Masterpastor's Blog

The Tale of Two Emails...

2012-02-17T09:52:00.001-06:00

After having gone through one of the most difficult ordeals of my life and ministry career, I have had a little bit of time to evaluate the experience. For me, it is best explained in two different emails that I received. Honestly, I am not entirely sure of how many emails I received about the events related to the protests of our church and my message on homosexuality, but I know for a fact it was well over 2,000 emails.

One of those emails was by far the worst thing I have ever read in my whole life. And I am not referring to the threatening emails I received. This particular email finds itself in a place of infamy for me. If there ever was a way to convert fecal matter into text form, I believe the author of this email had discovered how to do it.

I cannot share with you the content of the email because not only is it pornographic in nature (and, by the way, I received several emails that were nothing but pornographic images of homosexual sex) but it was the most vile filth I have ever even heard of. Honestly, I should not be, but I was really surprised at the depths of depravity that were in this message that had one intent...to hurt and shock me.

You see that email represented the vast majority of the hate messages I have received for speaking out against homosexuality. What happened was the bully in the school yard wanted to take my lunch money. But the best thing you can do with a bully is to face him head on.

The homosexual activists decided that they wanted to intimidate and punish me. They wanted to make an example of me so that there would not be another preacher in the state (and country perhaps) that would ever dare speak out against homosexuality in a public way again. So I received threats, vitriol and a barrage of angry hate messages that were literally overwhelming.

Another email I received was from a young man who took pains to articulately describe his life-long struggle with homosexuality. He described how nothing ever quite seemed right unless he found himself in the embrace of another man. But he knew always that it was wrong.

He told me that he had given up hope of ever being able to quit the homosexual lifestyle until only a couple weeks ago. He had began to feel like the Lord was literally calling him out of this lifestyle. He shared that he knew God was urging him to turn his back on homosexuality...but he was still waffling with the decision.

He said one evening that he was watching the evening news when he saw a story about a local church that had caused a stir because of the sign message. Then he saw the picture of the sign that said: Gay is not okay. He wrote me these words, "Pastor, if no one else tells you this, I want you to know that your sign helped me to know that I was supposed to leave this life of sin. Gay is not okay. God wants me to live for Him and not for me anymore."

I have to tell you, church, I would do it all over again for this one dear soul! Every hate-filled message I received, everything that the protesters intended for my detriment, God used to reach this precious soul! To God be the glory in all things!

What's at stake...

2011-12-15T11:01:00.000-06:00

Make no mistake about it Iowans seem to like their babies dead. At least that is how we continue to vote time and time again. We sit in church on Sunday and give a hearty, “Amen!” to the preacher when he speaks about the importance of life, but our voting record shows we would much rather have dead babies.

We believe the propaganda that organizations like Planned Parenthood are helping women with health services. We allow politicians and the media to lull our brains into thinking that the number one issue facing America is jobs. And all the while, the number of dead babies in the State of Iowa (and America) keeps mounting. Planned Parenthood is a money-making entity and the money they receive is blood money.

Planned Parenthood has one business and it is NOT providing health services to women. The business they are in is a bottom-line, money-making business. And the number one source of money for Planned Parenthood comes from the abortions they perform.

Just as Iowa seems to have devolved into the homosexual version of Mecca, it also happens to be Planned Parenthood’s chief resource as well. According to the Iowa Right to Life’s website, Planned Parenthood has 32 locations in Iowa (23 of which perform abortions). Compared to Illinois which has 18 Planned Parenthood locations (6 of which perform abortions). We have a population of just over 3 million here in Iowa and Illinois has 12.9 million.

Why am I writing about this? Because January 3^rd we are going to Caucus for the President of the United States. And the number one issue we face is not the crisis our economy is in. We are experiencing the economic crisis we are experiencing because we have lost our moral way.

We have churches filled with good Christian people who have learned how to be able to step over the carcasses of the unborn as they cast their vote to save their jobs. This cannot continue. I cannot be quiet about this topic anymore or I might drown in the swelling blood of the babies we choose to ignore.

We have got to begin to align our beliefs with how we vote or we will most certainly face judgment of Almighty God as a nation (if we have not already). Please for the love of God, I beg you to hear the cry of the unborn as you vote. I beg you to not wash their blood away.

We need Christian men and women who are broken and weeping before the Lord on behalf of our lost nation and state. We need Christians to do the right thing…not the practical thing…not the pragmatic thing…but the right thing and vote accordingly.

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute." -Proverbs 31:8 (NIV)

Time for a Re-Declaration

2011-11-16T15:12:00.002-06:00

We are entering a time where the familiar words of Isaiah’s prophecy begin to be recited once again. We know the words all too well. But what if Mary had been chosen by God in our time? What if the angels visited the livestock herders in our day and age?

I think the probability of Mary carrying baby Jesus to full term would have been very unlikely. The voices surrounding her would have put pressure on her to kill the baby. Her life would be ruined by this child’s birth, they would say, so do yourself a favor and get an abortion.

Although that might make for a nice Planned Parenthood style Christmas…it is in stark contrast to the true preciousness of the life of all babies, most definitely, baby Jesus’.

Our country began with the notion that life is a sacred right. It is a non-negotiable. It is an unalienable right which means that it is a right that you can never be alienated from, or separated from. It cannot be taken away from any person.

So to legitimize the taking away of such an important and foundational right, if a certain group would be declared non-human or not a person, say maybe simply a “fetus” or a “tissue mass” then it would be more acceptable. Which is precisely what we have done to the unborn in our nation. We have reclassified the unborn child as sub-human. Therefore, the Creator’s unalienable right to life hasn’t been granted to it, or so the logic goes.

I think it is high time, most especially at Christmastime, that we recognize what we are celebrating. We are celebrating the most important BIRTH of all time. The BIRTH of baby Jesus. That baby’s life was just as precious in the womb (by the way, doctor Luke recognized the unborn child as a legitimate life as well: Luke 1:41-44) as outside of it.

We need to Re-Declare as a nation that all life is precious to God. The most safe and sacred place on this planet for a life should be a mother’s womb. But 1500 baby deaths every day make it worse than any war our nation is currently fighting. Our God-given right to life is what our nation’s founders were willing to fight and die for.

Hear again the words from our country’s beginning:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

And hear again the words of our faith’s beginning:

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given…” (Isaiah 9:6 – KJV)

A spade is still a spade

2011-10-10T13:33:00.000-06:00

I was listening to the morning news and there was an interesting story about a Baptist Minister referring to Mormonism as a cult. And then Mitt Romney, the bright and morning star according to the media, said that language like that from the Baptist Minister was "poisonous language" and it has no place in the presidential campaign.

I found that very interesting, since, as far as I can recollect, Mormonism has always been considered a cult and outside of the norm from traditional evangelical Christianity. So I thought I would take some time to spew forth poisonous language (otherwise known as the truth these days) and share just why it is Mormonism and Christianity are not bed fellows.

There is so much evidence to prove that Mormonism is a man-made religion, but one basic tenet at the very foundation of Mormonism stands out. The Mormon church is built upon the idea that the Christian church had fallen into total, complete apostasy from the truth as taught by Christ and His apostles, and the true church ceased to exist. Mormon scripture proclaims that every church on the face of the earth is "wrong"; all their creeds are an "abomination" in the sight of God; and all their teachers are "corrupt" (Pearl of Great Price, Joseph Smith 2:19).

This teaching is refuted by Christ Himself, "I will build my church; and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." (Matthew 16:18) The church is not a denomination or organization but rather an organism made up of believers of all ages. Since the very foundation of the Mormon church is in error, it must be considered a man-made religion and not from God.

Jesus Christ Himself stated that eternal life was dependent upon knowing "the only true God." (John 17:3) One of the tests of a true prophet is that a prophet must not teach a doctrine concerning God that is contrary to what had already been revealed in the Scriptures (Deuteronomy 13:1-5). Joseph Smith, Mormonism's founding "prophet," taught about a plurality of gods. Current Mormon doctrine states that God the Father was once a mortal man who progressed to become a god as did the gods before him, and that men and women may also become gods and goddesses (a teaching known as eternal progression in the Mormon church). This whole idea is summed up in the well-known Latter-Day Saints phrase, "As man is, God once was; as God is, man may be." (The Articles of Faith, pg. 430)

But, the Scriptures tell another story. God says in Isaiah 43:10, "I am He: before me there was no God formed, nor will there be one after me." God further states in Hosea 11:9, "For I am God, and not man."

The entire concept of the plurality of gods is put to shame when God Himself asks the question, "Is there any God besides me?" He then answers, "I know not one." (Isaiah 44:8)

Joseph Smith was a false prophet and those who follow his teachings are being led away from the One True God. Mormonism has violated the very first commandment: You shall have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:3)

Keep in mind, even though we currently have two Mormons running for president (Romney and Huntsman), it is not unloving to attack Mormonism. It would be unloving, however, to attack a Mormon. The truth is that Mormonism is indeed a cult. That is no more a poisonous thing to say than saying that Planned Parenthood kills babies. Truth is truth and a spade is still a spade.

The myth of the neat little boxes

2011-09-19T07:56:00.003-06:00

Right next door to my grandmother’s home was the home of Mr. and Mrs. Crawford. He was a nice old man that would let me strike the match to light his pipe. One thing I remember from Mr. Crawford’s house was a room where he kept all of his tools. He had this one particular drawer that had all these little boxes in them that were filled with screws and nuts of various sizes and shapes. It was so orderly, it was intoxicating!

Although the screws may be easy to find for Mr. Crawford, a drawer like that carries appeal for many because a lot of us like neat little boxes to separate things. (Some of us to the point that we may need counseling because we are obsessive compulsive.)

But neat little boxes may work for separating screws but they don’t work very well for organizing your life. I think men, in particular, struggle with this. I remember hearing Dr. Gary Rosberg say that men are like waffles and women are like spaghetti. Men like the neat rows of spaces where everything is in order and everything has its place. But women are a big gooey pile of noodles where everything is connected to everything else.

That may be funny, but spaghetti is a closer picture of reality for all of us. We like to try to keep certain things in their proper place. So we say things like, “Don’t bring work home.” But how well do we actually do that? We haven’t found the magic bullet to stop thinking about work or even dreaming about it.

It is certainly a worthwhile goal to not be so over-focused on work that you minimalize your time with your family. But I believe a very dangerous myth for the Christ follower is the myth that our faith can be kept in a neat little box.

We don’t want to mix “politics with religion.” We want to make sure that we do church stuff at church. And when I go vote, I do so completely void of religious influence…because those two boxes should not be mixed.

But the problem is that faith bleeds. It is fluid. It cannot be contained. Even though there are many in our culture who want to make sure we do everything we can to maintain that invisible wall of separation of church and state, the fact is, wherever there are people of faith, their faith will always be in the public sphere.

To keep one’s faith separate from work or politics or school is like trying to command the outside air from invading the inside of your home. How do you do that?

We are commanded by our Lord to be salt and light (Matthew 5:13-16). We have been given an ultimatum by God to not only take our faith with us into our work environment or our classroom or the polling place, but to make sure that we are ever vigilant at it.

We may try to fool ourselves into thinking that we can put our faith in a neat little box…but a person of true faith knows how foolish that truly is. Faith is not a light switch that can be turned off or on at will.

I believe that one of my callings as a minister of the gospel is to help the congregation I serve to filter absolutely all of life through the lens of Scripture. We must begin to think biblically about every situation we face.

To hold a particular political candidate for office and his or her views up to the light of Scripture is exactly what a person of faith is supposed to do. A person of faith should evaluate every task at the workplace, every classroom assignment, and every relationship through a biblical lens.

Asking what does Scripture say concerning this or that is how a Christian navigates all of life. It is a myth to think that a Christian can approach life any other way. Neat little boxes may work for organizing nuts and bolts but it is impossible to try to keep faith separate from the rest of one’s life.

Can a Christian vote for a woman for President?

2011-07-26T09:25:00.000-06:00

I recently was given an article outlining the biblical support for not voting for a woman for the office of civil magistrate. You can read that article here. Apparently this is the defining article on the issue. After reading the article, all Christians are summarily compelled to only vote for a man in any preceding election.

Honestly, there was much in the article I agreed with, but I believe there are some conclusions of the author that are not warranted and other issues that are not even addressed or dealt with.

Let me begin by saying this...I believe that male chauvinism is just as wrong and sinful as militant feminism. And what has been allowed to occur in the church is that women are denigrated and, at times, oppressed because of the kind of hermeneutic displayed in that article.

Let's begin with this understanding in Christ, that there is neither male nor female. We are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28). Now saying that, I am not trying to wipe away any gender differences. But what I am saying is that in terms of salvation, we have a new distinction and identity in Christ alone.

When one does a study of the role of women throughout Scripture, one can see quite an array of roles. I want to look at women in Jesus' ministry as well as in the life of the Apostolic Church.

If you study Judaism at the time of Christ you would see that the Rabbis of Jesus' day considered that a woman's part in religion was restricted to personal piety and periodic attendance at worship. The ministry of Jesus sets aside such rabbinic views and practices at many points.

Jesus considered his teaching to be for women as well as men, and at times, Jesus pointedly sought to teach women. Jesus ignored customary separations in situations in which his ministry would be hampered by them. When you read the gospels, it seems as though the Gospel writers give particular concern to women.

For example, Luke 8:1-3, gives insight into the entourage which followed Christ. This appears to be his close circle. These were women who benefitted from the ministry of Jesus and contributed to the support of that ministry. They were traveling companions and not concubines (as some have suggested) or apostles (as others have suggested).

The presence of these women must have been a source of considerable comment as Jesus traveled. It was not uncommon that a rabbi should have a band of followers; it was most unusual that the followers should include women.

The accounts of the crucifixion and resurrection give us more detail about these women. Matthew and Mark comment on the presence of Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James the younger and Joseph, standing at a distance watching the crucifixion. Also mentioned are Salome and the mother of the sons of Zebedee (Matthew 27:55-56; Mark 15:40).

Mark adds in his gospel that Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph watched him (Jesus) being placed in the tomb and returned after the Sabbath to annoint his body, becoming the first witnesses to the resurrection (Mark 15:40-16:7). John's account notes that Jesus appeared to Mary directly (John 20:10-18).

The reason this is significant is that Jewish law prohibited women from acting as witnesses court rulings in the civil or religious sphere and yet it was women who were made the first witnesses to the resurrection!

I want it to be understood that Jesus view of and interactions with women should not be understood as a reaction to the Judaism of his day. Jesus taught with personal authority and grounded his teaching in his understanding of the Old Testament and of the kingdom's mode of arrival.

Another important side-note is that some of the most important discourses Jesus had were with women. The lengthiest discourse we have on what worship is and how it should be done was given to a woman (John 4:4-26).

The role of women in the teaching and community life of the church is also a very important aspect for the Christian to consider when thinking about this subject.

Something to understand is that women are highly visible and active in the life of the church. You see right from the start that women were playing a significant part in the life of this new community (Acts 1:13-14). In Acts 2, after Pentecost, Peter explains that women are a part of the new kingdom with as much standing as any man (Acts 2:17-18).

It seems that Luke, in his account of the expanding church, took pains to make it clear that women were included. The apostles continued in their Lord's example in the inclusion of women.

We see women participating in worship vocally (1 Corinthians 11:5), bringing their offerings (Acts 5:7-10), performing ministries of mercy and hospitality (1 Timothy 5:10), performing ministry to the poor (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts%209&version=NIV). Women also housed churches (Acts 12:12; 1 Corinthians 16:19).

The apostle Paul considered women "fellow workers" and in Romans chapter 16, eight of the twenty-six persons mentioned are women and six of these receive specific comment.

Priscilla (or the more formal - Prisca) enters the biblical narrative in Acts 18:2. They (Priscilla and her husband) become traveling companions of Paul. We next read about them in Romans 16:3-5.

In Philippians 4:3 we learn about Euodia and Syntyche. These two women were quarreling. But Paul warmly identifies both of them as having worked by his side. The reason this quarrel was so detrimental was that, having been "fellow workers" with Paul, these two women would have held a very prominent role in the church. The conflict then needed to be resolved.

The point in going through this study is to see that with Christ and the ministry of the apostles, women were held in a new light. They were extremely active and participated in all arenas of the life of the church.

The article I referenced at the beginning of this study, describes three God-ordained institutions: the family, the church, and government (or as he references it, the state). I believe that God has designed man to be the responsible leader in the family. You cannot argue any other point from Scripture(1 Corinthians 11:8-9). Paul's appeal to the created order supercedes any reason to think that this was merely a cultural statement for Paul's day.

The same implications are clear in reference to the design for the church. Men are to the the responsible leaders in the overseeing of the church (1 Timothy 3:1-7).

And I agree by extension that the same implications exist for government. But there is no clear "thus saith the Lord" on this part. It is through inference and Old Testament examples that the author of the referenced article makes this point. (But let me be clear, I do not disagree with him on this point).

