Ten on Tuesday

I am starting a little early, but if I remote in to our server in Michigan, it is actually Tuesday there (1:35am), so that should be good enough.

1. Really lovin' the podcasts. Still doing a lot of Chuck Missler on Daniel. Some Ravi, some R.C Sproul, some Jim Putmin, some others...one or two sermons to and from work.
2. Inspired by some people in my life. Being around Ryan, Pastor Rick, and Mike Thompson makes me hungry...for knowledge that is. I get prideful in my studies, then I get around one of them and I am humbled to find that I am so ignorant still.
3. Feeling "sickish" about the message Sunday. I believe in what I said obviously, but who am I to say it? I stood there guilty of the very things I spoke.
4. I truly can't contain my excitement about J* and C*. They have recently committed their lives back to the Lord! It has been such a long time since I have seen such excitement...that is refreshing enough to make you want to keep pressing forward in your faith. My guess is that Patsy and Lavvon's praying had something to do with that, but that is just me. :)
5. Cut my thumb Friday - 4 stitches. Idiot! "Did you cut your thumb off Daddy?" "Were you a tough boy Daddy?"
6. One of my new favorite verses: Matthew 13:44 - "the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy, went and sold all that he had and bought that field." If only we saw things that way. The things we live for are so meaningless.
7. Quote of the week: "We should not be afraid of failing in this life, but of being successful in the things that don't matter".
8. Insight of the week: "If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this." C.S. Lewis
9. Just as salt that loses its saltiness is not fit for soil or manure and is useless, so is the one who is not willing to give everything to follow Christ. Are you fit for manure? (In this case that is a good thing)
10. Favorite "words from Jesus" this week: "Allow the dead to bury their own dead, as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God."

Elijah and John the Baptist?

I was approached yesterday with a pretty good question. At the transfiguration, Elijah and Moses showed up and a voice from heaven says "this is my son in whom I am well pleased". The boyz disappeared and it was just Jesus and his 3 disciples. On their way down the mountain Peter asked Jesus why the scribes say Elijah must come before Jesus died and rose again. Jesus answered and said that Elijah has already come and they did not recognize him. The disciples then realized he was talking about John the Baptist. Here is the story:

Matthew 17 - The Transfiguration

^1(A)Six days later Jesus took with Him ^(B)Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. ²And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. ³And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. ⁴Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, ^(C)I will make three tabernacles here, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah." ⁵While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, ^(D)a voice out of the cloud said, "^(E)This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!" ⁶When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground and were terrified. ⁷And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, "Get up, and ^(F)do not be afraid." ⁸And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus Himself alone. ^9(G)As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "^(H)Tell the vision to no one until ^(I)the Son of Man has ^(J)risen from the dead." ¹⁰And His disciples asked Him, "Why then do the scribes say that ^(K)Elijah must come first?" ¹¹And He answered and said, "Elijah is coming and will restore all things; ¹²but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wished. So also ^(L)the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands." ¹³Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist.

There are more details, but my friend saw something here that I never noticed. She asked me, "Is Elijah and John the Baptist the same person?" I quickly answered "No". I had not researched it, but off the top of my head I told her that most likely they understood the prophecy to mean that Elijah would come prepare the way for the Messiah, and did not recognize that it was John the Baptist who fulfilled the prophecy. I think I am sticking to this, however, I looked this up in my nice Vernon McGee commentary and he basically says "Some believe that this is claiming Elijah and John the Baptist to be the same person." Then he went on to say (paraphrase) "I really don't know the answer, but this is what Jesus is telling them".

What are your thoughts? I don't have time to dig any deeper until next week…

10 on Tuesday

I usually don't do this until Wednesday, but we'll see how far I get...

1. Crazy! This would be a good word to describe my schedule right now.
2. Leaving for Bellevue a week from Sunday for a week of training.
3. I love my job, but we sure could use some help.
4. Reading "Crazy Love". Got it in the mail yesterday. Right up my alley! Chapters 1-3 are not real appealing to me, but 4 & 5 brought me to harsh conviction with a message that I have taught many times. Can't wait to finish the book!
5. Reading in Daniel now, while listening to Chuck Missler podcasts on Daniel. It has quickly become one of my favorite books in the Bible! Not sure any of them will take the place of the gospel of John.
6. The new projector for the church worked even better than I had imagined! Headed to the church tonight to hook up the new sound board for the first time.
7. There are a lot of "hurting" families in our church - hurting financially that is. If anyone has a burden to help, let me know. ;)
8. Giving a message this weekend. I have been doing "The Truth Project" all year, so I am getting out of practice...nervous!
9. Giving a lot of thought to "blessings" vs. "treasures". It is not a "stuff" issue, it is a heart issue. When we are not able to give up the blessing, it probably has become a treasure/idol.
10. I love our little church! I truly can't wait to see what's around the corner. God's promises are so amazing!

