12 posts tagged “devotional”
God's Sunrise will break in upon us,
79 Shining on those in the darkness,
those sitting in the shadow of death,
Then showing us the way, one foot at a time,
down the path of peace."
Luke 1:78-79 (MSG)
If there's a season that is more sentimental than Christmas, I haven't experienced it. I find myself time-traveling between remembering what it was like as a child, remembering what it was like when we had young children, and thinking about the kids we know from New Hope and how their Christmases will be.Funny isn't it, how I can't remember how my parents struggled to provide their boys some Christmas toys. I really cannot even remember much of what I got, or what we've given our kids. I just remember the feeling of Christmas.
When our oldest left here the other day, he left with a CD on which I had burned 27 minutes and 11 seconds of his Christmas morning experience in 1982. On that recording (transferred from cassette), you can hear my aunt Louise, uncle William, and my brother, father and mother as they got to see Adam come into the living room and see what he got.
The tape starts with us trying to wake a very sleepy boy. As I recall, telling him that Christmas was here and his presents were waiting had no where near the impact than "Grandmother is here". She loved Adam and later Sean with the same fierceness she had first loved my brother Bruce and me.
Waking up to find his Grandmother there was Christmas enough for Adam. Everything else was just icing on the cake.
I've really been thinking and praying through Christmas this year. There have been some major changes as we've lost family in the last couple of years that have pretty much severed my childhood from today. All those links are gone now. I'm blessed with an awesome wife and her wonderful parents - my "in-loves" who are like parents to me and have been for almost 34 years. Obviously my sons Adam and Sean give me great, great joy. And I have an awesome New Hope family here from the littlest to the eldest.
But there's been a "blueness" to this Christmas for me. So many memories of those who are gone. So many events that can never be repeated.
And yet...
When I listened to Adam's reaction the other night, something clicked in my soul.
It was as if God was telling me to grow up - into the real Christmas.
Not the one I remembered, that was centered on people - memories.
But the one that brought me Someone Who will never leave me. Someone who gave His very life for mine. Someone Who constantly is working in my life for my good. Someone who loves me more fiercely than anyone ever has or could.
It was as if God was telling me, isn't Jesus enough?
I'm embracing His peace today. I'm trusting in His mercy and grace for today and praying He'll give enough tomorrow. It took a four year olds little voice on a 25 year old recording to help me grow up into Christmas and realize that all I ever really wanted for Christmas is wrapped up in a person. And that person can sweep all my blues away into clouds of bright and beautiful joy.
He's what I hope you'll receive and treasure too.
Jesus.
Merry Christmas,
David
--
Visit with me at my blog:
http://davethepastor.vox.com/
Or visit New Hope!
http://www.newhopevalp.org/
An example:
Then one of them said, "About this time next year I will return, and your wife Sarah will have a son." Now Sarah was listening to this conversation from the tent nearby. And since Abraham and Sarah were both very old, and Sarah was long past the age of having children, she laughed silently to herself. "How could a worn-out woman like me have a baby?" she thought. "And when my master--my husband--is also so old?"
Then the LORD said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, 'Can an old woman like me have a baby?' Is anything too hard for the LORD? About a year from now, just as I told you, I will return, and Sarah will have a son." Sarah was afraid, so she denied that she had laughed. But he said, "That is not true. You did laugh." Gen 18:10-15 (NLT)
And
that's where it ends. We are left with a picture of a woman who doubts
that God can do what He says He will do, who laughs almost in His face
- is caught doing it, then denies it to His face.
Not a pretty picture.
We have several slogans around here at New Hope, but perhaps my favorite is a quote from an old saint named A.W. Tozer. I'm convinced it helped all of us as a church look past our doubts and focus on God's promises. Tozer wrote:
"Anything God has ever done, He can do now.
Anything He has ever done anywhere, He can do here.
Anything He has ever done for anyone, He can do for you."
