Sunday, January 6, 2013
Utah Church Planter's Summit
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Thanksgiving. Here's a list of things I am thankful for: Life, Wife, Kids, House, Clean Water, Food, Friends, Freedom, Grace, Truth, Peace, Love, Hope, Salvation. Turkey, Stuffing, Gravy. As I reflect upon this list, I am reminded of how ungrateful I am every single day I take all of these things for granted. How often do I gripe and complain about what I don't have? A lot! Life is filled with hardships. Some are really hard to overcome. I've struggled with my health for almost 5 years now. I hate how it limits me. I hate how pain takes away my ability to give my strength to those I love, and to do the very things I love to do. But I am thankful for life. I still have life, breath, a mind to think, talents to share, people to love. I am thankful.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Yellowstone
If you've never been to Yellowstone, then you're missing some awesome sights. We just got back from a three day trip. We saw nature's wonders, and some very cool animals. Of the favorites, a Bison Calf. It is amazing to be standing on top of a super volcano that could erupt at any time (it erupts about every 600-650 Million years). Check it out if you never have.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Inner Beauty
Two weeks ago, our newest member of the family was born. Eleanor Hope. It's not surprising that every new parent looks at their child and thinks that it is the most beautiful thing they have ever seen. And of course, Eleanor is the most beautiful baby I've ever seen (equal too, of course, my other two girls). And why do I think this? For two reasons: She is the most beautiful baby I've ever seen, and she's mine!
I passed a billboard the other day advertising for cosmetic surgery. Of course there was a airbrushed picture of a model and the caption said, "Make your inner beauty jealous." I live in a culture where outward appearance is top priority. My city is the highest per capita usage of elective cosmetic surgery. Breast augmentation billboards are everywhere. Why, because outer beauty is such a high value in our society.
I want my daughters growing up knowing what it means to be beautiful, both on the outside and more importantly on the inside. Outer beauty fades, no matter how many cosmetic surgeries you have. But inner beauty has the opportunity to develop over time. And if our hearts belong to Christ first and foremost, our inner beauty will increase as the lines on our face grow longer. If our heart belongs to
"Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7) God was talking about David, the shepherd boy who would become king. He was not tall, he was the youngest of his family, he was discounted by everyone around him, including his family. Nobody believed in him. It would appear from the physical descriptions of him in the Bible, that he wasn't the most attractive person either. But when God chose David to be king he said, "the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart." (1 Samuel 13:14).
If we want to be attractive for the short haul, then we can buy all kinds of products and surgeries to make us look better. But if we want to be attractive in the long haul, then the best inner beauty we can possess is to be a man or women after God's own heart. Isaiah describes Jesus as one who "had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him." (Isaiah 53:2) Yet the world is attracted to the real Jesus, not because of how he looks, but because of who he is. And if he is in you, then people will be attracted to you, not because of your physical beauty, but because they will see Christ in you.
Enjoy this video which our church produced, in which I make my hollywood debut.
I passed a billboard the other day advertising for cosmetic surgery. Of course there was a airbrushed picture of a model and the caption said, "Make your inner beauty jealous." I live in a culture where outward appearance is top priority. My city is the highest per capita usage of elective cosmetic surgery. Breast augmentation billboards are everywhere. Why, because outer beauty is such a high value in our society.
I want my daughters growing up knowing what it means to be beautiful, both on the outside and more importantly on the inside. Outer beauty fades, no matter how many cosmetic surgeries you have. But inner beauty has the opportunity to develop over time. And if our hearts belong to Christ first and foremost, our inner beauty will increase as the lines on our face grow longer. If our heart belongs to
"Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7) God was talking about David, the shepherd boy who would become king. He was not tall, he was the youngest of his family, he was discounted by everyone around him, including his family. Nobody believed in him. It would appear from the physical descriptions of him in the Bible, that he wasn't the most attractive person either. But when God chose David to be king he said, "the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart." (1 Samuel 13:14).
