Awkward silence filled the room. None of us wanted to be there. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we found ourselves huddled in a very small room. We made small talk for awhile. Eventually small talk subsided into silence. Silent waiting for the inevitable. We waited in a holding room for Turner's ACL reconstruction surgery. I prayed for him, wishing all the time, we did not even have to be there.
I watched Turner. Always a happy go lucky son with a tremendous attitude. In the beginning, he chatted nervously. As the time drew near, we all got quiet. Watching my son I wished he did not have to go through the surgery. I sat helpless to keep the pain and the long grueling recovery from him. Turner has said all along that tests make testimonies. I have heard him say he counts it a joy to be counted worthy to suffer this for the Lord. His eyes remain on Jesus and has not wavered since the night in October when he first got injured missing half of his junior season.
I might have felt helpless to do anything to protect my son, but Turner is not hopeless. Neither is his mon and dad.
At the time of this writing, Turner is laying on the couch icing his knees. He ate some lunch and he, Taylor and I are watching some college football games. He is able to get up on his own with crutches. He is in pain. He is not without hope. He is not mad at God. He said that out loud recently.
The Edwards family is facing another trial. We have faced multiple as a family over the past two decades. We have been helpless many times but never hopeless. God is still in control. You may feel helpless, but if you are a child of God, you are not hopeless.
Psalm 34:19 (ESV)
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.
Saturday, November 23, 2019
Thursday, November 14, 2019
Have You Led Anyone To The Lord
On my way home today I received a phone call from a pastor friend of mine. He is a mentor, teacher, friend and one who asks me the hard questions. He asked if I had led anyone to the Lord recently. Sadly, I had to say no. It's not from lack of trying. I have shared Jesus, but have no fruit to show for it. I have had opportunities, but have not been able to lead anyone to the Lord in weeks.
I wish I had the anointing of an evangelist. I wish I had the unbridled passion of a soul winner. I wish I had the persistence of an intercessor. I want to see souls saved. Sometimes I get distracted with so many other things. That is no excuse.
If God would just use me to reach lost people, Spring Creek would grow. People's eternal destiny will be changed. The baptismal waters would continually get stirred.Whole families could get transformed. Legacies could be passed down to future generations.
If I could just lead some people to faith in Jesus. I know I can't save anyone. I can share His truth, but Jesus does the saving. I am just a vessel. I want to be a fruitful vessel. I want to be one who stays on mission.
I wish I had the anointing of an evangelist. I wish I had the unbridled passion of a soul winner. I wish I had the persistence of an intercessor. I want to see souls saved. Sometimes I get distracted with so many other things. That is no excuse.
If God would just use me to reach lost people, Spring Creek would grow. People's eternal destiny will be changed. The baptismal waters would continually get stirred.Whole families could get transformed. Legacies could be passed down to future generations.
If I could just lead some people to faith in Jesus. I know I can't save anyone. I can share His truth, but Jesus does the saving. I am just a vessel. I want to be a fruitful vessel. I want to be one who stays on mission.
Setting The Example
I spent time learning some valuable lessons this past week. While on a mission trip watching our guys do construction work, I felt like a fish out of water. They talked about thigs being square and plum. In my world those words mean a nerd and piece of fruit.
They used tools like a speed square, chop saw, skill saw, sawzaw, nail bar, chalk line, tape measure, couplings, pvc pipe, and other tools or materials I don't even know their names. Most of the time I stood around like a calf looking at a new gate. They worked circles around me. I tried to make myself useful by taking out the demolition debris and sweeping the floors. My skill set did offer much to the projects.
While I stood in the way most of the time, I watched three of our five deacons work circles around me tirelessly. I got tired even just standing and had no problem sleeping at night. I am amazed. Amazed at men older than me working harder than me. I am amazed at their skill and knowledge. If there is a word bigger than amazed I would use it. I saw deacons being deacons.
I am not surprised. I have seen these men doing the same things around the church for months. They minister to people. They serve and give of their time and money. They take care of widows. They have set such a great example of what it means to serve people, it makes me know that I have to do better. I have to give more. To go the extra mile. To put others before myself.
