But the effects of that burn, decision, can't leave immediately. The marks of our decisions sometimes last longer than we would like.
So anyways, I write some pretty random things sometimes and this is one of them. Hope it makes sense and you can take something away from it. In the mean time, let your coffee cool off of for a second before burning the mess out of your tongue and maybe the next time you drink a cup of joe, you might, just might remember the way we are supposed to act and treat others as you treat yourself to some arabica bean delight. Just sayin...
Aaron
Saturday, September 11, 2010
I'm stealing this prayer and giving it to you...
"Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for Christians everywhere, I have never stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the wonderful future he has promised to those he called. I want you to realize what a rich and glorious inheritance he has given to his people."
"I pray that you will begin to understand the incredible greatness of his power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right and in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or anything else in this world or in the world to come. And God has put all things under the authority of Christ, and he gave him this authority for the benefit of the church. And the church is his body; it is filled by Christ, who fills everything everywhere with his presence."
My prayer for you, taken from Paul in Ephesians 1:15-23.
May the church remember that it finds it's place through Christ, not through man. Also, that the body of Christ should reflect his presence everywhere we set foot.
Aaron
"I pray that you will begin to understand the incredible greatness of his power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right and in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or anything else in this world or in the world to come. And God has put all things under the authority of Christ, and he gave him this authority for the benefit of the church. And the church is his body; it is filled by Christ, who fills everything everywhere with his presence."
My prayer for you, taken from Paul in Ephesians 1:15-23.
May the church remember that it finds it's place through Christ, not through man. Also, that the body of Christ should reflect his presence everywhere we set foot.
Aaron
Friday, September 10, 2010
Ants and Jesus...??
So, this is gonna be one of those weird posts but looking back at yesterday I had an encounter with some ants and it got me thinking about my relationship with Christ. You are probably wondering, how can you get something out of ants?
Well, here goes. As I woke up, our dog's food bowl was in the kitchen and to my surprise a long line of ants were coming from outside and found their precious way into our home. But what caught my eye was that there was a line leaving and a huge mass in the bowl feasting on the dog food and a massive line leaving. And so my mind started to wonder.....
This is what came about: cool example of how our relationship with God should be, in a three-fold kinda way.
1) God puts himself out there so that all of mankind can come and taste and see that He is good. Kinda like the dog bowl sitting by itself, available to whomever wants to partake of the dog food. God is always ready for us to come to Him, in fact God even pursues us, which would kinda be weird if the dog bowl would have started sliding on the floor but any who....
2) God is our source of food, not dog food, but the only place of nourishment and true fulfillment. He is the person we can approach and feast upon His Word to be filled with of grace and mercy. It's in His presence that we find life and direction. It's the place that leads us to true understanding about who we are and what we have been created to do.
3) God is not only to be sought after and fill our lives with challenges and direction, but He lives within us so that we may take the living Word, the food, the life, hope, ad love back to our social environments and share who He is to others searching for answers, love, forgiveness and true life.
So as the ants are marching to the bowl for food and leaving with what they can carry, it sparked something else. As I said a lot of the ants were coming to and fro from the dog bowl, but some of the ants were just huddled in the bowl, never leaving to return. This caught my eye because I feel that many times I act the same way when it comes to my faith. It's all about me and my relationship with God and I just throw in Matthew 28:19 whenever I can or feel like it.
So what I took away from this is that I am called to run after my Father, come and be filled with nourishment, but also to leave with a mission to take what truly gives me life back to the world, so that steps A and B can happen to those who need a Savior, which then will produce more ants! I told you this would be a weird post!
P.S. I killed the ants.
Aaron
Well, here goes. As I woke up, our dog's food bowl was in the kitchen and to my surprise a long line of ants were coming from outside and found their precious way into our home. But what caught my eye was that there was a line leaving and a huge mass in the bowl feasting on the dog food and a massive line leaving. And so my mind started to wonder.....
This is what came about: cool example of how our relationship with God should be, in a three-fold kinda way.
1) God puts himself out there so that all of mankind can come and taste and see that He is good. Kinda like the dog bowl sitting by itself, available to whomever wants to partake of the dog food. God is always ready for us to come to Him, in fact God even pursues us, which would kinda be weird if the dog bowl would have started sliding on the floor but any who....
