Vote For Jesus!

No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer.
(2 Timothy 2:4)

As a general rule, I despise politics. They seem to bring out the ugly in otherwise decent people. This is not to say that I don't enjoy having spirited political discussions with people who actually think for themselves and expend energy researching and analyzing a topic and then espousing an informed opinion. However, most Americans tend to be rather lazy, and simply spout off whatever rhetoric or sound bites their particular political party or biased news source has fed them.

I don't intend for this blog to be a political one, so don't get all excited thinking I'm about to launch some great debate or controversy over who should be the next President of the United States. Frankly, it really doesn't matter to me who wins the election in November. In fact, I just wish it would all be over already and we can all get back to our so-called normal lives.

In case you think that I am some sort of disinterested unpatriotic heretic for what I just said, let me clarify. In some sense, I do actually care about the outcome of the November election. I care about it in the same way that I care about whether it is going to rain tomorrow (a rare occasion here in the desert, and thus requiring a fair amount of attention). The fact of the matter is, I have no control over who will ultimately serve in the White House for the next four years any more than I can control whether it will rain tomorrow. Yes, I do vote faithfully in every election, and yes, I do believe every person's vote counts (in spite of the antiquated electoral college, which is a rant I will save for another day).

However, I will not expend ridiculous amounts of effort and energy trying to make sure that everyone I know votes the way that I think they should vote. I will not spend countless hours watching speeches and debates and news commentaries on the candidates, and then filling my facebook news feed with the latest "proof" that my candidate is most fit to serve in this nation's highest office, and the other candidate is Satan incarnate. Most of my facebook friends are Christians, but they also cover the spectrum of political convictions, from the very liberal to the very conservative. What amazes me is that many of them pour themselves into the political process as if their very lives depend on who is in the Oval Office for the next four years.

The above verse from Paul's letter to Timothy reminds me that we are soldiers in the army of Christ. Thus, we have a responsibility to maintain our allegiance to Christ first and foremost. When we get so caught up in the affairs of this world that we can no longer carry out our duties as Christian ambassadors, then we are getting tangled up in "civilian affairs". When my Christian friends become nasty, rude and downright ugly during election season, they are in effect abandoning their posts and going AWOL. They are definitely not acting in a way that pleases their commanding officer, Jesus.

Paul gives us clear direction on how we should view our government leaders:

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. (Romans 13:1)

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people -- for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. (1 Timothy 2:1-2)

If we we truly believe that God is still in control of His creation, and that He really does establish the governing authorities, then we have to accept that, no matter who is elected as the next President, it is part of His divine plan for this country. Our responsibility is to pray for whoever our next President is, so that he will make right and sound decisions and lead this great nation in a direction that will be beneficial to all Americans.

I do not place my faith in the President of the United States, or my congressional leaders, or anyone else in public office. My faith is in Jesus Christ alone. Everything else is temporary anyway. I have lived through (and survived) ten presidential administrations so far. I've seen good presidents do bad, and bad presidents do good. We are electing a government leader, not a Messiah. I do not lose sleep at night because of who is in the White House, or who might move in next January. My rest comes from knowing that I belong to Jesus, and nothing can ever change that.

My prayer is that we Americans can find our civility once again, set aside our political differences, and move forward as a great nation. May God bless the President and the United States of America.

Have a blessed week!

Pastor David

God's Remodeling Project

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."
(Romans 12:1-2)

I spent this past Saturday volunteering for Habit For Humanity. Our task for the day was to gut an old house to prepare it for a complete remodel. While the work was hard and dirty, it was good to know that our efforts were the first step in preparing a nice, comfortable home for a young family, where their children could grow up in a safe neighborhood.

Judging by the construction materials used in the house we were working on, it is about the same age as mine. As many of you know, I've spent the last ten years gutting and remodeling my own home, and I'm still not finished. Fortunately, the Valdez family will only have to wait three months for their home to be finished!

As I was demolishing 60 years of construction (some not very well done), I thought about all similarities a project like this has to the work that God does in our lives once we accept His gift of salvation. Sure, there are those "Christians" who prefer to have God slap a fresh coat of paint on their lives, and then want no further work done. They are quite content to have the appearance of changed lives, but their interiors are still the old run-down messes that were in place before they got saved.