Those are the lessons I learned while away in south Texas this past week. I am supposed to be one teaching them. I stand behind the pulpit and sit at the table to preach and teach. They did the teaching this week. I was the student. I was a pupil under their wise and watchful leadership.
Thank you guys for teaching me. Please be patient with me for I have a whole lot to learn. God is using you to teach me men.
They used tools like a speed square, chop saw, skill saw, sawzaw, nail bar, chalk line, tape measure, couplings, pvc pipe, and other tools or materials I don't even know their names. Most of the time I stood around like a calf looking at a new gate. They worked circles around me. I tried to make myself useful by taking out the demolition debris and sweeping the floors. My skill set did offer much to the projects.
While I stood in the way most of the time, I watched three of our five deacons work circles around me tirelessly. I got tired even just standing and had no problem sleeping at night. I am amazed. Amazed at men older than me working harder than me. I am amazed at their skill and knowledge. If there is a word bigger than amazed I would use it. I saw deacons being deacons.
I am not surprised. I have seen these men doing the same things around the church for months. They minister to people. They serve and give of their time and money. They take care of widows. They have set such a great example of what it means to serve people, it makes me know that I have to do better. I have to give more. To go the extra mile. To put others before myself.
Those are the lessons I learned while away in south Texas this past week. I am supposed to be one teaching them. I stand behind the pulpit and sit at the table to preach and teach. They did the teaching this week. I was the student. I was a pupil under their wise and watchful leadership.
Thank you guys for teaching me. Please be patient with me for I have a whole lot to learn. God is using you to teach me men.
Tuesday, November 12, 2019
500
It started April 12th 2018. I started writing these blogs on this site. At the end of 2018 God enabled me to write over 220 posts. Today is a milestone for this author. Today marks the 274th post for the year. More importantly it marks the 500th post of this new blog.
I had an old one. www.nocompromisefbc.blogspot.com. Over the span of a decade God inspired and helped me write 1,640 articles for that site. It spanned three ministries in three different churches. There were high times and some very low times. Those writings covered a wide range of topics. The site is still up though I do not use it anymore. I quit using that one back in 2017. I felt I needed a fresh start. A new focus.
So came the birth of the follow hard site. In less than two years, God has given me much to write about. There is so much more I want to write about. Some of this material comes from private devotions. As God speaks to me, I share that with others. Much of the inspiration comes from everyday life. Life is filled with mystery, intrigue, laughter, sadness, beauty, horror, sin and salvation. God sits triumphantly on His throne watching over all of it. Many times He uses a word in a conversation, an experience, a verse, a scene beheld, a story from the news or something I read to fuel these writings.
Many times I get frustrated because the ideas come faster than I have the time to write them down. Many times a flash of inspiration comes and I think, "I need to write about that," but I forget because I did not jot the idea down. If I were smart, I would keep a little notebook on me to continually jot down these inspirations to share through written word.
In 500 writings, sometimes I felt victorious. It seemed everything went right for me. At other times, I fought through the depths of despair. In those moments writing became therapy to work through it much like David did in the Psalms. There have also been times when I wrote out of conviction. Some when He sowed me a new revelation I'd never seen in His word before.
Through all of it I've had two desires. I want to glorify God with this ministry. Some say God gave me a gift in writing. Writing feels as natural to me as a hammer in the hand of carpenter. He put that in me. I give all glory to Him for it. Secondly, I write to help people. Sometimes that might mean comforting people. Sometimes it means afflicting the comfortable.
Some days I am moved so deeply it can only come out in poetry. I have even written fictional material to make a spiritual point. All in hopes that through the ministry of the written word I might minister to more than I do through the preached word.
This site is not even two years old yet. I pray for the endurance and inspiration to write the next 500 and eventually thousands. May He use it for His glory and help people around the world.
I had an old one. www.nocompromisefbc.blogspot.com. Over the span of a decade God inspired and helped me write 1,640 articles for that site. It spanned three ministries in three different churches. There were high times and some very low times. Those writings covered a wide range of topics. The site is still up though I do not use it anymore. I quit using that one back in 2017. I felt I needed a fresh start. A new focus.