What the author of the article does not address, however, is the reality of a man who abdicates his role and responsibility as the spiritual leader, either in his home, or his church, or his government. What happens then?

When a man decides that he will not lead his family to the Lord and he slides into a selfish, carnal pursuit without God in his life, what should happen to the wife and children of this man? Does this wife dare not lead spiritually because that goes against the clear design of Scripture?

Or does she lead spiritually, in "quietness and reverence for Christ"? I believe, as I have witnessed many times in ministry, that where men abdicate their responsibility, women are used of God to lead spiritually.

This isn't the design. It is not what the Lord intended, but God uses women in the home, nonetheless, to help bring the light and presence of Christ to the family when a man fails to do so.

Sadly, the same is true in some churches. Now, I am not naive enough to think that every church that has women running it is because all the men have abdicated their responsibility. Unfortunately, there is also the fact that some women have usurped their roles and have taken charge where they clearly have no place or business to do so.

But there are some circumstances where there simply are no men to lead. I am thinking about a dear friend of our family who is now with the Lord. She worked in Haiti for many years. She went because she felt called by God. She worked in the church she served very well. But she almost started that church from scratch. There were no men when she began this work...only women and children. And then when men started coming, they were not mature enough spiritually to lead.

Was she disobeying God by doing what she was doing? Because now there is a thriving church in Haiti that began because of her work. Did God use her when there was no man to be found. Most certainly.

The same can be true in government. I believe the best circumstance, the most preferred, would be to have a godly man leading us in the civil arena. But when there is not one to be found, does this mean we should simply vote for an ungodly man over a godly woman?

No. I believe that Scripture supports and shows (from Deborah all the way to Phoebe) that where godly male leadership falters, God will use godly women to continue advancing His agenda.

I could do what the above referenced article did, and proof-text my way into voting for an ungodly ruler simply because he's male. But that would do the whole counsel of Scripture a great injustice. God uses willing vessels. The design is clear. We should have a male leader. But when we don't and there is a willing, godly female...we most definitely need to rally our support behind such a person!

Please, don't show me your surgery scar...

2011-07-23T21:24:00.000-06:00

One of the things I was never taught in Bible College is that there are some people that have problems dicerning when and how much personal information to share. There just wasn't a class to help you cover dealing with these types of people.

I remember the time I went to visit a dear old gal named Betty Reno after she had surgery for cancer. Colon cancer. This was very serious and a life-altering surgery for Betty.

I went to pray with her a day after her surgery. I had been informed that Betty was going to have a colostomy bag for the rest of her life. When I came in the room, Betty was wide awake.

She was genuinely happy to see me. After a little small talk, I prayed for her. When I got through praying, Betty did something I wasn't expecting. She threw off her bed sheet and pulled up her hospital gown all in one quick motion and said, "Look at my colostomy bag!"

Now that was a phrase I never thought I would hear, to be honest. And that was a sight I never...ever wanted to see.

I would like to say that is my only ministry horror story with seeing surgery scars. But unfortunately, it isn't that rare. And I so wish it was.

I have seen scars and stitches for everything from heart bi-pass surgery to even scars from a surgery for gastric bi-pass. I don't know why people want to show their preacher their scars from surgery. But if I may be so bold, I can honestly say the preacher doesn't want to see them.

If you happen to get sick and need surgery in the future and I come to visit you. Please, in the name of all that is decent and right, please don't show me your surgery scar!

The Armor of God

2011-07-20T12:41:00.001-06:00

In our series through Ephesians we have spent the last several weeks studying the armor of God that Paul lays out for us in Ephesians 6:10-17. The six pieces of armor were extremely important.

The first piece is the belt of truth. In the Roman armor, a girdle was a belt which would hold his tunic tight so he might be free with his movements, it also provided a place for the soldier to hold his sword.

Paul tells us then to put on the breastplate of righteousness. The purpose of the breastplate is to guard the most vital organs of your body; it is the bullet proof vest that protects the heart.

After the breastplate, Paul says to shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace. The caligal, the Roman military boot, was one of the most important parts of their equipment. They were designed for long marches over every kind of rough terrain. In fact, it has been said the soldiers’ boots were the secret of the Roman conquest.

In addition, Paul states, take up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one. One of the most dangerous weapons of ancient warfare was the fiery darts. The heads of the darts would be wrapped with flax or hemp fiber, soaked in pitch, then set afire before they were launched. The wooden shields could be set aflame by the arrows so they were covered with a layer of hide and were large enough to protect the entire body. Even though the darts would pierce the shield, the fire would be quenched.

And take the helmet of salvation The helmet protects the head, the seed of our thought life.

These weapons are all defensive in nature, a protection against the forces that come against us. But we are not isolated with just a defensive posture, for Paul says for us to take up the sword of the spirit.
Church, when we take the Great Commission seriously and go on the offense, the devil and his horde of demons are going to fight back with flaming arrows. He will attack us and everything associated with us: our church, spouse, children, business, everything. And our armor against these attacks is given to us by Christ. We need belief in God and in his ability to protect us, having confidence in His word.

The super highway of life is littered with Christians who have never discovered how to fight the evil one. They have depended on their own moral strength, ethical wisdom, high ideals and a personal commitment to justice and righteousness. And they have faced evil in a naked encounter, without being clothed in the armor of God. And they had won some battles, they have escaped some temptation, they have overcome some sins they labeled as ugly, they have exposed some social crimes, but ultimately they were found lacking, wearing down and out because they needed more, they needed Christ who stands and battles with us and for us at every onslaught of sin.

We must wear the armor that our Lord purchased for us through His blood!

Jesse Jackson's reverse Mitt Romney

2011-06-17T00:12:00.000-06:00

Jesse Jackson isn't someone typically you would mistake for a flaming Pro-life zealot. But if you read the following words, you just might...

[O]nly once in a while do the egg and sperm bring about fertilization. Some call that connection accidental, but I choose to call it providential. It takes three to make a baby: a man, a woman and the Holy Spirit….

Human beings cannot give or create life by themselves, it is really a gift from God. Therefore, one does not have the right to take away (through atypically that which he does not have the ability to give….

What happens to the mind of a person, and the moral fabric of a nation, that accepts the aborting of the life of a baby without a pang of conscience? What kind of a person, and what kind of a society will we have 20 years hence if life can be taken so casually?

~ Reverend Jesse Jackson, when pro-life in 1977, National Right to Life News op-ed

Jesus said, "What does it profit a man if he gain the whole world, but lose his own soul? (Luke 9:25) Jesse Jackson sold his soul when he wanted to be President. He didn't even end up receiving the coveted Democratic nomination he so desperately wanted. That was his traitor's reward.

I found these fitting thoughts in light of the current political presidential cycle (or insert circus here) that we now find ourselves in. Take time to vet each candidate not on party line...and obviously not even on what they say to us as they try to woo us here in Iowa. But hold each candidate up to the penetrating light of Scripture. Let the Word of God expose any darkness in their words or deeds.

And, as an aside, let me make myself abundantly clear, no Christ follower can find abortion acceptable with even a cursory reading of God's Word. If you claim the Name of the Author of Life then you better not find yourself standing in the aisle with those who want to destroy life (anyone who supports abortion) because ultimately they are under marching orders from the great life destroyer himself, Satan.

From Devastation to Heaven

2011-06-07T07:55:00.000-06:00

On Sunday, May 22nd, 2011 a monstrous tornado ripped through Joplin, MO leaving many dead and horrible destruction in its wake. That day began like any other day for Natalia Puebla, a 17 year old college student from Ozark Christian College. She did what she did every Sunday. She got up and went to church.

Doug Welch is a New Testament professor at Ozark Christian College. He had received the students final papers for his class a week earlier. They still sat on his desk ungraded the Sunday that the tornado hit Joplin. Most of the destruction in Joplin was on the south side of town. The campus of Ozark is located on the north side, so it was relatively unscathed. After the tornado, Doug had made it back to his office a few days later. There was the stack of ungraded papers on his desk. On top of that stack was Natalia Puebla’s paper on the “Hope of Heaven.” Natalia was killed the day the tornado hit Joplin. Doug said, “Her paper deserved an ‘A’ but Natalia knows the hope of heaven far better now.”

Everything can change in a moment. In the blink of an eye, your normal can be forever changed. Are you ready for that? Do you live with the realization that you have no solid guarantees of happiness and a pain-free life?

That is why the Scriptures tell us to set our minds on things “above.” (Colossians 3:1-2) Natalia is most certainly in heaven with her Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:8 says, “…and prefer to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.” (NASB) Paul was not expressing a death wish, but he was saying that this earthly existence is not the end of life at all for the Christian. Death immediately ushers the believer into a fuller, higher realm of a more abundant life.

A Christian at death is to be “with Christ.” (Philippians 1:23) When a believer dies he or she immediately enters heaven. Psalm 16:10-11 shows that when the psalmist died he anticipated being in the presence of God. Psalm 23:6 expresses the same idea that at life’s end, he would dwell in the house of the Lord forever (which means he would be in heaven with God).

Luke 16:19-31 gives us the description of “Abraham’s bosom” which some think describes a holding tank for the righteous. John 13:23 uses a parallel expression. This is in the context of the last supper. That expression comes out of eating at banquets and dinners. Lazarus was at the banquet table in a celebration of joy, next to Abraham, the father of the faithful. Which means Lazarus was given the seat of honor.

Some believe in places like purgatory or something similar. But I believe that the clear message of Scripture is that the hope of heaven is the heartbeat of the believer’s life. We look forward to this realm of inexpressible glory (Revelation 4-5). If you read Ezekiel 1:4-28, the prophet tried to describe something which neither he nor us can fully understand this side of heaven. But Natalia Puebla does. She knows it far better than a write up for a newsletter or a paper she turned in for her professor. She is in heaven.

We're Still Here...

2011-05-29T18:04:00.000-06:00

Harold Camping had predicted the end of all things on May 21st but that day came and went. What now? Well, for Robert Fitzpatrick of New York, he’s simply out $140,000 (which equals his life savings) that he spent on an ad campaign warning people of the impending doomsday. But for the rest of us, it is good to reflect on what the Scriptures actually do teach concerning the end of the world and Christ’s return.

Surprisingly, the Bible has quite a bit to say about the coming of the Lord. Peter warns us to not think that because the Lord hasn’t returned yet that means that He is not going to come at all (2 Peter 3:3-9). In fact, there is no truth more central to our faith as believers than the return of Christ.

Jesus said multiple times Himself that He would return (Matt. 24:30, 35; 26:64; Rev. 22:12; 22:20), angels from heaven testified that He will return (Acts 1:11), the apostles testified Jesus would return (Acts 3:19-21; 1 Peter 1:3-13; 2 Peter 3:1-14; 4:12-13; 5:4; Rev. 1:7).

The Bible tells us the manner in which Jesus will return. It will be visible (Matt. 24:27; Acts 1:11; Rev. 1:7) and it will be “with the clouds” (Matt. 24:30). It will be in glory with the angels (Matt. 25:31; 1 Thess. 1:7; 4:16). It will also happen in concert with convulsions of physical nature (Matt. 24:29; Rom. 8:19-22).

Now the Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that Christ secretly came back in 1914 and established the headquarters for His Kingdom on earth in Brooklyn, NY (I personally think it would have been Chicago if this were true because God is a Cubs fan). But you can clearly see this teaching, like Camping’s, is not Scriptural.

The one thing we for certain do NOT know concerning the return of Christ is when it will occur. Jesus made the very clear in Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32. If the angels in heaven do not know, neither the Son, it is certain that Harold Camping was destined to be wrong on this one as well. Because as the apostles were told by Jesus, “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.” (Acts 1:7)

The overwhelming point of Scripture concerning the return of Christ is not to give us signs so that we will be able to figure out when it will occur. In fact, Jesus said, “A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after signs, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” (Matt. 16:4) The point of Scripture about the end times is that we will live in a constant state of readiness. Being prepared for the return of Christ is the most important thing we believers can do. It coincides with living life from a “numbered days” perspective (Psalm 90:12). When you live your life like Christ could come back today, it puts things in the proper light. Material things aren’t important. Our relationships are. Our walk with the Lord is. That is the most important thing you can do in light of the return of Christ. Don’t try and figure out when, live like it could be today!

Parenting must include consequences...

2011-04-24T16:20:00.003-06:00

Have you ever observed a parent that never let a child face the consequences of bad behavior? You can be absolutely sure of this, that child will grow into an immature and irresponsible adult. Our culture of entitlement has produced a spoiled generation of children who repeatedly have to be asked, “What do you say?” after receiving an expensive Christmas present. When you allow a child to go to jail and refuse to bail him or her out for driving one hundred miles an hour or doing drugs, that child learns to value a driver’s license or a safe environment.

When we have vague expectations and choices without consequences it leads to confusion. We see this in other arenas in the world. Politicians face serious consequences with their constituents when they commit moral failure. Athletes who break the rules, throw temper tantrums, or use drugs are often required to sit out entire seasons.

Why would a parent not require the same of their children? It is not love to always be rescuing your child from his or her own consequences of bad choices or behavior. It is just the opposite, it is a lack of love.

Scripture teaches: A hot-tempered person must pay the penalty; rescue them, and you will have to do it again. (Proverbs 19:19, NIV)

Allowing consequences to occur sends a message to the soul of the one involved. You are letting them know that no matter the amount of maneuvering they may try, you are letting them face the music because you don’t want to have to go through this scenario ever again with them. You can love, support, empathize, assist, and encourage…but you will not rescue them from the consequences.

This is what God did with Adam and Eve. Their wrong choice brought them death (Genesis 2:17) and expulsion from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:23). But even with the consequences of their behavior, God still showed them love and grace. He showed mercy to them by covering them with skins, but in no way did He change the consequences of their actions.

When you rescue your own child from a consequence that stemmed from a bad decision or behavior, you are interrupting the natural law of sowing and reaping. But the Bible is very clear that character change cannot occur without pain (Hebrews 12:11). A child who never feels the pain of wrong choices will repeat them every time.

Parenting isn’t easy. But the parent who doesn’t let their child face consequences is handicapping their child to a life of stunted maturity and constant frustration. But the parent who allows their child to face their own consequences will give them the best gift that can be given…love.

Rob Bell's got a hell of a problem...

2011-03-21T08:04:00.007-06:00

On March 15th, Rob Bell's latest book Love Wins was released. Even before its release, the book created quite a bit of controversy. Well, what's the big deal? Rob Bell, the minister at Mars Hill Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan has always been known for being a little edgy and at times controversial.

Well, the big deal is the ideas being put forth in this book by Rob Bell. King Solomon wisely stated that "there is nothing new under the sun." (Ecclesiastes 1:9)and nothing could be more true of the teachings in Bell's new book. Bell even says this himself in the introduction to his book. He says, "...nothing in this book hasn't been taught, suggested, or celebrated by many before me. I haven't come up with a radical new teaching that's any kind of departure from what's been said an untold number of times."

Even though Rob Bell denies being a universalist that is precisely the doctrine he is espousing in his book.

I want to give you a break down of the book, chapter by chapter.

Chapter one was entitled, "What About The Flat Tire?"

In this chapter Bell simply asks a series of questions about doctrine. He doesn't provide any answers but questions he has. Lots of them. He asks about the doctrine of the age of accountability. He asks about the sinners prayer? He asks if all that matter is if we have a "personal relationship" with Jesus or not even though that phrase is not found in Scripture. (And in passing, he mentions that a woman authored the book of Hebrews - which for someone who seems to be so in tune with Jewish history, this is a real stretch to say the least.) He asks if what we say is what saves us? He asks if what we do is what saves us? He asks if it is who we forgive that saves us? He asks if it is the faith of our friends that saves us (Mark 2)? He asks if it is through childbearing that saves us (1 Timothy 2)?

As I said, no answers. Just questions.

Chapter two was entitled, "Here is the New There"

In this chapter Bell puts forth his belief about heaven. He recounts the story of the rich young ruler. Bell points out that the rich young ruler was not corrected by Jesus when he asked: What must I DO to get eternal life? Because most contemporary preachers would have pointed out to the rich young ruler you don't DO anything, you can't earn it. But instead, Jesus tells the man to obey the commandments and then to sell off all his possessions.

Bell teaches in this chapter that heaven is not a place we go to, it is a state of being that we are invited by God to participate in here and now. Unfortunately for Bell, Jesus does not teach this. Jesus spoke of going to his Father's house (John 14:1-4). In the book of Hebrews (authored by a man, by the way), the idea of heaven being a place is furthered by the teaching of heaven as the future "country" of the saints (Hebrews 11:16). In Philippians 3:2o Paul (another male) says that our "citizenship" is in this new country/place. The Bible describes heaven as a place in it's descriptions of heaven as a city (Hebrews 11:10; Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 21:2). The Bible does not support Bell's understanding of heaven being a state of mind that we are invited to participate in here and now. Heaven is the future home of the saints of God. It is a prepared PLACE for those who are prepared to go there.