Just as this house had the imprints of many previous owners, some who obviously thought they knew how to construct porches and patios and interior walls, our lives also have the imprints of people from our past - people who helped construct our attitudes, behaviors and personalities, but didn't always do a very good job. God sees the mess that we have become (far removed from the perfect blueprint he started with), and wants to tear out all of that old inferior construction and restore us to our original condition, before we were marred by sin.

Anyone who has done or seen this type of remodeling work knows that it is a messy process. In the midst of it, everything looks like total chaos. Yet the master architect can see the final outcome, even if no one else can visualize it. I was discussing my remodeling projects with a friend last night, and I told him that even when everyone else sees a gutted room with nothing but rafters, studs and a concrete floor, I can see the beautiful finished product in my mind's eye. I think this is the same with God. All we see is the messy demolition as He deconstructs all the undesirable parts of our lives, while He sees the glorious end result, a life that resembles His son Jesus.

In Romans 12:1-2, the Apostle Paul tells us that we need to become transformed. The Greek word he used is the root of metamorphosis, literally changing (or morphing) from one creature into another. But notice that he doesn't tell us to sit idly by while God does this transformational work. We have to be an active participant in the process. God is a gentleman, and will not override our free will. We have to be willing to submit ourselves to the reconstruction process, as messy and painful as it may be. It's also interesting to note that he tells us that this change happens in our minds first. When we try to become more Christ-like in our actions and behaviors without first transforming our minds, we are simply slapping a fresh coat of paint on an old, outdated, and inferior structure. Sooner or later, the paint will peel, revealing the ugliness that lies beneath. We have to let God strip us down to bare bones and start all over, from the inside out.

When you look at my house today, you can tell that transformation is happening, but it's still pretty unsightly from the street. It's not until you come inside that you can see the beautiful restoration that has taken place. Eventually the outside will reflect the inside. For some people, the transformation is a quick process, just as the Valdez family will have a brand-new house in three months. For others, like myself, this work takes many years, complete with starts and stops and setbacks. God's been working on my personal remodel since 1984, and He's not finished yet. Have I enjoyed the process? Not necessarily. Do I like the work He's completed so far? Absolutely. Unlike me and my remodeling efforts, God never looks at a completed part of me and wishes that He had done something differently. He always gets it right the first time. When will He be finished with me? Only He knows. I wish it didn't take so long, but I guess I am an especially difficult project.

What transformations need to take place in your life? Don't resist the wrecking ball. God knows what He's doing. He's been doing it for a long time. And the sooner you let Him start the demolition, the quicker He can finish the restoration work.

Have a blessed week!

Pastor David

Changed Lives

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"

So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?"

    "They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him." At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

"Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?"

    Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."

Jesus said to her, "Mary."

    She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher).

Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "

Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her.

(John 20:1-18)

The Main Event

The resurrection story is the pivotal event in human history that changed everything. Without the resurrection of Jesus, society as we know it today wouldn’t exist. If Jesus had only given His life as a sacrificial offering, but had remained in the grave, He would have been no different from countless other martyrs who died for what they believed in. After all, what good would it do to have our sins forgiven if we do not have the hope of resurrection into an eternity in God's presence?

I think of this event as a light shining through a prism. On one side, a single bare light shines. On the other, a brilliant display in millions of colors bursts forth. Max Lucado calls this the “Main Event”. From the beginning of recorded history and the fall of man, this moment had been anticipated, if not by humans, then certainly by God. This was the day that God could finally be reunited in fellowship with His created beings. Up to this moment, the world was in a state of darkness and decay. But now, everything was illuminated and alive. The curse pronounced on all of creation in Genesis 3 was now broken, and the restoration of everything that was created to be "good" had begun.

However, in spite of the importance of this pivotal moment, it was surrounded by confusion as it unfolded:

Mary thought someone stole Jesus’ body.

Peter didn’t know what to think of the linen cloths and the folded face napkin.

John claimed that he believed, but he wrote this account and probably gave his own spin to it.

Mary mistook Jesus as the gardener.

We know from the other gospel accounts that the disciples thought the women were crazy.

We look back with 2,000 years of hindsight and wonder what the problem was. But these people had to work through their preconceived ideas, traditions, and emotional trauma. They had just seen their beloved friend and Teacher brutally executed two days earlier. It's no simple thing to suddenly believe that it wasn't permanent. Jesus had to make numerous attempts to convince them that He really had risen from the dead before they finally believed.

