2012 It's Not Just a Movie

As we move into a new year, 2012, and we watch the world as we once knew it, changing before our eyes, it causes us to stand up and take notice.  You have heard me make this comment before which I heard Seth Godin say, but it bears repeating.  “People are waiting for things to get back to normal, but things are never getting back to normal.”  I whole hearted agree with that statement. 

Iran is boasting that by April or May of 2012 they will have five nuclear warheads; Israel is planning a pre-emptive strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities possibly before Christmas or right after the 1^st of the year;  the United States along with the UN has placed sanctions on goods and services coming out of and going into Iran;  Russian and China have sided with IRAN and threatened retaliation against any nation that attacks her; the new veri-chip human tracking chip is now ready and can be implanted in every human being as a tracking device and is already being implanted in pets as a way of tracking their movements; and a number of nations, including the US are on the verge of economic meltdown.

We have watched as natural disasters, tornadoes, tsunamis, earthquakes, famines and floods have claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in 2011 alone.  And, mark my word, we haven’t seen anything yet. Just this week, the man who fired shots into the White House, claimed that he was Jesus Christ who has returned to earth.

One incident, standing alone, would not have much significance, but when you combine all of these worldwide events happening simultaneously, reading the local and international news is like picking up the Bible and reading portions of Ezekiel, Daniel, and Revelation.  I personally believe we are living in the days of Christ’s return as foretold in Matthew 24.

⁴ Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. ⁶ You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are the beginning of birth pains.

Knowing this makes our churches “vision statement” so much more important to me.  Let me quote it for you again, “Reaching as many people as we can, as fast as we can, by all the means that we can, to create as many full devoted followers of Christ that we can.”

I have a burning desire within me to reach the lost at any cost, I hope you do to.  I have a burning desire to help those who become a part of our church family to live lives fully devoted to Christ.  Why, because Jesus is coming.

I am not saying he is coming in 2012 nor am I being a date setter like some of those we have read about in the past because I know what the Bible says again in Matthew 24;

³⁶ “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son but only the Father.

But we can look around us and realize that the things that Jesus spoke about are coming true;

³⁷ As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ³⁸ For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; ³⁹ and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ⁴⁰ Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹ Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.

Today people are giving little thought to spiritual matters and they are just going through the daily routines of life.  That is a sure sign of his approaching. But, verse 42 – 44 must be our watch word for the days and years ahead;

   ⁴² “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. ⁴³ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴ So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

Let’s not be caught unaware, but let us watch and pray and in the year ahead, let us diligently be about our Fathers business because our family, our neighborhood, our city, state, and nation need Jesus more than ever.

Pastor Rick

Making Memories!

Today I am on vacation with my grandchildren, Drew and Carlee. This is our fourth annual trip together.  Sandy and I made a commitment to spend one week a year with them, just her and I, so we could solidify our relationship them. 

Life is short!  Solomon wrote: "What is your life, it is a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away."  I don't want mine to vanish away without making some memories.  For, when we make memories, we never really die, for our loved ones can bring us back to reality with just a thought

It is the thought that counts.  What memories will people have of you.  Is it time to make some new ones? 

And, speaking of memories, we are headed to Columbia State Park to make some right now.  The kids are going to do some gold panning...how fun is that?

God's Pruning

I am going to cheat today and post an article that Rick Warren wrote on God's pruning.  It really ministered to me today during my devotional and I am sure it will minister to you, too.  So here it is..

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Welcome the Pruning Shears
by Rick Warren

 If you are going to be fruitful, you must cooperate with God’s pruning in your life. In John 15:1–2, Jesus says, “I am the true Vine, and my Father is the Gardener. He lops off every branch that doesn’t produce. And he prunes those branches that bear fruit for even larger crops” (LB). Pruning involves cutting off the dead branches and cutting back the living branches, both to shape the tree or vine and to stimulate growth.

I have a neighbor who is an expert rose grower. His front and back yards are beautiful, so I invited him to come over to my back yard and work his magic on my roses. He was a wonder to watch. He brought his loppers to do his pruning, and he was ruthless. It hurt me just to watch him cut back my rosebushes. Whack, whack, whack! By the time he was finished, my rosebushes were only little stubs. Professional pruners will tell you that most people are too timid when it comes to pruning. I used to think that pruning was going in and gently cutting off the little dead pieces. Not so. The live stuff needs to go too—branches, leaves, and flowers. Evidently my neighbor knew what he was doing, because my roses have never bloomed so beautifully.