2) God is our source of food, not dog food, but the only place of nourishment and true fulfillment. He is the person we can approach and feast upon His Word to be filled with of grace and mercy. It's in His presence that we find life and direction. It's the place that leads us to true understanding about who we are and what we have been created to do.
3) God is not only to be sought after and fill our lives with challenges and direction, but He lives within us so that we may take the living Word, the food, the life, hope, ad love back to our social environments and share who He is to others searching for answers, love, forgiveness and true life.
So as the ants are marching to the bowl for food and leaving with what they can carry, it sparked something else. As I said a lot of the ants were coming to and fro from the dog bowl, but some of the ants were just huddled in the bowl, never leaving to return. This caught my eye because I feel that many times I act the same way when it comes to my faith. It's all about me and my relationship with God and I just throw in Matthew 28:19 whenever I can or feel like it.
So what I took away from this is that I am called to run after my Father, come and be filled with nourishment, but also to leave with a mission to take what truly gives me life back to the world, so that steps A and B can happen to those who need a Savior, which then will produce more ants! I told you this would be a weird post!
P.S. I killed the ants.
Aaron
Thursday, September 9, 2010
I stand in awe...
It so awesome to get out of the way and let God move through you and through the lives of students. Over the past few weeks the Spirit has really taken hold of some of our students and they are telling their friends about the church and they are coming to hangout with us on Wednesday nights. Last night we ended our series on "unlikely" and I left a challenge to our students to do the "unlikely" thing when it comes to dealing with people who hurt us, cause us pain or just say something about our mommas. What I am referring to is that our natural tendency is to fight back or "an eye for an eye" when it comes to those we encounter on a daily basis. I challenged our students to "give love, not hate" and do the unlikely thing. Its really hard to do this when people spread lies about us, cut us off in traffic, etc. It's not impossible though. It will be interesting to hear some of their stories over the next few weeks and see how they have failed and succeeded in this area. But I leave you with a question: could you show love more than you show hate this week? even to your enemies? your neighbors? your teacher? your boss? Granted, they don't deserve forgiveness and love, but neither do we. Don't just love those who love you, don't hate those who hate you, love everyone with the same love that Christ shows us in the Bible. Go the extra mile if you have to, give the clothes of your back. Stop doing the normal likely reactions and do the unlikely reaction of love! Love covers a multitude of sins.
Try it.
Aaron
Try it.
Aaron
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
And then....
So, it's been awhile since I have posted on this thing. I guess I got the urge to do this today cause I saw my wife's blog page up on the computer. Looking back at my last post alot of things have changed. Let's see, God led us to La Vernia, TX to continue serving students, we moved away from family ( a whole day worth of traveling for Elisabeth's family), new community, new people, new staff, new everything but what is cool about this whole transition thing was that God had our backs. We didn't quite know what to understand, what it would look like, how we would feel, but all in all the move to Texas has been a blessing to both Elisabeth and I.
I will say that I am very grateful for the path that God has led us down. In fact, alot of people would say that they wish their lives could be different but I don't. Elisabeth and I have learned alot about each other, we have learned alot about God, our faith and a whole lot of patience. I will say this about the move out here to Texas; I don't think that God makes mistakes. I will leave it at that.
So here we are in a small town in Texas, in a church that is seeing people come to know Christ almost on every Sunday and it's great to see God's people live out their love for others and do the things necessary to give people the opportunity to encounter Jesus. Last Sunday we had 12 people accept Christ! God is good. God is moving and I want to be alongside of whatever He has planned for Grace Bible Church.
The students here at Grace have been hurt, they have been broken and need a leader that they can trust and build relationships with. I know that God has led us to Grace for this specific reason. It's my prayer that I would allow the Spirit to move through me, speak through me and draw students unto Christ not myself. For sometime now, I was trying to do soo much on my own that I wouldn't leave enough room for the Spirit to work. I quickly got away from the understanding that God draws men unto Himself and that we are vessels to be used in that process. Now, I am not saying that all I am going to do is sit around and pray all day and not prepare lessons. But my focus is on this key understanding: God will build his church, with or without me. So I need to let Him build His church and I need to be so close to Christ that I can be used in amazing ways to reach our to students and their families.
So, basically in my thinking, I am turning over a new leaf. I am not going to worry about the services and lessons and all that logistical stuff and focus more on the leading of the Spirit. God knows the hearts of men, he knows exactly what the students are dealing with and facing at school, home and etc. The question is do I trust Him?
