Today (Tuesday) is the 14th of Nisan on the Jewish calendar. Doesn’t mean anything to you? Think back to the time of Moses… and the long, drawn out series of events that led up to Pharaoh’s release of the Hebrew people from bondage in Egypt. It was on the 14th of Nisan when God had instructed them about the Passover meal and about the blood over the doorpost that would signal their faithfulness to His will. Imagine the excitement, fear, and anticipation the Israelites must have felt that night so many centuries ago as they were preparing to leave slavery in Egypt. What strange circumstances they were witnessing (as described in Exodus 12)! Smearing blood above and on the sides of door frames? Packing light for a middle-of-the-night journey? Gifts of gold and silver from their Egyptian masters who had treated them with such contempt and hatred for so long?
One of the names used in the Bible to refer to the LORD is "Jehovah-Jireh" which roughly translates "my Provider." What a fitting reference for the escape from bondage! He provided everything they needed before, during, and after their journey. That night, when the cries and wailing increased exponentially all over the land of Egypt as mothers and fathers began discovering the fulfillment of God's promised plague to kill the firstborn, the Israelites needed one last little detail to help them on their journey. Just a little something that only God could provide: some extra light for their journey until daylight comes. How did God provide for this need? With a full moon!
On Tuesday night - on this year's 14 Nisan - go outside after dark and observe the full moon that God provides. If the sky is clear of clouds, you can just imagine how much that extra amount of light must have helped Moses and the Israelites "get out of town" in an efficient and orderly manner (before Pharaoh changed his mind and took his army to pursue them)! That same Provider also takes care of us today.
What an amazing story of redemption, huh? What a Provider!
(Thanks to Mark Clark for these thoughts!)
Resurrection Sunday!
We have a great opportunity before us this Sunday to celebrate and praise Jehovah-Jireh… God, our Provider! For it was on a cold, Roman cross many years following those days in Egypt when God would completely fulfill the promise of Passover and provide the perfect Lamb… once and for all time… to shed his own blood… the blood that would cleanse His people from their sins. But the story doesn’t end there! If it did, it would be a moving story… but there would be no victory. There would just be death. On the third day after Jesus’ crucifixion, his body went missing. The tomb was found empty. His followers were dumbfounded. They soon came to realize that his body wasn’t stolen… he had risen… just as he had said that he would! We’ll celebrate that resurrection this Sunday as we do every Lord’s day… and we’ll remember the provision God made for sin. In Christ, there is victory because of what God provided! In Christ, there is life! Invite a friend to come and celebrate with us this Sunday!
--Jim
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
Dear Friend
This is from MaxLucado.com and I couldn't help but share it...
Dear Friend
by Max Lucado
Dear Friend,
I’m writing to say thanks. I wish I could thank you personally, but I don’t know where you are. I wish I could call you, but I don’t know your name. If I knew your appearance, I’d look for you, but your face is fuzzy in my memory. But I’ll never forget what you did.
There you were, leaning against your pickup in the West Texas oil field. An engineer of some sort. A supervisor on the job. Your khakis and clean shirt set you apart from us roustabouts. In the oil field pecking order, we were at the bottom. You were the boss. We were the workers. You read the blueprints. We dug the ditches. You inspected the pipe. We laid it. You ate with the bosses in the shed. We ate with each other in the shade.
Except that day.
I remember wondering why you did it.
We weren’t much to look at. What wasn’t sweaty was oily. Faces burnt from the sun; skin black from the grease. Didn’t bother me, though. I was there only for the summer. A high-school boy earning good money laying pipe.
We weren’t much to listen to, either. Our language was sandpaper coarse. After lunch, we’d light the cigarettes and begin the jokes. Someone always had a deck of cards with lacy-clad girls on the back. For thirty minutes in the heat of the day, the oil patch became Las Vegas—replete with foul language, dirty stories, blackjack, and barstools that doubled as lunch pails.
In the middle of such a game, you approached us. I thought you had a job for us that couldn’t wait another few minutes. Like the others, I groaned when I saw you coming.
You were nervous. You shifted your weight from one leg to the other as you began to speak.
“Uh, fellows,” you started.
We turned and looked up at you.
“I, uh, I just wanted, uh, to invite … ”
You were way out of your comfort zone. I had no idea what you might be about to say, but I knew that it had nothing to do with work.
“I just wanted to tell you that, uh, our church is having a service tonight and, uh … ”
“What?” I couldn’t believe it. “He’s talking church? Out here? With us?”