Here is my point: most of us think that when God prunes us, he cuts off the sinful and the superficial, the deadwood in our lives. He does do that, but he also cuts off stuff that is alive and successful: a business that is going great, a satisfying relationship, good health. Some of that may get whacked off for greater fruitfulness. It is not just deadwood that goes. God often cuts back good things too, in order to make us healthier. It is not always pleasant, but pruning is absolutely essential for spiritual growth. It is not optional. Remember, God is glorified when we bear “much fruit” (John 15:8), and that requires pruning. We must remember that the loppers are in the hands of our loving God. He knows what he is doing, and he wants what is best for us.

If you are a Christian, you are going to be pruned. Count on it. You may be going through pruning right now, and it may not all be deadwood. God cuts off branches that we feel are productive so that more fruit may be produced. This can be confusing. We believe that we are being fruitful and are puzzled, even frustrated, by God’s pruning. We ask, “Why are you doing this, God? I have given my business to you, but it’s failing. I have committed my health to you, but I’m going into the hospital next week. I have been tithing faithfully, yet I’m going bankrupt.”

I watched an educational TV program on houseplants in which the specialist suggested that viewers talk to their plants to help them grow. He explained that soothing, stroking, and talking to your Creeping Charlie will build the plant’s self-esteem. Imagine yourself saying, “You’re a good plant. My, you’re looking good today! You look marvelous.” Now imagine yourself talking to a plant you are pruning: “This hurts me more than it hurts you.” Whack! “You’ll thank me for this later!” Whack! “It’s for your own good!” I can imagine the plant talking back, “You have no heart. You don’t love me. I’ve worked long and hard to produce those roses you just cut off.”

Isn’t that what we say to God when he prunes us? “Don’t you love me? Don’t you care? Don’t you see what’s going on?” And we think God is angry with us. No, he’s not angry. One of the biggest mistakes Christians make is confusing pruning with punishment. Pruning is not punishment, so don’t equate the two. God is not angry with you. He just sees that you are someone who can bear more fruit, someone who has potential for greatness, someone he wants to use in a significant way. He wants you to be as fruitful as you possibly can be, so he prunes you back, even lopping off some of the things he has been blessing in your life. You lost your job? Don’t worry. God has a better idea. He sees what you do not see.

How does God prune us? He uses problems, pressures, and people. Oh, does he use people! People will criticize and challenge you. They will question and doubt you. They will challenge your motives. God is using them to prune you. As I have said throughout this book, God can use every situation in your life to help you grow if you will just have the right attitude. He can use it all—the problems you bring on yourself, a major disappointment, a financial reversal, a sudden illness, a broken marriage, a rebellious child, the death of a loved one. He will and he does use them all as part of the pruning process to make you even more fruitful.

Why does God do this to us? Look at Hebrews 12:11: “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.” We can all agree with that. It is not pleasant when you are being disciplined. The writer of Hebrews continues, “Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” God does this for our own benefit as well as for his glory.

Like discipline, pruning is unpleasant. Have you ever looked at a pruned tree or a pruned plant? It is ugly. A few years ago I had twelve sixty-foot eucalyptus trees in my front yard. I had a man come out and top them. He “topped” them all right—he left no branches! I ended up with twelve “totem poles” standing in my front yard. Some of my neighbors joked that a UFO had dropped these giant toothpicks. I think some of them thought I was starting some kind of Stonehenge cult. Those trees were ugly. But do you know what? After that pruning, the trees came back with greater fullness than ever before. Now my problem is raking up all the leaves!

My wife went through a time of severe pruning several years ago. She was ill, had a tough pregnancy, and was bedridden for months. It was a very tough time for our family. God cut back every activity in Kay’s life. I mean everything—leading women’s ministry, teaching Bible studies, all the things she loved and looked forward to doing. Even at home everything was chopped off; she couldn’t get out of bed to do anything. We talked about it a lot because it didn’t make sense at the time. Our church was growing rapidly, and I needed Kay’s help. Nevertheless, it was a valuable pruning time. Kay learned a lot, because when you are flat on your back, all you can do is look up. Her fruitfulness in the years since has been astounding. God has opened up new ministries and opportunities for her that we never imagined. The results of that pruning in her life are exciting, but it wasn’t fun going through it.

Pruning is never fun, and it is not pretty, but it is for your future benefit. The purpose of pruning is positive. God is not mad at you. The Bible says that there is “no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). God does not “punish” his true children. Your punishment was taken care of on the cross. God’s pruning is for your very best, for greater fruitfulness in your life.