God is up to some big things here at Grace and I am excited to be here serving alongside a family of devoted Christ-followers, a family that sacrifices, a family that loves. May we continue to pursue Christ out of love!
Aaron
I will say that I am very grateful for the path that God has led us down. In fact, alot of people would say that they wish their lives could be different but I don't. Elisabeth and I have learned alot about each other, we have learned alot about God, our faith and a whole lot of patience. I will say this about the move out here to Texas; I don't think that God makes mistakes. I will leave it at that.
So here we are in a small town in Texas, in a church that is seeing people come to know Christ almost on every Sunday and it's great to see God's people live out their love for others and do the things necessary to give people the opportunity to encounter Jesus. Last Sunday we had 12 people accept Christ! God is good. God is moving and I want to be alongside of whatever He has planned for Grace Bible Church.
The students here at Grace have been hurt, they have been broken and need a leader that they can trust and build relationships with. I know that God has led us to Grace for this specific reason. It's my prayer that I would allow the Spirit to move through me, speak through me and draw students unto Christ not myself. For sometime now, I was trying to do soo much on my own that I wouldn't leave enough room for the Spirit to work. I quickly got away from the understanding that God draws men unto Himself and that we are vessels to be used in that process. Now, I am not saying that all I am going to do is sit around and pray all day and not prepare lessons. But my focus is on this key understanding: God will build his church, with or without me. So I need to let Him build His church and I need to be so close to Christ that I can be used in amazing ways to reach our to students and their families.
So, basically in my thinking, I am turning over a new leaf. I am not going to worry about the services and lessons and all that logistical stuff and focus more on the leading of the Spirit. God knows the hearts of men, he knows exactly what the students are dealing with and facing at school, home and etc. The question is do I trust Him?
God is up to some big things here at Grace and I am excited to be here serving alongside a family of devoted Christ-followers, a family that sacrifices, a family that loves. May we continue to pursue Christ out of love!
Aaron
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Pocket-Sized God
I have been reading lately about how students view God and how their views don't differ much from the adult congregation. It makes me wonder alot about how students are understanding the Gospel but more importantly the beauty and supremacy of God.
I want to post some things that I have read recently in some research that enlightened me about how students view God today. These are from Christ-followers and non-Christians.
1) There is a God that exists who created and orders the world and watches over human life on earth.
2) God wants people to be good, nice and fair to one another, as taught in the Bible and by most religions.
3) The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself.
4) God does not need to be particularly involved in one's life except when He is needed to resolve a problem.
5) Good people go to heaven when they die.
I was shocked and saddened. Is this what the next generation of the church is thinking? I have my work cut out for me. These students need Jesus and God has called me to share with them the beauty of who He is. But am I living in a way that reflects His supremacy in my life?
Jesus asked the disciples in Mark 8:27-30 "who am I to you?" and I think that I need to be reminded every day of the God who loves me and is cheering me on. You see I tend to put God in a box. I limit the power of His greatness by confining His authority in my life. As a leader, I know I must find myself just the opposite if I want to see students radically changed. I have to pursue God with a passion and understanding that He is wanting to give me more than I can ever imagine, more than I could ever experience on my own and a life full of His presence. I know that many times I view Jesus as someone who I admire and ignore but that's because I think that my ways are "higher than His." He needs to be the supreme authority of my life in order to see the lives of others changed.
So what would happen if we stopped limiting what God can do when it comes to our prayers? our personal quiet time? sharing grace to others? our ministries? Can we truly allow God to be the supreme authority in our lives without hesitation? I believe the answer is yes!
If that is the case then we should be ready to say these things:
1) In light of all Christ is, there is far more of Him to know than I've discovered.
2) Therefore, I must be passionate to know Him much more than I am.
3) I must draw near to Him with far more hope in Him than ever before.
4) God longs for the church to discover much more about His Son.
5) I must, therefore, proclaim Him to believers more fully than ever.
6) I must never fear praying or proclaiming His glory to much.
I have not achieved or arrived at any of this but I want my life to passionately reflect these things.
A
I want to post some things that I have read recently in some research that enlightened me about how students view God today. These are from Christ-followers and non-Christians.
1) There is a God that exists who created and orders the world and watches over human life on earth.
2) God wants people to be good, nice and fair to one another, as taught in the Bible and by most religions.
3) The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself.