Changed Lives

On that first Easter morning, the lives of the people who loved Jesus would be forever changed by the transforming power of the risen Savior. Throughout both the Old and New Testaments, this moment is spoken of as one that would bring about profound change. The old order of law, sin and death was replaced with a new order of grace, righteousness and life. Nothing would ever be the same from that moment forward.

As each person comes to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, their life is changed, both immediately and throughout the rest of their days on this earth. In fact, a person who is not changed by Jesus Christ has probably never met Him. Unfortunately, we humans don't like change. We resist it and cling to the familiar, even if the familiar is harsh, painful and meaningless. We are like animals born in captivity and raised in cages. When the cage doors are finally sprung open, we stare into the great unknown beyond the safety of our confinements, fearful of what might await us. It is only those who venture out of their comfort zone who experience the amazing life that God wants us to enjoy.

Our celebration of this "Main Event" each year should include a time of personal reflection. To do any less is to relegate the day to just another Church holiday or family feast day. So my questions to you (any myself) are:

How has your life been changed as a result of coming to know the risen Savior? What immediate changes did you experience?

What ongoing changes is He making in your life? What changes are you hoping for in the future?

I often tell people who have not known me for very long that they wouldn't recognize me if they had known me twenty years ago. I'm completely changed in some regards, having put aside much of my worldly ways. Yet I have a long way to go in becoming more Christ-like in my thoughts, behaviors and attitudes. I don't particularly enjoy the refining process, but I endure it because I know that it will only produce desirable effects in my life. As the old-timers say, "I'm not where I need to be, but thank God I'm not where I used to be!" 

Have a blessed Resurrection Day!

Pastor David

God's GPS

"Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, 'This is the way; walk in it.' "

(Isaiah 30:21)

A friend of mine recently shared some thoughts about how God isn't the God of only one chance, but that He is the God of many chances. As I thought about this, I started to think about how the Holy Spirit is like a GPS system that God installs in us when we become Christians.

Now, I don't a have a GPS navigator in my car, but I have been in enough cars with one that I am fairly familiar with how they work. One thing for certain, if you miss a turn or an exit, the little voice in the box doesn't say, "You stupid idiot! You missed your turn. Now you will never get to your destination. I don't even know why I bother with you!" On the contrary, the voice simply says, "Turn missed. Recalculating." In a few moments, it provides a new route to get you where you are going, and starts providing step by step directions. And if, by chance, you blow another turn, it simply repeats the process. Over and over again if necessary. Of course, by that time you should probably consider letting someone else drive for awhile.

God's GPS (the Holy Spirit) works much in the same way. When we mess up, He doesn't rant and rave and belittle us (or worse, give up on us completely). He gently reminds us that we erred, and then provides an alternate route to get us back on course. And when we mess up again (because you know we will), He simply repeats the process. Over and over again if necessary.

To further the analogy, you can have the best GPS system on the market in your car, but if you never turn it on, it will do you no good. The Holy Spirit is the same way. We have all the power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, but if we never tap into this magnificent resource, we are destined to stumble blindly through life, constantly getting lost. 

For those of us of the male persuasion, we act as if we are missing the genetic code that enables us to ask for directions (or use our GPS). In fact, I'm sure the Hebrew children would have made it Canaan much quicker if Moses had just stopped to ask directions instead of wandering aimlessly in the desert for 40 years (just kidding). But we tend to do the same thing with the Holy Spirit (not just us guys, either). We think we can do just fine without getting any input from Him, and then wonder why we're always getting lost on our way to the Promised Land.

The passage from Isaiah above prophesies the day when we would have the Holy Spirit as a constant companion, guiding our steps through this complex life. Notice it doesn't say that He will drag us on the right path. Rather, He takes a back seat and gently whispers directions to us. We can either heed His suggestions or ignore them. Unlike an actual GPS system, however, He will never give us bad information ("Turn left." Um, it's a wall.) If we attune our ears to listen to His voice and follow His directions, we will get where we're going much quicker and on smoother paths. The choice is ours.

I choose to listen, unless ice cream is involved.

Have a blessed week!