Chapter three is aptly entitled, "Hell"

In this chapter, Bell recounts the story Jesus tells in Luke 16 of Lazarus and the rich man. Bell points out that the fact that the rich man asks for Lazarus to bring him water means he still desired for people to serve him. The rich man's "hell" was that he as in a lower status than Lazarus after death.

Bell spends a great deal of time in this chapter showing that God clearly punishes to reconcile. He points out that Sodom and Gomorrah are restored according to Ezekiel 16.

Bell teaches that ultimately hell is a metaphor to describe present-day evils much like (according to Bell) "Gehenna" [the dump outside of Jerusalem] was for Jesus in his day.

But Scriptures teach a different story again. The Scriptures teach that hell is a real place that was originally created for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41). The Bible teaches that those who reject God and do not obey the gospel will go there (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9; Revelation 20:15).

Chapter four is entitled, "Does God get what God wants?"

Bell quotes 1 Timothy 2:4 which states that God "wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." Bell asks, "So does God get what He wants? Or does God fail in the end?"

Bell teaches that God will eventually win everyone over with his love, if not in this life, then after death. He espouses in this chapter that even the early church fathers held this view (which is historically inaccurate).

Bell concludes his chapter by saying, "Telling a story about a God who inflicts unrelenting punishment on people because they didn't do or say or believe the correct things in a brief window of time called life isn't a very good story."

Again, the word of God does not support any idea of a sinner's salvation after death. Instead, the male author of Hebrews clearly declares, "it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment." (Hebrew 9:27) And, to be honest, I disagree with Bell, I think it is a good story. Because any story that's true is a good story.

Chapter five is entitled, "Dying to Live"

I really enjoyed the bulk of this chapter. Bell teaches about the resurrection and its implications for us in the here and now. I honestly didn't have much of a problem with this chapter at all.

Chapter six is entitled, "There are rocks everywhere"

In this chapter Bell amazingly tries to explain that when Jesus declares that He is "the way the truth and the life," No one comes to the Father except through him, that this is actually a very open statement of Jesus. Because Jesus doesn't explain the mechanism of how one gets to the Father through him. So this "opens the door to Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and Baptists from Cleveland." Bell says, "Jesus is as exclusive as himself and as inclusive as containing every single particle of creation."

Need I mention more about the absolute heretical thoughts Bell is trying to convey? Muslims do not accept Christ as the Son of God, yet Bell is saying that doesn't matter. A Hindu does not accept Christ as the Son of God. They believe that people who are economically depressed or diseased have had this happen to them because of some wrong they committed in a past life. A Buddhist does not believe Christ is the Son of God. But somehow all of these religions are equal?

It really is like a funnel, according to Bell. In the end, Jesus will funnel all to the Father, no matter what the believed or did.

This is blasphemous heresy.

Chapter seven is entitled, "The Good News is better than that"

In this chapter Bell tells the story of the two sons from Luke 15. He believes that story is a metaphor for how when we believe our own version of our life's story over God's version then we create hell here and now for ourselves. Bell says, "Hell is our refusal to trust God's retelling of our story." Bell believes that we actually shape God who in turn shapes us.

I don't give humanity that much credit. I am not a Calvinist, but the one point I would be most willing to accept is the depravity of man. We are fallen creatures with very little power. It seems that the gospel has man at the center doing a lot that makes God almost unnecessary according to Bell. I reject his view outright.

Chapter eight is entitled, "The end is here"

This chapter is a basic recap of the book.

Ultimately Bell is trying to rescue Christianity from itself. Bell attempts to reduce the Bible, and particularly, the Gospel to a story, and (as Albert Mohler points out) it is his duty to tell us which story is better than another. The problem is this...the church must tell one story. The story in the Bible, every Word of it. We do not get to choose what we think would be a more compelling story for an unbeliever.

We are compelled to preach the offensive message of the cross of Christ and any attempt to offer a story superior to the comprehensive story of the Bible fails on all fronts! It is an abdication of biblical authority, a denial of biblical truth, and a false Gospel. It misleads sinners and fails to save. It also fails in its central aim — to convince sinners to think better of God. The real Gospel is the Gospel that saves — the Gospel that must be heard and believed if sinners are to be saved.

In the end, Bell's book: Epic Fail!

Real Men 2011

2011-02-20T07:51:00.004-06:00

The Real Men Conference was held at Rising Sun Church of Christ on Friday night, February 18, 2011. 230 men came from all over the state of Iowa. 45 different Iowa communities were represented. It was an incredible encouragement to the men who came.

Pathway Band (from Pathway Church in Johnston, IA) led the worship experience. Hearing the room filled with men lifting their voices in praise to God was an incredible experience!

Jan Mickelson (from WHO Radio) spoke to the men about their relationship to the Lord as the primary factor in helping them become “Real Men” who will appropriately love their wives. It was a tremendous message that spoke straight into many of the men’s hearts

We watched the video testimony of Austen Arnaud (former quarterback for Iowa State) who shared the unique struggles and challenges of being a Christian athlete in an arena that is largely not Christian.

We also heard from Fred Stoeker (author of Every Man’s Battle) who shared his testimony. Although Fred went a little long, his message was a tremendously practical message calling men to live pure lives for the Lord and for the sake of the next generation.

Since the conference I have heard from a number of men who were impacted by the experience. Here’s a few examples:

“I just wanted to thank you for sponsoring the Real Men Conference last night. I thought it was a blessed and successful event. God also helped me to leave a bunch of garbage at the altar. Thank you again. I can’t wait for the next one!” -Stewart

“Awesome job on the Real Men 2011 -- I counted at least 15 of my guys there, which means you helped impact the families in our church in a very positive Godly way -- THANKS!” –Dan Hudson, Pathway Church

There have been more examples like these but I just wanted you to see a sampling. I am convinced that men are hungry for truth in this dark culture. Men need encouragement to be men. Men want to be called out to a higher standard than that of the world that says a real man drinks a lot of beer and ogles a lot of women. But a Real Man of God knows better.

That is why this conference is so important. I am so proud of Kyle Phillips who God laid the idea on his heart. He listened to God and now, as a result, many, many men’s lives have been impacted. Kyle Phillips is a Real Man!

Jan Mickelson, aka Jedi Master...

2011-02-08T17:41:00.004-06:00

Maybe you saw the video of Zach Wahls giving his testimony speaking before a House Subcommittee on the marriage debate. If not here it is...

It was very well worded and presented. On Jan Mickelson's radio show today he masterfully "Reverse engineered" Zach's speech by deconstructing his arguments line by line. Here is the LINK to Jan's Blog on this. By the way, Jan Mickelson not only proves that he truly is the Jedi Master in this, he also happens to be one of the keynote speakers for our upcoming Real Men Conference on February 18, 2011 at Rising Sun Church of Christ. Register today at realmeniowa today!

Word Choices and Heart Matters

2011-02-04T22:03:00.005-06:00

It isn't uncommon to hear Pro-lifers referred to as "anti-abortionists" by those in the media while those who support abortion are not referred to as "anti-life," they are simply "Pro-choice." Recently, Michael Reagan, was upset by those in the media who labeled him as a "conservative" radio talk show host, but in the same segment wouldn't describe his brother as a "liberal" talk show host when they were both being interviewed.

Dave Price is a local media personality that I like and respect, to be honest. I don't agree with him all of the time, but find him to be generally fair in his treatment of subjects, that is, until a very recent segment he did where he let his own liberal leanings show through.

He was covering the current debate in the Iowa State House over the marriage amendment. In his story, Price said that "Republicans were working to provide a more "narrow definition" of marriage in Iowa." I wrote to Dave Price and told him that I felt that his use of the phrase "narrow definition" was not only unfair but it was a revelation of where he actually stands on the issue. Of course, he defended his use of the term and wrote about it here.

Here's my contention with describing the Republican position as providing a "narrow definition" of marriage. Why not describe the Democrats as attempting to provide a more "broad definition" of marriage? That is exactly what is occurring, by the way. Republicans cannot provide a more narrow definition because the historical definition of marriage has always been a man and a woman for life. So in all actuality the Democrats are the ones trying to revise the definition of marriage.

Media personalities like Dave Price remind us from time to time that our words matter. The word choices we employ reveal our hearts. Christ Himself said, "What comes out of our mouth comes from our hearts." (Matthew 15:18) I believe that the majority of media personalities, including Dave Price, have liberal leanings and their word choices reveal what is really in their hearts concerning their true feelings on the subjects they cover.

Even though Dave Price may disagree, his heart was revealed this week in his word choice. He believes that the current redefinition of marriage by the Iowa Supreme Court is the acceptable one and any attempt to reinstate the historical definition of one woman-one man marriage is "narrow" in nature.

Remember, folks, we can't give ground on this debate. Terms and word choices really do matter. We are not the ones redefining marriage. The definition of marriage is unchanged. Marriage is one man and one woman in a committed relationship for life. There is a small (albeit very loud) segment of the population of this state that is attempting to "broaden" the definition of marriage to include homosexual couples. But we are no more or less narrow than we ever were by guarding the true definition of marriage yesterday, today and tomorrow. (Hebrews 13:14)

Rearview Living

2011-01-06T08:46:00.003-06:00

I have a long driveway compared to some homes. To back out of my driveway each morning I rely heavily on the help of my rearview mirror. A rearview mirror helps drivers keep an eye on what is behind them, and especially when you are backing up, this is very helpful. Safe drivers keep a frequent eye on their rearview mirrors.

But staring at your rearview mirror while driving means you won't stay on the road for very long. Not too long ago, I passed a car wreck and was looking back at the wreck in my rearview mirror as I looked away from the rearview mirror I realized I was about to plow into the back of the car in front of me. I had to slam my brakes to avoid a crash.

The point is that a good driver knows how to discern the right amount of time to look back while staying focused on what lies ahead. The very same lesson is true in our lives.

The apostle Paul writes in Philippians 3:13-14, "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

It is very helpful, at times, to look back on our lives. God can use your retrospection - good times and bad, the painful memories as well as the delicious one, the hard lessons learned and the hard victories won. But, as Paul stresses, staring into your past is hazardous. When we become too focused on where we've been, we lose track of where we are going. We get off course, and we may end up running into something.

Jesus told a man who was wanting to follow him but first wanted to bury a family member before he did in Luke 9:59-62, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." The true disciple of Christ is one who doesn't stay focused on the past.

Some side rearview mirrors have a label on them that reads: Warning: Objects may be closer than they appear. I believe we should heed Scripture's warning about staring into the rearview mirror of our lives. It will derail us from our journey. Our ultimate destination lies ahead, not behind.

One of the very best things you could do in your life is to stop staring at, focusing on, or being overwhelmed by past events in your life. Start looking at your journey ahead in Christ Jesus!

Don't Judge A Kiwi By Its Cover

2010-12-14T08:44:00.004-06:00

Some consider the kiwi to be the ugliest fruit. It's outside is rough and tough and tasteless. But the inside of a kiwi is bright and colorful and deliciously sweet. Just like the kiwi, what we see on the outside is seldom an accurate indicator of what's on the inside.

I understand dressing appropriately for certain situations. Some schools require dress codes. Certain office jobs require business casual. I understand these things. But isn't the church supposed to be different?

As Arron Chambers wrote in his book, Eats With Sinners, "I just refuse to clothe the grace of God in a suit or a dress and require that lost men and women meet a dress code before they can meet Jesus."

Just because someone doesn't like wearing a tie to church doesn't automatically mean he doesn't love God. It might just mean that he hates ties, or he might just like breathing and the free flow of blood to the most important organ in the body!

Chambers wrote about a young man who couldn't wait to go to church so he could praise God with other Christians. He had just completed a six-month tour with the Navy in Iraq and had much to be grateful for - three months into his mission, he'd been rescued from the ocean after being knocked off the ship. So he put on a nice polo-style shirt, a nice pair of shorts (he'd been in uniform for six months and was ready for a break), and a pair of sandals and he headed to a church.

He arrived late because he was from out of town and didn't know where he was going. The service was well underway and packed when he finally made it, so he grabbed the first available seat, on the back row next to a well-dressed older couple.

During a break in the singing, the older woman leaned over to him and whispered, "Next time you come to our church, you need to dress more appropriately." He sat there stunned and no longer joyful.

Tears of sorrow welled up in his eyes. After sitting quietly for a few minutes, he leaned over to the woman and politely whispered, "There won't be a next time." He left the service and went back to his ship discouraged and brokenhearted.

The Word of God says in 1 Samuel 16:6-7, "The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." In James 2:1-9 we are commanded to not show favoritism because of how people dress or look.

There are so many good things we miss out on when we only focus on the external. Just think, if we only chose fruit based on their appearance, no one would ever enjoy a wonderful kiwi!

Arguments I've Heard Recently Favoring Homosexuality

2010-11-11T13:56:00.001-06:00

Let me start out by saying that contrary to popular opinion, the Bible is not only right about the issue of homosexuality even though it's teachings may be old...they are obviously VERY relevant to this current fallen culture. I am not a fearful homophobe clinging to God and my guns, I am a rational Christian who does not accept the terms of the current debate over homosexuality and its acceptance as normative in our day and age.

Those in support of the acceptance of homosexuality have stated that Bible is not clear in it's view of homosexuals. On the contrary, I believe it couldn't be any more clear.

The Law of Moses said, "You shall not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is an abomination" (Leviticus 18:22; c.f 20:13). The Old Testament (OT) also condemns "sodomites," which were male temple prostitutes (I Kings 14:24; 15:12; 22:46; II Kings 23:7).

The New Testament is just as clear on this issue as is the Old Testament. In the first chapter of Romans Paul wrote of the many evils mankind has engaged in while suppressing the knowledge of God that He has revealed to them (Romans 1:18-21), one of which was homosexuality. Paul plainly declared: "Because of this [the suppression of truth resulting in idolatry] God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion" (Romans 1:26-27, NIV). Although homosexuality is not named as such here, the act of homosexuality is clearly described. It was in judgment that God allowed men and women to have sexual relations with the same sex, and they received in themselves their due punishment for such indecent acts.

While listing those who would not inherit the kingdom of God, Paul noted that homosexuals will not be saved: "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners, practicing homosexuals, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, the verbally abusive, and swindlers will not inherit the kingdom of God (I Corinthians 6:9-10, NET).

In a recent email debate, a person arguing for homosexuality said to me, "Jesus does talk about those who are victims of prejudice like the Samaritans, and those who are marginalized and rejected like the lepers, but he never says a word about anyone's sexual orientation. Perhaps as a church leaderyou should contemplate the possibility that they are, as one man once suggested, 'making much of that which cannot matter much to God.' "

This argument fails on two grounds. First, the major premise of the argument is flawed. The argument goes like this:

P1 Any issue Jesus is silent on must be morally acceptable
P2 Jesus is silent on the issue of homosexuality
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Homosexuality is morally acceptable

Is it true that any issue Jesus did not speak to is to be considered morally acceptable? A cursory reflection on the notion reveals that this is not a true premise. Jesus did not speak to the issue of incest, rape, drug abuse, wife beating, and gay-bashing. Are we to conclude that these acts are morally good? Clearly not. We cannot determine the moral nature of an act by the mere observation that Jesus did not address the issue. Jesus did not speak to every moral issue there is to speak to.

Secondly, from the Christian perspective what is moral or immoral is not based solely on what Jesus said or did not say. While we are very interested in what Jesus had to say, we use Scripture as a whole to determine how God feels about various moral issues. When we examine the whole of Scripture we find a very clear portrait of God's take on homosexuality.

This comprehensive approach to morality makes perfect sense within the Christian worldview for two reasons:

1. The Bible claims to be inspired by God. This means that every word in the Bible is equally authoritative. The teachings of one individual in one book cannot be given more weight than another individual's teaching in another book. Jesus' words hold no more authority than Paul's or Moses'

2. The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is God incarnate. The same God who spoke in the OT is the same God who became man in the face of Jesus Christ. It would be a mistake, then, to argue that since Jesus did not speak against homosexuality that God is not concerned with the issue, for it is clear that God did speak to the issue.

I have also had individuals tell me to my face that the sin of Sodom was due to the inhospitality and NOT the sexual perversion rampant in the city. I would be interested to see the evidence supporting this notion, because I am not aware of any. While it is true that Sodom was not judged only for its immorality (Ezekiel 16:49-50), from the Biblical narrative it is clearly the main reason. Jude 7, for one, makes it clear that Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed for their sexual perversion. The focus of the Genesis narrative is their sexual perversion as well.

Besides, the inhospitality that the men of Sodom exhibited toward the visiting angels could not have been the cause of their destruction because God had determined to destroy Sodom prior to this incident.