Would Sarah have said that? Maybe not at first, but she did grow to believe God could. After the doubt, came a time of reflection, and a realization that God was able. Later we read:
Sarah, too, had faith, and because of this she was able to become a mother in spite of her old age, for she realized that God, who gave her his promise, would certainly do what he said. Heb 11:11 (Living)
But some of us need to.
Embrace the idea that God loves you, and that He can do whatever He needs to do to help you see that.
He can lift you when you are weak.
He can still your heart when you are fearful.
He can demonstrate His power anyway He chooses.
I'm a mess.
I'm nothing and have nothing:
make something of me.
You can do it;
you've got what it takes-
but God,
don't put it off.
Psalm 40:17 The Message
Today is Ash Wednesday. Millions of Jesus-followers will journey to churches, cathedrals, and homes to join with others in hearing just how fleeting this life is. The palm fronds from last year's pre-Easter celebrations will have been burned to ashes. Those ashes will be applied to foreheads of believers and the admonition to each of them given "from dust you came and to dust you will return."
So begins the 40 days of Lent.
For some, it is a wake-up call to the reality of life. They stop and pause to consider. They decide to voluntarily abstain from something within their normal life patterns that they will both notice and miss. That means that if I decide to observe Lent to prepare for Easter, I cannot voluntarily give up asparagus. Or pickled beets. It has to be something of a sacrificial nature. I have to decide to forgo a little something of what makes me... me.
Others are busy in the celebration of grace in Jesus. They've tasted the glory of being known exactly as who they were - dead to God, and are reveling in the live made anew through Jesus. Every day is a new adventure in grace. Every time they gather for worship, the praises ring forth. For them, practices such as Lent are archaic. They are living life to the full, and Lent is a reminder of dying.
I get that. I'm a grace-guy.
But every year, Lent is like the alarm clock's incessant call from your bedroom, even though you've been up about the day's business for hours. You can get frustrated by it, or reminded that time is passing, whether you know it or not. For me, it's a reminder of the cost of my salvation. That a righteous man was beaten and nailed to a cross for my sins. So every year, though I know the resurrection is true, my sins are forgiven, and my position as a child of God is secure, it calls.
The walk to the cross begins. Come.
Grace!
David
--
Visit with me at my blogs:
http://davethepastor.vox.com/
Or visit New Hope!
http://www.newhopevalp.org/
http://www.mychurch.org/newhope
It was the end of the day. I was wrapping things up and preparing to head down to the post office, to mail something I had sold on ebay the Friday before. That's another way of saying that I knew I was late and should have done it the day before. Maybe even two days before.
Ever have that happen to you?
What's your attitude like in those cases?
Are you at your best?
Uh huh..
So two men come walking toward my office. Right away I think, "I'm going to be late". Then, "I'll bet they want something". Then as I saw the second man more clearly, "hope I'm not going to get mugged."
Paul and Robert entered my office as a study in contrasts. Paul was short, dressed like a contractor, and Asian. He was polite, even formal as he began the conversation. Robert on the other hand was about 6'5", muscular, with his hair in a do-rag, tattoos covering his arms, and dressed in a holy tank top, grimy shorts, and work boots. His language was southern and colorful.
Paul introduced me to Robert, "our new brother in Christ." He explained that they had met at a fast food restaurant, and he had been privileged to lead Robert to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Paul's language was old school. He said things like "trusting in God's righteousness and not in anything Robert had done", "Christ's death provided the substitutionary atonement for Robert's sins" - it was like listening to an old tape from Lifeway. But it was real.
He had come by to have Robert testify to what God had done in his life, to see if we had any new Christian materials, and to see if we knew anyone heading to Gainesville, FL, or could help Robert get there.
I backed up and got Robert to tell me about himself, how he had come to today's decision, and where he thought it would lead him. He was open, honest, and refreshingly raw. So we rejoiced together, and then we tried to work on the Gainesville deal. I was able to supply the new Christian material, and got some food for Robert to carry on his journey. But I was at a loss on what to do next. Paul asked if he could use our phone.