From God’s Power to Change Your Life by Rick Warren

Going the Distance

" ⁹And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."
Galatians 6:9

When we drive our vehicle from place to place, we have an awareness of our starting point as well as an awareness of where we are going.  We accept that we cannot get there instantaneously; we accept that we will travel the distance, and in time, we will arrive at our destination.  And while we may feel anxious to get there, and maybe even tire of the journey, we do not get so discouraged at the midway mark that we just turn around and go back to our starting point.  We do not drive back and forth and back and forth from our staring point to the midway point and then collapse from the never-ending journey.

We do not announce our inability to accomplish our journey.  We accept the distance between our starting place and where we desire to be - and we continue to move in the direction of our destination.  We understand what is required and do it!  During that journey, if we get a little tired, we stop and get a refreshment, stretch our legs, get a second wind, and then begin again.  And, sure enough, eventually we will arrive.


Serving God, serving our families and serving others is much the same.   There is a road ahead of us that we must travel and it leads us to our ultimate destination.  " ^9...let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."

Jesus Makes All the Difference!

"So now we have a high priest who perfectly fits our needs: completely holy, uncompromised by sin, with authority extending as high as God's presence in heaven itself.  Unlike the other priests, he doesn't have to offer sacrifices for his own sins every day before he can get around to us and our sins.  He's done it, once and for all: offered up himself as a sacrifice." Hebrews 7:26-27 (Message)

I love the end of that verse that says, "once and for all..."  Jesus became the final sacrifice for our sins.  There is nothing you or I can do to secure our salvation other than accept the final sacrifice.  Jesus makes all the difference.  If it were not for Him, we would still have to bring a sacrifice daily to cover our sins, but when we come to Jesus and accept Him as our Lord, He forgives us our sins, past, present and future. 

No wonder Jesus' last words on the cross were, "It is finished!"

He Is Risen!

Easter always rises within me feelings of extreme gratitude.  When I think of all the Savior gave up to bring a lost sinner like me home, I cannot help but be overwhelmed.  Who was I or who were you that He would go to such lengths to reclaim us.  When we look at our lives, there is nothing that we have ever done or will ever do that should merit such love, but as the scripture says, "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

I just want to thank Jesus for giving me the chance to serve Him.  Being redeemed is the greatest privilege anyone could ask for.

Have a Blessed Easter.

For What Am I Recognized?

"I keep hearing of the love and faith you have for the Master Jesus, which brims over to other believers.  And I keep praying that this faith we hold in common keeps showing up in the good things we do, and that people recognize Christ in all of it."  Philemon 1:5-6

What do people keep hearing about us?  If our name comes up in a conversation, what is the tone in which it was spoken?  Do people recognize that we are true servants of Jesus?  What actions or deeds can we do this week that will have people recognize Jesus in us? 

Paul, even though he was locked away in prison, still heard great things about Philemon.  The testimony of his good deeds had reached his ears.  May our life be a reflection of those words of Paul: "And I keep praying that this faith we hold in common keeps showing up in the good things we do, and that people recognize Christ in all of it."

God Is Able

"God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." 
2 Corinthians 9:8

Let's face it!  The world has come upon hard times and everything you read and hear in the news speaks of ever increasing disaster.  If we are not careful, we can take all of these things into our heart and become discouraged, dispondent, and disheartened.  Over time we can become lithargic and lose our dreams and focus for what God wants us to accomplish in us and through us.

But, let's change our focus.  These times are the greatest times in history for more people are open to the gospel of Jesus Christ than ever before.  And, our God, still "owns the cattle on a thousand hills" and is "able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." 

God is not taken back by the calamities of the world.  He has not been thrown a curveball or been sidetracked, His plans are right on target and you and I have been strategically placed at this point in history to be used by Him in an unprecendented way!

Don't lose heart!  God's grace will abound in you.  He will give us all we need to accomplish His will.  I promise...better yet, He promises.

You Are In For a Lot of Trouble!

"Anyone who wants to live all out for Christ is in for a lot of trouble; there's no getting around it." 2 Timothy 3:12 Msg.

Anyone who has served Christ for any length of time will say "Amen" to that scripture.  And, anyone who tells you that serving Christ is easy is either a new believer or needs a "straight jacket."  Why?  Because serving Christ is not easy and fighting against our flesh and the workings of the enemy (Satan) is an everyday affair. 

I love how Paul, in Chapter Four, verse 4, of the same book urges Timothy to "keep your eye on what you're doing; accept the hard times along with the good; keep the Message alive; do a thorough job as God's servant."  If he were talking in our modern language he would say..."Just hang in there!"  "Keep on keepin on."  Those are words I need to remind myself of often.  Because times do get hard and we do loose our focus on the most important tasks.

Be encouraged today, Paul also said in this book, chapter 4, verse 1..."God is looking over your shoulder..."

