Back to the Basics

I've heard people from time to time say, "we need to get back to the basics". When asked to define what the basics are many definitions surface. A lot of times people define the "basics" as their own personal preferences. However, I do think the basics are not only needed but necessary. What basics do I mean? I think Ed Young does a great job of describing it here.

Who's growing what?

"So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth."

1 Corinthians 3:7 (English Standard Version)

We get so caught up a lot of times on what we are producing. "I have to do this or it won't get done." "If I don't do it no one will." It can become as if we don't think God is actually at work. It's almost as if He has left everything up to us to accomplish here on earth. However, I keep being reminded in God's Word that it is not about me.

God is the one who makes things grow (physically, spiritually, mentally, etc.). He invites me to play a part in it. I may get to water or plant a seed or maybe even be present for the harvest but it is God that does the actual growing. If I don't play a part God will use some one else in the process. He does NOT need me. He wants me. So that we walk in this process NOT out of obligation but out of the privilege of being used by the Almighty God of the Universe.

What is God inviting you to be a part of today?

Monday morning thoughts

• Yesterday's service was "off the chain"! Terry brought a great message, the music was flowing, the people were celebrating and the food was good and plentiful.
• We saw at least 16 people baptized between the two churches yesterday. Yeah God!
• We are seeing groups come together for Bible study and fellowship more and more throughout the church. Who knows what all God is up to...
• I found out that an MP3 player does not fair well in the washing machine.
• A 3 year old IS able to sleep through the night without waking Mommy or Daddy...now if we can do this on a consistent basis...
• Next weeks sermon is going to be a mind-bender. We are going to look at money and finances in a way that I have never preached before. Come next week and check it out.
• Going to a birthday luncheon today...Happy Birthday Uncle Robert!

Random stuff

Here's some links and random thoughts for the day...enjoy.

• Here's some special words about the flow of life here.


• John Ortberg answers who the Spirit is up to here.


• Read Phillipians chapter one today. Ask yourself, "Is the Apostle Paul thankful for the individuals in his life or the work of Christ that he sees in others around him?"
• This coming Sunday we are going to see people baptized! That is Awesome!
• Happy Birthday today MOM!!!!

The Chasing Song

We all chase something in our lives. We chase deadlines. We chase toddlers. We chase dreams. We chase each other. Today God reminded me that even in the midst of my chasing everthing HE chased me and caught me and loves me and will not let go.

Here is a song by Andrew Peterson that I think sums up a lot of what I'm trying to say today. Enjoy.

Isaiah 48:18

Isaiah 48:18 (English Standard Version)
18 "Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea;"

God's commands lead to a river type of life. Obedience allows us to flow and be active and be refreshed. A river moves, constantly flushing the impurities and making room for fresh water. Your righteousness will keep beating the shores of life...over and over again. Only God can stop the waves.

The more we obey God's commands the bigger the river...the mightier the wave. If we are seeing little flow or little waves in our lives then we need to ask...is there somewhere or something in our lives that we need to repent of?

God has called us to an intentional life of impact. The BEST way to live that kind of life is to flow with God's Spirit. Now how much impact we are allowed to make seems to be directly linked with how much we obey God's commands. How much we obey God's commands is directly linked with how much we believe God is worth obeying.

What do you believe about God today?
Is He worth obeying?

another quick quote

I know I haven't written much lately and today is no exception. However, I did want to at least offer another quote I came across this week that I really liked. Here it is for pondering...

"He didn't choose you to lose you." -T.D. Jakes

Brief Quote of the Day

“If we're growing, we're always going to be out of our comfort zone.”
John Maxwell

Are you growing today?

Tuesday Morning reflect

I hope everyone had a great day yesterday. We took advantage of Chick-fil-a's free chicken sandwich offer for lunch and loved it so much we almost went back for supper. You gotta love the cow!!!

Sunday's service was a little low in number. A lot of people taking advantage of the Labor Day weekend. I hope and pray you all have been able to take advantage of a little more family time this weekend. We had a great service. The music was hummin' and God worked despite my state of sleep deprivation.

Speaking of which, Micah had his two week check up today and he is healthy and strong. He seems to be changing by the hour. I look at Natalie right now and find it hard to believe that 3 short years ago she was that small.

In any case, enough rambling. Here are some cool links for you to check out today.

• Perry once again has another great, humbling post on leadership here.
• Tomorrow is the free online leadership conference "The Nines". Check out the info here.
• Here's a quote from Duke Ellington-"The most important thing I look for in a musician is whether he knows how to listen."
• Clayton challenges with the use of boundaries here.

Have a great day!!!

dead vs. alive

“A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.”
G. K. Chesterton

Sometimes I think..."I would just like to go with the flow and see where I end up." The only problem is this is anti-biblical thinking. Throughout the Bible God calls us to "intentional" living. Jesus was the perfect and most visible example of this. Everywhere He went He was intentional about who He was with and what He was doing. No matter the circumstances Jesus' message of love and grace and the mightiness of God was consistent.

The Apostle Paul wrote..."And you were dead in the trespasses and sins"..."But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved" (Ephesians 2).

As a child of God we have been placed into a reality that allows us to be intentional. Alive with Christ. If nothing else, I want to be so intentional about praising His name that I don't have time to worry about floating down a river of circumstance.

Prayer quote

"One can believe intellectually in the efficacy of prayer and never do any praying. "
--Catherine Marshall

Wow! That one can hurt if you have just identified with it. I'm realizing that a lot of times people are most offended by something if that is what they struggle with. For example, if the above quote just made you squirm a little it may be because you need to pray. I know I never pray enough. If you can honestly you pray a sufficient amount in your life then I have to question if you are really praying. C.S. Lewis said that he prayed because the "need flowed" out of him. The more you commune with God in prayer the more you realize He is God and you are not and that is the way it's supposed to be. You can believe in prayer all you want but until you commune with a holy, living God in prayer you are missing out on one of the greatest privileges we have in this universe.

"There is a mighty lot of difference between saying prayers and praying."
--John G. Lake

Dear Father,
Please show us today how we may so wrapped up in prayer that we hear Your heartbeat, see Your visions, and feel Your presence. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Amen

College Freshmen

Beloit College has released their latest "mindset list" for the incoming class of college freshmen this year. Here are some highlights...or low lights for some of us.

• The Green Giant has always been Shrek, not the big guy picking vegetables.
• They have never had to "shake down" an oral thermometer.
• Bobby Cox has always managed the Atlanta Braves.
• There has always been a Cartoon Network.
• They have never been "Saved by the Bell"
• Everyone has always known what the evening news was before the Evening news came on.
• There has always been a computer in the Oval Office.

For the entire list you can check it out here.