GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD!

JUST a note to wish all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving!! As blessed as we all are, my prayer is that we would offer our thanks to God not so much for what He has done for us and given us, but for who He is - the God who has seen fit to love us so much that He would give us His one and only Son, that whoever will believe in Him, will not perish, but have everlasting life. Now that's a reason to be thankful!

Bless you all. Have a great week!

THE LIGHTER SIDE!

I love this picture of Jesus laughing. I have a print of it hanging in my office at church. After all, Jesus said he came to offer us life, abundant life. And how can there be life without a little laughter? I mean really, there are so many pictures of Jesus with such a stoic look on his face, as if he never had any fun, as if he never laughed. He had to laugh. Just look at the disciples he chose to follow Him. And look at us? Pretty funny. Think about it:

• "Hey Peter, I'm supposed to build my church upon you, the rock. Seriously??"
• James and John - sons of thunder? More like sons of blunder.
• So, Saul tells the folks in Damsacus that he saw the light. Their reply, "So did Hank Williams, not too good an ending to his life, huh?"
• Elijah, you're a real piece of work. Fire from heaven, defeat of the prophets, and you tuck your tail and run from a woman. Cinch it up mister!
• Baseball in the Bible - Genesis 1:1 speaks of the big inning.
• God's name? Harold - Our Father who art in heaven, Harold be thy name.
• Or is it Andy? Andy walks with me Andy talks with me.....
• Joshua on the day the sun stood still - "I thought this day would never end."
• Rick, why did you leave your mic on when you left the sanctuary?
• PR, fyi - the cows are getting out!
• By the way, make sure the correct song is cued up for church. For some reason, beans and a campfire didn't seem to be theme for the day.
• Oh yeah, since Christmas is coming, make sure the tree is securely fastened in the stand. It kind of takes away from the mood when it falls during communion.
• And when a kid says his neighbor is old and has white hair like you, just go with it!

Don't take yourself too seriously this week. Laugh a little, It's good for the soul!!

LUKEWARM??

I mentioned that I was reading this book by Francis Chan entitled Crazy Love. This is not a book for the faint of heart - Chan smacks you right in the face with an urgency for the church in America to step up and be the biblical church, not some American construct of what we want the church to be. I want to reference chapter four - People of the Lukewarm. Chan seeks to awaken the church from it's slumber lest it become lukewarm and is spit out of Christ's mouth (Rev. 3: 16). Take note of Chan's thoughts and questions:

• Has your relationship with God actually changed the way you live?
• Do you see evidence of God's kingdom in your live?
• Would you describe yourself as totally in love with Jesus Christ? Or do the words half-hearted, lukewarm, and partially committed fit better?

Lukewarm people:

• Attend church fairly regularly. It is what is expected of them, what they believe "good Christians" should do.
• Give money to charity and the church - as long as it doesn't impinge on their standard of living.
• Don't really want to be saved from their sin; they want only to be saved from the penalty of their sin.
• Call "radical" what Jesus expected of all His followers.
• Rarely share their faith with their neighbors, coworkers, or friends. They do not want to be rejected, nor do they want to make people uncomfortable by talking about private issues like religion. (Hmm, how does this statement relate to our vision statement?)
• Guage their morality or "goodness'"by comparing themselves to the secular world.
• Do not live by faith; their lives are structured so they never have to.
• Probably drink and swear less than average; but besides that, they really aren't very different than your typical unbeliever.

I think you get the point. Thoughts? Comments? And to think, this is only from one chapter. Read it if you dare.....then let's talk!

THURSDAY THOUGHTS!

JUST a few thoughts on this Thursday:

• The devil still likes to mess with us doesn't he? Yesterday I had several things on the schedule - a meeting with a person to talk about the faith at noon, time with the children in the afternoon to talk about communion and Christ's invitation to all of us to respond to his love, and then a membership class in the evening. And of course, I get the flu during the night on Tuesday. Isn't that just like the devil to step in to attempt to keep us from doing ministry? Bottom line - I stayed home all day yesterday until the membership class and God gave me the strength to facilitate that group (17 of them). God is good.
• Wow! I forgot how much work it is to take care of little kids. ML and I were in Salina on Sunday evening and Monday to help take care of the grandkids - Owen and Aubryn. Full time job. But lots of fun, lots of fun.
• Last Sunday God really blessed us with His presence. I finished the sermon series that focused on the vision that God has given us - "Inviting all to experience the life-transforming love of Jesus Christ". I spoke on the truth that "It's all about Jesus". Think about it! If we leave Jesus out of the mix we are just merely being religious and we know that Jesus didn't come to introduce a new religion. He came to offer a new relationship - a huge difference. And based on the response Sunday, there is a real desire for that relationship.
• I would ask that you pray for marriages in our community. The devil is working hard to destroy families. Pray for forgiveness and reconciliation in the lives of those who are struggling. Pray they will look to Jesus for healing and restoration. Nothing is too difficult for God so let's covenant to pray for the marriages that are under attack.
• Are any of you out there tired? I don't know, maybe it's just because I have been sick, but I'm tired. Some of it is the fact that there are so many folks going through such difficult times - heartache, pain, sickness, etc. It might be good just to lay down and take a nap. What say you?
• I had a "first" happen to me last week. I officiated a wedding on Thursday evening because the couple was going deer hunting over the weekend. Priorities, you know!
• I'm going to the KSU/Texas game this weekend. The bad thing? It starts at 7:00 pm so it will be very late getting home. I'm very grateful we are turning the clocks back an hour on Saturday night.
• So, how serious will we be about living out the vision God has placed before us? Will we be intentional about inviting others to experience a transformed life that comes by placing faith in Jesus? Or will it just be a nice 6 week sermon series that we will forget about and move on to something else? The truth be told, God will hold us accountable. Let us respond in obedience.
• Need prayer? Let me know. Have a great week!