He called his home (an hour west of us) and told his son to tell his mother that he'd be home late, he had to take his new brother, Robert home to Gainesville (5 hours east). he hung up and we walked toward the car. All the while Paul was explaining to Robert that this is how the Body of Christ works - one part can supply this need, and another takes care of others. They thanked me profusely, (all the while I'm thinking, what did I do?) and they left. Wouldn't accept my offer to fill the tank up - said the church could use it more.
I kept thinking about this Scripture:
Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.
Paul's incredible generosity, and his explanation to Robert, a new believer - basically said, "this is the way it's supposed to be - you have a need, and God has people supplied with what you need to take care of it."
And tomorrow I get to preach about how Paul found everything He needed in Jesus.
19 And
this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his
glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. Phil
4:19 (NLT)
Coincidence?
Don't make me laugh.
What an amazing God!
David
Don't really have a dog in the hunt, though I would like to see one of the Mannings win something, just once. But seeing millionaires run into each other is always fun.
It's just hard to relate. Played a lot of sports growing up, but football wasn't really my thing. Only tried it one year after a coach dragged me off the track. Gave it a pretty good shot, but when they posted the list of who made the team, my name wasn't on it. I didn't make the cut.
Somewhere in the media crush this past week, there was probably a story about someone who had the same experience, but went on to improve and excel, and finally wound up in the Super Bowl. No one wants to talk about the millions of guys who didn't. That's okay. It's only football. Yeah, I know. But earth to SITREP reader - there's a whole lot more to live for.
I was reading today about one guy who never would have made any football team. In fact, from what I could gather, he was a pretty sickly kid growing up. To make it worse, I think he was mostly raised by his mom and grandmother. But when someone was needed for really tough work, here's what I read:
I have no one quite like Timothy. He is loyal, and genuinely concerned for you. 21Most people around here are looking out for themselves, with little concern for the things of Jesus. 22But you know yourselves that Timothy's the real thing. He's been a devoted son to me as together we've delivered the Message.
You're going to hear this weekend about "role players". These are guys who may not come in but for a few downs in certain situations. But because they have special abilities no one else has, they are the difference-makers who may decide who wins or loses. Devin Hester for the Bears is one of them. His kick returning abilities have probably kept the Colts special teams coaching staff up late for two weeks. Dallas Clark for the Colts is a go-to guy for Manning who helps his team move the chains but gets little press compared to the glamor guys.
Well, God's team needs role players too. We need men who don't mind being seen caring for people. Men who love their wives, who raise their children to follow Jesus' way. Men who aren't interested in whether they get seen doing it either. They'd rather see Jesus get the credit.
Isn't it something that out of all the people - all the men Paul knew in Philippi, he only knew one who was loyal to Jesus, who really cared for people, and who was the real thing.
Only one man there made the cut.
What about you?
Are you willing to do whatever it takes to see lives changed, see families strengthened, see your church reach out a helping hand to those who need it?
Then let's get after it.
That's this week's situation report - SITREP.
David Wilson
Lead Pastor - New Hope
--
Visit with me at my blogs:
http://davethepastor.livejournal.com/
http://davethepastor.vox.com/
Or visit New Hope!
http://www.newhopevalp.org/
Letter to the church at Collosae Chapter 1: verse 1 (The Message Bible)
Ok, anyone else here read that and have a Blues Brothers flashback?
Just me? Must be the Taco Bell
You remember though, right? When John Belushi and Dan Akroyd tell the guy they are on a "mission from God"?
You'll be hearing a lot about "Men on a Mission" in the next week, with the Super Bowl coming up. The media will work hard trying to dig into player's private lives. They'll see if they can get one player to say something stupid so the other team can get some bulletin board fodder. "Will Peyton Manning finally get his Super Bowl ring?" "Can Rex Grossman play well enough for the Bears to win?"