That's it! About 15 minutes...gotta go now - that crazy schedule!

Obedience

I have been listening to countless podcasts and sermons, from Ravi Zacharias, Jim Putman, Chuck Missler, a sketch of R.C. Sproul, Francis Chan, and even a message from some no name guy - Lyle (not pridefully listening to it, but simply "remembering" what God has done for us as that was what it was about, it is so good to "remember"). As I have gone throughout this week, I have had this steady thought in my head, one that may have come from any number of the messages above, or maybe a thought from the Holy Spirit. It is this thing is called "obedience". I know where the thought originated the first time I was plagued with this idea - I was doing some research on the manifestation of the Holy Spirit, and while reading one of Craig's posts on this subject, he mentioned that it really comes down to obedience. The more I looked into this, the more significant this became. In fact, in preparing for a message I gave, I discovered that it was tied to just about every part of being a Christian. In my study I tied it to everything God had showed us over the last two years:

1. Seeking and Abiding - John 15:10
   If you keep my commands (obedience), you will remain (abide) in my love, just I have obeyed my Father's commmands and remain in His love.
2. Love - John 14, 15, I John 5 (There are probably a lot more than this)
   If you love me, you will obey my commands
   Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me.
   If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching
   This is love for God, to obey his commands.
3. Manifestation of the Holy Spirit - John 14, I John 3
   If you love me, you will obey what I command, and I will ask the Father, and he will give you a another couselor to be with you forever, the Spirit of Truth.
   Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.
   Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My father will love him and we will come to him and make our home with him."
   Those who obey my commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know he lives in us: by the spirit he gave us.
4. Faith - James 2:14-26
   A very good read on faith being dead without works, nothing more than the faith of demons, like telling someone "be warm and well fed", but doing nothing about it. Not that we are saved by works, but that a genuine, saving faith produces fruit in our lives. It is this fruit that completes our faith. If we do not have the "fruit" of faith (not fruit of ourselves), then we are either quenching the Holy Spirit, or we have something a lot bigger to worry about.
5. James 1 - Simply says, don't just listen to the word, DO IT!
6. What does Jesus say about obedience? - Matthew 7:24-27
   Therefore, anyone who hears my words of mind and puts them into practice (obedience) is like the wise man who built his house on the rock. The rains came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like the foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rains came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.

I am convinced that obedience is the key to our Christian life. The most important commandment that God has given us is to love him, and with the scriptures above, it is obvious that we show our love through our obedience to him.

One last thing that I have been pondering. A friend of mine approached me this week and said he really needed to get involved in a church; he was feeling a burden to begin doing his part in spreading the gospel. He wondered at the end of his life, what had he done or even cared enough about, to see that his friends and family had eternal life. He even mentioned, what had he done for himself?

If you read nothing else, read this:
Well, there is really just one answer that I have for him. And there is just one answer I have for EVERYONE in every circumstance. That is this - love the Lord your God with all of your heart, mind, and soul. And do this by diligently obeying his commands. That is really what we should be focused on. Too many of us focus on what things, what services, what ministries we ought to be doing...then we totally miss out on God's joy and blessings in our lives, because the whole time, he just wanted us to abide with him and fellowship with him. Instead of meditating on his word and spending time in fervant prayer, we were off trying to do "good", but without God. You see, that is the difference between works that are dead, and works that are of faith in my mind. The dead works are the ones we do in our own strength, as good intentioned as they may be. The fruitful works that do not return void, are those done in response to our obedience to God, our love for him, and his presence IN US. How can I stress how important it is to abide in him? Everything is so meaningless when it is not inspired by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Some questions we can ask ourselves:
How can we say we love him if we do not obey his commands?
How can we know his commands if we do not spend time in his word?
How can we say we know God if we do not read his word and pray?

Even so, you may know his word very well, but this too is meaningless if we don't live a life of love and faith in him through obedience. I suppose it would look like the pharisees who knew the word inside and out, but still did not know their creator.