“I wanted to invite any of you to come along.”
Silence. Screaming silence.
Several guys stared at the dirt. A few shot glances at the others. Snickers rose just inches from the surface.
“Well, that’s it. Uh, if any of you want to go … uh, let me know.”
After you turned and left, we turned and laughed. We called you “reverend,” “preacher,” and “the pope.” We poked fun at each other, daring one another to go. You became the butt of the day’s jokes.
I’m sure you knew that. I’m sure you went back to your truck knowing the only good you’d done was to make a good fool out of yourself. If that’s what you thought, then you were wrong.
That’s the reason for this letter.
Some five years later, a college sophomore was struggling with a decision. He had drifted from the faith given to him by his parents. He wanted to come back. He wanted to come home. But the price was high. His friends might laugh. His habits would have to change. His reputation would have to be overcome.
Could he do it? Did he have the courage?
That’s when I thought of you. As I sat in my dorm room late one night, looking for the guts to do what I knew was right, I thought of you.
I thought of how your love for God had been greater than your love for your reputation.
I thought of how your obedience had been greater than your common sense.
I remembered how you had cared more about making disciples than about making a good first impression. And when I thought of you, your memory became my motivation.
So I came home.
I’ve told your story dozens of times to thousands of people. Each time the reaction is the same: The audience becomes a sea of smiles, and heads bob in understanding. Some smile because they think of the “clean-shirted engineers” in their lives. They remember the neighbor who brought the cake, the aunt who wrote the letter, the teacher who listened …
Others smile because they have done what you did. And they, too, wonder if their “lunchtime loyalty” was worth the effort.
You wondered that. What you did that day wasn’t much. And I’m sure you walked away that day thinking that your efforts had been wasted.
They weren’t.
So I’m writing to say thanks. Thanks for the example. Thanks for the courage. Thanks for giving your lunch to God. He did something with it; it became the Bread of Life for me.
Gratefully,
Max
P.S. If by some remarkable coincidence you read this and remember that day, please give me a call. I owe you lunch.
From In the Eye of the Storm
Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 1997) Max Lucado
Dear Friend
by Max Lucado
Dear Friend,
I’m writing to say thanks. I wish I could thank you personally, but I don’t know where you are. I wish I could call you, but I don’t know your name. If I knew your appearance, I’d look for you, but your face is fuzzy in my memory. But I’ll never forget what you did.
There you were, leaning against your pickup in the West Texas oil field. An engineer of some sort. A supervisor on the job. Your khakis and clean shirt set you apart from us roustabouts. In the oil field pecking order, we were at the bottom. You were the boss. We were the workers. You read the blueprints. We dug the ditches. You inspected the pipe. We laid it. You ate with the bosses in the shed. We ate with each other in the shade.
Except that day.
I remember wondering why you did it.
We weren’t much to look at. What wasn’t sweaty was oily. Faces burnt from the sun; skin black from the grease. Didn’t bother me, though. I was there only for the summer. A high-school boy earning good money laying pipe.
We weren’t much to listen to, either. Our language was sandpaper coarse. After lunch, we’d light the cigarettes and begin the jokes. Someone always had a deck of cards with lacy-clad girls on the back. For thirty minutes in the heat of the day, the oil patch became Las Vegas—replete with foul language, dirty stories, blackjack, and barstools that doubled as lunch pails.
In the middle of such a game, you approached us. I thought you had a job for us that couldn’t wait another few minutes. Like the others, I groaned when I saw you coming.
You were nervous. You shifted your weight from one leg to the other as you began to speak.
“Uh, fellows,” you started.
We turned and looked up at you.
“I, uh, I just wanted, uh, to invite … ”
You were way out of your comfort zone. I had no idea what you might be about to say, but I knew that it had nothing to do with work.
“I just wanted to tell you that, uh, our church is having a service tonight and, uh … ”
“What?” I couldn’t believe it. “He’s talking church? Out here? With us?”
“I wanted to invite any of you to come along.”
Silence. Screaming silence.
Several guys stared at the dirt. A few shot glances at the others. Snickers rose just inches from the surface.
“Well, that’s it. Uh, if any of you want to go … uh, let me know.”
After you turned and left, we turned and laughed. We called you “reverend,” “preacher,” and “the pope.” We poked fun at each other, daring one another to go. You became the butt of the day’s jokes.
I’m sure you knew that. I’m sure you went back to your truck knowing the only good you’d done was to make a good fool out of yourself. If that’s what you thought, then you were wrong.