Furthermore, while Biblical scholars and historians recognize that inhospitality was much more serious in the Ancient Near East than it is to Westerners today, do we really believe that God would destroy two whole cities for having bad manners? What could explain God's execution of mass capital punishment on these people? Amazingly enough we find in Leviticus 20:13 that homosexuality was deserving of the death penalty. There is no prohibition in the OT against inhospitality, yet alone death as a prescribed form of judgment against it. The argument of inhospitality is further weakened by the fact that the inhospitality of the Sodomites is only implied in Genesis 19. The only thing explicitly stated in the text is the Sodomites' homosexual behavior. It would only make sense that this was made explicit to highlight why it was that God had determined to destroy these wicked cities.

It has been argued with me that if Christians wish to take the Old Testament condemnation of homosexuality seriously, they also need to take its prescription for punishment seriously: death. The fact that Christians do not believe homosexuals ought to be put to death indicates that we do not consider the Biblical teaching on homosexuality to be entirely authoritative, and thus have no basis on which to say that the condemnation of homosexuality is authoritative either. I believe that is the gist of your argument.

This argument fails on two grounds: logical, Biblical. From a logical perspective, at best such a point would only demonstrate that Christians are inconsistent in their application of the Biblical teaching. The real problem, however, is Biblical.

The Bible is clear that the Mosaic Covenant has been replaced by the New Covenant. While there are some similarities between the two covenants, this is not one of them. The Law of Moses was a contract between God and Israel to govern their life in the land of Canaan, both spiritually and politically (a theocratic kingdom).

The New Covenant serves an entirely different purpose. The New Covenant governs our spirituality, not our politics. While the New Testament is clear that God has ordained human government to punish evil and commend the good (Romans 13:1-7) it does not speak to how that punishment ought to be carried out for particular moral crimes, or the degree of punishment. It would seem that those decisions are given to the state. It is clear, however, that under the New Covenant sins are not punished in the same way they were under the Mosaic Covenant because the New Covenant is a spiritual, not a political-social covenant.

It would be a mistake, then, to say that as a Christian, I am not obeying my own Scripture, or being arbitrary in what parts of the Bible I keep. Each passage of Scripture must be evaluated within its historical and covenantal context, and be applied appropriately.

Not all commands in Scripture apply equally for all people and all times (but are specific to a covenant), whereas others do. For example, while I am not obligated to build an ark, I am obligated to abstain from murder. Christians do not believe in exercising capital punishment for homosexuality because we are not under the covenant that once prescribed such a punishment. Christians are not ignoring those Old Testament passages, but are properly interpreting them within their context and applying them appropriately. The same goes for the dietary laws, and the garment laws that are typically referenced in this dicussion as well(Romans 14:1-7, 20; See Galatians 3:19-26; 4:8-12; Colossians 2:14-17).

I am against homosexuality, not merely because the Bible says it is deplorable, but because it is unnatural, unhealthy, and puts children at risk. Any sane person in society ought to be concerned about the same, if not for religious reasons, but for secular reasons. The only reason I can see to promote homosexual behavior is either ignorance of its social ramifications, or because one confuses a condemnation of homosexual behavior with a condemnation of the homosexual persons themselves.

Elijah's Great Run

2010-10-15T09:05:00.002-06:00

Preaching through the life of Elijah, we encountered the incredible story (that is almost mentioned in passing) of Elijah running ahead of Ahab’s chariot all the way to Jezreel. It only takes up one verse, the last verse of chapter eighteen of 1 Kings.

The power of the LORD came upon Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel. -1 Kings 18:46 (NIV)

There are many who scoff at stories like this in Scripture and say, “It is physically impossible for a human to do something like this.” Bill Maher, comedian and well-known atheist, has referenced this story in comedy routines saying it is just another reason why he rejects the Bible as a myth.

Did you realize that doctors and scientists said it was impossible for a man to run a mile in less than four minutes? They said that our bone structure was wrong and wind resistance was too great and our lungs did not have adequate power as well as the human heart could not take that kind of stress and you would die in such a foolish attempt. It is an impossible dream to try to run a mile in under four minutes.

But 25 year old Roger Bannister didn’t listen to the experts.
He endured thousands of monotonous laps around the same university track. Bannister was determined to shape his body and his mind. On May 6, 1954 at Oxford University in England Roger Bannister was the first known human to run a mile in under four minutes.

I say known because Elijah may have well been history’s first. Since that historic day in 1954, one of the greatest sports achievements ever, 955 runners have achieved the same impossible dream as Bannister did. In fact, those runners have beat the four minute mile over 4,700 times now.

The next time someone you see on television scoffs at something in the Bible, just remember how impossible the four minute mile USED to be. Scripture affirms for you and me this timeless truth:

For nothing is impossible with God. –Luke 1:37 (NIV)

The Other World

2010-10-03T16:18:00.005-06:00

Today my family participated in the annual Life Chain event. This is the 23rd year it has been organized. As usual it was our family but the boys had one of their buddies come along. It really does sadden me that so many people don't seem to care.

My sons asked an individual at church today if they were attending and their response was that would mean they would miss their Sunday afternoon nap (which apparently is an unacceptable suggestion). Wow! Standing up against murders of convenience or missing a nap. I can see why the nap was the easy choice.

Because it is hard to stand up against a culture that thinks you're crazy for thinking that an unborn child has rights. It isn't easy to face the car horns and middle fingers and shouts of the pro-death crowd (which is just about everybody these days).

But as I preached this very morning I have to remember that God is never outnumbered! No matter how many voices who have swallowed the blue pill (Matrix reference) are loudly attempting to drown out the voices of those who have swallowed the red pill...I have to remember: God can do much with little.

One totally dedicated life is all God needs to change entire nations! (See the life of Elijah - 1 Kings 18) I am still sad to be surrounded by so many "Christians" who are addicted to the blue pill. They love their connection to this world but are slightly intrigued by the other world. So to scratch the other world itch, they show up on Sundays very faithfully.

But what they don't know is that the other world isn't far away. It's here. It's everywhere. It is simply veiled by all that we can see and feel. But all that we can see and feel is not real...it is a great illusion! And the master magician Satan loves to keep us in awe of it.

If we could only have our eyes opened like Elisha's servant then we would know just how close (and real) the other world really is! I guess I just need to keep praying that God will open the eyes of the "Christians" I know who have a blue pill addiction!

Who's in charge here?

2010-08-09T09:43:00.006-06:00

I have been having an ongoing debate with a gentleman I met over Twitter about Scripture. He is Roman Catholic and believes that "The Bible cannot declare itself to be the inspired Word of God. An outside authority must do it. That authority is the Catholic Church." (That is a direct quote from one of our online dialogues.)

I shared with him that even though he may say that the Bible cannot declare itself to be the inspired Word of God, that is exactly what the Bible does do. In 2 Timothy 3:16 Paul affirms that all Scripture is inspired (literally "God-breathed"). And Peter insisted in 2 Peter 1:21 the prophets did not originate their own private predictions, but wrote as "they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."

You see, the fundamental difference between my Roman Catholic friend and myself is this. I believe that the Word of God is inspired, infallible and authoritative by itself. He believes the Word of God is also inspired, infallible and authoritative only because the Roman Catholic Church has said so.

My question would be this: Where does parental authority come from? Is there authority inherent with simply being a parent or does an outside source (like the state) say you have the authority to be a parent? (Unfortunately such an idea isn't that far from reality.)

A parent has authority as a parent because he or she is a parent. Now there are some cases where the state has stepped in and declared a person to be unfit to be a parent. But by and large, parental authority is derived from the state of parenthood, and not the state.

Similarly, the Word of God, validated by signs and wonders and miracles, can claim with no help from an outside source, that it is divinely inspired. There have been occasions in the past where the church stepped in and helped to determine if a book should be in the canon or not based on historical merit. But Scripture is inspired with out the help of the Catholic Church.

The Bible's authority, reliability, authenticity and validity is in no need of support from a religious tradition that subverts the nature of the message of the Gospel by telling men that they can be saved by good works. The epitome of heresy, in my humble opinion, is to think that we can do anything at all to add to the work of Jesus Christ on the cross to atone for the sin of mankind.

I trust in the infallible Word of God, not because the Catholic Church has deemed it to be okay (by the way, the Catholic Tradition has upheld the validity of works that have no historical merit as the Word of God with their acceptance of the apocrypha) but because the Word of God has told me it is inspired from God.

The Lord your God

2010-07-09T13:04:00.003-06:00

Over the course of my sabbatical I drove approximately 4,500 miles. That’s a lot of time in the car! So one of my sub-goals in the sabbatical was to listen to the Word of God while I was on the road. And listen I did!

I was hoping to make it all the way through the Bible while I was gone but that didn’t happen. I made it through the first 13 books of the Bible (that’s through 2 Chronicles). There was a phrase that I heard over and over again as I listened to Scripture through my car stereo system. It is a phrase that is so common it is almost not noticeable as you read or listen to God’s Word.

The phrase is “the Lord your God.” I heard that phrase exactly 398 times in the version I was listening to while I was on the road (New King James if you’re wondering).

In fact, the phrase appears 431 times in the whole Bible (NIV)! It only occurs once in the book of Genesis. But in the first five books of Scripture (the Pentateuch) it occurs 308 times. Why is that phrase repeated so often so early in Scripture?
Why did Moses (the author of the Pentateuch) feel the need to use that phrase so much from Exodus through Deuteronomy?

The answer lies in the northeastern corner of Africa, in Egypt. The Israelites were slaves in Egypt for 430 years (Exodus 12:40-41). For centuries the Hebrews were a people group owned by another people group (the Egyptians).

And when God saves them and brings them out of Egypt (which is what we see at the beginning of Exodus) you begin to see the phrase, “the Lord your God” being used over and over again. The reason is because God wanted to embed the thought into the very soul of this people…I belong to you.

AND…if God belongs to them, then the converse is automatically true as well…that people group also belongs to God. He is YOUR God. And you are HIS people.

It is something that obviously they needed to hear over and over again. Because for so long the only gods they knew were the gods of the Egyptians. The only gods that they ever saw being revered belonged to another people group.

Oh sure they had heard the story of Abraham and God’s promise to Him but obviously, after so many centuries, that promise was not going to be fulfilled. But God was waiting for the right time and moment in history to save His people from slavery. And He did so. He did it in such a way that every single god of the Egyptians was proven beyond any shadow of a doubt to be worthless and nothing compared to the God of the Hebrews.

I believe it is a message we need drilled into our hearts as well. He is our God. And we are His people (1 Peter 2:9). We don’t need to keep being lured into idolatry by counterfeit deities…we worship the one true God of the universe! And He deserves our whole heart’s allegiance and affection!

Sabbatical Day 22

2010-06-22T20:53:00.001-06:00

Sabbatical Day 18

2010-06-18T20:33:00.001-06:00

Sabbatical Day 15

2010-06-15T19:36:00.000-06:00

Sabbatical Day 14

2010-06-15T14:56:00.000-06:00

Sabbatical Day 13

2010-06-13T22:46:00.000-06:00

Sabbatical Day 10

2010-06-10T20:45:00.000-06:00

Sabbatical Day 9

2010-06-09T21:26:00.000-06:00

Sabbatical Day 8

2010-06-08T20:36:00.001-06:00

Sabbatical Day 7

2010-06-08T08:22:00.000-06:00

Learning about Sabbath...

2010-06-06T21:22:00.003-06:00

Before the 10 Commandments were ever etched in stone, Creator God gave a gift to His people, the Israelites (and us, ultimately). The gift was the Sabbath. It is a rhythm for life. Six days to work, and the seventh to rest and just delight in God and His good gifts to us.

In Exodus 16:29, Moses is trying to explain to the people why they need to gather twice the amount of manna than on other days. The reason is for the intended rest on the seventh day. God gave the Sabbath to His people to teach them to rest.

I am learning now, like the Israelites did, that I need to practice Sabbath. I need to rest and delight in God's goodness. Sometimes before the rest, there is a little more work to be done (just like I had to prepare for this time away...and it did take a lot of work)...but now I have no agenda.

There is no alarm clock in my room at this retreat. I will wake up in the morning when my body tells me I am rested. That's new. I think that is a wonderful gift. And God is the provider of that gift.

If you are burning candles at both ends...you need to slow down or perhaps God will slow you down.

God did not intend for us to always be running and rushing and filling up our lives with constant noise. He desires for us to slow down and rest. To actually take deep breaths regularly. To sigh...not out of frustration...but out of complete rest and contentment.

It has been a long time since I have sighed like that. I like it. I think it is way over-due!

Sabbatical Day 6

2010-06-06T20:35:00.000-06:00

Sabbatical Day 5

2010-06-05T19:47:00.001-06:00

Sabbatical Day 4

2010-06-04T21:25:00.001-06:00

Sabbatical Day 3

2010-06-03T18:25:00.000-06:00

Sabbatical Day 2

2010-06-02T16:28:00.000-06:00

Sabbatical Day 1

2010-06-01T17:41:00.001-06:00

About that name of yours...

2010-05-06T07:52:00.004-06:00

Have you ever read Psalm 9:10? I was reading the other day about the fact that the way you address God or how you refer to him reveals your intimacy with him (or lack of it).

What I am called reveals how well someone knows me. My last name is "Demastus". Do you have any idea how butchered my name gets by telemarketers? But that's okay. Because when I pick up the phone and the person says, "May I speak to Mister Demarksicus?" That alerts me that this individual does not know me.

Maybe I might take my family to a restaurant and have to wait for a table. After a few minutes, the hostess calls out, "Dee-Mast-Us, party of four!" The hostess may know my name and how to pronounce it. But we don't really know each other.

Sometimes I am called, "Pastor Mike." Then that probably means you know a little about me. You know what I do and have probably heard me speak. But even your use of a title for me doesn't necessarily mean you know me personally.

Sometimes I am called, "Mike." That means we are probably close. We're friends if you just call me, Mike.

But there are a couple of people on this planet who have reserved the right to call me by a very special name. These couple individuals are very dear to me. They call me "Daddy." They know me so much better than even those who call me, Mike. The name reveals intimacy.

What do you call God? Is He "The Big Guy Up In The Sky" to you? Is He "The Man Upstairs" to you? If that is the case, then you don't know him. Those may be funny, clever titles, but they aren't intimate.

If you know God you are going to be far more specific with him. Maybe you realize how big of a deal it is that God has forgiven you of your sins so you constantly refer to him as your "Savior."

Maybe you realize that everytime you have been in need, God has always come through for you, so you refer to him as "Provider."

Maybe, if you're a woman, you had a man in your life abandon you, so you might call him "Husband."

Maybe when you feel totally alone, you call him, "Friend."

What do you call God? Your answer may be a clue to how well you know him. Or don't.

Discouraging and Encouraging Thoughts...

2010-05-02T14:36:00.003-06:00

I have had some things that have been discouraging me lately...

I've been discouraged by some folks in our church who are more committed to getting their kids to dance or to music lessons than they are to getting them to church.

I've been discouraged by some folks in our church who can't seem to talk with someone they are upset with but spend all kinds of time talking about them with other people.

I've been discouraged by folks who are more faithful with their gym membership than meeting Jesus around the communion table.

I've been discouraged by folks who just don't care about their other brothers and sisters in Christ...but are so overly self-absorbed that they probably don't even know other people exist on this planet.

I've been discouraged by folks who care about music more than worshiping in Spirit and Truth. (John 4:24)

But...

I've been encouraged by some of the youth in our church who chose modest dress at their prom even when most probably wouldn't have done something like that! (Way to go Hoodjer girls!)

I've been encouraged by my small group who has been a real source of encouragement to me.

I've been encouraged by my elders who keep encouraging me to keep preaching...even when it is hard for me to!

I've been encouraged by my wife...a godly lady who has so much class. I still have so much to learn from her.

I've been encouraged that even though I've been discouraged I know that my battle is not with "flesh and blood." Satan is the real foe in all of this. When he is leaving me completely alone...then I really need to worry!

I am encouraged because my six-week sabbatical is exactly 30 Days away!

"Gay" Christian?

2010-04-17T19:50:00.005-06:00

I was so saddened to read the article in Christianity Today about Christian music artist, Jennifer Knapp, admit that she's a lesbian. You can read the article HERE. One of the assertions made in the article, by Knapp herself, is that she is a Christian who just happens to be gay.

By the way, she isn't the first person in the Christian music industry to do this either. Ray Boltz admitted he was gay in September 2008. Of course, this came out only after a horrible divorce from his wife and deep hurt to his grown children. (But that's not as sweet a story, so we'll just skip over that detail.)

After cleaning up my playlist on my iPod and trashing my Kansas CD (Knapp's best album, in my opinion), I thought about the idea...can I be "gay" (stolen word) AND a Christian? Can I practice deviant sexual behavior and still rest assured in my salvation?

Well, let me start off by saying that I am not a very PC guy. I don't try (or care) to not offend someone's sensibilities. If something is true, it is true. Why sugar-coat it?

