THE JOY OF GIVING

We have just had another wonderful Christmas season.  The joy of Christmas has played itself out in home after home.  But for some, Christmas can be a hard time.

One of the things that excites me is to see the incredible heart of generosity that lives in the people of CCC.  Christmas is a time of giving, and many community families experienced the unconditional love of our people when gift cards were dropped off to them so they could shop for their kids.  Extra food was also provided so families could have a more exciting Christmas dinner.  Presents were purchased for Angel Tree kids.  Add to that the 100 or so shoe boxes filled with precious wonders for kids around the world and you have a lot of blessed lives.  What impresses me and I know pleases God is that the Christmas spirit exists in our people all year long.  What a thrill it is to see people blessed by a timely gift that takes the growing financial pressure off.   Many families and single parents live with little or no margin.  The unexpected car repair puts them behind the financial 8 ball and now choices have to be made.  Do I pay the rent and forget the utilities?  

To receive a financial boost at a time when every penny counts is such a blessing to people.  How fun it is to be the hands and feet of Jesus in peoples’ lives.  The glory of God shines brightly when we give from a heart of love to bless others.  2 Cor 8:9.  “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.”  We have all received the grace and generosity of God.  Let’s keep passing it on.

REFLECTIONS

Last Friday morning tragedy struck families in Newtown CT, as a gunman entered Sandy Hook Elementary School and killed 20 children and 6 adults.  The joy that rises with the Christmas season was significantly dampened by this event.  The pain, the grief, the disbelief all linger.  The whole incident has been brought under the national microscope.  Questions are asked and discussions are held.  Solutions to keep this from happening again are searched for.  I trust that in any equation for success, God and His wise life principles are not ignored.  As we get closer to Christmas we see the effort of God to intersect our lives with love and hope.  In the midst of life’s ongoing tragedies, which in this sin fallen world will never end by human effort, God offers hope in the form of His Son who came to earth.  Let us never forget the messages attached to His birth.  To Joseph - You shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins.  To Mary - He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.  To the shepherds - For behold I bring you Good News of great joy, which shall be for all people.  For today in the city of David a Savior has been born for you, who is Christ the Lord. 

Jesus came to earth as the precious gift of God.  In Him we find Hope, Joy, Peace, Love and Life.  He is the answer to a whole lot of questions.  Thank God for His indescribable Gift.

CHRISTMAS

A week ago Saturday, a number of people gathered to run a 5K.  What brought them together was a common love and friendship for Scott Middleton, a 50 year old friend who died suddenly while working out on his treadmill.  As I did my three miles I reflected back on the years I’d known Scott and realized that relationships truly are the richest and most meaningful substance of life.  As we grow up we love having friends, people to do things with, explore new experiences with, be encouraged by, draw strength from, laugh with, eat with, cry with, cheer for.  As we mature we recognize that many of our relationships have grown so deep that we can’t imagine life without them.  Marriages are that way.  Our children produce those feelings.  

But then something happens and a loss occurs.  The relationship is over and we feel the pain.  Christmas can intensify that feeling.  The losses become vivid again.  The “missing them” rises to the surface.  But though the pain of loss is real, we would rather live with our pain than never have had the joy of the relationship.   I can’t imagine adopting the philosophy of Simon and Garfunkel, who in their song, “I Am a Rock”, penned these words.  “Hiding in my room, I’m safe within my womb.  I touch no one and no one touches me.”  Or these, lamenting the fact that a relationship didn’t work out, “Don't talk of love. I've heard the words before.  They’re sleeping in my memory. I won't disturb the slumber of feelings that have died. If I never loved I never would have cried.” 

All that seems so empty.  Relationships might be risky.  Hurt may come from them.  Grief may be your experience.  But the value and joy of them far surpasses all risk.  God entered into relationship with mankind through Jesus Christ.  He knew the joy of relationships, his love for friends.  His heart felt deeply for them.  He wept when Lazarus died.  And he didn’t care what the cost, whatever it takes, He wants a relationship with us.  That’s Christmas.

WHAT MAKES CHRISTMAS SO INCREDIBLY SPECIAL

I love Christmas!  There is no other time of the year like it.  So why do I get so excited about this particular season?  It starts with Jesus.  Without his birth there would be no death.  Without His death there would be no life.  Without His life there would be no hope.  

God became flesh and dwelt among us.  He became our Savior, our Christ, our Lord.  

That spells JOY as far as I’m concerned.  When your heart is that full of joy in what He has done, you just want to celebrate big time.  So we decorate, bakerate, and cookerate .  We love to shop and buy gifts, plan family gatherings, invite people over to our homes to drink wassail, eggnog, and eat special Christmas goodies.   We savor Graeter’s special Christmas ice creams.  We sing Christmas carols and pull out the much loved Christmas CDs and DVDs.  We have special Christmas candles.  A treasure trove of lights adorn the outside and inside of houses.  The Christmas tree is looked at admiringly every time we pass by.  We hang the wreaths.  We just enjoy the season.

So I say, feel the joy of Jesus’ birth and let that joy explode on the Christmas scene for all its worth.  The angels felt it when they chorused, “Glory to God in the Highest.  For behold I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be to all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord.

Thanks be to God for His indescribable Gift.

GIVING THANKS

Last week was just a great time of Thanksgiving.  I was with Sarah and Matt and Matt’s family in North Carolina.  Thanksgiving really needs to be that, giving thanks!  I took some time to think back over the past few years and realized how much I had to be thankful for. 

My mind went back to the last four vacations that Mary Ann and I took before she got sick.  

2005 –Oahu, Hawaii.  Truly paradise on earth.  Unbelievably big surf. Just awe inspiring.  A week of having all your senses engaged to the max.  In addition we got a call from Bryan that he had passed his PT Boards and now was fully certified.  Did we celebrate that night!

2006 – A trip to the Outer Banks of NC with Sarah, Matt and Matt’s mom and dad.  All Mary and I did was sit in the backseat of the car and enjoy the ride.  We didn’t have to plan a thing or be responsible for anything.  All we were required to do was just enjoy the sites.  While at Kitty Hawk we got a call from Bryan and Beth letting us know that their first baby, due in December, was going to be a boy and they were going to call him Owen. 

2007 – A trip to Banff in the Canadian Rockies with Mary’s brother and sister-in-law, Bob and Patty.  What an incredible time.  The beauty of the region can’t be overstated.  We also saw wild animals galore.  Mary was enamored by the grizzlies.  One came out of the woods in front of our car.  We stopped.  Mary jumps out of the car with her camera needing a close up.  I am pulling her back in screaming, “You’re going to get mauled!”  She knew no fear.  Took on an alligator in Florida one year.  “I just have to get a little closer”.  Should have taken her camera away.