My Rock!

^{Psalm 61:
1} Hear my cry, O God;
   listen to my prayer.
 ² From the ends of the earth I call to you,
   I call as my heart grows faint;
   lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
³ For you have been my refuge,
   a strong tower against the foe.

There are times in life when our feet feel like they are on sinking sand.  It becomes increasingly difficult to find solid footing and we feel like we are expending a lot of energy trying to move forward, but getting no where.  If you have ever been to the sand dunes at Pismo Beach in California or the White Sands in New Mexico you know what I am talking about.

But our scripture this morning makes it clear that Christ is our solid rock. Let's get our feet firmly planted in Him.  The Psalmist tells us that "He orders our steps."  So rather than trying to walk quickly through the sand and get no where, why don't we just sit for awhile, wiggle our toes in the sand, and enjoy the view.  It could be the sand is right where we need to be for the moment.  In the sand we can find that he is our high tower and our strong refuge.

Wait a Minute!

"Wait passionately for God, don't leave the path. He'll give you your place in the sun..." Psalm 37:34 (Mg)

As we go into a season of prayer, which we have been doing lately, things begin to change.  You can sense the atmosphere around you taking on new form.  What I mean is this, when we begin to passionately wait on God, things begin to happen. 

Now the things that begin to happen are not always positive.  When we begin to wait passionately upon the Lord it stirs up the Devil and at times, things seem to go in a different direction that what we were praying for, but I like how the verse continues..."don't leave the path."

As we pray and seek God we have got to hang in there.  Sometimes we have to hang on for dear life.  We have to hang on as if our very life depends on it and truth is, sometimes it does.  Waiting on God is not easy.  Waiting while the problems and challenges still swirl around us is often unnerving.  It is like being in the eye of a hurricane.  While being in prayer with God there is this sense of calm, but we can still see all the issues of life swirling around us.

But, if you will passionately wait...if you can hang in there just a bit longer and stay on the path...you will have "your day in the sun."   

BRING ON THE SUNSHINE LORD!

Count Yourself Lucky!

"Count your self lucky, how happy you must be - you get a fresh start, your slate's wiped clean.  Count yourself lucky - God holds nothing against you and you're holding nothing back from him.  When I kept it all inside, my bones turned to powder, my words became daylong groans.  The pressure never let up; all the juices of my life dried up.  Then I let it all out; I said, I'll make a clean breast of my failures to God." Suddenly the presure was gone - my guilt dissolved, my sin disappeared." Psalm 32:1-5 (Msg.)

Oh, how lucky we are to have all of our sins forgiven!  The pressure of a guilt filled life is gone.  Your sins, my sins have been removed away from us as "far as the East is from the West, never to be remembered again." 

I vividly remember the day I came to Christ.  When I confessed my sin and asked Christ to come into my life...when I let it all out,  I felt God wipe my slate clean...I felt like I was on cloud nine.  My guilt dissolved and my sin disappeared.  Praise God!

The Road Most Traveled

"And how blessed are those in whom you live. whose lives become roads you travel. They wind through lonesome valleys, come upon brooks, discover cool springs and pools brimming with rain! God-traveled, these roads curve up the mountain, and at the last turn-Zion! God in full view!" Psalm 84:5-7 (Msg.)

Think for a moment with me how blessed we are as followers of Jesus Christ to have God travel the road of life with us.  Often times we feel alone in our struggles and journeys, but the truth is God is with us all the way.  When we are lonely and thirsty for companionship, He leads us to brooks of refreshing and pools brimming with his presence. 

In the valleys of life, he leads us up the mountainside which leads to Him-Zion, the holy mountain of God.  And on the mountain top, God is in full view and the things that we thought were so overwhelming now melt away into nothingness as we gaze at His beauty.

My prayer is that we will look up...look up and begin to climb to the mountain top and get God in full view.  Looking down will get us no where. Although we think we are moving forward all that will really happen is we will walk in circles.  And people wonder why they keep ending up at the same place.  LOOK UP!

The Slight Edge

Anthony Robbins said, "The future is what you make it.  Little, everyday decisions, will either take you to the life you desire or to disaster by default. In fact, it is the littlest decisions that shape our lives."

I couldn't agree more.  This quote is so true in our spiritual lives.  So many people neglect a daily time with God, studying His word or communicating with Him in prayer and they wonder why they are so powerless to face lifes ups and downs.  In order to lift the heavier weights, we must build up our muscles over time.  In order to lift the heavier weights of life, we must build up our spiritual muscles over time, too.