Pastor David

One Body

"Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many."
(1 Corinthians 12:12-14)

I had the pleasure of attending a conference in Orlando, Florida last weekend, where I gathered with hundreds of other Christian brothers and sisters for several days of worship, workshops and fellowship. The culmination of the weekend was the Sunday morning worship service. While I am not a big fan of liturgical worship, it was a very beautiful service nonetheless. One of the most touching moments was when it came time for communion. There were two officiants, an Anglican priest and a Roman Catholic priest. The fact that these two brothers in Christ were able to set aside any doctrinal differences and serve side by side at the Lord's table spoke volumes about how we truly are all members of one body. In attendance were people from every walk of life and from a multitude of faith traditions (or none at all), and for a brief period of time, we were all able to worship together without labels or artificial lines of separation. I kept thinking to myself that this is truly what the Church is supposed to look like.

The theme of the conference this year was "Ambassadors of Reconciliation", based on 2 Corinthians 5:18-20:

"All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God."

Ironically, even as we were all worshiping together as one body, a storm was brewing regarding a controversial event that had occurred earlier in the conference. Battle lines had been drawn, and the very people who are supposed to be ambassadors of reconciliation were now embroiled in a spiritual tug-of-war to see which side of the aisle would prevail. Unity and reconciliation were nowhere to be found, although many involved attempted to quell the rumors and vitriol. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised (we are, after all, sinners saved by grace), but it was rather disconcerting to see so many people withhold grace and forgiveness from their fellow believers and hold on to their offenses like a badge of honor.

When Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, He included the phrase "Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us." He also taught the parable about the unmerciful servant who, after being forgiven for a massive debt he could never repay, went out and demanded payment from his fellow servants for the pittances they owed him. Jesus made it clear that the servant's fate for being so unforgiving was less than favorable. I admit that I sometimes struggle with a spirit of unforgiveness toward those who have wronged me. But God gently reminds me how much I have been forgiven, and somehow it becomes easier to overlook the offenses committed by others.

As long as infighting and quarreling persist within the Church, we render ourselves ineffective as ambassadors of reconciliation between God and the world. When people outside of Christianity see us devouring each other and withholding grace and forgiveness, they smell the stench of death rather than the sweet aroma of abundant life. Christians should be the most pleasant, loving and joyful people on the planet, but that is not how we usually appear to those outside of the Church. My prayer is that we all learn how to love each other in spite of our differences so that we can fully function as the one body of Christ in the world. Then, and only then, will we make Christ so attractive to others that they will beg us to share the Good News with them.

Have a blessed week!

Pastor David

New Year, New Beginnings

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."

(Isaiah 43:19)

For those of you who know me well, I don't need to tell how challenging 2011 was for me. Needless to say, I am more than happy to put that most unpleasant of years behind me, and look forward to a much better and brighter 2012. So yes, I'm looking forward to some streams springing up in my desert.

Obviously, there is nothing magical about turning the page of the calendar from December 31 to January 1 that suddenly changes our lives. It's really just another 24-hour day in a seemingly endless stream of days. But psychologically, culturally, and even spiritually, there is something significant about starting a new year that gives us hope for better tomorrows and cleansing from yesterdays. A new year provides a delineation between the old and the new, the past and the future. On this one day of the year, we get to wipe our proverbial slates clean and start all over. Of course, we get that opportunity every morning when we wake up. Lamentations 3:23 tells us that God's compassions are "new every morning", meaning that He gives us a clean tablet of life to write on every day.

But the new year is a BIG tablet - more like a giant storyboard, where we get to set goals for ourselves (call them resolutions if you want). We plan out a course of action that is designed to make our lives better and more fulfilling, to make us better people and friends and family members, and to give our lives a sense of structure and purpose. These goals/resolutions should go beyond "I'm going to lose weight or stop smoking or pay off my credit cards". They should have a much deeper impact on who we are, not just what we do or how we look.

With that in mind, I present Eight Godly Resolutions for the New Year. This is something I put in my church bulletins every year when I had my church, and I've also shared them elsewhere over the years. They are timeless because they are based on scriptural principles. and can be applied to all of our lives, regardless of our personal circumstances. They are also something that we never accomplish once and move on - they require ongoing work to achieve and maintain - so you'll probably see them here again next January, if Jesus tarries and the Mayans were wrong.