2008 – A trip to Germany.  So much history, both world and family.  We had the joy of seeing the kingdom work our niece and nephew were doing in Berlin.  We visited the little town of Lichtenburg, in which my father grew up.  My Dad left Germany 90 years ago, but the house he grew up in is still owned by family and we got to go in and have afternoon snacks with cousins I had never met.  We also visited my Mom’s home city of Leipzig.  The church her father pastored was still standing but was going to be torn down the following year so a new church could be built.  I was able to stand in the pulpit and imagine the ministry he had.  I also got to see the second floor which had been the home my mom grew up in.

What amazing trips.  How do you top all those “once in a lifetime” experiences?  Only one way. 

A trip to Heaven.   

How thankful I am for the Lord Jesus Christ who has an eternal vacation planned for His children that will never end.

THE PERFECT AGE

Have you ever wondered what the perfect age would be, where you could just freeze frame it and stay that age the rest of your life?

I always thought it was 26.  At that age I was full of energy, idealism, enough maturity to focus my life and have some impact, and maximized the possibilities of each day.

Then I thought it was 36.  I’d settled into a purposeful and meaningful ministry.  My marriage had found a good rhythm.  My kids were a blast and family times were just the best.  I was in peak physical shape and bringing my “A” game.

Then I thought it was 46.  I’d come to realize how much I had learned about life over the years, how I had matured in ways that allowed my gifts and passions to have broader impact.  Exciting new ministry doors opened.  There was greater wisdom, still great energy and health, a good pace to life, and a marriage that was fuller and deeper in relationship.

Then I thought it was 56.  I could look back over the years with satisfaction, a blessed marriage, kids who made me proud of how they were navigating life, the joy of their marriages and their maturing walk with God.  I had the opportunity to be amazed at God’s work in my life, how He had patiently and graciously been shaping my heart to desire Him above all else, guiding my life to fulfill His calling in me, yet still had passion and energy for the years to come.

Next week I turn 66.  Is this the perfect age?  I am now more fully aware of what really matters in life.  I have had the opportunity to put all this world has to offer side by side and have had enough time to determine what matters most, what is hay, wood and stubble and what is gold, silver and precious stone.   I have experienced and weathered enough crises to deepen my walk with the Lord to where He is more precious now than He ever was before.  Yet I still have strength, energy and a strong excitement to embrace the next chapter of my life.  

Every ten years seem to get me to the best year of my life.  

Can’t wait until I turn 76!!

PASSION

I have averaged three mailings a day of political campaign stuff all telling me the reasons I need to vote for their candidate.  I have been exposed to more campaign commercials then I ever care to be.  But this is America and the opportunity to elect our officials is just fantastic even with the overkill on yard signs, bumper stickers and TV/radio commercials.  We’ve looked at positions and issues and have come to a conclusion on which presidential candidate we decided to vote for.  But now the election is over.  For some there is celebration and rejoicing and for others there sadness and disappointment.  But as the emotions settle we realize once again that God is the supreme sovereign.  He is writing history.  He foreknows the hearts of people and the direction nations will take, all leading to the day when his prophetic pronouncements of how history will end will take place.  But for now our nation faces some stiff challenges, social issues, moral issues, economic issues, foreign policy, and the war on terror.  We need to be praying for our leaders, faithfully.  The Bible commands us to do so.  And as Christians I want to remind us that we are part of Christ’s kingdom and His Kingdom is an apolitical Kingdom.  He is not trying to draw men to a particular party.  He is all about drawing men into His Kingdom because He is the hope of this world who one day will reign over it.  The Bible tells us that of His kingdom there will be no end in length or in scope.  It will be a kingdom of perfect righteousness, peace and justice.  In His Kingdom men will live forever in the most prosperous, happy, joy filled existence you could ever imagine.  Now that the election is over, let’s transfer our political passions to the one who is truly worth getting passionate about.  Let’s keep advancing His Kingdom.  

LET'S GET OUR PRAISE ON!

Last Sunday morning our second service Worship Team led us in a great time of worship and praise.

Reading in Spurgeon’s devotional, Morning and Evening, I was struck by his insights into the benefits of praise to the worshipper.  Listen to what he has to say.  “Praise helps to remove our burdens, to excite our hope, to increase our faith.”  I love that.  And how true it is.  When our focus is on the One who is powerful beyond imagination, loving beyond reason, present beyond our awareness, who is committed to us in a relationship without end, whose goodness and mercy are daily companions, we experience Spurgeon’s reality.   Can I encourage you to give yourself to praise, not just Sunday mornings, but throughout the week?  Praise not only puts a smile on God’s heart, it’s of great benefit to us as well.  So let’s get our praise on!!

LOVE GIFT

Do you ever wonder what the life of a missionary is like, those who uproot, relocate, learn new cultures and languages, need to adapt from the familiar to the unfamiliar and learn to make it home?  Many of us may think it is romantic, a life filled with adventure and cutting edge Kingdom impact.  We can imagine and dream from our comfortable Lazy Boy, never having to swat mosquitos, scream at snakes, make embarrassing language mistakes or take public transportation.  Missionaries embrace all this and more for their love of God and the people to whom He has called them.  They embrace the challenges and whatever comes along.  One of the things that “comes along” is a return to the States for a year of home assignment, speaking in churches and reporting what God is doing in their area of ministry and thanking us for our involvement.   To us that may sound like a welcome thing.  But it has its challenges.  Being in the States can create a greater financial drain on their day to day expenses than they have income for.  Though the C&MA does a good job providing for them, living in the States during “tour time” can create more expenses than what their paycheck covers.  Consequently we want to bless our missionaries with a love offering, our way of saying “thanks” for investing in us, our way of blessing them so they have more coming in than going out.  Jason, Elissa and Ruth are our missionaries this year.  I want to encourage us to come this Sunday prepared to give them a special monetary gift of love.  You can designate it “Missionary Love Gift” on the white giving envelops.  Thanks in advance for blessing them.

HEAD HUNTERS AND BLOW DARTS

As a kid I loved Mission’s Conferences.  They were wild.  They are pretty tame now.  Years ago we had missionaries from the inner jungles of Africa, or Indonesia, who put all kinds of curios on tables native to the tribes they were ministering to.  Machetes, snake skins, necklaces made out of teeth, coins from their country.  All kinds of cool stuff.  I remember one guy shot darts from a blow gun popping balloons tacked to the pulpit and told stories about headhunters and cannibals.