Jesus didn't (i.e. - Matthew 7:23)So why should I? By the way, the verse I referenced there, was in the closing section of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is addressing those people who claim they know Him...but don't really know Him. He is addressing people who say (or sing maybe) that they love Him, but don't. It is a pretty hard passage.

So with that in mind, my answer is: HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?! Have we become so open-minded that our brains have fallen out?

Of course you cannot continue to sin sexually (or any other manner) in a habitual way and expect God to be okay with it. He's not. His holiness demands reflective holiness from us (1 Peter 1:16).

I would tell a married man who was cheating on his wife that he better not expect to think he's on the highway to heaven continuing to lead that kind of lifestyle...nor would I tell a woman who thinks she can be in a lesbian relationship and still maintain solid faith in Christ. You can't.

Darkness doesn't coexist with light. What is so horrible about calling homosexuality sin? Why has that become taboo?

The Word of God has not changed. Our culture hasn't attained some new enlightened level of sexual awareness. We have simply devolved into the same old sins of our forefathers. We are becoming more and more like the days of Noah when every man did what was right in his own eye (or every "Christian" artist did what was right in their eye).

By the way, if you read the article, Jennifer Knapp admits she doesn't go to church. Although, it probably wouldn't be hard for her to find one that would wholeheartedly approve of her lifestyle choice (oh, pardon me, if our culture is correct then she never had a choice in the matter...she was DNA-destined to be a lesbian).

Here's the cold, hard truth. Sin separates us from God. The more of sin we adopt, the farther from Him we find ourselves. You cannot call good what God has called sin. Homosexuality isn't any worse than any other sexual sin. It all leads us away from God and Christ, and if we are never brought off that road...we are just another statistic on a very wide road (Matthew 7:13).

It's been a while, old friend...

2010-04-16T18:27:00.003-06:00

I have been away from my blog for a long time now. So many things have happened in my life since my last post back in November that it would be very futile to try to write it all here. So I'll just jump back in and start with today.

I met with another minister today over lunch. He is a Lutheran minister. He preaches at Zion Lutheran Church in Des Moines. We met and talked about One Prayer 2010.

I realized as we chatted and ate (a great meal, by the way, at Pho All Seasons) that it is critical for those of us in ministry to have friends in ministry.

Nobody knows a preacher like another preacher! (That's what another preacher-friend of mine used to say.) It is so important to be able to share openly and honestly with someone that truly understands.

The Bible says in Proverbs, "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." Preachers need preacher friends. Plain and simple. I'm happy I made a new preacher friend today who inspired me to get back on my blog. Here's his blog, by the way: http://pastorjohnsthoughts.blogspot.com

To Save a Life Movie and the next Sherwood movie project

2009-11-16T18:03:00.006-06:00

Last Thursday I was able to see a prescreening of an upcoming movie called To Save A Life. Here is my honest critique of the film...

I believe the movie has a fantastic message for a limited audience. The movie gives a very honest, abrasive and brutal look at the realities of teen suicide, teen drug use, teen alcohol use, teen "cutting" and teen sexuality. While spending time in all of these teen problems there are three cuss words thrown in for good measure (the "A" word once and the "H" word twice).

The following text is from the movie's website:

Jake Taylor has it all: friends, fame, a basketball scholarship and the hottest girl in school. What could be better?

Enter Roger Dawson. Roger has nothing. No friends. No hope. Nothing but putdowns and getting pushed aside. Things couldn't get worse...could they?

Jake and Roger were best friends when they were kids. But the politics of high school quickly pulled them apart. Now Roger doesn't fit in Jake's—or anyone's circle—and he's had enough. He walks onto campus with a gun in his pocket and pain in his heart and makes a tragic move.

Jake's last-ditch effort can't stop Roger, and the sudden tragedy rocks Jake's world. Something breaks loose inside and sends him questioning everything. Most of all, he can't shake the question Could I have saved Roger? In a quest for answers, Jake finds himself looking for the next Roger and reaching out to the outcasts and lonely. But he quickly finds that crossing class castes threatens all his world is built on. And it could cost him his own friends, his girl, his dreams and even his reputation. Is it worth the price to find the answer to his ultimate question: What do I want my life to be about?

The movie falls short I believe at doing what it wants to do. It does have a great message. We see the main character become a Christ follower and when he does his world gets worse, not better. Which I believe is very true-to-life. Just because you follow Christ it doesn't mean you won't ever experience hardship again.

But the in-your-face approach to the issues teens face may be closer to glorifying it than warning against it. Just from a technical stand-point, the movie was slow in spots. I found myself looking at my watch more than once. Also, it was way too long.

All in all I believe this movie gets a "B-". It shouldn't be seen by anyone under the age of 15.

But there is ANOTHER movie that I am absolutely stoked about seeing...the announcement of this project just happened yesterday (November 15th). The creators of Fireproof the movie announced their next new film Courageous. This is going to be a film about fatherhood! I cannot wait! These guys know how to do movies! This is definitely a movie you are going to want to see.

UPDATE:

The Christian Post published an ARTICLE about the Courageous Movie. It says that filming is set to begin next year with a tentative release date for early 2011. Bummer we will have to wait that long!

Veteran's Day 2009

2009-11-11T12:05:00.004-06:00

Every year I get the privilege of participating in the Memorial Day and Veteran's Day service held on the south side of the Iowa State Capital Grounds between the Korean and the Vietnam Monuments. It is a simple service that can draw a pretty sizable crowd (if the weather cooperates). I usually perform the invocation and the benediction.

Before I offered my closing prayer, I shared a few remarks with the crowd. Here is what I shared:

How do you honor someone who risks their life to defend your freedom?
How do you remember the thousand upon thousands who gave their lives fighting for our independence?
How do you remember those whose blood was spilled in foreign lands...kids who had their whole lives in front of them?
And how do we pay tribute to the soldiers who defend us today, right now?

Maybe we start by just saying, "Thanks." Today we celebrate and honor those brave men and women for their service to this great country that we call America.

THANK YOU! Thank you for my way of life. Thank you for my ability to raise my family in this land. Thank you for the privilege I have of worshiping my Savior each and every week without threat or fear.

Thank you for showing me what the greatest love looks like. Jesus said that there is no greater love than for a man to lay down his life for his friend. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. We will never forget your sacrifice!

Winning the debate on the "terms"

2009-11-05T15:00:00.003-06:00

The debate for same-sex marriage is not going to go away anytime soon. In Iowa, if everything works according to plan, the issue won't be up for vote with the people before 2012. And once the people of Iowa get the opportunity to vote, same-sex marriage will be handily defeated in our state. Same-sex marriage has now lost in every single state -- 31 in all -- in which it has been put to a popular vote.

Recently I attended an event sponsored by the Iowa Family Policy Center called, "Handling the second-hand effects of same-sex marriage." It was very informative. The keynote address was from Jan Mickelson, radio talk show host for WHO Radio. He spoke directly to a room filled with ministers and told them that we have to deal with this debate using the right terms.

He said, "The reason the abortion debate has been controlled by those in support of abortion is because they controlled the language of the debate." Don't use terms like "unborn baby." Instead use the term "fetus." Don't speak about life or death, speak about liberty and choice.

The moment a person in support of abortion has to get technical in describing what it is that they actually do, they lose the debate every single time. A prime example of this playing out in real life is the very recent story of Abby Johnson, a director at a local Planned Parenthood clinic in Texas who quit after viewing an ultrasound of an abortion procedure. Here's the point...when those on the other side, have to face the ugly facts of the debate...they lose.

The debate for same-sex marriage is no different. If we truly press those who are homosexual to describe what it is that they do that makes them homosexual, they lose every time. The "Ick" factor is too high.

The realities are that if we "drink the kool-aid" and adopt the thinking of this age then we will assume all the lines we hear all too often. Lines such as this: It is very discriminatory to not allow two people in love to have the same benefits of marriage that you enjoy. When the fact is, it is very proper for society to discriminate against this for its very propogation. Civilization cannot be advanced by homosexual couples.

Another line is to compare very real civil rights struggles of blacks in American society with that of the same-sex marriage movement today. Here's the deal, I have met many people who used to be "gay" but I have never met anyone who used to be black (except possibly Michael Jackson). Those that faced having to stand at Colored Water Fountains are deeply offended by this notion that the push of the homosexual movement is the same as their own very real struggles with equality.

Having someone try to have their identity and class status be defined by what they do with certain body parts is absolutely laughable. And the only way we are going to make head-way in this debate is to not budge one inch on the terms of this debate. We must not let the homosexual movement set the terms.

We can win this battle, but it is a marathon, not a sprint. We must be diligent and unwavering in our beliefs. One day, the people of this state will be given the opportunity to vote on this issue, and once that happens, those who stand for marriage will see their 32nd victory in popular vote.

Purity Celebration

2009-11-02T21:49:00.005-06:00

This video is a special animation we created for part of our purity series we put on DVD.

Back in late September, we began a four-part series with the youth of The Fort where we taught them all about Biblical Purity. Each week had a special focus. We put all of these lessons together on DVD and presented it in a fast-paced style that was engaging and well-produced (if we do say so ourselves).

Week one's focus was purity in definition. We taught that youth what the Bible really says that purity is.

Week two's focus was purity in thought. This is where the real battle for purity is waged...in our thought life. We taught them how to take their thought life captive for Jesus.

Week three's focus was purity in dress. This is where the rubber begins to meet the road in the issue of purity. We tried to give practical steps for the youth in this issue without coming across like a Puritan. It is possible to be fashionable and still maintain purity of dress.

Week four's focus was purity in life. This was the culmination of all that we had learned and we tried to help the youth see how to practically take steps to live a life of purity. We also challenged them to be pure in all arenas of their life...even the virtual arenas of Facebook and Myspace and email and texts. Purity is for every aspect of our life.

Then after these four weeks of lessons, we held a special banquet that the ladies of the church prepared. And the leaders of the church, along with their wives, helped serve to the youth.

We had twenty-one participants in all. We had the young people dress up. And after the fancy meal (also had a few folks who spent a lot of time making the place we ate at and where we worshiped look fantastic) we then went into our auditorium for a special ceremony.

At this ceremony, each young person came forward and made a vow to live a life of purity. Here is the vow each young person took:

Acknowledging that God has made me in His image and made my body to be His temple and has graciously saved me from my sin, it is my desire to please Him.

From this day forward, I, ___________, vow before God and witnesses, in obedience to God’s Word, to keep myself chaste and pure, to give myself totally and only to the mate God is preparing for me.

May this pledge I made today, October 24, 2009, honor you, O God and bring glory to your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.

After this, the parent's of the young person placed a purity ring on their finger. And then they signed a document that had the words of their vow on it (that had also been signed by me, the pastor, and the youth pastor).

I have to tell you, in all of the things I have done in ministry, this ranks in the top five coolest things I have ever done. It was truly a very special evening. Here are some pictures to enjoy:

Local Elections and Rod Roberts Press Release...

2009-11-02T18:05:00.004-06:00

This morning I attended a local preacher's meeting that was also attended by gubernatorial-hopeful, Rod Roberts. He handed me a press release that went out just this morning entitled, "Roberts Announces He Will Vote Not To Retain Three Iowa Supreme Court Justices." In this press release Roberts said, "We need to send a message to the Iowa Supreme Court that they are accountable to the people of Iowa. The problem with judicial activism is that it thwarts the will of the legislature and of the people of Iowa."

I'm proud of Rod for taking this stand. I believe him that he will do this. And I think it is in stark contrast to the front-runner, Branstad, who won't dare publicly come out against these justices because two of them he appointed to their positions on the court.

Also, tomorrow is election day for Mayoral races and city councils. Here is Des Moines, I took time to call every single person running for City Council...even for those running in Ward 1 where I can't vote for them. In every single case (except for Skip Moore), I asked the new candidates the same two questions. 1)If you had been on the council a few years back when the council voted to extend special protections for homosexuals, lesbians and transgendered individuals in the work place (even though there are already laws on the books protecting individuals from discrimination) how would you have voted? 2)What is your position on the issue of abortion?

Unfortunately, all the candidates, except for one, Halley Griess, all of the other candidates would have voted in favor of the ruling by the council AND were pro-death. Halley Griess though, stands out. He is a Christian man who seeks to do right. He believes strongly in the need for new leadership on the council.

He isn't of the same cut cloth like Christine Hensley (who should not even be called a Republican). He is willing to do what is right even when it is unpopular. If you are in Ward 1, get out tomorrow and vote for Halley Griess! He's someone we need to help get the Des Moines City Council back on track!

Appearance on Deace in the afternoon

2009-10-30T21:30:00.004-06:00

Today I had the opportunity to appear on WHO Radio for Steve Deace's show: Deace in the afternoon. I was on from 5:00PM to 6:00PM. We discussed my meeting with former Governor Terry Branstad and my Blog Post about that meeting. HERE is a link to the Podcast of the show. Hopefully I didn't sound too dumb!

Meeting with former Governor Terry Branstad

2009-10-28T09:32:00.008-06:00

This morning I had the opportunity to sit in a room with former Governor Terry Branstad along with about a half dozen others and learn his positions on issues. In the room with me were a couple of other pastors as well as Chuck Hurley with the Iowa Family Policy Center, Kim Lehman with the Iowa Right to Life, Jonathan Narcisse, Steve Scheffler with the Iowa Christian Alliance,and my buddy Shane Vanderhart who maintains the blog Caffeinated Thoughts.

What occurred at this meeting is exactly what I thought would occur. Terry Branstad said things we wanted to hear. He made some things clear to us. He is NOT running a campaign on social moral issues. His campaign is going to have one primary focus. Here's the focus: Culver is doing a lousy job, I can do better.

What Branstad hopes to accomplish in these back-room meetings with pastors and other socially conservative Iowans is to appease us in some way by saying something like this: "We're on the same team. I think the same way you do about these issues. Even if you don't hear me talk about them, they are important to me privately."

But that is NOT leadership. Definitely not the leadership we need. Here's Branstad's track record in Iowa with conservatives:

Under his leadership gambling became legal in this state. There really isn't a need to hold him accountable for the havoc this has reaked on the people of Iowa because as he said to us in that room, "What was I supposed to do? Over 70% of the people wanted it even though I was personally opposed to it."

Under his leadership the DHS allowed homosexual couples to adopt and provide foster care for children. He said he simply wasn't aware of that. Kind of like the Griswold's driving to Wally World in the movie Vacation when they fell asleep at the wheel.

Under his leadership he appointed two of the Iowa Supreme Court Justices who voted to redefine marriage in this state...an act of judicial tyranny.

I asked him if he would openly campaign against retaining those justices and speak out against their decision. He bristled at the thought. He said that privately he feels that way but he can not publicly do something like that. WEAK!

I told him that I was concerned about Doug Gross' influence in the campaign and his potential future administration. Doug Gross, in case you aren't aware, spent lots of money polling people in the state to try to prove that social issues need to be put on the back burner if Republicans are going to win elections. You can see an article about that Here.

Branstad just ignored my concerns and didn't even respond to them. All in all, if Branstad wins reelection, he will simply be a Republican version of Culver. He is a politician through and through.

The people in this state need to take a stand and not keep getting force-fed candidates who don't have a backbone. We need leadership. We need someone who will be a true champion of conservative values.

We need a strong stand on moral issues (not back-room meetings)! We need someone to fight those who have brought same-sex marriage to this state. Someone who will not be afraid to speak out against rogue justices who have ignored our state's constitution!

Basically what we need in gubernatorial leadership in Iowa is something that Terry Branstad is not able to deliver.

Ministry has changed...

2009-09-18T10:02:00.005-06:00

Ministry has undergone lots of change in recent years. Some things are never going to change. Like helping people learn to love and live for God. That is at the heart and core of ministry.

But how that gets accomplished has changed. It used to be that a minister would simply be able to go to someone's home, knock on the door, be invited in and be able to talk to that person (or people) about the Lord. Nowadays, if you tried that, you are most likely a Jehovah's Witness or Mormon and you aren't received too kindly.

We live in the era of Facebook, Twitter and emails. Life seems more techno-centric than it was 30 years ago. People have come to rely on computers and mobile devices.

I have found that ministering in this era can be a challenge but you can still accomplish the same goal of helping people learn to love and live for God but you have to embrace new methods.

Using my account on Facebook I have been able to keep up with those that I minister to as well as encourage them in their walk with the Lord. On Facebook, I created a group on Facebook for our church members who are on Facebook to have another place of connection. Click HERE to see our church's Facebook Group Page.

From that group page, I have created special "events" that help promote and advertise various activities and sermon series we have at The Fort. I have also incorporated Twitter into this at another level of fostering more communication and connection with our church body online. We have a Twitter feed on the home page of our web site that we update to broadcast special announcements or updates.

All of these are tools. Some might argue that it contributes to the increasing isolationist direction of our culture, but I would say that we are building community on many levels. Not everyone is online. But many are.