4) God does not need to be particularly involved in one's life except when He is needed to resolve a problem.
5) Good people go to heaven when they die.
I was shocked and saddened. Is this what the next generation of the church is thinking? I have my work cut out for me. These students need Jesus and God has called me to share with them the beauty of who He is. But am I living in a way that reflects His supremacy in my life?
Jesus asked the disciples in Mark 8:27-30 "who am I to you?" and I think that I need to be reminded every day of the God who loves me and is cheering me on. You see I tend to put God in a box. I limit the power of His greatness by confining His authority in my life. As a leader, I know I must find myself just the opposite if I want to see students radically changed. I have to pursue God with a passion and understanding that He is wanting to give me more than I can ever imagine, more than I could ever experience on my own and a life full of His presence. I know that many times I view Jesus as someone who I admire and ignore but that's because I think that my ways are "higher than His." He needs to be the supreme authority of my life in order to see the lives of others changed.
So what would happen if we stopped limiting what God can do when it comes to our prayers? our personal quiet time? sharing grace to others? our ministries? Can we truly allow God to be the supreme authority in our lives without hesitation? I believe the answer is yes!
If that is the case then we should be ready to say these things:
1) In light of all Christ is, there is far more of Him to know than I've discovered.
2) Therefore, I must be passionate to know Him much more than I am.
3) I must draw near to Him with far more hope in Him than ever before.
4) God longs for the church to discover much more about His Son.
5) I must, therefore, proclaim Him to believers more fully than ever.
6) I must never fear praying or proclaiming His glory to much.
I have not achieved or arrived at any of this but I want my life to passionately reflect these things.
A
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Seeing the impossible become possible
My heart is overjoyed this morning because we added a new person to the faith family. No, we didn't have a baby or get another dog, but we had a student last night accept Christ. It amazes me to see God working in the lives of students. You can see that they are living out the Word of God. I am seeing more and more that I can't control who comes to know Christ. The Father draws men unto Himself and the Holy Spirit opens the eyes and hearts of students. Lord, knows it's not my preaching that draws students! But it is awesome to see students living out their faith and seeing the fruit from it.
Last night we talked about how "through our eyes all things are impossible but through the eyes of God all things are possible". Sounds profound doesn't it? Well, it came from the Father but anyhow, we talked about how we as Christ-followers forget that we have been given the Living Spirit of God once we accept salvation. The power of God dwells within us to go out and do the "impossible" things, through our eyes, that Christ is calling us to do. We looked at two stories in Luke 9:1-6;12-17 the first being when Jesus sent out the disciples with "power and authority" to heal and share about the Kingdom of God. They were given a taste of the Holy Spirit to do the work of the Kingdom. But when they came back they were faced with a moment of truth, a moment of trust, a moment where they lacked the faith in Jesus, a moment of impossibility.
You see we forget that God has empowered us to do some impossible things such as, when I say impossible I am referring to the way we look at things through our eyes. Here are some examples: sharing our faith, having a personal quiet time, removing activities that pull us away from the Father, leaving some friends to go and share your life with those who have none, and the list can go on and on. The problem is that we lack the faith when we understand and see these things in Scripture. The disciples were given power and authority to do amazing things but failed to realize that Jesus was the One they needed to put their trust in. Why?
We have heard the story about the feeding of the 5,000 people, actually it was more like 20,000 people but when Jesus told the disciples to "feed the people" they protested and said "that's impossible." After they had done amazing miracles for the Kingdom they say "that's impossible?" So my thinking is this: how many times when we hear the Word, see the Word, feel God moving us to change something about our lives that we actually jump up and do it or how many times do we sit back and say "that's impossible?" We are no different than the disciples were that day. We neglect the power and authority that Jesus gives us for a comfortable life. We look to other sources instead of the Father when we are faced with impossible life decisions such as Oprah, Dr. Phil, facebook, T.V. etc.
So the question that I am asking is this: If you could do one thing that is impossible in your eyes and allow God to show you that it is possible through Him, what would it be?
Maybe we need to stop looking at the impossibilities and start trusting in God to make things possible in our lives.