Have a safe, blessed and prosperous 2012!

Pastor David

Eight Godly Resolutions for the New Year

 1.    I will destroy all roots of bitterness by forgiving those who have hurt me and accepting forgiveness from others (Ephesians 4:29-32)

2.    I will not be satisfied living on yesterday’s spiritual blessings and nourishment (Exodus 16:13-21)

3.    I will make sure God is at the top of my priority list (Mark 12:28-31)

4.    I will let my closest friends be those that will positively influence my walk with God (Psalm 1:1; Psalm 119:63)

5.    I will seek to live at peace with everyone (Romans 12:16-18)

6.    I will commit myself to serving others (Philippians 2:1- 4)

7.    I will ask God for a renewed vision for lost souls (1 Corinthians 9:9-23)

8.    I will ask God for new opportunities to witness to others (Colossians 4:2-6; 1 Peter 3:15)

Whose Birthday Is It, Anyway?

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

 

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’"

(Matthew 25:34-40)

Let me preface what I'm about to say by saying this first: I love Christmas. I love the sparkle and magic and general goodwill that comes with this special season. I love the food and the music and the lights and the festive atmosphere. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

But something in me has changed over the years, and I don't see Christmas the way I used to. I no longer decorate my house or put up a Christmas tree. I don't exchange presents with family and friends like I used to. To me, Christmas has taken on a new meaning. Chalk it up to growing older, or wiser, or perhaps a little of both.

Don't think that I look down on those who are fully engaged in all of the flurry and hustle and bustle of Christmas. Decorate your houses. Deck your halls and trim your trees. Eat festive foods and worry about your diets next month. Buy presents for everyone on your list. Sing Jingle Bells at the top of your lungs. May your wassail and your eggnog both be blessed.

But let's stop pretending like these festive traditions have anything to do with celebrating the birth of Christ, God's greatest gift to humanity.

I don't know a lot about birthday traditions in other cultures around the world, but in our culture, when you have a birthday, people give you gifts, and for one day out of the year, it's all about you. So if Christmas really is all about celebrating the birthday of Jesus, why do we give gifts to everyone except Him? I see lots of people posting on facebook what they got for Christmas. If Jesus had a facebook page, I wonder what presents He would talk about receiving. 

Some may say, "We give each other gifts as symbols of the gift God gave us in Jesus." Really? Why not just give them directly to Him instead? "How do we give gifts to Jesus? What could He possibly want or need?" It's quite simple, really. After all, He left us with a wish list in Matthew 25. He said that when we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, welcome strangers and visit the sick and lonely, we do these things for Him and to Him. The greatest gifts we can give at Christmas (or any time for that matter), are to those who cannot possibly ever return the favor. It seems as much of the gift giving during the holidays is done so out of obligation. "So-and-so gave me something, so now I need to give something back." Or, "I don't want to forget anyone or they will be offended and hurt." Sure, a gift can be given out of love, but I didn't see a lot of love swelling up in the faces of the shoppers yesterday frantically buying the last of the gifts on their lists.

I stopped giving Christmas gifts to friends and family members. Instead, I show them my love and appreciation throughout the year, on their birthdays or for no special reason. But I make Christmas all about Jesus. The Christmas gifts I now give go to impoverished families in Africa and homeless teens down the street. To people who are struggling just to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads. People who don't know my name or have any way of thanking me. I get more satisfaction doing this than I ever got out of picking out that "perfect gift" for someone I know. After all, how many of you can remember what you got for Christmas last year, or the year before? Most of the gifts we give are really meaningless tokens that get lost in the shuffle of our over-abundance. But give an African family a goat that will provide nourishment and income for many years, and they will always remember that gift. Or put a new pair of shoes on the feet of a homeless kid who's been kicked out of the house and feels abandoned by family and church because of who they are, and they will always remember that moment on Christmas morning, when someone actually cared enough to give them the exact size and style they always dreamed of having, but never thought was possible.

I'm not writing all of this to make anyone feel guilty about the way you celebrate Christmas, or do I expect that the commercialism of the season will change in my lifetime. But maybe, just maybe, something I said today might get someone to think about Christmas just a little bit differently next year.

Happy Birthday, Jesus!

Pastor David