And maybe, just maybe, you'll get to hear when Tony Dungy, head coach for the Colts, and Lovie Smith, the Head Coach for the Bears, talk about how they see their mission in life defined - not by wins and losses, even in the biggest game of all, but by God.
Tony's son James committed suicide a little over a year ago. Dungy said it was the hardest thing he has ever gone through.
"If God had talked to me before James' death and said his death would have helped all these people, it would have saved them and healed their sins, but I would have to take your son, I would have said no, I can't do that.
"But God had the same choice 2,000 years ago with His Son, Jesus Christ, and it paved the way for you and me to have eternal life. That's the benefit I got, that's the benefit James got and that's the benefit you can get if you accept Jesus into your heart today as your Savior."
Dungy said the biggest regret in his life is that when he saw his son for the last time during the Thanksgiving holidays, he did not hug him when he left but only gave him a causal goodbye.
He said he didn't want to have the same regret at the sold-out breakfast, as he led the crowd in prayer, asking those who did not have Jesus in their life to accept Him for the very first time.
"I want you to know there is a peace in your mind through God's spirit when you know Jesus and know you will be in heaven with Him."
Listen friend, you and I won't be playing in the Super Bowl. But we can win in a much bigger game - LIFE. To do that will take trusting God with everything we have. God won't turn you into less of a man - just the opposite. You'll be on His team.
You'll be a man on a mission... from God.
Go deep!
That's this week's Situation Report.
David Wilson
Lead Pastor - New Hope!
--
Visit with me at my blogs:
http://davethepastor.livejournal.com/
http://davethepastor.vox.com/
Or visit New Hope!
http://www.newhopevalp.org/
It's one of those memories that I'll never forget. But I'll bet if my father was still alive today and I asked him about that day, he almost certainly wouldn't remember. My father was born the son of a sharecropper on a truck farm near Sanford FL. He was one of those guys that never had anything handed to him.
He worked.
He worked on the farm including picking cotton.
He later worked in a cotton mill.
He worked as a mechanic on cars and later on aircraft engines.
And for fun, he liked to cut down trees. He did it until he was 80 years old.
After an auto accident that caused him to have a broken back, he received a settlement. He took that and did something no one in his family had ever done. He bought some land. 40 acres of it. It had been owned by a little old lady who could no longer take care of the place. In fact, when we went out to look at it, I can remember thinking "Is this house going to fall down?"
So he bought the land, put a trailer on it for us to live in, and started demolishing the house. My cousin Rick came out and helped some, and my brother and I did what we could. I was 9 and he was 6, so looking back, I'm figuring it must not really have been much help compared to what they did.
But this one day, we started pretty early, and because of it being summer, we worked until dark. When they ripped siding off the house, I carried it to a pile a couple hundred feet away. Then I went back for the next one. We took a break for lunch, but that was it. When the end of the day came, I was way past ready for it.
But walking back to the trailer with my father, my cousin and my little brother, I said something like "man, I am tired!"
Now remember, I was just cheap pick up and carry labor. My father and my cousin had been ripping off boards all day. I can still remember them laughing.
Then my father reached over and put his hand on my head and said, "But it's a good tired, isn't it son. You worked hard all day. You have a right to say you're tired."
The way he said it told me something.
That in the company of men, real men, it's not enough to go through the motions if you want to get their respect.
Can I give you a head's up? It's the same with true men of God.
Paul the apostle wrote this to a young guy named Timothy.
7 Stay clear of silly stories that get dressed up as religion. Exercise daily in God— no spiritual flabbiness, please! 8 Workouts in the gymnasium are useful, but a disciplined life in God is far more so, making you fit both today and forever. 9 You can count on this. Take it to heart. 1 Tim 4:7-9 (MSG)
Yeah, I know it gets old, picking up that Bible every day, going through that prayer list, turning away from the temptations all around.
Tough. Get back to work.
Christianity isn't one of those "silly stories". It takes work to change. As a 9 year old boy it meant something to me that two carpenters thought I had done a full days work.
What would the carpenter from Nazareth think about you?