We want to be a church that embraces all the methods we can to help people become a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. We want to help people get into the Word of God.

Recently a woman was publicly executed in North Korea. Her crime? Distributing Bibles. It is noteworthy that a book most Americans take for granted and rarely read was worthy of death in a far corner of the world.

Anything I can do to get people more invested in reading the Word of God I will do!

Smallville and the coolest video ever...

2009-08-27T19:14:00.002-06:00

A friend gave me the first two seasons of Smallville on DVD. I really haven't seen the show, to be honest, but we watched the first episode. The first of the first season ends with the song "Everything" by Lifehouse. That triggered my remembering this video. I don't think I have ever seen a more powerful skit than this one, honestly. Enjoy!

First Baptist Church

2009-08-21T07:49:00.005-06:00

I performed a wedding the other day. It was a nice ceremony for a neat young couple. But I didn't perform the wedding ceremony in our church building. It was held at the First Baptist Church in Johnston, IA.

The church is pastored by Tim Bonney, a very nice man who has served in ministry in Illinois, Indiana and Iowa. He has been at First Baptist in Johnston for approximately five years.

The reason I am blogging about First Baptist is because they are a very interesting church. They used to be located downtown in Des Moines, but they moved in 2002 to their current location. Their facility is breathtaking.

It has a strain-your-neck-high vaulted wood ceiling which is amazing. The stone walls are gorgeous. The open airy feel of the facility leaves you feeling like you are in a house of worship.

But here was the odd thing for me...they are overtly traditional. In every way they pride themselves in not being a contemporary congregation. There is a grand piano and a pipe organ on the stage and behind their baptistry there is a beautiful wooden cross and above that a fabulous round stained-glass window.

But there is no projection system. The audio set up is only average. There is nothing in the facility that says "2002!" Other than it looks new.

They do currently have a contemporary service that meets at the church. I was told by their sound man that it is a smaller gathering and they do not meet in their sanctuary, the contemporary service meets out off of the foyer area.

This church of approximately 200 people like the way they do church. They are proud of their style and that is who they are. And hear me clearly, there is nothing wrong with that.

In fact, too many churches spend their time with a psychological disorder always trying to be the mega-church that they aren't. So it is okay, in my book, to embrace who it is that you really are as a church.

But, having said all of that, I do know that I dream about who The Fort is all the time! I want us to be different than we are. I believe that we are capable of being so much more. I have begged God, I have shed tears before the Lord over showing me what it is to do so that we can grow as a church. I desire for us to reach as many people on the South Side of Des Moines as we can for Jesus Christ.

I do not desire to uphold traditions. I do not desire to build beautiful buildings. I do not desire to have any of that. What I desire is for one more opportunity to preach about Jesus Christ to another lost man or woman. That is my heart.

I know God's Word is true. I know it can change lives forever. I desire to see that life change happen at The Fort! One of the only ways it can happen is when our people begin to invite their family, friends, neighbors and co-workers with them to church.

A great opportunity to do that will be our upcoming Warrior series that starts on September 20th. This will be a sermon series directed at the men. Far too long men have settled for less than God's best in their life because they believe that deep spirituality is too feminine. It isn't. It is actually brutal and bloody. And we want to show the men in our church that being a man of God is a call to the heart of a Warrior!

So do your part, invite someone to join you. Beg someone to come. Barter with them. Bribe them. I don't care but do something. Because people's eternities are at stake!

When you lose your best friend...

2009-08-08T15:08:00.006-06:00

Yesterday, August 7th, 2009 was a very crappy day in the Demastus home. Our family's best friend, Bessie Anabelle Demastus, went to heaven. Even though I honestly have struggled with feeling like a murderer for having her put down, I know the decision was the best one for my girl, Bessie. Her problems were chronic and in the end she was very bad, and even though we didn't want to deal with it, we had to. The Bible says that it is important to care for the needs of your animal, in fact it is a righteous act (Proverbs 12:10). And sometimes the best decision is to grant a painless and peaceful passing.

We buried Bessie in our backyard, her backyard. That's where she played with her two favorite boys. She was buried in her favorite blanket with one of her favorite "bunnies" and she wore her pretty pink bandana. We all are going to miss her very much. But, if my wife's theology is correct, then I'll get to see her again one day!

To video or not to video...that is the question!

2009-07-28T16:16:00.003-06:00

My mother-in-law has talked with me about her disapproval of her new minister's frequent usage of video clips in his preaching (and by frequent I mean every single Sunday). Even though the frequency is an issue, it isn't the main issue with her. Her main problem is the content. Apparently he uses clips from TV shows such as "The Office" or "Family Guy" a lot.

Now I have seen snippets of both shows and know just enough to know that they aren't exactly family friendly entertainment. Although the clips he chooses to show do not have questionable content per se, the issue is the directing someone to a show that isn't necessarily helpful to one's spiritual maturation process.

I am as techy as the next guy (I maintain a blog for crying out loud!) but I don't see a need to have video medium in every single sermon. I feel to do that would be first of all, lazy on my part because I can just find a nice 6 or 7 minute clip and then fill in the rest with Bible stuff and, "Viola!" I have a sermon!

No. I think video is a compliment. Using it so frequently can be dangerous. The church (little "c") is already biblically stupid enough. We don't challenge the mind anymore, it seems. We rely on technology and media to continue the media-induced stupor. Our job it seems has become wiping drool off the chins of our crowds we have gathered so that they are coherent long enough to continue to help us build monumental Super-Churches.

But that is not what God has called us to do. It was through the non-powerpoint, non-video-projected medium of preaching that God chose to save men's souls (1 Corinthians 1:21).

Our over-reliance on video has added to our dumbing down.

Now, that said, I don't necessarily swing the pendulum all the way over and see no value in it whatsoever. In a recent interview John Piper stated that, "the use of video and drama largely is a token of unbelief in the power of preaching." You can read the whole interview HERE.

I do see the value of video...just not every Sunday. One can have incredible impact with the right complimenting video to drive home a point that has been preached! Using tact and decorum, videos are awesome and add an amazing dynamic to worship and preaching.

But let's choose the right video and let's show it at the right time.

The Church in decline

2009-07-21T14:51:00.003-06:00

We have so many "Pottery Barn" churches (as I have heard them described) that in an effort to "evangelize" have given credence to the critic of the mega-church movement who would say that all mega-churches water down the truth in an effort to attract a crowd.

While I disagree with such broad strokes of a brush (HERE is one prime example of a mega church doing it right...even though I don't agree with all the theology, it is definitely not watered down!) But there are plenty of examples where the critics are given plenty of ammo to shoot at the mega church movement.

Personally, I was blown away by a local pastor's suggestion (via Twitter) that we the church shouldn't teach "No Sex Before Marriage." He points out in his blog post that if we teach such a hard line that we run the risk of "alienating people from the church for the rest of their lives."

I have looked, but to no avail, to find where Jesus decided to back off of a teaching topic for fear of "alienating" one of his hearers. In fact, after teaching some very hard truths, we see in John 6:66 that many of his followers turned and left him.

What you don't see is Jesus concerned about their leaving. Jesus doesn't run after them hoping to win them back. Maybe if he invited them over for a cookout on the deck, or maybe if he could change up his teaching style and wear the latest GQ fashions, maybe he could win them back. No. Jesus taught the truth. Some didn't like it and they left. But some stayed!

The church is in decline, not because of our inherently offensive message. And, you need to know that the truth is inherently offensive to those outside of the truth. The church is in decline because of pastors who won't teach God's truth. The church is in decline because we have left the truth in order to grow the church.

What is it that we want? A crowd? Or a committed core of fully devoted (and equipped) Christ followers? I choose the latter.

Where is the bachelor's wife?

2009-07-14T12:01:00.002-06:00

We have a young boy that has been coming over to our home recently wanting to hang out with my youngest son, Jacob. This young boy comes from a troubled background and is several years younger than Jacob. So it is kind of a chore for Jacob to hang out with him. But he does, honestly, because he feels pity for him.

One of the days he was over at our home, he asked me a question as we were outside shooting some hoops in the driveway. He asked me this (knowing that I am a pastor), "Who made God?"

That isn't a new question. So many young children have asked it. And honestly, it is one we need to be prepared to answer (1 Peter 3:15).

So who did make God?

The answer is no one did. He was not made. He has always existed. Only things that had a beginning - like the world need a maker. God had no beginning, so God did not need to be made.

For those of us a little older, a little more can be said. Traditionally, most atheists who deny the existence of God believe that the universe was not made; it was just "there" forever. They appeal to the first law of thermodynamics for support: "Energy can neither be created nor destroyed," they insist.

Well, if that is so, then that is not science...that's philosophy. Science is based on observation, and there is no observational evidence that can support the dogmatic "can" and "cannot" implicit in this statement. It should read, "{As far as we have observed,} the amount of actual energy in the universe remains constant."

That is, no one has observed any actual new energy either coming into existence or going out of existence. Once the first law is understood properly, it says nothing about the universe being eternal or having no beginning. As far as the first law is concerned, energy may or may not have been created. It simply asserts that if energy was created, then as far as we can tell, the actual amount of energy that was created has remained constant since.

If the universe is not eternal, it needs a cause. On the other hand, if it has no beginning, it does not need a cause of its beginning. Likewise, if a god exists who has no beginning, it is absurd to ask, "Who made God?" It is a category mistake to ask, "Who made the unmade?" or "Who created the Uncreated?"

It is the same as asking, "Where is the bachelor's wife?"

(For support on this, I consulted the works of Norman Geisler and Josh McDowell.)

Two deaths...

2009-07-07T10:07:00.005-06:00

I am writing this on July 7, 2009. The day the earth stopped (or so it seemed) to watch Michael Jackson's funeral. A sad, untimely death for one so talented and still young.

As I watched a little bit of the coverage (a little bit is honestly all I could stand) I couldn't help but think of another death just as tragic and just as untimely and sad as Jackson's. But in the case of the latter, there is no round-the-clock coverage. There is no one that even knows really except for a very small amount of people.

In the case of the latter, this one's demise did not come because of shady medical practices or a longing to stay addicted to medications. The death of this other unknown person came about very intentionally when a young woman entered a clinic labeled "Planned Parenthood" on the outside and she willingly, knowingly ended the life of her own child.

There are no tributes. In fact, this child isn't even named (by the mother, at least, but the child has been named by Father God). This child is not given a funeral. The "body" (it isn't even allowed to be called that) is simply discarded as garbage.

No one speaks about the life lost. No one even dares mention it.

But here's the thing this unknown baby and Michael Jackson have in common. They both went to Jesus. The king of pop met the King of Kings. And this unnamed infant found itself in a very sure and certain future in heaven with Jesus. And Michael Jackson found himself standing before the Righteous Judge having to give an account for his life.

On this day, where so many are so focused on the death of one. I can't help but think about the death of so many and no one seems to care.

Rescue!

2009-07-01T08:24:00.004-06:00

Yesterday an amazing rescue took place on the river downtown here in Des Moines. You can read about it HERE. This amazing image was taken during that rescue when an ordinary citizen (in fact he was a construction worker) used his buddies who operated a crane to do what the trained rescue professionals could not...he rescued her from certain death.

That is what evangelism is all about folks! Rescuing those we know are dying. You don't need to be a professional (a pastor)...you just need to be an ordinary citizen who uses whatever resources available to get to that lost person! In Colossians 4:2-6 Paul tells us to make the most of every opportunity. Always be ready for rescue!

What kind of person would you be if your neighbor's house was on fire and you didn't want to interfere because you might upset them? That is precisely why we Christians can come across so obnoxious sometimes. We look at people who don't know Jesus like they are in a burning house! So we are a little pushy...even desperate at times to get people safely rescued from their own impending doom. Jesus is the only answer for that kind of rescue!

Wow! What transpired on the river in downtown Des Moines yesterday afternoon should be a wake up call for all of us! God bless that brave construction worker for doing what he did.

I'm Back!

2009-06-30T09:43:00.003-06:00

I have been on a self-imposed hiatus from blogging. I want to get back into the swing of things with the blog again. I have just had a hard time slotting out a time to sit down and write on the blog.

While I was away I had something interesting occur to me. I had received some criticism about my preaching (not all that uncommon a thing to be honest). The criticism wasn't focused on my ability to preach or even my handling of Scripture per se (although there was some disagreement about a particular verse) but the focus was on my TONE.

Now the problem I had was that I didn't get to talk to the individual. The individual chose to not come directly to me (even though that is the clear directive of Scripture: Matthew 18:15-20). I would still urge the individual to come to me personally (I don't bite!)

But this person's view of the local church's pastor is that he is the "hired hand" (their words) and the eldership are the ones who "run the church" (again, their words). I would have you read John 10:11-13 to get a good perspective on how a "hired hand" operates.

I still wish I could have a discussion with the person that got upset about the tone of my preaching, but I think that will probably never happen. That bums me out. But from this experience, my elders affirmed me big time and stood behind me (that really means more than you know).

I wish with all my heart that people would just simply do what Scripture says. Talk to the person you have something against...not about the person!

I know I have been called by my Master to preach the truth. I am not called to make people happy. I must preach God's Word with conviction and passion and clarity. Everything else is up to God.

Something else I have been struggling with lately is attendance slumps at The Fort. We are definitely in the summer slump. But last week God's Word really spoke to me on this. In 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 Paul says "we do not lose heart." That has been difficult when you focus on dwindling numbers during the summer months. It is discouraging, to be honest. But he continues and says that we need to focus "not on what is seen" (like attendance patterns) "but on what is unseen" (like how God's Word is changing the hearts of those who are hearing it!)

Man, did I need that encouragement! And it came straight from God's Word. So don't lose heart! Even if you are criticized, even if the amount of people you were hoping for doesn't come...don't lose heart. Focus on the unseen work of your heavenly Father! That's what I need to do!

10 Principles for Church Growth (Pt. 2)

2009-05-23T16:25:00.002-06:00

Principle #2: WORSHIP

For starters, it really needs to be something that the church truly understands and that is that worship is not something that only occurs on Sunday mornings. Sunday morning is only a culmination of a week long, 24/7 experience of worship.

Worship is our life. It is all that we are offered to our heavenly Father every day we are alive. What happens on Sunday morning is different in that it is a celebration experience. It is the time that we all gather together to celebrate who God is and what He has done in our lives and to remember the sacrifice of His Son and His death on a cross. Worship on Sunday differs only in that it is no longer an individual experience but a corporate one.

And a growing church understands this basic principle of worship in a corporate environment: That we gather to celebrate and NOT to fellowship. Smaller, unhealthy churches try to replace worship celebrations with fellowship. The corporate worship experience is Not a fellowship experience. It isn't about US...it is about HIM, our heavenly Father.

When a church tries to accomplish fellowship when we are supposed to be focused on God, we lose out and a church that does this will NOT grow. Some of the most intense battles I have faced have not been about different musical styles, they have been about taking away a fellowship focus on Sunday morning and replacing with a celebration experience.

When we moved to two services, some of the arguments I heard were: I don't see anyone I know anymore. Well, as long as you see Jesus...does it really matter. Besides, if you want to see those people, then give them a flipping phone call and don't wait till Sunday morning to do what you probably should have done beforehand.

Fellowship is supposed to take place in small groups or in Sunday School or on your own in individual relationships throughout the church. But if you think the only place it should be done is on Sunday morning (and a lot of people do) then you have missed the point of the corporate worship experience.

Another note about worship being a reason that a church will grow is this...when we gather and celebrate Jesus as One Body, we better worship God with our very best efforts together. And if we offer lousy singing, lousy services, lousy preaching then we will never grow. God deserves our VERY BEST. Anything less means we do not take our faith very seriously. God is worth the best that we can offer in singing, preaching, and even ambiance when it comes to our corporate experience.

Choices 2

2009-05-22T09:28:00.000-06:00

A little Photoshop Americana Tribute:

2009-05-15T09:56:00.003-06:00

I did this in Photoshop yesterday as I am thinking ahead about Memorial Day and also will do a two-part series in July on "God and Country."

10 Principles for Growing a Church (Pt. 1)

2009-05-15T09:29:00.003-06:00

Years ago I read Bob Russell's book When God Builds A Church. I remember being really motivated by this book to implement all that I learned. In the book he shares 10 principles that I want to outline over the next few weeks that I believe are critical to the process of building a church as well. I am only sharing his principles but I will share how I see it working out in a real world scenario.

Principle #1: TRUTH

It may seem like a funny place to start but I know more and more that you can't do anything with God unless this is the first step in the process. We live in a day and age when people in the culture no longer fear God. That is solely because churches and pastors have stopped proclaiming the truth of God's Word.

Bob Russell wrote: Truth without love is dogmatism. Love with truth is sentimentality. Speaking the truth in love is Christianity. How true!

We need to balance our approach. We need to speak clearly on issues that our culture would rather us not even speak on at all but we need to do it in a way that earns our hearing. So we need to do it in love. That is hard.