If we want to be attractive for the short haul, then we can buy all kinds of products and surgeries to make us look better. But if we want to be attractive in the long haul, then the best inner beauty we can possess is to be a man or women after God's own heart. Isaiah describes Jesus as one who "had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him." (Isaiah 53:2) Yet the world is attracted to the real Jesus, not because of how he looks, but because of who he is. And if he is in you, then people will be attracted to you, not because of your physical beauty, but because they will see Christ in you.
Enjoy this video which our church produced, in which I make my hollywood debut.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Why Praise God?
Why should we praise God? Ever think about it? There was nobody who had an eternal perspective in the Old Testament than David. From Shepherd boy to General to King, he always looked beyond his present situation to the One True God.
In Psalm 116:1-3 David writes, "I love the LORD, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave [a] came upon me. I was overcome by trouble and sorrow."
This morning I sat in the living room of my friends, Eric and Paula Winter. The pastors and elders of our church were there as well. Just 24 hours earlier we had all received the devastating news that a CT Scan revealed cancer in Paula's colon and liver. She had no idea. And the medical prognosis is not good. But we prayed. We worshiped, and we called on the Lord. In my daily Bible reading was Psalm 116. David recounts his trouble and sorrow, but not to pity himself, but to show the greatness of God. We don't praise God because things go well. We praise God because he is good. We don't stop praising God when things go bad. We praise God because he is full of compassion. We don't praise God because it fills us up. We praise God because he delivered us from death. We praise him because he is God, he is Good, and his mercies are new every day. Please Join me in prayer for Paula's complete cancer-free recovery. I will close with the conclusion of David's Psalm. Read it and remember why we praise God.
Then I called on the name of the LORD :"O LORD, save me!"
The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.
The LORD protects the simple-hearted; when I was in great need, he saved me.
Be at rest once more, O my soul,for the LORD has been good to you.
For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living.
I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly afflicted."
And in my dismay I said,"All men are liars."
How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me?
I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD.
I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.
O LORD, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains.
I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the LORD.
I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people,
in the courts of the house of the LORD—in your midst, O Jerusalem.Praise the LORD.
In Psalm 116:1-3 David writes, "I love the LORD, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave [a] came upon me. I was overcome by trouble and sorrow."
This morning I sat in the living room of my friends, Eric and Paula Winter. The pastors and elders of our church were there as well. Just 24 hours earlier we had all received the devastating news that a CT Scan revealed cancer in Paula's colon and liver. She had no idea. And the medical prognosis is not good. But we prayed. We worshiped, and we called on the Lord. In my daily Bible reading was Psalm 116. David recounts his trouble and sorrow, but not to pity himself, but to show the greatness of God. We don't praise God because things go well. We praise God because he is good. We don't stop praising God when things go bad. We praise God because he is full of compassion. We don't praise God because it fills us up. We praise God because he delivered us from death. We praise him because he is God, he is Good, and his mercies are new every day. Please Join me in prayer for Paula's complete cancer-free recovery. I will close with the conclusion of David's Psalm. Read it and remember why we praise God.
Then I called on the name of the LORD :"O LORD, save me!"
The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.
The LORD protects the simple-hearted; when I was in great need, he saved me.
Be at rest once more, O my soul,for the LORD has been good to you.
For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living.
I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly afflicted."
And in my dismay I said,"All men are liars."
How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me?
I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD.
I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.
O LORD, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains.
I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the LORD.
I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people,
in the courts of the house of the LORD—in your midst, O Jerusalem.Praise the LORD.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Stop Griping
Stop Griping (from Psalm 105-106, 2 Corinthians 3)
Psalm 106:7-8 (NIV) "When our fathers were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. Yet he saved them for his name's sake, to make his mighty power known."
People are complainers. Christians are the worst. This should not be, but it always is. David recounts in these Psalms the goodness of the Lord from Abraham to Moses. How God saved, and provided, and loved, and had mercy time and time again. In our rebellion, he saves us. Why? Because he promised he would. And when he saves us, even when we complain and are ungrateful, it makes his mighty power known. I so often gripe about my situations, lot in life, or bills I can’t pay. And when I do, I forget the God who has given me blessing after blessing. I daily need to be saved from myself, so that I can “Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.” (Psalm 105:1) In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul addresses the Christians as mere infants, who argued and complained, and wanted their own way. Dear Lord, help me to focus on Jesus, to remember your blessings, to grow up and stop being a baby. Help me to remember that you came to save. Help me to make that message known to the nations. Amen.