That's this week's SIT-REP
David
--
Visit with me at my blogs:
http://davethepastor.livejournal.com/
http://davethepastor.vox.com/
Or visit New Hope!
http://www.newhopevalp.org/
Diamonds
Yeah I know. Those ads for diamonds are good. Real good. Every time one runs and Bunny and I are watching TV together, I always feel like I should run out and buy her one like that guy did for his wife in the commercial. I keep wondering if some guy can't come up with a commercial blocker just for them.
That kind of advertising was started years ago by a man named Harry Winston. Your wife probably knows who he is. Might be news to you that he is the "jeweler to the stars." Many celebrities wear his diamonds to the award shows like the Oscars each year, and apparently they drop in all year and pick up a few trinkets too.
I read a story this week about an instance where a customer came into Harry's shop. They were welcomed with all the style and grace that goes with selling million-dollar jewels, by the top salesperson in the store. He opened the case, and after laying a black velvet cloth on the top of it, placed diamond after diamond before the prospective buyer.
He then took each diamond in turn and told about their clarity, color, and cut. Then he suggested different mountings that would work well. The customer lingered over one diamond, but seemed to decide not to make a purchase. Thanking the salesperson, they began to walk away.
Harry Winston happened to be on the sales floor, and he walked over and introduced himself. He asked the customer about their experience and led them back to the diamond case. He took the diamond they had considered buying in his hand and told them just how much he loved it. How he could see it gleaming in the spotlight, reflecting its beauty and drawing everyone's eyes that way. Winston explained how a diamond like that one was one in a million. That every hand that had touched it had marveled at its brilliance, and that the diamond cutter didn't so much shape it as unveiled it in all its splendor.
The person wrote Winston a check for well into 6 figures.
Before leaving, he told Winston that he'd have never bought it except from him. "How did your salesperson get to be the top one here?"
"Well", said Winston, "That salesperson knows more about diamonds than any other person here, including me. He has worked in every position here, from buyer, to jeweler, and now salesperson. He really is well qualified."
"But he doesn't love diamonds. I do. I wish I could teach him that."
I want to be straight with you guys.
Nothing - nothing - nothing - can take the place of your real allegiance to and love for Jesus.
You can be a pastor, or deacon, or Sunday School teacher. You can have memorized books, know Hebrew and Greek, even carried Paul's backpack on his missionary journeys. (Kidding on that last one - you aren't THAT old)
But unless you've really given your whole life over to His direction and purpose, you're fooling yourself. So here's the Word.
So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life-your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life-and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Romans 12:1-2
Don't play at this. Cubic Zirconia diamonds aren't diamonds. Fake faith isn't life-giving faith.
That's this week's SITREP.
David Wilson
Lead Pastor - New Hope!
One of the greatest things that has been created in my lifetime is the Internet. Having lived in the years of card catalogs and interlibrary loans, I can testify that having the sheer volume of information available quickly is quite a blessing. However, as the digital neighborhood has grown, so has the tendency for some of the neighbors to let their pit bulls roam free. They are called worms, adware, spyware, or just plain viruses (ok virii). In a manner of moments, they can reduce that new Core-Duo 3+ gigahertz machine to a crawl, and have you blubbering like a baby.
Sometimes, they come on their own, being attached to a file you might have received, or hidden in a macro (program) that runs when you open another file. Most of the time your anti-virus and spyware checker (you DO have those and update them regularly don't you?) take care of those. By far the most dangerous are those where the user takes some action to cause the rogue program to have access to their PC.
It could be you clicked on a link in an email from your bank (or so you thought) saying you needed to update your information. Or it could have been that free screen saver or browser toolbar that did you in. But somewhere down the line you took an action that let the wolves inside the sheepfold. And once they come in, they'll prop the gate open for their friends.
The consequences can range from annoyance - you have to run a removal tool, to aggravation - you have to restore or recover your system, all the way to a frightful cost - your personal information has been stolen and used to harm your credit, your bank account, or your good name.