What the church needs now more than ever are not the latest three point steps in living a fulfilled life. We need more than veiled pop-psychology, we need God's sometimes offensive, even abrasive but always relevant truth spoken from our pulpits. We need to use a lot of Scripture when we teach and help people to crave God's Word. We need to instill a desire amongst our people to want more from God's Word.

We need to clearly proclaim that man's ultimate problem is sin. And without Jesus Christ's transformational grace applied to his life then man will spend eternity in a very real place called Hell. We need to have the same mindset as Paul did about preaching in 1 Corinthians 9:16.

What we need right now in the church, now more than ever, is churches that have preachers who will believe the truth, teach the truth and apply the truth. There is no possible way for a church to grow without this element. It is the foundational step to growing.

And it is something that I see as the MOST important step in the process of growing a church.

Shire Syndrome

2009-04-28T14:54:00.003-06:00

In J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings he describes a beautiful homey place that is green and safe for small people known as hobbits. The shire is simple. The shire is far away from the cares of a bigger, busier world.

I think one of the problems in the church today is that many have what I call "Shire Syndrome." Shire Syndrome comes from a particular scene in Peter Jackson's movie of Tolkien's classic where there are hobbits gathered at the local pub in the shire discussing world events over some ale. And one of the older wiser hobbits speaks up about all the "strange goings on" and says that it isn't any concern of a hobbits about what goes on in middle earth. Hobbits need to simply care about what happens in the shire.

That is Shire Syndrome. People in the church quit really caring about the subtle inroads that the homosexual community had been making in the political sphere and in the cultural sphere. They hadn't made any inroads in the church, that's all that matters.

Well, now they are in the shire. We cannot stay silent and dumb any longer. The homosexual agenda is not satisfied with mere acceptance and tolerance any longer, the end goal is silence and a complete dismantling of the Christian religion. And if the church doesn't wake up, get up and speak up we are going to be replaced by God with those who will.

Who would have ever thought that marriage could have a new definition in the culture? No one really. But it does now. The culture views marriage as a simple civil act affording anyone who wants it legal rights and privileges. But marriage is not a simple civil act. Marriage is a SACRED act.

Marriage is one man and one woman making a covenantal commitment that lasts a lifetime before a Holy God ( Genesis 1:27; Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:4-6 ). There is NO OTHER definition. Not one. And culture, courts and popular opinion do not get the privilege to rewrite, redefine or revise it.

Common Objections and Answers to Same Sex Marriage

2009-04-24T22:19:00.003-06:00

The following list comes from an internet resource:

1. Are you a bigot? “Why do you want to take away people’s rights?”
“Isn’t it wrong to write discrimination into the constitution?”

A: “Do you really believe people like me who believe mothers and fathers both matter to kids are like bigots and racists? I think that’s pretty offensive, don’t you? Particularly to the 60 percent of African-Americans who oppose same-sex marriage. Marriage as the union of husband and wife isn’t new; it’s not taking away anyone’s rights. It’s common sense.”

2. Isn’t the ban on gay marriage like bans on interracial marriage?

A: “Bans on interracial marriage were about keeping two races apart so that one race could oppress the other. Marriage is about bringing two sexes together, so that children get the love of their own mom and a dad, and women don’t get stuck with the enormous disadvantages of parenting alone.” “Having a parent of two different races is just not the same as being deprived of your mother—or your father.”

3. Why do we need a constitutional amendment? “Isn’t DOMA enough?”

A: “Lawsuits like the one that imposed gay marriage in Massachusetts now threaten marriage in at least 12 other states so far. We need a marriage amendment to settle the issue once and for all, so we don’t have this debate in our face every day. The people get to decide what marriage means. No-end run around the rules by activist judges or grandstanding San-Francisco-style politicians.”

4. What’s the harm from Same Sex Marriage? “How can Bobby and Billy hurt your marriage?”

A: “Who gets harmed? The people of this state who lose our right to define marriage as the union of husband and wife, that’s who. That is just not right.”

A: “If courts rule that same-sex marriage is a civil right, then, people like you and me who believe children need moms and dads will be treated like bigots and racists.”

“Religious groups like Catholic Charities or the Salvation Army may lose their tax exemptions, or be denied the use of parks and other public facilities, unless they endorse gay marriage."

“Public schools will teach young children that two men being intimate are just the same as a husband and wife, even when it comes to raising kids.”

“When the idea that children need moms and dads get legally stigmatized as bigotry, the job of parents and faith communities trying to transmit a marriage culture to their kids is going to get a lot harder.”

“One thing is for sure: The people of this state will lose our right to keep marriage as the union of a husband and wife. That’s not right.”

5. Why do you want to interfere with love?

A: “Love is a great thing. But marriage isn’t just any kind of love; it’s the special love of husband and wife for each other and their children.”

6. What about benefits? Don’t gay couples and their kids need the benefits and protections of marriage?”

A: “If medical proxies aren’t working, let’s fix that problem. If people need health care, let’s get them health care. Don’t mess with marriage.”

A: “The issue isn’t benefits, it is marriage. Local folks can decide benefits. This is about the meaning of marriage, our most basic social institution for protecting children. “

7. Isn’t divorce the real threat to marriage?

A: “High rates of divorce are one more reason we should be strengthening marriage, not conducting radical social experiments on it.”

8. Are you saying gays cannot be good parents?

A: “Two men might each be a good father, but neither can be a mom. The ideal for children is the love of their own mom and dad. No same-sex couple can provide that.”

9. What about older or infertile couples? If they marry why not same-sex couples?

A: “Every man and woman who marries is capable of giving any child they create (or adopt) a mother and a father. No same-sex couple can do this. It’s apples and oranges.”

Are the issues that homosexuals face on par with civil rights issues?

2009-04-22T06:17:00.004-06:00

This is a question that has been getting asked a lot lately. I have had this particular side of the argument used many times by advocates of same sex marriage (even in the comment threads on this blog).

So to phrase the question properly: Are homosexuals an oppressed minority that should have the same civil rights extended to them regarding the homosexuality as other minorities?

Homosexuals are seeking not only to affect public policy, but also to determine the terms of the debate. The more the homosexual community is able to construe the issue of homosexuality and public policy along the lines of "civil rights," the more success it seems to have in achieving its agenda.

There are several things wrong with regarding homosexuality as a civil right. First, the law already protects the civil rights of citizens. Homosexuals now enjoy these civil rights as everyone else does. It is true that individual homosexuals have had certain rights deprived at times (just as anybody could), and it may be because of their homosexuality, but this is nothing that the law does not already address.

For example, it is already against the law to beat someone up. If a homosexual is beaten up by someone who hates homosexuals, the offending party is already culpable by law. To extend protection to a homosexual on the basis of his homosexuality is unnecessary and unfair.

One's behavior should not be the subject of civil rights laws. With the new onslaught of potential hate crimes legislation being proposed before Congress, we are potentially going to be saying that it is more brutal to beat up a 22 year old homosexual than a 92 year old lady. I say, both crimes are equally evil and wrong. But with the hate crimes legislation, it would add more weight for the one perpetrating a crime against a homosexual. That puts a class distinction on victims. That is wrong.

Homosexuality is not a benign factor like race. It is a behavior and a choice...no matter how hard those who are homosexuals stomp their feet and say it wasn't a choice. That's precisely what it is.

Also the criteria to judge whether or not a group is an oppressed minority do not apply to the homosexual community. Tony Marco, in his book Special Class Protection for Gays: A Question of Behavior and Consequences, notes the three criteria that the Supreme Court established in awarding special protected status:

1. There must be a history of discrimination evidenced by a lack of ability to obtain economic mean income, adequate education or cultural opportunity. This certainly does not apply to homosexuals. Homosexuals have an average annual income that is $20,000 more than the general population. More than three times as many homosexuals are college graduates than average Americans. Three times as many homosexuals as average Americans hold professional or managerial positions...some 65% of homosexuals are overseas travelers - four times the national average.

2. Protected classes should exhibit obvious immutable, or distinguishable characteristics like race, color, gender, that define them as a discrete group. It should be clear that this does not apply to the homosexual community.

3. Protected classes should clearly demonstrate political powerlessness. Again, it should be clear from the impact that the lobbying arm of the homosexual community is having across the nation currently. Our recent ruling by the Iowa Supreme Court makes this a mute point. The homosexual community is far from being politically powerless.

There is no one who can rightfully argue that homosexuals should be a protected class using the very criteria that our Supreme Court used. But I believe that it isn't merely acceptance and tolerance that is the true spirit of the homosexual agenda. I believe that they are fully intent on silencing anyone who would question their lifestyle. That, I think, is the end goal.

Nation For Marriage Ads

2009-04-21T20:42:00.002-06:00

Nation For Marriage has launched a series of ads that are very well done educating people on the issue of same sex marriage. Here are a couple of them:

Phil Keoghan in Des Moines

2009-04-20T07:37:00.003-06:00

Phil Keoghan, host of The Amazing Race was in Des Moines yesterday on his ride across America. Yesterday was day 23 of his ride and he started the day in Atlantic, IA and rode into Des Moines (to the capital steps) around 5:30PM. Today, day 24, he will be riding to Iowa City, IA. You can read more about his stop in Des Moines Here. These are a few pics I snapped at the event. He was actually very close to where we were...

By the way, in case you are wondering, I am rooting for Margie and Luke this season.

Same-Sex Marriage in Iowa

2009-04-18T22:08:00.008-06:00

Let me begin by saying this, I believe wholeheartedly that under no circumstance should any Christian attack the character of a person who claims to be homosexual. People who make trite, offensive comments like, "God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve" only work to close down the dialogue that needs to take place on this issue.

What we see from Scripture is that Jesus showed grace and truth in all He did ( John 1:14 ). We need to follow Jesus' example. We are to demonstrate grace to a person who claims to be homosexual, but we should also have the courage to speak the truth in love about homosexuality.

Solomon said that a "friend loves at all times" ( Proverbs 17:17 ). He also said that "wounds from a friend can be trusted" ( Proverbs 27:6 ). This is the kind of friend that a Christian needs to be to the person who says he or she is a homosexual.

Currently there are four states that have sought to legalize same-sex marriage. Iowa was the third state in that list. No matter what rogue Justices decide on a bench as they revise and reinterpret state constitutions, Marriage has always had one uniform definition. It is a religiously and civil sanctioned union between a man and a woman.

Biblically, marriage is a divinely ordered institution designed to form a permanent union between one man and one woman for the purpose not only of bringing blessing to each other but also of procreating or propagating the human race ( Genesis 1:27-28; Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:5 ). Obviously the Biblical definition is not only impossible, but ultimately wrong in a same-sex marriage.

Jesus Himself only understood marriage in a heterosexual way ( Matthew 19:4-5 ).

Traditional marriage has a stabilizing effect on society and provides an optimal and healthy environment for raising children. Same-sex marriages, by contrast, have a destabilizing effect on society and do not provide an optimal and healthy environment for raising children. Research has proven that in countries that grant marriage rights to same-sex couples, traditional marriages decline, out-of-wedlock births increase, and the family unit suffers injury.

What happened on Friday, April 4th here in Iowa with the ruling by our State Supreme Court has sent our state into an out-of-control tailspin. The majority of citizens of this state have been left without a voice and without representation in their legislature.

This is NOT a political issue. This is an issue of right and wrong. Either marriage is what the Bible says it is or our Courts are right. I choose to believe the Bible over the pirates who have taken hostage our State's constitution to rewrite and revise it in order to fit in with our current slouching toward Gomorrah.

What this decision means, if left unchallenged, is that someone like me (a Pastor) may in the future face criminal prosecution for not being willing to perform a same-sex marriage. This issue is very important.

Again, every homosexual person deserves our respect and no one should ever be demeaned or devalued. We should always treat others with the love and respect that Jesus showed us. But we can very strongly disagree. (It is okay to disagree...you just don't have to be disagreeable!)

Homosexuality is a dangerous lifestyle. And it is wrong. Not because I say so or because I hate any people group but simply because the Bible is true.

In this time of increasing darkness we need to know what God's Word says and be willing to stand up for what is right. The issue of marriage is an issue that I personally would be willing to be jailed over in order to fight for the truth. I will never let a judge or a legislator dictate to me what God's Word has clearly spoken on.

Pray for our State and our battle for marriage! One positive result from the Supreme Court ruling is that they have awakened a sleeping giant! There are many who are standing now to defend marriage. The Bible says that marriage should be honored by all ( Hebrews 13:4 ).

Rick Warren Waffling on Same-Sex Marriage

2009-04-08T12:15:00.002-06:00

I have to be honest, I have very high regard for Rick Warren. I respect him and admire his love for the church. But he has been called in to serious question lately concerning his position on same-sex marriage. And his appearance on Larry King Live the other night did NOT help his case. Watch the video...

It is sad when pastors begin to sound like politicians. What people need from our pulpits is a CLEAR statment of truth. Hear me, small church guy, say it as loudly and clearly as I can: SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IS WRONG! That is something I will never change my position on. In fact, I'd be willing to be thrown into jail on this one.

Flutter: The New Twitter (This is Hilarious!)

2009-04-06T15:42:00.001-06:00

There are eyes watching my eyes...

2009-04-05T07:01:00.004-06:00

Last night my oldest son and I were talking and he shared with me that he had seen me earlier that day when we are at a party for someone we know. We both were sitting at a table and right next to us a young mother came and bent over to deal with her child. As she did this you could see right down her blouse.

I quickly turned my head away because I didn't want to see that and didn't think anything else of it. That is, until my son brought it up to me later that night. He told me that he saw me look away and he knew what I was turning my head away from. He told me that is why he turned his head away as well.

It makes me glad that I scored one right (finally). But I have to be constantly aware of the fact that if I become the guy that is always turning my head to notice a pretty female that my sons will become that same guy. If I am the guy that is always looking for those brief shots down a woman's blouse then my son's will also see my wandering eye.

My discussion with my son brought to mind the Scripture Job 31:1 and I need to remember the same thing it says and keep the same covenant myself with my own eyes. Where I look, my sons see it. What I look at, my sons look at too.

So this time I won! And if you are a dad and you have a son, you need to remember this. Train your eyes now! Because if you aren't training your own eyes you are training his regardless.

Crispus Cremus and the importance of baptism

2009-03-27T10:49:00.002-06:00

Crispus Cremus from Granger Community on Vimeo

My Review of "Knowing"

2009-03-24T16:06:00.003-06:00

I went to see the new Nicolas Cage film Knowing today. I went in not sure of what to expect because one review I had read said that Christians will either love this film or absolutely hate it...there will be no in between.

After having seen the film now, I think that is a very accurate statement.

The story opens in the sweet-and-innocent 1950s. The children—at least the children at William Dawes Elementary School—are full of optimism and hope: When their teacher asks them to draw pictures of what they think the world will look like in 50 years—pictures to place in a time capsule—they draw rockets and flying cars.

Well, except for one little girl named Lucinda, who instead covers her paper with lines and lines of numbers. So absorbed is she that she doesn't even get to finish writing before the teacher whisks her paper away.

Fast-forward 50 years, and a new generation of William Dawes students opens the capsule to marvel at these bright pictures of the future. Well, except for the kid who sees Lucinda's numbers.

The kid—Caleb's his name—brings home the paper and obliquely suggests that it might be a code of some sort. John, Caleb's father and a professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, decides (after a few whiskeys) that Caleb could be right. In fact, many of the numbers seem to correspond with the dates of every major tragedy in the last 50 years, along with the number of those killed. 9/11? It's on there. Tsunamis in southeast Asia? Check. Oklahoma City bombing? Check.

John sees that there are just three dates left on the sheet—and all of them are set to take place over the next few days. Which leaves John to ask himself some pretty hard questions:

Does this mean that our lives are guided?

That our fates are predetermined?

Can we change our future?

Am I going crazy?

Could this sheet of paper represent an even more ominous future than a few plane crashes?

Here's the deal. This movie deals with some very tough issues. Determinism, fatalism, random evolution are all themes that pop up in this movie with lots and lots of spiritual overtones.

There is a ton of biblical imagery in the movie...especially end time imagery. They have the earth being destroyed by fire, they have angel-like creatures that come to hearken the world's end (four of them actually). There is one scene when one of these creatures opens his mouth and light and a trumpet-like blast comes forth.

There is the Bible placed on a bed side of the one woman who seemed to be able to predict all of this (she's also portrayed as crazy).

So the movie is full of biblical images. Even a new earth is shown at the end.

But there are unsettling themes as well. I only heard two cuss words. The darkness of all of this was a bit unnerving. There is no return of Jesus. There is no Bible usage per se. The number code is the most important thing...not references to Scripture.

And the other oddly disturbing thing is the fact that all that happened could have a simple scientific explanation or it could be a spiritual thing or it could even be an alien thing. The angelic creatures I spoke of, could very well be aliens...but they are very intentionally given angelic-like qualities...but they have also have a "ship" which is unlike your typical flying saucer.