The exciting thing is that so many of those tribes have been evangelized.  Their hearts have been changed by Jesus.  Love replaced revenge, compassion replaced vindictiveness, harmony and brotherhood replaced treachery and murder.

And we rejoice in all that because these people really needed Jesus.

But things are tamer now.  We don’t hear about the stone age people.  We hear about the city people, the rural people, the rich, the poor.  They’re not as savage, but the condition of their hearts are still the same.  Rebellious, confused, in bondage, lost, hurting, hopeless.  Their needs are just the same.  They need a Savior. 
I praise God for our workers who enter into the hard and challenging areas of today’s world.  We may not see the curios anymore, or have demonstrations of blow guns, but we hear the commitment, the sacrifice, the passion.  Our workers’ heart bleed for the lost and they are investing their lives to bring the hope of Jesus.  

We wrap up Missions Week Sunday.  To our CCC’ers I implore you to be committed in prayer and giving so that our partnership with those serving overseas can accomplish the mission of bringing the gospel to every tribe, tongue and nation.

Get on a missionaries email list so you can receive prayer requests and updates first hand.  Fill out a Faith Promise Card committing to give generously to the Great Commission Fund.  This is our week to keep climbing higher.

NOT READY, BUT PREPARED

This week I was reminded again of the brevity of life.  We buried Scott Middleton, a friend and servant of Jesus.  He was 50 years old and living a full and meaningful life.  We understand and accept when someone who is 90 dies, whose body becomes more prison than pleasure, but 50…?

I have been a pastor for 37 years.  I have done a lot of funerals.  One year I buried a four month old boy who died of SIDS, a four year old boy who died on the operating table, a 17 year old girl who died of brain cancer, a 30 year old lady, a 50 year old man and a 90 year old man.  It was a reminder of how fragile life is.  The Bible says it well, and Christians are not exempt.  Through sin death came into the human race and it is no respecter of age.  My very first funeral in ministry was an 18 year old.  Ron was driving home from school early in his senior year.  He lived on a farm about two miles away.  He lost control of his car on a washboard road and ran into a tree, dying instantly.  Ron came to our Teen Action Center on Friday nights.  At the end of many meetings he and I would sit on the floor, lean against the wall and talk.  He was not a believer but was seriously considering what he heard.  Finally, one night in April, Ron prayed for forgiveness of his sins and received Jesus as His Savior.  In September he was gone.  The youth group went over to his family’s house shortly after the funeral service.  I will never forget what his Dad, Archie said to the kids.  “Ron wasn’t ready to die, but he was prepared.”  Are you?

CLUTTER

I was looking at my garage the other day.  Then I looked at my basement.   I couldn’t believe the stuff that has been piling up over these past two years.  Things had been placed orderly and neatly.   Now shelves designed for car stuff, lawn stuff, kids toys, school memorabilia, books, pictures could all be labeled “miscellaneous”.   What happened?  What happened is what we call “clutter”.  

That word clutter is never used in a positive context.   It is saying we have allowed a lot of stuff to accumulate where it really doesn’t belong.   That’s not saying the stuff isn’t good stuff.  It’s just too much of it.  Everything just starts to crowd out the stuff that should be front and center.  It looks messy after a while whether it’s our home, mind or life.  So we have garage sales, or we take things to Goodwill, or bag them up to give our kids (so they can deal with the clutter.)  

Clutter can happen in our spiritual lives, too.  I have bookmarks in four books.  Two magazines are on my desk waiting to be read.  I’m in three Bible studies, involved in two service ministries, in church for worship, (where I hope I can get my mind and heart focused), administrate and lead the church’s mission and vision, meet with staff, give pastoral care. 

Spiritual busyness can cause clutter.  All good stuff, but maybe too much stuff where I lose sight of what needs to be front and center.   

Did you notice something missing from the above list?  P-R-A-Y-E-R!  And it is never clutter.  It should always be front and center.  So keep that in mind when you take inventory of your spiritual life.  Has a lot of good stuff crowded out the best stuff?  Does prayer have its rightful place?  Make sure no “clutter” chokes it out or covers it up.

Lord, keep teaching us to pray!   

PUZZLES

I am one of those people who like puzzles, especially Sudokus and crossword puzzles.  There is something about solving a puzzle, especially a tough one, that gives a deep inner sense of satisfaction, a kind of Mt. Everest experience.   As I got into my grade school years, my Mom and Dad would buy me one new puzzle each Christmas that they thought would tax my brain and my perseverance.  There were Christmases where I hunkered down with my puzzle and hardly ate or made a peep for hours, even staying up until 3 or 4 in the morning to solve that critter.  My wife, Mary Ann picked up on that.  During our married years she would get me a puzzle from time to time.  The one that drove me to the brink of brain exhaustion was the Rubik’s cube.  She would see me working that cube, trying all kinds of moves to align the colors.   She would even whisper to me after hearing yet another sign of frustration, “I have the solution.”  

Life in some ways is like a puzzle.  We do our best to put the pieces together, seeking to put the right things in the right place and enjoy the satisfaction of the result.  Our response in life, much like mine to Mary Ann is, “I can do this.  I don’t need help.”   So we grit our teeth, stiffen our resolve and press on.  But life is more than a Rubik’s cube.  It is full of major decisions, life changing occurrences, bends in the road.  It can get complex and confusing.  We try and try and try.  Frankly we need help.  When we are ready to surrender Jesus is there to whisper in your ear, “I have the solution”.  Take Him up on it.  

GROWING UP TOO FAST?

“They’re growing up too fast!”  Every parent or grandparent has expressed those words.  I got off the phone the other day after talking with my daughter.  Since I’ve last seen my grandboys, Luke and Sam, they are starting to walk and to climb on everything they can get a good grip and foothold on.  They are moving into full fledged boyhood.   I remember when our children were small, Mary would often say, “I wish I could keep them this age forever.”    But if you could do that, you realize you would be keeping them from the fullest life for which they were created.   As we live we want to develop to the next steps.  We want to learn to drive a car, pursue a career, marry, see the world, take big risks, experience adventure, and keep pushing further into the opportunities of life.