Three things:
Last night we talked about how "through our eyes all things are impossible but through the eyes of God all things are possible". Sounds profound doesn't it? Well, it came from the Father but anyhow, we talked about how we as Christ-followers forget that we have been given the Living Spirit of God once we accept salvation. The power of God dwells within us to go out and do the "impossible" things, through our eyes, that Christ is calling us to do. We looked at two stories in Luke 9:1-6;12-17 the first being when Jesus sent out the disciples with "power and authority" to heal and share about the Kingdom of God. They were given a taste of the Holy Spirit to do the work of the Kingdom. But when they came back they were faced with a moment of truth, a moment of trust, a moment where they lacked the faith in Jesus, a moment of impossibility.
You see we forget that God has empowered us to do some impossible things such as, when I say impossible I am referring to the way we look at things through our eyes. Here are some examples: sharing our faith, having a personal quiet time, removing activities that pull us away from the Father, leaving some friends to go and share your life with those who have none, and the list can go on and on. The problem is that we lack the faith when we understand and see these things in Scripture. The disciples were given power and authority to do amazing things but failed to realize that Jesus was the One they needed to put their trust in. Why?
We have heard the story about the feeding of the 5,000 people, actually it was more like 20,000 people but when Jesus told the disciples to "feed the people" they protested and said "that's impossible." After they had done amazing miracles for the Kingdom they say "that's impossible?" So my thinking is this: how many times when we hear the Word, see the Word, feel God moving us to change something about our lives that we actually jump up and do it or how many times do we sit back and say "that's impossible?" We are no different than the disciples were that day. We neglect the power and authority that Jesus gives us for a comfortable life. We look to other sources instead of the Father when we are faced with impossible life decisions such as Oprah, Dr. Phil, facebook, T.V. etc.
So the question that I am asking is this: If you could do one thing that is impossible in your eyes and allow God to show you that it is possible through Him, what would it be?
Maybe we need to stop looking at the impossibilities and start trusting in God to make things possible in our lives.
Three things:
1) We have been given the power and authority to do great things for Christ
· 2 Cor. 5:5 and John 16:12-15 (Holy Spirit)
· “Feed them”
2) When God calls us, don’t’ focus on the impossible because God beckons us to make everything possible for His glory
· Romans 8:1-2 and Phil. 4:13
· “feeding of the 5,000 really 20,000 people”
· Salvation is impossible through our own power; God made it (possible) through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (impossible in our eyes)
3) Christ calls us to work alongside Him using whatever resources are available to magnify His goodness and power.
Luke 9:11-12 "Jesus was doing miracles and teaching about the Kingdom when the disciples returned"
· 2 Cor. 3:16-18
· “5 loaves of bread and 2 fish”
A
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Splinters from logs
Love doesn't judge; love doesn't condemn; love forgives and love gives.
I find myself evaluating my lifestyle today because I don't want to be a hypocrite. I am seeing alot of facebook replies that are talking about "this person said this or that" or "I hate you because you did 'xyz'"
I realized that I have made this mistake before. I rarely use the word "hate" but I might as well use it when people "tick" me off. But I was reminded this morning about how Jesus looked at this issue. Reading from Luke 6:37-42 I was quickly reminded about how I should respond.
The passage talks about using a certain measure. I came to the conclusion that this has two approaches: 1) the measure or standard is something set by me or 2) the measure or standard is set by Christ. Many times, I like to set the standard because I want to "get back" or "say my thoughts" about something someone said or did to me. But, I quickly realized that whatever my measure is, whatever my standard, either my self-righteousness or the standard that Christ shows, will be returned to me. Maybe not today or tomorrow but sometime soon. I think like most of us, we choose the first standard.
It's like this: I am a Christ-follower. I can't lead people, if I am blinded by my own self-righteousness. It's like Jesus said, "a blind man can't lead a blind man." I look at my life as a leader, pastor, husband, etc. and understand that I can't lead any of these areas if I, myself, am blinded by my own self-righteousness. I mean who are we to lead others or give council or show love, if we can't lead ourselves?
That's where the whole log in the eye comes from. How can we as Christ-followers tell others how to live if the splinters from the logs in our eyes are causing others pain and they turn away from Jesus? We can't. I think this is why Jesus was telling this to his disciples. You can't lead others or see others accept my forgiveness if you can't see your wrongs first. It reminds me of Romans 3:10-18 when it says that "no man is righteous; not even one." For many of us, we think that just because of our titles and prestige, we have the authority over others. We have been doing this longer than others. Wrong! We are in the same boat whether we have Christ or not. I am not righteous, far from it. So what would happen if more Christ-followers removed the logs from their eyes and healed the wounds that the splinters have caused in the lives of others?
