As was shared this past Sunday, Southwest Church has a letter of interest for a building loan. Please pray for the LORD to give us guidance and wisdom as we consider this loan offer. Also, make plans to attend one of our Worship Gatherings this Sunday as we both pray about this opportunity and share in more detail the recent revisions in the architectural drawings of our future Worship and Community Center.
While personally considering and praying about this exciting opportunity, I was encouraged by my morning daily Bible reading from the Old Testament book entitled Nehemiah. The book of Nehemiah (written 440 B.C.) records the tremendous influence of two spiritual leaders named, Nehemiah and Ezra. Nehemiah oversaw the physical rebuilding of the exterior walls surrounding Jerusalem. Ezra was a Jewish Priest, who oversaw the rebuilding of the spiritual lives of the people of Jerusalem. It is important for us to realize from their example that physical and spiritual building can (and must) take place simultaneously!
While Nehemiah was leading an amazing effort to carry out this huge building project of the Jerusalem wall which had been lying in ruins for more than 100 years, Ezra focused his efforts on preparing the people for the spiritual task at hand. The Book of Nehemiah records an incredible unity of God’s people during this defining moment in Israel’s history (Nehemiah 8).
Following a time that the people of God recommitted themselves to honoring God’s Word in their lives, Ezra led them to recommit their lives to depending upon the LORD in a wholehearted manner. Nehemiah records this collective call to worship as follows: “Stand up and praise the LORD your God, for he lives from everlasting to everlasting!” Then they prayed: “May your glorious name be praised! May it be exalted above all blessing and praise!” Nehemiah 9:5 NLT
As we consider taking this important step of building a physical structure to serve as our future Worship and Community Center, let’s remember that this is not only a huge step of faith, but also potentially a defining moment in our history as a church! Make plans to attend this Sunday and join others in prayer as we seek to honor God every step of the way (as the people of God did in the days of Nehemiah and Ezra).
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Revisiting Lessons Forgotten
Have you ever forgotten something important? A Birthday Celebration … An Anniversary … An Appointment … A Homework Assignment … A Promise Made … A Lesson Learned!
This week I have had two such experiences. One of them was violating a principle of communication that I hold dearly, teach to others, and yet relearned in a painful way this week. My violation was to respond too quickly to someone else’s comments. The Bible states emphatically, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (James 1:19 TNIV). In our high tech world this scripture also applies to texting, e-mail, facebook, and tweeting!
The second is the importance of trusting in God’s power and might and not my own. I was feeling a bit stressed with some upcoming deadlines and challenges and I read the following in my morning Bible reading, “So he said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty”(Zechariah 4:6 NIV).
As I read this reminder to the 500 BC Jewish leader, Zerubbabel, I could have easily substituted my name in his place (even if I had trouble pronouncing his name). In reading this Bible verse I was humbled once again to rely on the LORD’s strength and not my own. Now as I reflected on what a “great find” this was in scripture, I noticed that this “new find” was underlined in my Bible, which means that I had “learned” this lesson in the past and yet I needed to learn it all over again!
Maybe this life of following Jesus isn’t so difficult to understand, but it is simply remembering to do what has been learned! Now … can you and I remember that lesson?
This week I have had two such experiences. One of them was violating a principle of communication that I hold dearly, teach to others, and yet relearned in a painful way this week. My violation was to respond too quickly to someone else’s comments. The Bible states emphatically, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (James 1:19 TNIV). In our high tech world this scripture also applies to texting, e-mail, facebook, and tweeting!
The second is the importance of trusting in God’s power and might and not my own. I was feeling a bit stressed with some upcoming deadlines and challenges and I read the following in my morning Bible reading, “So he said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty”(Zechariah 4:6 NIV).
As I read this reminder to the 500 BC Jewish leader, Zerubbabel, I could have easily substituted my name in his place (even if I had trouble pronouncing his name). In reading this Bible verse I was humbled once again to rely on the LORD’s strength and not my own. Now as I reflected on what a “great find” this was in scripture, I noticed that this “new find” was underlined in my Bible, which means that I had “learned” this lesson in the past and yet I needed to learn it all over again!
Maybe this life of following Jesus isn’t so difficult to understand, but it is simply remembering to do what has been learned! Now … can you and I remember that lesson?