It is obvious from the Word that our heavenly Father never says of us who are Christians, “I wish I could keep them small forever.”  He wants us to reach our full maturity and pursue life in His kingdom with the same “want to” that we do in our physical world.  Unfortunately there are many Christians who cease developing, almost as if they are saying, “I want to remain at this age forever,” and rather than continue the hard work of developing to maturity, seem content to remain dependent tykes or adolescents.

None of us want to thwart our full potential.  If we are not there yet spiritually, lets kick into gear again. 

BUILDING MATERIALS

Milestones are always fun to celebrate.  This past Sunday Centerville Community Church embraced 35 years of existence with a great anniversary service and picnic.  During the service a number of people spoke emphasizing how the church has ministered to them.  For 3½ decades people have been this church.  We understand from the Bible that the church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ, but for 2000 years now the followers of Christ have been building on that foundation.  Foundation speaks of buildings and I Corinthians 3 speaks about the construction materials that can make up each generational level.  There is gold, silver and precious gems, or there is wood, hay and stubble.  The previous generation of CCC people have done an amazing job of building the church strong.   They have shown us by their sacrifice, love, commitment and effectiveness the gold, silver and precious gems of their generational level.  Let’s keep honoring our Lord and those who have gone before in continuing the construction with the materials worthy of Christ so that the future generation will have our example on which to build.

NO MORE PAIN, NO MORE TEARS

Last Sunday our church finished a seven months walk through the story of the Bible.  It was a wonderful journey that ended with the Book of Revelation.  Many find Revelation to be a difficult read, due to all the imagery and symbolism.  But no matter the challenges one may face it is worth it, for in the last two chapters of the book, we get a glimpse of the new heaven and new earth.  I came across a beautifully written description of the comfort and joy of that new reality by Joseph Seiss.  I want to share it with you.

“Think then what its regeneration must bring, an earth that no longer smarts and smokes under the curse of sin.  An earth which needs no more to be torn by hooks and irons to make it yield its fruits.  An earth where thorns and thistles no longer infest the ground, nor serpents hiss among the flowers, nor savage beasts lay in ambush to devour.  An earth whose sod is never cut with graves, whose soil is never moistened with tears, or saturated with human blood, whose fields are never blasted with unpropitious seasons, whose atmosphere never gives wings to the seeds of plague and death. Whose ways are never lined with funeral processions, or blocked up with armed men on their way to war.  An earth whose hills ever flow with salvation, and whose valleys know only the sweetness of Jehovah’s smiles, an earth from end to end and from center to utmost verge, clothed with the eternal blessedness of Paradise Restored”

That day is coming and for those who are in Christ all the “ugly” of this world will never be experienced again.

FATHERS

My father has been dead for 13 years now.  I have incredible admiration for my Dad so I’ve been pondering the question, “How much of my Dad do I have in me?”  Obviously I have genetic representation since he’s my biological Father.  I know I have his hands.  I wear the wedding band my Mom gave him on my right hand.  When I look at my hands I see my Dad’s hands.  And then I think of my Dad.  The ring and my hands are a reminder of the things I admired about my Dad.  My Dad was a kind and gentle man.  He was trustworthy.  He was a hard worker and good provider.  He was faithful to my Mom for all 60 years of their marriage.   He gave generously of his earnings to the Lord’s work and always was there to help family.    He called regularly on Saturday mornings to talk and pray with me for Sunday’s ministry.  

The characteristics of my Dad that are seen in me are there because of my desire to emulate them in my life.  I have a heavenly Father whose characteristics are also very known to me, His sacrificial love, His touch of compassion and kindness, His strength and wisdom, His grace and mercy.  I not only want friends of my Dad’s to say, “I see your Dad in you”, I also want to hear people say, “I see your heavenly Father in you.”

Are there qualities of God we admire?  Do we want to emulate them in our lives?  Can you see them?  Can you name them?  Can you live them?

LEGACY

On August 9^th, 1952, a little baby girl was born into the home of Bob and Margaret Biggs.  They named her Mary Ann.  On November 10, 1972 I met her for the very first time.  It was love at first sight.  In God’s goodness and mercy she said “yes” to my marriage proposal and for 35 years I was blessed beyond my worthiness with the sweetest, most amazing wife a man could dream of.  

Memories of our years together are fun and special, but as I commemorated her 60^th birthday I found myself reflecting more on her life’s impact.  I am the man I am today because of her presence in my life.  She showed me what it was to pursue God with all one’s heart.  She lived her faith boldly, without compromise.  She lived selflessly and generously.  The fruit of the Spirit was ripe in her life, and it was manifested in all she was and did.  We often hear people talk about leaving a legacy.  Mary was never motivated by that concept.  All she cared about was living a life pleasing to God and being a blessing and an uplifter of people.  Though she didn’t know it, she left a legacy.  It is found in each person, who like me, was touched by her life.   Happy 60^th birthday, sweet lady.

ANTICIPATION

A N T I C I P A T I O N.  Isn’t that a great word!  I remember as a kid my Dad saying to me, “When I get home from work tomorrow we’re going fishing.”  Wow, did that get me excited.  I couldn’t wait!!  Fishing with Dad meant stopping at a truck stop for a cheeseburger, fries and shake, sticking a boat in the water and going after the “big ones”.  On the way home it always meant a stop at the Dairy Queen for a chocolate dip cone.  Life just didn’t get better than that.

I also love the anticipation of a road trip.  Next week I’m driving down to Chapel Hill, NC to visit my twin grandboys, Luke and Sam.  Oh yeah, Sarah and Matt, the parents, they live there too.  But the joy of seeing those boys and having time with them gets me all pumped up.  The closer the day of departure gets, the greater the anticipation.

Do you think God ever anticipates anything?  Like the homecoming of His children.  Since nothing ever catches him off guard, He is well aware of the new arrivals.  I did a funeral today for a lady who was a beautiful Christian lady.  I love to imagine the homecoming celebration in heaven as word got out that a new arrival was coming.  Her room was made ready.  The sheet music was passed out to the musicians that would serenade her.  The royal robe prepared as one who is a co-heir with Christ, and then God’s child arrives.  

Yes, I believe there is anticipation in heaven.  I love that word.

Precious in the sight of the Lord are the death of His saints. Ps 116:15

MATT'S GUEST BLOG

I don’t need a sabbath.  Rest is for wimps.

God must have designed it for weaker, lazier people than me.  I guess I just have more drive than normal people.  I’m perfectly content to work nonstop and sleep 4 hours a night.  Work energizes me.  I’ve found a healthy rhythm of life, in which work is the center point, the place that I pour the bulk of my time and passion.

Or maybe I’m just in denial...