That’s the reason for this letter.
Some five years later, a college sophomore was struggling with a decision. He had drifted from the faith given to him by his parents. He wanted to come back. He wanted to come home. But the price was high. His friends might laugh. His habits would have to change. His reputation would have to be overcome.
Could he do it? Did he have the courage?
That’s when I thought of you. As I sat in my dorm room late one night, looking for the guts to do what I knew was right, I thought of you.
I thought of how your love for God had been greater than your love for your reputation.
I thought of how your obedience had been greater than your common sense.
I remembered how you had cared more about making disciples than about making a good first impression. And when I thought of you, your memory became my motivation.
So I came home.
I’ve told your story dozens of times to thousands of people. Each time the reaction is the same: The audience becomes a sea of smiles, and heads bob in understanding. Some smile because they think of the “clean-shirted engineers” in their lives. They remember the neighbor who brought the cake, the aunt who wrote the letter, the teacher who listened …
Others smile because they have done what you did. And they, too, wonder if their “lunchtime loyalty” was worth the effort.
You wondered that. What you did that day wasn’t much. And I’m sure you walked away that day thinking that your efforts had been wasted.
They weren’t.So I’m writing to say thanks. Thanks for the example. Thanks for the courage. Thanks for giving your lunch to God. He did something with it; it became the Bread of Life for me.
Gratefully,
Max
P.S. If by some remarkable coincidence you read this and remember that day, please give me a call. I owe you lunch.
From In the Eye of the Storm
Copyright (Thomas Nelson, 1997) Max Lucado
Monday, March 1, 2010
New Sermon Series Begins Sunday…. “God”
Christian author A. W. Tozer once wrote, “…the gravest question before the Church is always God Himself, and the most portentous fact about any man is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like.” In other words, who we think God to be says a lot about who we are. I would go even further and suggest that a lot of the problems we have as fallen creatures stem from an improper or low view of God. We sin because we hold God in the improper regard. We are dysfunctional because God isn’t holy enough in our minds.I wonder if we think of God with the right respect or the right amount of awe? Francis Chan has challenged me on this. I've recently discovered his books, "Crazy Love" and "Forgotten God" and I've become a Chan fan! He suggests that much of our frustration with church and with living the Christian life in general comes from not understanding who God is.
Over the next few weeks we’ll be taking some time to explore God together… who he is… his character and his attributes. And we’ll ask the most important question, “If God is all of this, then how should I respond to him? What difference does it make in my life?” Join us as we ponder together our awesome, eternal and loving God!
Monday, January 18, 2010
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Healing Hands in Haiti
The pictures and the stories which are coming to us from Haiti are just heartbreaking. If you're like me, you've watched the news in horror at the devastation that this past week's earthquake has wreaked on that small, poverty-stricken country. Many wonder "Where is God in all of this" or "How could God let this happen to such a poor people?"
I, too, ask those questions and sure don't have all the answers. But I've also noticed another thing.... God's people mobilizing to help. All over the news you hear stories of people who are there to help, who are pulling people from the rubble, who are offering water, food and assistance in whatever way they can... and they are Christians! While governments and militaries scramble to get supplies on the ground, while beauracrats meet and write legislation to send money... Christians are already on the ground doing God's thing... helping.
I was struck by an ABC news report earlier this week that highlighted the efforts of many missionaries who were there to help. And they were there BEFORE the earthquake even hit. ABC said that the charities which are already there working and ministering to the people are the best hope. It will take weeks for the UN and the governments from around the world to organize sufficiently to actually be able to deliver and distribute much-needed supplies. But so many Christian organizations and churches are already there and set up to help. Is that what God is doing in Haiti? Are people from around the world witnessing God's people at work? Is God getting the glory for that? (he gets the blame for so much else, doesn't he?)
Healing Hands is one such organization which is already on the ground and working hard to help. Recently featured on a Fox News report from Nashville... it is an excellent organization if you would like to be a part of helping Haiti. They are supported by churches of Christ all over the country and are first-rate in their ability to deliver aid and assistance in times such as this. You can read about them here. www.hhi.org and donate online if you would like.
Also, check out the Fox News report... http://www.fox17.com/newsroom/top_stories/mywx_vid_2526.shtml
--Jim
I, too, ask those questions and sure don't have all the answers. But I've also noticed another thing.... God's people mobilizing to help. All over the news you hear stories of people who are there to help, who are pulling people from the rubble, who are offering water, food and assistance in whatever way they can... and they are Christians! While governments and militaries scramble to get supplies on the ground, while beauracrats meet and write legislation to send money... Christians are already on the ground doing God's thing... helping.