Psalm 106:7-8 (NIV) "When our fathers were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. Yet he saved them for his name's sake, to make his mighty power known."
People are complainers. Christians are the worst. This should not be, but it always is. David recounts in these Psalms the goodness of the Lord from Abraham to Moses. How God saved, and provided, and loved, and had mercy time and time again. In our rebellion, he saves us. Why? Because he promised he would. And when he saves us, even when we complain and are ungrateful, it makes his mighty power known. I so often gripe about my situations, lot in life, or bills I can’t pay. And when I do, I forget the God who has given me blessing after blessing. I daily need to be saved from myself, so that I can “Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.” (Psalm 105:1) In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul addresses the Christians as mere infants, who argued and complained, and wanted their own way. Dear Lord, help me to focus on Jesus, to remember your blessings, to grow up and stop being a baby. Help me to remember that you came to save. Help me to make that message known to the nations. Amen.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Getting Robbed
Suppose you were held at gunpoint and robbed. What a scary thought. Then suppose the robber said, "Give me 10% of all you have in your wallet." You give him the 10% and he takes off. How do you feel now. Pretty lucky I suppose. Yet when God says, "Give me 10% of your first fruits (the income you earn), many say "uh-no." Yet God promises that if we give of our income, he will bless us until we can't contain it. Sometimes those blessings are financial, But often times they are spiritual blessings that are far more valuable than we can even imagine. God also says that when we don't give, we rob him, and in turn we rob ourselves and the people around us of the blessings God wants to pour out.
Being in ministry, we haven't always made a ton of money, and have often gotten stuck in situations that looked impossible. But we've also been blessed. One person who blessed us was our Pastor Mike Smith who performed our wedding. As poor college students, we didn't have any money to give him. So we promised each other that we would bless him if we were blessed. And we were in one of those desperate situations, really needing a car, but having no way to pay for one. One day, someone handed us an envelope with $1000 in it. We were shocked! But we wanted to keep our promise, so we sent half of it to Pastor Mike, and kept the other half. $500 wasn't enough to buy a car, but we were happy for the blessing. The next week we got a thank you card from Pastor Mike. He wrote that his washer and dryer both died the previous week, and that they didn't know how they could afford new ones. Then he received our gift. We couldn't believe it. Then a week later someone handed us a box. It contained 50 $100 bills! We were blown away! That was enough to buy a nice used car!
If we really believe that God is really God and all knowing, then he knows our needs. And he is faithful to meet them. When we give our lives and our finances to God, he sees it. He knows he can trust us with spiritual riches. Trusting God with our 10% of our income seems like a no brainer when you think about it. Trusting him with everything we have seems to be the only wise choice. Trust Him, he is Good!
Being in ministry, we haven't always made a ton of money, and have often gotten stuck in situations that looked impossible. But we've also been blessed. One person who blessed us was our Pastor Mike Smith who performed our wedding. As poor college students, we didn't have any money to give him. So we promised each other that we would bless him if we were blessed. And we were in one of those desperate situations, really needing a car, but having no way to pay for one. One day, someone handed us an envelope with $1000 in it. We were shocked! But we wanted to keep our promise, so we sent half of it to Pastor Mike, and kept the other half. $500 wasn't enough to buy a car, but we were happy for the blessing. The next week we got a thank you card from Pastor Mike. He wrote that his washer and dryer both died the previous week, and that they didn't know how they could afford new ones. Then he received our gift. We couldn't believe it. Then a week later someone handed us a box. It contained 50 $100 bills! We were blown away! That was enough to buy a nice used car!
If we really believe that God is really God and all knowing, then he knows our needs. And he is faithful to meet them. When we give our lives and our finances to God, he sees it. He knows he can trust us with spiritual riches. Trusting God with our 10% of our income seems like a no brainer when you think about it. Trusting him with everything we have seems to be the only wise choice. Trust Him, he is Good!
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