When was the last time you took a day to just rest?  When was the last time you got a day away from your normal environment to get some perspective?  Do you remember?  If not, take a day off!  If you can remember it, didn’t you find it refreshing?  Maybe you even felt like when you went back to the workplace you were more productive than usual.

Does that surprise you?  Should it?

Sabbath was one of God’s many bright ideas.  It didn’t come from the latest self-help book.  It isn’t part of some new age fad.  God Almighty laid it out at the foundation of the earth itself.  It shouldn’t surprise us at all that it actually works.  God didn’t suggest a sabbath to kill your productivity.  He also didn’t suggest it to promote a “working for the weekend” mentality.  He suggested it because he knows what’s best for his kids. (That’s us!)  He suggested it because it is healthy - it is good.  While we’re on the topic, he didn’t “suggest” it at all.  He modeled the behavior in Genesis 2 and he commanded the behavior in Exodus 20 as the 4th commandment.

It’s funny that in a business minded culture we really value hard work to such an extreme that we sometimes reject the need for a sabbath altogether.  Let’s put a stop to that.  Take a break.  Zoom out.  Get perspective.  Listen for God.  Come back refreshed.  I dare you.

DEVOTIONALS

Do you use a devotional book, like Our Daily Bread, or Our Utmost for His Highest, resources like that?  There are so many good reads these days.  One of the popular ones has been Jesus Calling, by Sarah Young.  I had been pretty much a straight Bible reader for my devotional time, just kind of spurned supplemental material.  A few months ago, however, I was given C. H. Spurgeon’s, Morning and Evening.    I found that the subject matter, his insights and writing style really ministered to me.  The readings really touched my spirit.  I am eager to get back into it each day.  

As I thought about it, I realized these devotional books do a great job of connecting God’s truth to life, the everyday things that you and I deal with as we seek to successfully navigate the daily challenges we face.  And they cover all kinds of areas of our realities.  I know we can use different methods in how we ingest the Word of God, but if it has been a while since you have used a Daily Devotional, I encourage you to pull off the shelf an oldie but a goodie, or head to the Christian bookstore and look over some of the new ones.  I really believe it will take your devotion deeper and that can’t be bad!

PSALM 19

The Psalms are an amazing record of the writers understanding of God, His approachability, understanding and power.  In the five books of the Psalms you find it all, pure praise, requests for God to destroy enemies, personal contrition and sorrow for sin, the joy of knowing and obeying the precepts of God.  The Psalmists, in response to all this, express a strong desire to please this amazing God.

I was reading Psalm 19 and was captured by it again, especially the final verse.  David is pretty much agreeing that everything God has to say to us is perfect, his law, his commandments, precepts - all good.  So he concludes with his own commitment to have his words and meditations be acceptable to God.  Here’s what he said.  “Let the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.”

We have God as our audience and should want our thoughts and words to please Him.  Additionally, thoughts and words are so interwoven.  It is from our heart, our attitudes, what we are dwelling on, that words come from.  Do we harbor resentment, bitterness, anger, jealousy, lust, hurt, superiority, or any such thing?  Our words will ultimately betray us and what we say will cause our God to grieve rather than be pleased.   Let’s do a quick inventory.  Would God applaud our thoughts and words so far today?  We love His words.  Let’s be sure He loves ours.

SINNER/SAINTS

I raised the white flag five minutes ago. My one year old twins are now officially sinners.  Could these be the same boys who two months ago were model citizens, cherubs from heaven?  Luke has never seen a meal he doesn't like.  He went right after green beans and sweet potato mash, but Sam swatted away my first spoonful of green beans with a deft left hand swipe and with a mischievous grin that seemed to say, "Try and feed me big guy!"

Play time was a war. No matter how a divvied up the toys, each wanted what the other had.  Grabbing, pushing, screaming, crying!  What is going on?  They're only one year old!  They're at the stage where changing diapers and putting on pajamas is good training for wrestling alligators. They wore me out!!

But then a switch went off.  It's bedtime.  They take their bottles without a fuss.  I read them stories, sing them songs. They go to bed without a fight.  They jabber and laugh until they slowly fall asleep.  Too precious to miss.

I love my sinner/saint grandboys!  Happy 1st birthday, Luke and Sam.

PARTY HARDY

Do we do enough celebrating in life?  I’m realizing how much fun it is to have a good celebration.  I was looking back over some of the really big ones that still bring a smile to my face.   There was the arrival of my Mom’s family from Germany in 1957.  She had not seen them since she’d left Germany 30 years earlier.  Wow what a day!  My graduation from Marine Corps Boot Camp.  Big time celebration.  And then there was my Minnesota Twins 1987 World Series win.  And what about a WEDDING!  Not sure it gets better than that.  Around here I don’t think I’ve seen families celebrate a child’s first birthday any better.  We love to celebrate big events and milestones, and well we should.  But do we celebrate enough of them?

As you read the Bible you realize that God is into celebration.   He loves a good party.  He gives His people reasons for feasts and some real blowouts.  It’s like He is saying, “Take the life I have given you and the relationships we have together, and CELEBRATE.”  Whether the occasion was deliverance from Egypt, an abundant harvest, or a wedding, Party hardy!!  

It’s fun to celebrate a lot of things in life, birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, job promotions, our favorite team’s championship, but I wonder if there are some we overlook.  How about celebrating the anniversary of our spiritual birthday, or our baptism, or the occasion when we had the joy of leading someone to Christ?  Pretty big stuff.  We could call it a new life party!  I think God could really get into that.

GOT GUNK?

I took my grandboys, Owen and Griffin, swimming Sunday night, followed by Graeter’s Ice Cream.  Owen wanted a small plastic Red’s ball cap in which to put his scoop.  Griffin chose a waffle cone dipped in chocolate with sprinkles.  We sat outside and enjoyed the flavor of it all.  Griffin had more than he could handle as ice cream melted and ran all over.  By the time he had my full attention, the only real thing I could have done to clean him up was to strip him naked and hose him down.  Ice cream was everywhere.  I dropped them off at their Mom and Dad’s, talked with Bryan out in the yard for a minute, when out came Owen from the house with green gunk in his hair, I mean really sticky adhesive stuff that would not come out.  Owen’s explanation was he needed something to hold his plastic Red’s cap on his head.  The final result of it all was that Owen got his hair buzzed short.   It was easier to grow a new head of hair than preserve the old.