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
A Humbling Experience while Seeking to Get in Shape
Although I love sports and at one time was a well-conditioned athlete want-a-be, those years have long passed in my life. And yet I find myself surrounded by family members and friends who are tremendous models of physical fitness and their example inspires me to not be satisfied to stay on the sidelines. So recently, I have begun training for a 5 mile race scheduled for later this fall.
The timing of the beginning of my training also coincided with an extremely hot string of days in late summer. So being a fitness newbie and softie, I have contained most of my running to an air-conditioned indoor track at the local YMCA.
Although I am decades removed from being described as a well conditioned athlete, I still imagine in my heart that I am much younger and stronger than is actually the case. On one of my daily runs, I noticed what appeared to me as an older lady walking on the track. My initial thought was “I hope this older lady doesn’t get in my way as I literally run circles around her.”
After I had finished running my first lap and passing her in what I only imagined was a pace that she couldn’t imagine for herself, I noticed with my periphery vision that she was no longer walking, but now jogging. In my puffed up heart, I thought to myself “I wonder how many times I lap her before my daily run is completed.”
You can only imagine my amazement, when I noticed that she was beginning to catch up with me on the oval track. Although I thought she would soon return to walking, she continued to jog and eventually passed me like I was “standing still.” I reasoned in my heart that she must be simply sprinting a few laps, but I was going to run at least a mile and half for my workout. As you might suspect, she kept running and I noticed that she was the one who was lapping me and not the other way around.
As I completed my target distance for the day and was now walking on the 1/16 of a mile track, she struck up a conversation with me while she continued to jog. She asked, “How many laps did you run? When I answered with pride, “I had just finished 24 laps.” She responded in a very kind way, that was a really good workout. When I asked her how many laps she ran, she told me that she simply ran for 30 minutes.
I was humbled not only by her “lapping me,” but by her very positive, encouraging attitude. And yet in my mind, she was still obviously an older lady than me, and that is when she left me with one last thought. She said, “It is important for people our age to keep exercising.”
My recent running experience reminded me once again to not be so full of myself. To consider others better than myself and to humbly encourage and serve others. It also reminded me that sometimes I don’t view myself as others view me. This is yet another reminder to keep a sober estimation of myself and my strengths.
The timing of the beginning of my training also coincided with an extremely hot string of days in late summer. So being a fitness newbie and softie, I have contained most of my running to an air-conditioned indoor track at the local YMCA.
Although I am decades removed from being described as a well conditioned athlete, I still imagine in my heart that I am much younger and stronger than is actually the case. On one of my daily runs, I noticed what appeared to me as an older lady walking on the track. My initial thought was “I hope this older lady doesn’t get in my way as I literally run circles around her.”
After I had finished running my first lap and passing her in what I only imagined was a pace that she couldn’t imagine for herself, I noticed with my periphery vision that she was no longer walking, but now jogging. In my puffed up heart, I thought to myself “I wonder how many times I lap her before my daily run is completed.”
You can only imagine my amazement, when I noticed that she was beginning to catch up with me on the oval track. Although I thought she would soon return to walking, she continued to jog and eventually passed me like I was “standing still.” I reasoned in my heart that she must be simply sprinting a few laps, but I was going to run at least a mile and half for my workout. As you might suspect, she kept running and I noticed that she was the one who was lapping me and not the other way around.
As I completed my target distance for the day and was now walking on the 1/16 of a mile track, she struck up a conversation with me while she continued to jog. She asked, “How many laps did you run? When I answered with pride, “I had just finished 24 laps.” She responded in a very kind way, that was a really good workout. When I asked her how many laps she ran, she told me that she simply ran for 30 minutes.
I was humbled not only by her “lapping me,” but by her very positive, encouraging attitude. And yet in my mind, she was still obviously an older lady than me, and that is when she left me with one last thought. She said, “It is important for people our age to keep exercising.”
My recent running experience reminded me once again to not be so full of myself. To consider others better than myself and to humbly encourage and serve others. It also reminded me that sometimes I don’t view myself as others view me. This is yet another reminder to keep a sober estimation of myself and my strengths.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
New Every Morning
I am amazed of the beauty of God’s creation! From time to time, I see something in nature that just takes my breath and reminds me of the greatness of God. Back a while, I had such an experience. I was taking a walk in my neighborhood one early morning and I witnessed a beautiful sunrise in the east. As the full brightness of the sun was being hidden by the morning clouds, amazing rays of light were fanning out in all directions from the horizon in the east.