I was struck by an ABC news report earlier this week that highlighted the efforts of many missionaries who were there to help. And they were there BEFORE the earthquake even hit. ABC said that the charities which are already there working and ministering to the people are the best hope. It will take weeks for the UN and the governments from around the world to organize sufficiently to actually be able to deliver and distribute much-needed supplies. But so many Christian organizations and churches are already there and set up to help. Is that what God is doing in Haiti? Are people from around the world witnessing God's people at work? Is God getting the glory for that? (he gets the blame for so much else, doesn't he?)
Healing Hands is one such organization which is already on the ground and working hard to help. Recently featured on a Fox News report from Nashville... it is an excellent organization if you would like to be a part of helping Haiti. They are supported by churches of Christ all over the country and are first-rate in their ability to deliver aid and assistance in times such as this. You can read about them here. www.hhi.org and donate online if you would like.
Also, check out the Fox News report... http://www.fox17.com/newsroom/top_stories/mywx_vid_2526.shtml
--Jim
Monday, January 4, 2010
Cover to Cover... don't close the book just yet!
What a great year we have had in God’s Word through our Cover to Cover campaign! It was just twelve short months ago that we challenged each other to read through the Bible together from beginning to end throughout the year. I can’t believe that the year is over! If you were like me, you were catching up and finishing up the last few chapters of Revelation on New Years Eve (maybe even up with Dick Clark) in order to be able to say that you finished in a year. Congratulations! As I said on Sunday, though, if you got behind and haven’t quite finished yet… don’t be discouraged. Keep reading. Keep studying. The reward is in the reading… not in finishing first.I’m interested in hearing from each of you about your experience, especially if you had never read through the whole Bible from start to finish before. What did you get the most benefit from in your reading? What were your toughest challenges? How were you blessed? I can tell you several things. I was especially intrigued by the prophets. I have to say that I had never spent much time in the prophets and found them to be full of insights and challenging things that I needed to hear. I made many mental notes to myself to return to those neglected parts of Scripture… so many lessons for us today! When I got to the much more familiar territory of the New Testament, I decided to read it in a different translation. I selected the New Living Translation and found it to be a wonderful way to hear God’s Word afresh. I found myself constantly going back and forth with other versions and it helped me make so much more sense out of what I was reading… and I got a lot more out of it. I’m going to pick another translation and do it again sometime.
What a wonderful sense of accomplishment in finishing… but let me urge you… don’t close the book! God continues to speak and continues to instruct through his Word. That’s the wonderful thing about the Bible… it seems that no matter how many times I have read something, I always find something new. There were points this year when I thought, “When did God stick THAT in there? That wasn’t there the last time, was it?” Well, of course it was… it was only that I hadn’t seen it before. So, don’t put the book down! Don’t close it up! Keep reading… keep seeking God. He will continue to reward you with fresh new insights. Many have asked me what we are going to do next. What will be the next challenge before us? I hope to share a bit about a new challenge as we move into a new year in this Sunday’s message… so be sure to be with us on Sunday. And don’t forget to let me know how your reading blessed you… comment below.
God bless,
Jim
Friday, December 18, 2009
A Christmas Message from our house to yours!
[caption id="attachment_475" align="alignright" width="225" caption="Merry Christmas!"]
[/caption]
Wow… it seems like only a little while ago that I sat down to write our annual “Christmas letter.” This has been something of a tradition for me now for a number of years, but I can’t believe how fast this last one has flown by! Looking back and thinking on all of the things we have done and all of the ways God has blessed us… I can’t imagine now how we squeezed it all in… in what seems like such a short period of time. God has been good to us once again this year and for that we are so thankful!
The kids are growing up fast! It sounds like such a cliche, but it's SO true. I can’t believe Andy is already in the 4th grade. I learned it’s quite a step up from 3rd. Friends had been warning us about the big 4th grade project, the Tennessee State Notebook, ever since he started school at Riverside and boy, were they right! What a project! We all learned a lot… and I mean ALL of us. It was “all hands on deck” to get it finished and we were all thankful to complete it. IF we can make it through the rest of 4th grade, 5th should be a “cinch”, right? David is in the 2nd grade and absolutely loves to go to school. He was sick last week and actually moped around the house complaining about not getting to go to school. He did NOT get this from me! Michael loves making friends and thoroughly enjoys just about everything he does, including “Mrs. Christy’s” Kindergarten class. He absolutely lives life to the full, as most of you know. You can usually hear him coming and you certainly know when he has arrived. After having all three of the boys over the years, Mrs. Christy is probably thinking of retiring. I’m convinced Kindergarten teachers should get combat pay.