I wonder with us, if there aren’t some similarities.  We get crud in our lives, stuff that shouldn’t be there, and rather than confessing it, cutting and cleaning it all out, and starting fresh, we try to hang on to it, manage it, work around it, maybe deal with it a little at a time, but it keeps us from the freedom and joy Christ wants us to have.  Got gunk?  Christ loves cutting it out.

COMPETITION

I was pondering the word “competition” the other day.  Is wanting to “win” a bad thing?  I thought about how much of my years have been lived in a competitive mode.  From the time I was little I wanted to be picked first when teams were drawing up sides.  I wanted the best grades.  I wanted to win the heart of the girl who had many interested suitors.  I wanted to win the bike race, the spirited debate, the Monopoly game.  Maybe you have a little of me in you.

But I wonder how competitive we feel when it comes to spiritual things, especially the eternal souls of mankind.  I think we all realize that Satan vies for the souls of man even as God does.   If God wasn’t competitive about the souls of mankind, Christ would have never died on the cross.  God wants people to experience and enjoy the fullness of eternal life with Him and Satan is doing all He can to prevent it.  God has enlisted us to be part of His team in battling for the souls of mankind, so one of the core components of CCC’s mission is “Winning people to Christ”.   Are our competitive juices flowing?

WHO DEFINES MORALITY?

Who defines morality?  Who decides what is right and what is wrong?  The president’s endorsement of gay marriage may be one social hot potato whose morality is debated by people on both sides of the issue, but the issue of gay marriage is just another manifestation of a culture that has been pushing the God who created us and redeemed us from the center of life and society to the margins.  What He has to say in the Bible seems to be irrelevant to the majority of people in America.  What is taking its place are phrases like, “It seems to me… or…The way I see it is…”  We adopt our own sense of understanding and fairness.  The issue really isn’t gay marriage.  The real issue goes back to President Obama’s comment that America is no longer a Christian nation.  To me that was as much an observation as a pronouncement.  Our nation’s separation from the God of the Bible as the starting place for morality, life decisions and legislation, has led to a descent into relativism, pluralism and tolerance which makes the lines of defined morality, fuzzier and fuzzier.  As God becomes just a word rather than a reality to whom we are accountable, and our own understanding rather than God’s revelation guides our sense of morality, we will continue to see increasing moral confusion and decline.  Until people are willing to acknowledge that the God who made us is God of all people and nations, and holds each accountable for their decisions and practices, we can fight the skirmishes of social issues, but we’ll lose the bigger battle.  We need a God sent revival that convicts the heart of man and returns them to their God and His Word.  That is what we need to be praying for.

Yes, we still need to stand strong on the truth that defines these moral issues, but we need to go beyond them to the heart of the problem, namely, man’s need to repent and return to God.

AN HONEST LOOK AT A MYSTERIOUS JOURNEY

This week marked the 2^nd anniversary of my wife Mary’s death.  As I reflected on her life, my mind immediately went to her relationship with God.  She was a woman who longed to experience God in increasingly more identifiable ways.    As I reread her journals I saw her heart being poured out to God to answer prayer for family and friends.  I also read the words of deep pain, “God, why aren’t you working?”

I just finished reading a book by a man I deeply respect.  He has been a gifted and effective C&MA pastor.  At 48 his body was invaded by something that put him at death’s door.  No amount of tests could produce a diagnosis.  His body just went crazy.  This man was healthy, athletic, a runner;  but within a few days his life was changed in ways he and his family could never imagine.   He spent months in ICU and when he did get back home, he had lost 50 lbs, couldn’t walk without help, couldn’t drive, eat or do much of anything for himself.  He was kept alive through a feeding tube.  What was he to make of all this, especially in light of the thousands of people praying for his healing, day after day after day?   Though he is on the living side of death, he still has not fully recovered.  He records his story in an incredible book entitled, An Honest Look at a Mysterious Journey.  I recommend it for everyone, but especially those whose life is hard right now, who are going through times where God seems silent, distant, and uninvolved in their circumstances.  If you are having trouble seeing God at work in the challenges of your life, John’s insights into God and his promises will be helpful.  

I never expected my relationship with God to deepen to the level it did through Mary’s illness and death, but I discovered, as John did, that God is good all the time.  He is a good God doing a good work.  We may have trouble seeing it, but as Isaiah 55:8,9 says, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, Neither are your ways, my ways, declares the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways.”  Enter into John’s story and see if it doesn’t really impact your walk with the Lord.

CONSCIENCE

“Cowardice asks the question, Is it safe?  Expediency asks the question, Is it politic?  Vanity asks the question, Is it popular?  But conscience asks the question, Is it right?  And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because his conscience tells him it is right.”   Martin Luther

Does anyone have a conscience anymore?  Do we still use them?  Do we value them?  Do we ignore them?  We used to say, “Let your conscience be your guide”, as if that would be enough to thwart wrong decisions or behavior.   We believed that our conscience was God’s gift to us to help navigate life in a morally pleasing way.  Our conscience would always be consistent with the moral law of God and would kick in when we violated that law or were even thinking about it.  But is conscience that dependable anymore?  Does it still function as God designed?   Is it possible we have diminished its role and importance and let our beliefs and actions be influenced by the cry and din of our culture’s call for tolerance and relativism?  For so many of today’s Americans the conscience has gotten buried under expediency, cowardice or popularity.  Seldom does it seem to be used in determining what is right and wrong.  Two people may hold diametrically opposed views or beliefs and neither feels any “check” in their conscience that what they believe is wrong.  Recently our president came out publicly to endorse same sex marriage.   There are those who applaud him, others who deplore him.   Did conscience figure into his announcement?  What role does conscience play in our lives anyway?

Our conscience stays sharp and honed when we stay close to God’s word, know and reinforce his teachings, and are committed to do right.   For the Christian we get our convictions of right and wrong from the Bible, God’s trustworthy revelation to mankind.   We develop convictions based on those timeless truths that are to guide how we relate to God, each other and this earth.  Our conscience will be consistent with our commitment to God’s truth, even when it is not safe, politic or popular.  It’s time to unbury it and give it voice.