I was so taken by the beauty of this magnificent sunrise that I ran back into my house to find a camera to capture the moment. Although a photograph will never do justice of the beauty of this particular sunrise, the picture above is a reminder to me of the beauty that I witnessed on that early Sunday morning.
As I contemplated the beauty of this magnificent sight in creation, I was reminded of God’s love and mercy that continues to poke through the clouds of personal shortcomings, setbacks and disappointments in life. The prophet Jeremiah wrote a beautiful description of God’s faithfulness in the midst of an extremely difficult time in his life and his Jerusalem peers. He wrote, “The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself; ‘The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!’” Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT
Let’s make sure the next time we see a beautiful sunrise that we are reminded of God’s faithfulness and how his mercies are fresh each morning!
I was so taken by the beauty of this magnificent sunrise that I ran back into my house to find a camera to capture the moment. Although a photograph will never do justice of the beauty of this particular sunrise, the picture above is a reminder to me of the beauty that I witnessed on that early Sunday morning.
As I contemplated the beauty of this magnificent sight in creation, I was reminded of God’s love and mercy that continues to poke through the clouds of personal shortcomings, setbacks and disappointments in life. The prophet Jeremiah wrote a beautiful description of God’s faithfulness in the midst of an extremely difficult time in his life and his Jerusalem peers. He wrote, “The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself; ‘The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!’” Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT
Let’s make sure the next time we see a beautiful sunrise that we are reminded of God’s faithfulness and how his mercies are fresh each morning!
Monday, September 6, 2010
Labor Day Memories
What are your Labor Day memories? Do you have memories of going to your favorite pool for the last time of the season? Do you have memories of family picnics or outings to mark the unofficial end of summer? Possibly you have memories of packing your school bag with the anticipation of a new school year.
The Labor Day Holiday brings memories to my mind of digging potatoes. Potatoes?
Yes, every Labor Day my Dad would wake up his three children (which I was the youngest) to work in the garden and dig up a fairly large garden of potatoes. It was usually a hot day filled with manual labor of digging rows of potatoes, picking up potatoes, collecting them into burlap sacks, and transporting them to our family’s basement that served as a cool cellar for our family potato bins.
As a kid, I hated Labor Day and I thought it was aptly named. What I could not figure out was why others enjoyed the holiday? And … Why in the world was there a holiday designated for families to work? It didn’t seem like much of a holiday to me as a young child and adolescent.
As an adult I look back with fondness of those Labor Day’s spent with my family. I realize now that it was a day for my Dad to spend with the three children he loved dearly. It was an excellent opportunity to learn from a hardworking father, the value of a good work ethic. It was also a small price to pay for a middleclass family to save a lot of money on groceries throughout the year that no doubt allowed my parents to pay for three children to complete a college education, and walk away from college with no personal debt.
Now that my Dad is no longer with us, I would gladly trade a leisurely day in an air-conditioned house, for one more opportunity to dig potatoes with my Dad. It also leads me to the recognition that “Labor” is a good thing and maybe it is a good thing that we have one day a year to celebrate it … and for me to cherish memories of digging potatoes with a remarkable man, that I was privileged to know as “Dad!”
The Labor Day Holiday brings memories to my mind of digging potatoes. Potatoes?
Yes, every Labor Day my Dad would wake up his three children (which I was the youngest) to work in the garden and dig up a fairly large garden of potatoes. It was usually a hot day filled with manual labor of digging rows of potatoes, picking up potatoes, collecting them into burlap sacks, and transporting them to our family’s basement that served as a cool cellar for our family potato bins.
As a kid, I hated Labor Day and I thought it was aptly named. What I could not figure out was why others enjoyed the holiday? And … Why in the world was there a holiday designated for families to work? It didn’t seem like much of a holiday to me as a young child and adolescent.
As an adult I look back with fondness of those Labor Day’s spent with my family. I realize now that it was a day for my Dad to spend with the three children he loved dearly. It was an excellent opportunity to learn from a hardworking father, the value of a good work ethic. It was also a small price to pay for a middleclass family to save a lot of money on groceries throughout the year that no doubt allowed my parents to pay for three children to complete a college education, and walk away from college with no personal debt.
Now that my Dad is no longer with us, I would gladly trade a leisurely day in an air-conditioned house, for one more opportunity to dig potatoes with my Dad. It also leads me to the recognition that “Labor” is a good thing and maybe it is a good thing that we have one day a year to celebrate it … and for me to cherish memories of digging potatoes with a remarkable man, that I was privileged to know as “Dad!”
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