So all in all, the movie kind of leaves you feeling the tension between is it spiritual or is it scientific? They really don't make a conclusion one way or the other.

I enjoyed the film, but it made me think. I like movies that do that. This is probably not a movie for little kids because there are some pretty scary scenes. I actually cowered in my seat at one point!

But it is definitely worth the time. I think you may either hate it or love it!

I got stimulated

2009-03-23T10:25:00.002-06:00

This morning I opened up my check to find that it was $9.00 more than normal. I called my treasurer to see what happened. She told me that was my part of the economic stimulus package. So that totals out to $468.00 more per year in my pocket. So they used my money to give me more of my money. That's kinda weird.

My personal plan with this extra windfall is to add it to what I put in my savings account every week. I know that really isn't stimulating the overall economy but otherwise this amazing windfall would most probably land me at McDonald's every week! And I don't think they need any extra stimulating.

Decluttering

2009-03-17T16:22:00.003-06:00

Got to thinking about something today (after reading a blog post). What are the things that I do in ministry. So, not to sound self-promoting, but rather a critical analysis of my role and in no certain order here are the things I do:

I twitter.
I blog.
I maintain a Facebook account.
I write sermons each week. I preach a sermon most weeks (at least 45 weeks of the year) and I do it twice.
I prepare lessons for Sunday School and Wednesday evening class.
I teach Sunday School and Wednesday evening class.
I host a small group.
I facilitate discussion in small group and spend time preparing for small group.
I attend board meetings and prepare for board meetings.
I attend elders meetings and prepare for elders meetings.
I prepare powerpoint slides for my sermon.
I create sermon series graphics.
I help produce sermon videos.
I prepare iWorship slides for powerpoint.
I do book studies with different individuals.
I visit people in their homes, at the hospital or at their place of work.
I field numerous phone calls.
I field numerous emails.
I make numerous phone calls.
I compose numerous emails.
I capture the audio of my sermon on Sunday mornings.
I upload the audio of my sermon on Sunday afternoons to our web site.
I open up our building on Sunday mornings.
I close up the building on Sunday afternoon.
I prepare advertising slides for our lobby TV.
I handle any and all criticisms related to the church, ministry and my preaching.
I set communion out on our communion table each Sunday (and sometimes prepare it when the person that was supposed to prepare forgets).
I turn on all audio/visual equipment on Sunday mornings.
I turn off all audio/visual equipment on Sunday afternoon.
I make sure microphones are working on Sunday morning.
I practice with praise teams.
I perform with praise teams.
I handle IT problems and help troubleshoot PC and copier issues in the office.
I make runs to the office store to purchase office supplies and equipment.
I HAVE TO CLEAN UP MY OFFICE FROM TIME TO TIME!
I attend other meetings from time to time (worship, Joy Ladies, etc.)
I help distribute food pantry items to needy individuals and families from time to time.
I help out with youth group activities from time to time.
I try to stay fresh and continually keep casting the church's vision!

Wow! That list sucks! The common denominator I see in that list is the word "I" on the left column. I am definitely doing too much. And honestly, sometimes it is really hard to determine what I should let go of or not do anymore so that I can be more effective in what God has called me to do.

That is the dilemma most smaller church pastors face, honestly. They do too much but they kinda need to.

So my challenge is going to be to wade through what it is that I absolutely need to do (and no one else can) and what is it that I don't need to do (because someone else can) and what is it that I absolutely should not be doing (I'm thinking the clean my office part).

Pray for me because I really do want to declutter my life and focus to be the person that God called me to be in the first place. But the funny thing is the very thing He called me to (the church) is the thing that gets in the way of me doing His will!

Being a 1st Time Visitor Again

2009-03-15T15:02:00.004-06:00

Today was a little outside the norm for me. I wasn't preaching, my youth pastor was, so I didn't even attend services at The Fort this morning. We don't let anyone know in advance anymore when I won't be preaching because people have a tendency to skip church when they know I am going to be gone.

It was kind of funny as well because we got a very concerned person call today worried that I was looking at another church this morning. Don't worry, I ain't going anywhere...you're stuck with me at The Fort!

We decided to see if we could glean any insights by going to a local megachurch this morning. We went to Lutheran Church of Hope. I have attended services at both Willow Creek in Chicago and Lifechurch in Oklahoma City. Let me say right up front that Hope is neither.

We had people pleasantly smile at us as we entered but no one spoke directly to us. I had to ask (TWICE) which way and what it was I should expect. That is nothing like what I experienced in Chicago or Oklahoma City where we started receiving our first welcomes in the parking lot.

After being seated in the massive auditorium (and after finding it), we looked through our bulletin. It was very busy with loads of information. I felt a sense of anticipation though as I sat there.

Musicians and singers began to line up on stage just a couple minutes prior to service. I noticed five screens that were used for projection up front plus two more in the back that were for the praise teams.

Worship began (and it was very good). Didn't know the first song, but that was okay. I enjoyed listening to it. After it was done, there were a few announcements given (the first of which was a video that advertised their upcoming Easter services...and it was done by a local news media personality Eric Hanson). Very nicely produced video. Then a couple more were given by a pastor on staff.

Then we were to greet others around us. There were a couple folks right next to us that shook hands with us. They seemed very friendly.

Music began again and we were off into two more worship songs. During this phase of worship, a 19 member choir joined the other 11 musicians and singers on stage. There was also an American Sign Language interpreter on stage the whole time as well (she was great!) And during the last song an interpretive dancer joined everyone on stage (I found her to be pretty distracting personally).

Then it was offering time (but it wasn't announced, it just kind of happened) while a special solo took place.

Then it was time for the sermon. The speaker was an associate pastor on staff Molly Junjunet. I wondered what I'd think because I really am not fond of women preachers to be blunt with you. But she did a good job.

My only two serious critiques of her sermon were that she spoke entirely too fast (making her hard to follow at times) and her sermon was way too dang long! She spoke for close to 50 minutes! No joke!

Although her content was good...it was too much. She needs to learn to trim the fat!

And here is the other really funky weird thing for me. At the end of her sermon, she simply raised her hand and said, "Go in peace." And that concluded the whole service.

No closing song or prayer or anything. Just a hand gesture and a little saying. That felt really weird! There should have been something more there to close everything out.

Overall, I didn't come back with any great ideas (except maybe a sermon idea) and I was a little surprised at how Hope wasn't as friendly as I thought it would be. They need to work on their greeters helping people (from the parking lot) know exactly where to go.

Plus, at the end of the day, I still don't care for women preaching that much!

Worship Unplugged...

2009-03-14T15:40:00.004-06:00

Next Sunday worship will be "unplugged". The whole service will be entirely acoustic (two acoustic guitars and one string acoustic bass). I am jazzed about it. We had a practice this morning. Check out the pics from practice...

Jonathan and Jacob

2009-03-13T12:03:00.003-06:00

These past couple of weeks I got to see Jacob and Jonathan take on challenging roles in plays that they performed in. Jacob played a character named "Chase Hermann" in the play "Clues Encounter of a Third Kind." His production wasn't as large-scale as his brother's but Jacob definitely stole the show. He had the most laughs and really did a fabulous job acting.

Jonathan played "Atticus Finch" in the play adaptation of Harper Lee's novel To Kill A Mockingbird. I have to be honest and tell you that I was blown away by my son's acting ability. Jonathan had the lead role and he had some incredibly difficult lines and scenes but he did it all with great skill!

I am bursting proud of both of my sons! They are really talented! They get that from their mother!

I only had video of Jacob's play, but here are a few pics from Jonathan's big night...

My Favorite Halo 3 Screenshot!

2009-03-08T16:36:00.002-06:00

In honor of Halo 3's amazing milestone last weekend I thought I would post my favorite screenshot from the game...it is called "We love you." I think it is a pretty cool tribute for Christian gamers!

Shot in Pulpit

2009-03-08T15:29:00.004-06:00

Today's news is headed with the tragic story of the church shooting in Maryville, IL at First Baptist Church. Pastor Fred Winters wasn't long into his sermon when an unknown gunman walked down the middle aisle of the church and started shooting.

The story said that he held up the Bible he was preaching from to shield himself from the coming bullets. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.One week ago Fred Winters preached a sermon about finances. He had no idea that one week later he would be dead.

My hope and my prayer is that every Sunday when I get up to preach that I will leave everything there. My heart needs to be completely exhausted so that I know that I have preached as if it was my very last sermon I will ever preach.

Fred Winters was a good man. What a horrible tragedy for his family and the church he served. Please pray for them.

The Hooter Hoodie

2009-03-06T11:25:00.003-06:00

Quite a while back, right as our current youth pastor was starting, I was still involved in the youth ministry. On one particular night at group we had a young gal that came and visited the group for the first time.

She was quickly the object of all the boys' attention. Why, ask you? Because she was wearing a shirt so low cut that her boobs were almost falling out!

So I asked her to step in the hall for a minute. I told her she was going to have to cover up. She ended up leaving because she got mad. Oh well.

Listen, parents of teenage girls, keep your teenagers in their dang clothes! I don't want to see your kids' anatomy and I definitely don't want my boys to see it either.

This led to an interesting solution that we still have hanging at the church somewhere. It's affectionately called the "Hooter Hoodie." It is a hooded sweatshirt that we can give to a young gal who comes to group with inappropriate apparel on.

I'm not involved in group really anymore. But the "Hooter Hoodie" is still there ready to be used at a revealing-chest's notice.

Unfortunately this isn't just a youth group deal. Women attend church all the time dressed like they are headed to a porn film right afterwards. That's a real drag to be honest with you.

Every man struggles with lust. We don't need our Christian sisters tempting us at church where we have come to worship Jesus!

How To Fit In At Church

2009-03-03T09:22:00.002-06:00

I saw this video over at my buddy Shane Vander Hart's blog. It's a great instructional video to teach you how to fit in almost any church if you've never been before!

One Prayer 2009

2009-03-02T15:15:00.002-06:00

Again this coming June The Fort will participate in One Prayer. Because of our participation in One Prayer in 2008 we helped to plant 74 churches and enroll 364 church planters! As a direct result of One Prayer 2008 598 individuals have been baptized and 3,328 people are currently in Bible study!

Just imagine what God is going to do this year! I am 100% jazzed about this. Be watching for more information coming soon!

Simple

2009-02-27T13:59:00.001-06:00

According to plan?

2009-02-27T13:16:00.002-06:00

This week has been very different than I anticipated. I had anticipated a nice, relaxing ministry week, but what I got was way more involved than that. I've been dealing with a crisis marriage situation. I got my lesson done early in the week...so no issues there. But my sermon, oh man, my sermon has been kicking me in the butt all week long.

I came in Thursday morning and deleted everything I had written (on purpose) because it was really ticking me off. I figured that anything was better than what I had up to that point. So I scrapped what I had and went skipping off into the great unknown with my sermon and feel like I have exactly what God wants me to share now. Maybe that's why it was such a dang struggle this week.

But we also completed our Easter video. (I'll post that here later.) And I helped out a friend this week, had several meetings this week, made some hospital visits this week and still had time to be Dad/husband/superpastor (or maybe masterpastor).

By the way, if you are new to my blog, I really am not an egotistical maniac. "Masterpastor" is my Xbox Live sign-in name. Maybe it would better read...I am an egotical maniac...but not because of the name masterpastor.

I'm not crying about my week, I just think it is funny how we have these little internal talks with God and they go something like this: "Okay God, it's been crazy for a while so I want to have a nice relaxing week this week. Thanks." And then we expect God to just bend right over and accomodate for us.

Well, what we desire out of our week and how God expects to use us in a week typically NEVER measure up. So just because my week doesn't go "according to plan" doesn't mean that God isn't busy working and using me as He deems fit. He just doesn't feel compelled to do things the way we would do them.

God's funny math

2009-02-25T08:15:00.002-06:00

I'm not a liturgical guy. I'm just not into liturgy, in fact, I think in many cases it is heartless and moves people farther away from God rather than closer to Him. But I was reading a blog the other day where the author shared about what he was sacrificing for the Lenten season.

He said he was going to sacrifice something and then add something. I found that interesting. God's math is funny. Subtraction plus Addition equals Multiplication. - + + = x

So I decided I am going to sacrifice pop, tea and any other kind of drink except water and I am going to add another chapter in my Bible reading each day. And God will multiply blessings in my life.

Again, I'm not a liturgical guy. But I like God's funny math. So what subtraction and addition do you need to make in your life right now?

Congressional Relief Action Plan (C.R.A.P.)

2009-02-24T08:31:00.001-06:00

The Crisis of Credit

2009-02-22T22:03:00.002-06:00

The following video is excellent content to make a complex problem more understandable via visual means. Let me know what you think...

The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.

My Inner Pirate

2009-02-21T12:56:00.004-06:00

On the website Pirate Name Generator I found out that my Pirate Name is Cap'n Bud Buttscar. I like it! I think I am going to ask that everyone refer to me as Cap'n Bud from now on!

Shiver me timbers!

Always read the Terms of Use fine print!

2009-02-20T21:49:00.002-06:00

Best Version of Amazing Grace...Ever!

2009-02-20T19:49:00.001-06:00

I came across this from a blog and it blew me away...enjoy!

Youversion 2.0

2009-02-20T14:20:00.002-06:00

Got an invite (along with hundreds of others) to get a sneak peek at Youversion 2.0 today from Terry Storch with Lifechurch.tv's digerati team. All I can say is WOW! He asked us to not share any screen shots from what we saw. It was a conference call and presentation using ZOHO free remote presenter.

I love Youversion. I think the innovation these guys are pushing with this is going to have a significant impact on the Body of Christ! Some of the cool new features include the ability to have parallel views of Scripture in multiple translations, and the ability to share scriptures and other Youversion features through the various social network mediums (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), currently you can only share via e-mail so this will be a nice improvement.

It has a very clean, smooth look to it that is VERY user-friendly. It was fun to be in on the meeting and seeing this stuff pre-release. You won't see Youversion 2.0 for a couple months at least. But in the meantime go check out the current version of Youversion.

Willing to Fail

2009-02-20T08:39:00.002-06:00

This is an excellent video from Craig Groeschel from the book-to-video: It. This is an awesome clip.

Bookie from LifeChurch.tv on Vimeo.

82

2009-02-18T11:01:00.006-06:00

In 1982 the first National Day of Peace was celebrated. The famous Hollywood sign was erected just over 82 years ago. Most people have at least 82 friends on Facebook. In 1982 the Commodore 64 was introduced. In 1982 Knight Rider premiered on television.

But here's the most important 82...

Researchers tell us that 82% of people who are invited to church from someone they already know will say yes. 82% of unchurched people will accept an invitation by a friend or coworker if they are simply asked!

82%!

Easter is April 12th! 82% will say yes! It's time to invite!

R & R

2009-02-16T20:58:00.002-06:00

We're on a little excursion away from things over in Omaha. We spent the afternoon in the pool at the hotel and then went to Red Lobster for supper (Oh Man did I eat way too much!) and then over to Wal Mart to get a couple things...while we were there Jakey and I had a little fun down the Valentine's Day Clearance Aisle...Watch and Enjoy!

My Favorite Scripture - March 2009

2009-02-15T18:21:00.006-06:00

Beginning with next month's newsletter, we are adding a feature called, "My Favorite Scripture." We will be highlighting one person each month that attends The Fort and having them share what their favorite verse is and why. Here is the very first one:

Dan Morgan, member at The Fort for over 10 years shares his favorite verse from Numbers 23:19, saying, “This verse has been an encouragement to me in my walk, reminding me that God’s promises are sure.”

Selective Hearing

2009-02-15T17:09:00.007-06:00

I preached a sermon from the book of Acts today on Courage. One of the things I shared was that we need to quit caring about what people think and start caring about what God thinks.

After I preached that at first service, I had one person (who seems to have a nack for delivering little barbs of discouragement) tell me that my usage of the pronouns "you and I" are in poor sorts.

How crazy is that? I preach on not caring about what people think and instead caring more about what God thinks and then this person THINKS that I would give a Crap what they think. Interesting.

You and I both know that I don't give a rat's rear end about how I use the words "you and I." BUT, I do care about what God thinks about what I say. And I am pretty sure He isn't grading my pronoun usage...but He is grading my handling of THE MESSAGE.

The Church in action...

2009-02-13T19:40:00.003-06:00

It's been a crazy week. Thought a lot about life, death and choices lately. I can't escape a couple of realities currently. Last Sunday a 14 year old boy sat in Sunday School and participated in discussion about the Bible and three days later he's dead. But seeing our church respond in love and kindness to this family that is in the pit of a hellish darkness dealing with this death is really inspiring.

I am so happy to see the church BE the church. The church isn't a place. It isn't something we go to but it is something that we are.

Helping each other through difficulty is what we are to be about.