We must first allow the only person that can fix us, fix us and that person is Jesus. Secondly, we must be forgiven of our wrongs before forgiveness can be received by others. So let's stop the self-righteousness, admit when we are wrong, show love the way that love was shown to us and make the standard of our lives the standard which Christ gave us: "love the Lord with all you heart, soul and mind and love you neighbor as yourself." ok?
A
I find myself evaluating my lifestyle today because I don't want to be a hypocrite. I am seeing alot of facebook replies that are talking about "this person said this or that" or "I hate you because you did 'xyz'"
I realized that I have made this mistake before. I rarely use the word "hate" but I might as well use it when people "tick" me off. But I was reminded this morning about how Jesus looked at this issue. Reading from Luke 6:37-42 I was quickly reminded about how I should respond.
The passage talks about using a certain measure. I came to the conclusion that this has two approaches: 1) the measure or standard is something set by me or 2) the measure or standard is set by Christ. Many times, I like to set the standard because I want to "get back" or "say my thoughts" about something someone said or did to me. But, I quickly realized that whatever my measure is, whatever my standard, either my self-righteousness or the standard that Christ shows, will be returned to me. Maybe not today or tomorrow but sometime soon. I think like most of us, we choose the first standard.
It's like this: I am a Christ-follower. I can't lead people, if I am blinded by my own self-righteousness. It's like Jesus said, "a blind man can't lead a blind man." I look at my life as a leader, pastor, husband, etc. and understand that I can't lead any of these areas if I, myself, am blinded by my own self-righteousness. I mean who are we to lead others or give council or show love, if we can't lead ourselves?
That's where the whole log in the eye comes from. How can we as Christ-followers tell others how to live if the splinters from the logs in our eyes are causing others pain and they turn away from Jesus? We can't. I think this is why Jesus was telling this to his disciples. You can't lead others or see others accept my forgiveness if you can't see your wrongs first. It reminds me of Romans 3:10-18 when it says that "no man is righteous; not even one." For many of us, we think that just because of our titles and prestige, we have the authority over others. We have been doing this longer than others. Wrong! We are in the same boat whether we have Christ or not. I am not righteous, far from it. So what would happen if more Christ-followers removed the logs from their eyes and healed the wounds that the splinters have caused in the lives of others?
We must first allow the only person that can fix us, fix us and that person is Jesus. Secondly, we must be forgiven of our wrongs before forgiveness can be received by others. So let's stop the self-righteousness, admit when we are wrong, show love the way that love was shown to us and make the standard of our lives the standard which Christ gave us: "love the Lord with all you heart, soul and mind and love you neighbor as yourself." ok?
A
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Today is a new day
Today, I decided to open up the book of Romans and start from the beginning. As I started reading the opening part of the letter, I found myself experiencing a fresh fire to the purpose that God bestowed in me. Going to college and finishing my master's degree was something that I wanted to do ever since I started my undergrad degree. Long before that I knew that God called me to some form of ministry, which come to find out in the early years was student ministry. But even before that, I made a decision to let Christ control my life, my desires, my plans and in return I would have the privilege to spend eternity with Him. While I was reading verse 5: "Through Christ, God has given us the privilege and authority to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they will believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name"I started to think about the way the church views this. How I view this. I feel that many people have forgotten that in our lives, new lives in Christ, that we have been given the privilege and authority to speak the love of Christ anywhere. So why is it so hard to do this? I personally believe it's pride. We are a society that holds dear to things that mean something to us. We hate sharing, we hate opening up to others in fear that people will judge us, we hate the fact that we have to speak to other people. I kept reading on and came across verse 14: "For I have a great sense of obligation to people in our culture and to people in other cultures, to the educated and uneducated alike." Wow....coming from a man who hated Christians to a man who loves Christ now, this was his desire! His whole life's purpose, Christ's purpose for all who call him Lord, is to have a sense of obligation, desire or passion to tell others about Christ so that they can have an opportunity to believe and obey the Risen King. What if this was our attitude every morning? I am obligated because Christ has given me the power and strength (privilege) and authority to tell of His great love! IF this could be our attitude then we could easily say this: verse 16: "For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ."
Just something to think about as we get closer to Passion Week. Will you do whatever it takes?
A
Just something to think about as we get closer to Passion Week. Will you do whatever it takes?
A
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