Do you have a workout routine, if not, start today.  You may not have to lift a heavy object this week or even next week, but what about next month or some time this year.  It is time to build your spiritual muscles starting today.

The Goodness of God

Psalm 34:8 "Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see - how good God is.  Blessed are you who run to Him."

We could stop today and look at all that is going around us in the world.  And if we did, things are going to look pretty bleak.  There are wars, natural disasters, people who are homeless and hungry, and the threats of more to come are on the horizon.  But didn't Jesus tell us to be on the watch for these things, so why do we seem so surprised when they show up.  Go back to the Book of Matthew and re-read Chapter 24 this week and it will be like reading the local paper or watching the news.

We must choose to focus our attention on God.  Even thought the world around us changes, God never changes.  He is good all the time.  And I love what the Psalmist said, "Blessed are you who run to Him."  So as this world swirls around us and the rest of the world gets into fear and panic, let's choose to run to God" and focus our attention on his goodness.

• Let's focus on His plenty and not our lack. 
• Let's focus on His healing and not our sickness. 
• Let's focus on the fact that He is coming again and all of this will fade away.  

Focusing on Him won't make the world go away, but it least it gets my heart and mind looking at things from a right perspective.

Audacious Faith!

I have been devouring a new book called "Sun Stand Still" by Steven Furtick.  I recommend you get a copy and read it.  You can purchases it from his website.  Here is the link.  http://www.sunstandstill.org/

This is a book completely dedicated to our living by faith, but not just an ordinary faith, but audacious faith.  Now before I go any further, let me give you the definition of audacious.  Audacious means: being extremely bold or daring; recklessly brave; fearless.  It means I not only say I believe God but that I act on that faith with boldness.  What I believe in the dark, I act out in the light.

In my sermon on Sunday I asked people to write on their connection cards, "I want God's best in my life."  I was amazed at how many people followed through with that request and I want them to know that I did pray for them by name today and partnered with them to believe for God's best in their life.

But God's best also comes by audacious faith which is pursuing God's best and boldly daring to move in the direction of God's best in our life.  I am personally believing God for some bold things or at least bold in my estimation.  But I don't only believe them, I am actively pursuing them, partnering with God to see them happen.  That is what true audacious faith is all about.

We have the opportunity to be either day dreamers or dream pursers.  I choose the latter.

A Quiet Place

Psalm 27:5 (Message Bible) "That's the only quiet, secure place in a noisy world, the perfect getaway, far from the buzz of traffic."

I woke up at 4:00 a.m. this morning with a trillion thoughts running through my head.  I went over the activities of my day, mentally checked over my to do list, which is ever burgeoning, thought about my taxes which I have to prepare, and as you know April 15th is right around the corner, and wondered what all of it meant.  I mean why couldn't all of that have waited until I was to officially awake at 6.00 a.m.  I am sure you have experienced the same thing.  I fought to get back to sleep but with no avail.  So I chose to get up and do my morning routines to start the day.

And, as God would have it, I continued on with my devotional reading from yesterday where David talked about living with God in his house (Psalm 27:4) and the next verse jumps off the page at me... "That's the only quiet, secure place in a noisy world, the perfect getaway, far from the buzz of traffic." 

The buzz of traffic...the mental stuff that invades my mind and tries to steal my peace.  A noisy world... all those annoying things that try to crowd out God and rattle my security. 

So early this morning I go to God's Oasis...a quiet place...the perfect getaway and I lose myself in Him and.......what was that?  I think I heard a pin drop!

The One Thing!

We have just completed our series on "Prayer Changes Me"  so I found it interesting that this passage of scripture came to me in my morning devotions.  Psalm 27:4 – “I’m asking God for one thing, only one thing:  To live with him in his house my whole life long.  I’ll contemplate his beauty; I’ll study at his feet.

I was listening to a video on prayer from Francis Chan when he quoted this scripture.  He gave an overwhelming presentation on prayer in his hour long video.  I recommend you watch it, I have posted the link at the bottom of this blog.

Could it be that in our prayer time, we focus on too many things and use our prayer time to shout out to God our wish list.  Instead, shouldn't we use a portion of that time to just sit in his presence and contemplate his beauty.  I think we have missed the whole point of prayer.  Prayer is our time to connect with God on a more intimate level.   Sure we want to make our requests known to him, but I would rather be known by him and get to know him.  I am sure that is the most powerful dynamic of prayer.

Take some time this week to just sit in his presence.  Don't ask for anything or expect anything.  Just live with him in his house and contemplate his beauty and study at his feet.  That will change you, that will change me and that will change the world.

http://www.churchleaders.com/pastors/videos-for-pastors/148911-chan-leading-through-prayer.html