GROWTH

When do we stop growing?  Last week I wrote about my ten month old grandboys, Luke and Sam.  They have a lot of growing ahead of them.  In fact, if they stopped growing their parents would be very concerned.  Physically, they will shoot up like their cousins, Owen and Griffin.  I expect all four of them will be over 6 feet tall.  Weight wise, they'll add another 150 pounds or more.  Developmentally, they're learning volumes, as they acquire language skills, dexterity skills, information and understanding.  When will they stop growing?
When do we stop growing?  Physically we are at our tallest by our early 20's.  Weight wise...that's a big question mark.  Knowledge wise, we may go into deceleration as we reach retirement years, staying up on current events, but anticipating a reduction on influence and impact we scale back on the scope of new knowledge gained.  I'm now in my sixties.  There is always the temptation to accept social convention that relevance declines with advancing years, that when you reach the upper ages its totally acceptable to saddle up and ride the rest of your days toward the sunset, but I don't want to go there.  I was just like Luke and Sam once, a small baby starting to grow.  As the years went by growth just happened.  I didn't give it a lot of thought.  But as I got older I realized I wanted to have input into my growth.  I committed to four things:  to continue to gain knowledge and understanding to function well in an advancing world; to develop core convictions upon which to build a life, to do my part to stay healthy for as long as possible, and to keep growing in my relationship with God for a lifetime.  When do we stop growing?  Not while we are still breathing.
I imagine that's how God wants it to go.

GRANDBOYS

I am blessed to have four grandboys.  They are precious.  Owen and Griffin are 5 and 3.  Luke and Sam are my 9 month old twins.  My twins live in North Carolina and I am spending my day off with them.  What is it that creates that magnetic pull, where eight hours on the road is insignificant in light of what awaits upon my arrival?

These little guys just pee and poop, can't talk or walk.  They bring nothing to the table except their appetites, and when done, don't even say "thanks".  They squawk when things aren't to their satisfaction and seem their happiest when they are crawling all over me, grabbing hair, skin, and snatching my glasses.

What is it about them that makes the 8 hour trip so attractive?    They're mine.  They belong to my family.  From the moment I looked at them in the neonatal nursery I fell in love.  They were precious then, they are precious now because they belong to me.  They are a part of me.   I imagine that is how God feels about us.

ONE IS THE LONELIEST?

Some years ago the pop group Three Dog Night sang a song that included these lyrics, "One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do."  Having been widowed recently I can understand that sentiment, but there are some "ones" that are really good.  “Ones” in which there is no loneliness, only blessing.  Last Sunday night our church family got to experience the joy of being "one" body during our second Concert of Prayer.  The oneness that results when the body of Christ comes together like that is something special.  Multiple generations and age groups mix.  To hear the heart of God that comes from the old and young while they pray together makes you realize that in spite of worship preferences, race or gender, age or stature, we are one body, committed to one Lord, one mission.  There is an old adage, "The family that prays together, stays together."  The same can be said of the church. 

Our church wide prayer events have this cool side benefit.  Though we meet to encounter God in prayer and seek His engagement in His world and ours, there are other neat things that happen.  One of them is that we get drawn closer together as a body.  Want to really get to know the heart of someone?  A 20 year old?  A 70 year old?   Be a part of our prayer events.  Listen to them pray.  It will strengthen our oneness, really grow our love for one another, break down stereotypes and put a smile on God's face. 

The next prayer event?  Sunday,  August 5th.  These are powerful times.  Put it on your calendar today and we'll see you then.

VACATION

Have you ever looked at the word VACATION?  I am on one of them this week, so my blog entry is going to be neither deep nor wide.  VACATION looks like it might well come from the root word, VACATE...to leave, as in leave the premises, the area, the routine, the daily responsibilities and do something relaxing, refreshing, and fun.  Every time I go on vacation that's my goal.  I look forward to disengaging.  No computers.  No smart phones.  No email.  I look forward to a day totally different from what my normal day looks like.  I want to recharge emotionally, physically, and spiritually.  This year I traveled again to the Big Island of Hawaii.  I'm snorkeling, hiking, enjoying local cuisine, drinking POG, (a delicious mix of passion fruit, orange and guava joices) and spending time at Mackenzie Park, where I enjoy the creative genius of God while reading, journalling, and spending time with my Creator/Redeemer.  Yet its interesting to realize how hard it is to really disconnect.  I have to resist the daily temptation to access work email, get on Facebook, stay connected to
things and people back home.  The fact that I am posting this blog shows I haven't quite succeeded.  VACATING is getting tougher and tougher each year.  Do you think you can go on vacation this year without logging in? Give it a shot.  I have a feeling it will be tougher than you think!

MEN AT WORK?

We often chuckle when we see a sign saying, “Men at Work” and then see five guys leaning on shovels.  Not too much work getting done.  Do we ever wonder if God is leaning on a shovel, not really working like we’d like Him too?  Maybe our view depends on what we are looking for.

I must confess that I want to see bigger things - 4^th of July fireworks kind of things.  I want to see renewal in the church to where its impact on its community sees people coming to Christ regularly like in the book of Acts, where physical healing occurs in response to James 5 prayer.  I want to see radical transformation in lives to where righteousness becomes our passion, marriages are healed, relationships are restored and Jesus is the love of our lives.  And I want to see it in big mass movements where God’s Spirit just breaks in and changes the regular routine of things, washing over lives in big time power.

I pray for that.  We pray for that.  But if we don’t see that does it mean God isn’t working, that He’s leaning on His shovel?  Jesus tells us in the gospel of John that the Father is always working.   The timetable on which God chooses to reveal Himself through the big time epic events is up to Him.  The big splash may be our desire, but we see throughout church history that those times really are up to God.  The Great Awakening of 1858 came after a year of prayer.  Yet we have seen a huge movement of prayer over the past 20 years where nationwide revival was not the outcome.  Our prayers open up the channel for His power for the day he chooses to do the big stuff, but in the meantime, His Spirit continues to work in ways we may call the smaller scale stuff.  He persistently convicts men of sin.  He draws people to Jesus.  He lives in us producing fruit of incredible worth and impact, (Gal 5:22,23), gifts us for service, moves us to prayer and praise, and keeps increasing our maturity and usefulness in God’s service.  The norm is the everyday steady working of God in the lives of people, bringing us to conformity to Christ.  

Over my life I haven’t seen the big stuff, but I have seen enough evidence in the little stuff to know that God is at work, not leaning on a shovel.  Have you?  Especially in your own life?

IS IT NECESSARY FOR A CHRISTIAN TO GO TO CHURCH?

A question was recently posted on Facebook.  “Is it necessary for a Christian to go to church?”  The intent behind the question wasn’t trying to determine if going to church is necessary for salvation or for securing it, because from a biblical perspective it certainly is not.  But the question’s importance is more this: “Should a Christian make church a necessity in their walk with Christ?”  The biblical answer to this one is “yes”.  