The boys certainly keep us busy. All three played baseball over the summer and so most nights you could find us at the ball park. This Fall, Andy decided to hang up his football jersey for the time being (I didn’t argue) while David and Michael filled up our time with their soccer games and practices. Now, David and Andy are gearing up for Jr. Pro basketball… a first for us, so we’ll see how it goes. Celeste continues to enjoy teaching at Riverside. She took on more Bible classes this year plus a Health & Wellness class. The middle school girls love her. I can’t believe that I just started my 9th year as pulpit minister at Washington Street. I continue to be thankful (and a little amazed) that the folks still put up with me and still let me speak to them every week. They have enriched our lives in so many ways. I am just as excited about our future at Washington Street as ever!
Speaking of growth… in case you hadn’t heard (or noticed) we are looking forward to a little more growth of our own in the coming year. For those of you keeping score, it looks like #4 will be arriving sometime in mid April. This reaffirms my theological theory that God indeed has a sense of humor! I’m sure having a new baby at home won’t shake things up too terribly much. In fact, we’re having quite the “baby boom” at church this next year and we’re looking forward to ours having a great group of kids to grow up with. As we look anxiously to a new year, we sincerely pray God’s richest blessings on all of you for a happy and healthy 2010. Oh, and by the way, in case you were wondering, the doctors have told us it’s a… BOY!!!
(is anybody really surprised?)
[/caption]Wow… it seems like only a little while ago that I sat down to write our annual “Christmas letter.” This has been something of a tradition for me now for a number of years, but I can’t believe how fast this last one has flown by! Looking back and thinking on all of the things we have done and all of the ways God has blessed us… I can’t imagine now how we squeezed it all in… in what seems like such a short period of time. God has been good to us once again this year and for that we are so thankful!
The kids are growing up fast! It sounds like such a cliche, but it's SO true. I can’t believe Andy is already in the 4th grade. I learned it’s quite a step up from 3rd. Friends had been warning us about the big 4th grade project, the Tennessee State Notebook, ever since he started school at Riverside and boy, were they right! What a project! We all learned a lot… and I mean ALL of us. It was “all hands on deck” to get it finished and we were all thankful to complete it. IF we can make it through the rest of 4th grade, 5th should be a “cinch”, right? David is in the 2nd grade and absolutely loves to go to school. He was sick last week and actually moped around the house complaining about not getting to go to school. He did NOT get this from me! Michael loves making friends and thoroughly enjoys just about everything he does, including “Mrs. Christy’s” Kindergarten class. He absolutely lives life to the full, as most of you know. You can usually hear him coming and you certainly know when he has arrived. After having all three of the boys over the years, Mrs. Christy is probably thinking of retiring. I’m convinced Kindergarten teachers should get combat pay.
The boys certainly keep us busy. All three played baseball over the summer and so most nights you could find us at the ball park. This Fall, Andy decided to hang up his football jersey for the time being (I didn’t argue) while David and Michael filled up our time with their soccer games and practices. Now, David and Andy are gearing up for Jr. Pro basketball… a first for us, so we’ll see how it goes. Celeste continues to enjoy teaching at Riverside. She took on more Bible classes this year plus a Health & Wellness class. The middle school girls love her. I can’t believe that I just started my 9th year as pulpit minister at Washington Street. I continue to be thankful (and a little amazed) that the folks still put up with me and still let me speak to them every week. They have enriched our lives in so many ways. I am just as excited about our future at Washington Street as ever!
Speaking of growth… in case you hadn’t heard (or noticed) we are looking forward to a little more growth of our own in the coming year. For those of you keeping score, it looks like #4 will be arriving sometime in mid April. This reaffirms my theological theory that God indeed has a sense of humor! I’m sure having a new baby at home won’t shake things up too terribly much. In fact, we’re having quite the “baby boom” at church this next year and we’re looking forward to ours having a great group of kids to grow up with. As we look anxiously to a new year, we sincerely pray God’s richest blessings on all of you for a happy and healthy 2010. Oh, and by the way, in case you were wondering, the doctors have told us it’s a… BOY!!!
(is anybody really surprised?)
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