You don't want to return to pre-internet days, or go all goofy and buy a Mac, so what do you do?
Make sure you are protected by a good virus shield, spyware checker, and a strong firewall. (Ask me, I can point you in the right direction) Then think as you surf, taking care to make sure every action you do can cause no harm. If you are in doubt, don't do it. If you can follow those simple guidelines, you'll have very little chance of being infected.
Funny, now that I think of it, the apostle Paul gave the same sort of instructions concerning our souls when he wrote:
12 Just because something is technically legal doesn't mean that it's spiritually appropriate. If I went around doing whatever I thought I could get by with, I'd be a slave to my whims.1 Cor 6:12 (MSG)
If you're a guy, this is an area you are tested on again and again.
"Hey, she's hot!" "I deserve it. After all, I'm the breadwinner." "No one will ever know. After all, what happens in ____ stays in ____. "
Yeah, yeah.
Technically, you could see a woman and admire what God had created in His image. But you know what lust is.
Technically, you're right. When a man works hard and takes care of his family, it's great if we can get that XR550 or whatever.
But spiritually, we answer to God for everything. Thoughts, words and actions. And if we lean in the direction of sin, we often wind up falling. It's like clicking on that link you got in an email, just to see. Then, INFECTED!!!!
WE are the virus. Our pride and our selfish nature leads us to go against what God would have us do. When we don't resist those tendencies through the power of the Holy Spirit, or perhaps more accurately, when we abuse our freedom to choose, we open the door not just for that one sin, but for the next one, and the next.
Decide today that in every thought, word, and action you will submit to God's direction.
That's this week's situation report.
Your friend,
David Wilson
Lead Pastor, New Hope!
--
Visit with me at my blogs:
http://davethepastor.livejournal.com/
http://davethepastor.vox.com/
Or visit New Hope!
http://www.newhopevalp.org/
The other day I was working at home, trying to get ready for Wednesday night's small group study. The ideas were coming to me one after another, and I was really making progress.
So much progress that I took a break.
Just then, Bunny asked me to do something for her. I don't remember what it was, but I remember making a big deal about it.
"I've got to get ready for tonight, you know that." Pretty lame excuse to be lazy.
Was it technically true? Yes it was. But when she asked, I was taking a break, and a little voice inside was telling me, "you are always telling people to serve God through serving other people."
I told the little voice, "I don't really care to hear that right now - what else you got?"
I got up and did it eventually, but I really wanted to make a mental note not to listen to any more voices.
But then I remembered this verse:
The LORD says, "I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you."
Psalms 32:8 (NLT)
See, reading the
Bible can be hazardous to your efforts to have it all your way. I had
just read that verse the day before. Funny how God just sort of had
that reappear. Wish He'd do that with my hair.
Bottom line here is this: I don't know about you guys, but
when God rings me up, I'm going to answer His call - small voice or thunder - doesn't matter.
Why? Simple...
I need guidance. Not from someone who may be as wrong as I can be, but from someone who has it together - who knows the score.
I need an adviser
who not only knows what I face every day, but who knows what He has to work with - me.
My fluctuating faith bears watching
, and I need someone who is never asleep on the job.
And more than anything else, I want to walk God's pathway for my life. I want the best.
Question is - Do you?
Then take the time to get in touch with God every day. Make sure you're ready to hear whatever His Spirit has to say - when He says it. That'll take some disciplined effort. Good. Wouldn't be worth it if it came easy. Takes courage to admit you need some help and strength to grab hold of God's offer and take it.
Man up! - follow Jesus.
That's this weeks Situation Report - SITREP. (SITREP is a thought provoker oriented toward men and the challenges we face as we follow Jesus.)
Have a great Christmas!
David Wilson
Lead Pastor, New Hope Valparaiso FL
Visit with me at my blogs:
http://davethepastor.livejournal.com/
http://davethepastor.vox.com/
Or visit New Hope!
http://www.newhopevalp.org/