Assembling together as the body of Christ is a constant in the Scriptures.  In Acts we see that the early church gathered together for the apostles teaching, fellowship, communion and prayer.  We also read that worship was a high priority for the church.  Praising God for all He was and did marks the church throughout the ages.  

Yet because we realize our salvation isn’t tied to church attendance we can develop some sloppy habits regarding church.  We live at a time when we have mobility and enough disposable income to take trips and get away on a lot of weekends.  If we have kids, we find that school scheduled activities, especially sports, compete with Sunday mornings.  We have full social calendars that can make Sunday morning an attractive day to sleep in.  

We certainly don’t want to adopt attitudes of legalism or be judgmental, but we do well to remember the admonition of the writer of Hebrews in 10:25, “And let us not neglect our meeting together as some people do, but encourage and warn each other, especially now that the day of His coming back again is drawing near.”

“Is it necessary for a Christian to go to church?”   Yes, if we are going to follow the example of the believers in Bible times and throughout history.  Yes, if we allow our church attendance to deepen our worship and love for God.  Yes, if we want to be built up into a deeper faith.  Yes, if we want to be used by God to encourage each other and pray for one another.  In fact to not be a part of our Sunday gathering impoverishes us and others that God intends us to bless.

So how do you view church on your scale of what’s important?  If you were to ask God, would He be happy with your view?

I HATE CANCER!

I remember the day as if it was yesterday.  June 1^st, 2009.  We had gone to my daughters for a few days.  Even though Mary wasn’t feeling the greatest, she didn’t want to miss time with Sarah and Matt.  As the day unfolded, it became evident there was something really wrong with Mary.  We took her to the ER at the University of North Carolina Hospital.  After tests were completed Dr. Germanwala,  a neurosurgeon, gave me the most life shattering news I could have ever received.  “Your wife has a mass on her brain.  It is cancer and she has just months to live.”

Cancer!  I hate Cancer.  It invaded my wife’s body uninvited and insidiously began to take her life until the ugly deed of death was accomplished, May 21, 2010.  Not only did it take Mary’s life it has infiltrated the lives of many of my friends.  Why do I and many others hate cancer?  Because we deeply love the person that has it and we hate to see what it does to them.  

Sin is a spiritual cancer in our lives.  Why does God hate it so?  Because He deeply loves the person who is being destroyed by it and knows what the full consequence of sin will be.  But where we are helpless against cancer, God is not helpless regarding sin.  He did something about it.

Easter fills its lungs and shouts at the top of her voice, “God really loves mankind!”  

We are in the Lenten season.  It is a time to reflect on the passionate love of Christ.  He saw the effects of sin in the humanity He created and did something about it.  His desire to see us free from sin and its effects caused Him to come to earth in human form, die the cruel death of crucifixion, and provide the only cure for our sinful condition.  So many people today live lives far beneath what God created them for.  They experience sins invasion resulting in broken lives, ruined relationships, gnawing guilt, unfulfilled potential, and eternal death.  God sees it all.  He says, “I have so much more for you.  Will you let me bring the cure?  I died for you.  I shed my blood for you.  I offer you life in its fullest and best.  

Are you experiencing that this Easter?  If not, what’s holding you back?  

CLUTTER

I was looking at my garage the other day.  Then I looked at my basement.   I couldn’t believe the stuff that has been piling up over these past two years.  Things had been placed orderly and neatly.   Now shelves designed for car stuff, lawn stuff, kids toys, school memorabilia, books, pictures could all be labeled “miscellaneous”.   What happened?  What happened is what we call “clutter”.  

That word clutter is never used in a positive context.   It is saying we have allowed a lot of stuff to accumulate where it really doesn’t belong.   That’s not saying the stuff isn’t good stuff.  It’s just too much of it.  Everything just starts to crowd out the stuff that should be front and center.  It looks messy after a while whether it’s our home, mind or life.  So we have garage sales, or we take things to Goodwill, or bag them up to give our kids (so they can deal with the clutter.)  

Clutter can happen in our spiritual lives, too.  I have bookmarks in four books.  Two magazines are on my desk waiting to be read.  I’m in three Bible studies, involved in two service ministries, in church for worship, (where I hope I can get my mind and heart focused), administrate and lead the church’s mission and vision, meet with staff, give pastoral care. 

Spiritual busyness can cause clutter.  All good stuff, but maybe too much stuff where I lose sight of what needs to be front and center.   

Did you notice something missing from the above list?  P-R-A-Y-E-R!  And it is never clutter.  It should always be front and center.  So keep that in mind when you take inventory of your spiritual life.  Has a lot of good stuff crowded out the best stuff?  Does prayer have its rightful place?

Sunday afternoon, April 22 at 4:00 will be the second of four corporate prayer times that will take place at CCC this year.  Put it on the calendar.  Make sure no “clutter” chokes it out or covers it up.  As a church body let’s keep moving corporate prayer to center stage where it rightfully belongs.  We did it in January when about 250 adults gathered to pray.  Let’s do it again.  We want to leave nothing on the table that God has planned for us.

Lord, keep teaching us to pray!   

20/20

In the 1980’s I had eye surgery to correct double vision.  Double vision can be a good thing when you’re counting attendance on a Sunday morning, but it is a bad thing when you’re playing baseball and a line drive is coming at you.  Our vision is important.  We value it.  In fact we may feel it is the most important of our five senses.  

Vision is important to a church as well.  Without vision to see where we are going, we can stumble around and grope our way into the future without a clear sense of direction.

How is CCC’s vision?  I think it is pretty good.  Our vision “EYE CHART” is posted in the front foyer for all to see, but if you haven’t read it lately, see how it reads to you.

WE WILL BE

A CHURCH

OF PASSIONATE FOLLOWERS

OF JESUS CHRIST

COMMITTED

TO HIS STRATEGY

FOR MAKING DISCIPLES.

What does that look like?  Here is what resonates with me and has my commitment.

As a part of the church body:

I will engage people in relationships and by word and deed share with them the good news of the gospel, that God loved them so much He died for them so they may have everlasting life. 

I will continue a lifelong quest to grow in my relationship with Christ to where his character is reflected in my life more and more, and where what matters most to Him matters most to me.

I will engage His mission by using the gifts and talents He has given me both inside and outside the walls of our church building.   I will serve others.

All this will be pursued in the context of loving and caring relationships, and prayer.

It is really not complex.  It is short and sweet, but by focusing on these things our vision will be clear, 20/20 in fact.  Are you seeing things clearly these days?