This has become my favorite verse this year:
Jeremiah 29:13
You will seek me and find me, when you search for me with all of your heart.
(Deut 4:29 also)

Blessings,

Another Tuesday

1. Can't wait for my new book to get here - "Crazy Love", heard some great things about it.
2. I get hooked on books too easily, need to make sure I remain in the Word also. Starting in Romans. I don't read it too often because it is difficult for me to grasp. What a great message though!
3. I have been listening to some Chuck Missler podcasts. He has a series on Halloween that is pretty good, and now beginning a series on the book of Daniel. He is one of the most respected teachers on prophecy, so I am looking forward to the study. He just happens to be from Post Falls, and you can even join his studies in person during the week. I am also interested in R.C. Sprouls teachings on the end times as he seems to agree with the unpopular belief that we have been in the tribulation since 70 A.D. This is also the belief of our pastor, and he did nearly a year long series on it at church that would be very difficult to argue.
4. Invited the mormons back for a "discussion", wish I knew more scripture to share with them.
5. So tired, but I can't go to bed until I finish working on a computer at work (remotely that is).
6. Irony at its best: Pittsburg Steelers - or should we say "Stealers".
7. I have a pile of dirt that needs to get moved before snow flies, because it is in the way of the snow plow. Then I have a pump house that is half way dug up. I was trying to get it dug up and sealed with tar around the foundation before winter so it would quit flooding in the spring, but it not only looks like I won't be able to finish the digging with the weather being so cold, but now I have to figure out what to do with this huge hole I dug around the pump house. If I leave it dug up, the pump house will really fill up with water once the snow begins to melt.
8. Got the snow tires/wheels on both vehicles. I really don't like winter.
9. The computer is now finished, so I am ending this early and going to bed!

New Stuff!

Well, ok, technically it's not new.

I buy all of our computers and laptops at litehouse from http://www.dellauction.com/. They are off-leased computers that are refurbished and auctioned off. I can win 4 desktops for the price of 1 new one. They have now added more items to their site - projectors and flatscreens. So I have been waiting for the right deal for a projector and won this one for $280 for the church. It is $1100 new, and should be WAY brighter than the one we have. These are not exactly ideal for a church setting, but this should do the job at a much more affordable price.




Right after I bought the projector I happened to be browsing craigslist and found this very nice soundboard for sale. It was from a sound system that had been replaced at a Presbyterian church in Spokane and the listing said "make an offer". Of course there was a small detail - this 32 channel Soundcraft board only had 16 channels that worked (but he actually was not sure of that even, he was just selling it). Well, these are not too hard to get fixed, and this was a comparible board to ours (maybe better) with 2x the capacity. The new one we got last year is much smaller (but nice) and cost $1000. This one is a lot older, but probably cost up to $3000 new. I made him an offer of $300 and he accepted and was pleased that it was going to a church, so when I picked it up last night, he decided to give it to me for $200! He was a very nice guy...

Actual picture:

Top 10

1. Lots of changes at work coming. Good changes! We are soon getting staffed up - finally. Some long days/weekends coming though. If the training doesn't get canceled, Terah and I may be taking a trip to Seattle at the end of the month! I love change, and I love challenge, and I love my job!
2. Our 2nd Truth Project group is nearly finished - two more weeks.
3. The worship team is back together, very exciting!
4. Just bought a refurbished $2300 projector for the church for $280 and going to pick up a used $2k-$3k 32-channel soundcraft sound board tomorrow night that I got off of craigslist for $300. It will need some repair, but well worth the $$$ and hoping it will be a nice addition to the church sound system.
5. Got much closer to learning one of my favorite songs on guitar this week, after a good 15 years of trying - "I Surrender All" Cry Manna.
6. Side-jobs are caught up, just have one in the works...and a couple that are dragging out, but not hurting anything.
7. Had my best round of golf yesterday! It was the latest I have ever played in the year, and the course was not in good shape at all...however, I have never played so well. :)
8. Wondering what the future holds. When you know God's promises, when you have a taste of what God will do in your life if you are surrendered in prayer and meditating day and night in the word, you just can't help but wonder what it is like to find God ("If you seek me with all of your heart, and with all of your soul, you will find me"). What sweet fellowship, what joy unspeakable.
9. Finally started reading a Bible story to the kids before bed - they knew it very well before I even read it to them. Have not been home to read to them again, but I am excited to begin teaching them God's word...they eat it up and understand it much better than I give them credit for. Now if Daddy can just keep it up...he gets very tired by the end of the day and is not always in the best spirits.
10. Thinking of all of our friends and families who are struggling. I have never seen a year like this. Hearing of bank accounts with very little money, houses foreclosing, medical bills looming, losing jobs...it is a very good year to be putting your faith in God, because his promises will remain when everything else does not. Wish I could say I had that kind of faith, but I am constantly battling the worries too.
11. BONUS: I sure love our friends and families. I love our church. I love that the economy and our great nation can crumble around us, and yet we can have such joy and hope when we remain in Christ. What an incredible thing God has done for us; we have been redeemed! Not just by Christ's shedding of blood, but his fulfilling all of the law. So we are not saved by the law, but by faith in the one who fulfilled it for us because we never could. If only we could grasp this doctrine of redemption...we would probably be a lot more joyful. ;)