So came the birth of the follow hard site. In less than two years, God has given me much to write about. There is so much more I want to write about. Some of this material comes from private devotions. As God speaks to me, I share that with others. Much of the inspiration comes from everyday life. Life is filled with mystery, intrigue, laughter, sadness, beauty, horror, sin and salvation. God sits triumphantly on His throne watching over all of it. Many times He uses a word in a conversation, an experience, a verse, a scene beheld, a story from the news or something I read to fuel these writings.
Many times I get frustrated because the ideas come faster than I have the time to write them down. Many times a flash of inspiration comes and I think, "I need to write about that," but I forget because I did not jot the idea down. If I were smart, I would keep a little notebook on me to continually jot down these inspirations to share through written word.
In 500 writings, sometimes I felt victorious. It seemed everything went right for me. At other times, I fought through the depths of despair. In those moments writing became therapy to work through it much like David did in the Psalms. There have also been times when I wrote out of conviction. Some when He sowed me a new revelation I'd never seen in His word before.
Through all of it I've had two desires. I want to glorify God with this ministry. Some say God gave me a gift in writing. Writing feels as natural to me as a hammer in the hand of carpenter. He put that in me. I give all glory to Him for it. Secondly, I write to help people. Sometimes that might mean comforting people. Sometimes it means afflicting the comfortable.
Some days I am moved so deeply it can only come out in poetry. I have even written fictional material to make a spiritual point. All in hopes that through the ministry of the written word I might minister to more than I do through the preached word.
This site is not even two years old yet. I pray for the endurance and inspiration to write the next 500 and eventually thousands. May He use it for His glory and help people around the world.
Acquire Wisdom
Proverbs 4:7 (NASB)
7 "The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your acquiring, get understanding.
Wisdom is needed in the world today. For a society who prides itself on the value of education, we sure make some moronic decisions that lack wisdom. We introduce young children to issues way beyond their ability to understand. People push their agendas.
I am horrified when I keep reading reports about drag queens reading books to children in public libraries during story times. In some instances, these story times are financially sponsored by city budgets. I even read one report where the reader got on the ground and parents let their children crawl all over him. Does that seem wise to anyone?
Is it wise to introduce young children to confusion about their gender at such young and impressionable ages and adolescence? This can alrady be a confusing time for youngsters before adding this issue. We are not solving a gender identity issue. We are creating a crisis that will not be fully understood until years down the road.
Pedophilia has a name for the kind of behavior being introduced to some children. It is called grooming. They use such techniques to introduce sexual behavior to their victims. It seems clear to me that a drag queen reading to children is dangerous on two levels. First, they hope to make such reprehensible behavior more and more acceptable by mainstream society. Secondly, they are actively recruiting children who fall victim to them and eventually adopt their lifestyle. All the while, parents smile and say they want to introduce their children to diverse points of view and cultures.
In colleges, all sorts of things are being taught as truth. Professing to be wise they make themselves fools. Truth is absolute. Higher education espouses that truth is what feels like truth to you. If you believe it that can be your truth, even though it may not be true for someone else. Every idealology is given supposed equal footing. Except for Jesus Christ and Christianity for vehemenently rejected and opposed.
We are instructed to acquire wisdom. Wisdom and skilled understanding and divine intelligence. Wisdom is both revealed and learned through experience and study. You gain wisdom from life, from trying and failing, from dealing with people, from painful trials and victories. Wisdom must also be studied. In books, Most especially in the Bible. It more than gathering information and intelligence. It is gaining God's perspective. It taking God's world view.
We are exhorted to acquire wisdom. That means we are to go to great lengths to gain it and possess it. How? For starters, by reading, studying, and meditating on the truths in the Bible. God has chocked full His word with wisdom. Wisdom about finances. Wisdom about marriage, raising children, relating to people, how to overcome adversity, how to handle success, how to endure, how to avoid anxiety and a host of other topics. All there ripe for the picking to the diligent students who long for more understanding.
We are also exhorted to ask for wisdom in the book of James expecting that we shall receive it. If we pray for wisdom, God will bless His followers with greater understanding.
What if wise people were put in places of leadership in our society? What if our President and Congress ruled with wisdom? What if judges decided court cases with widsom? What if professors taught with wisdom? What if parents raised their children with wisdom? What if business people led their companies with wisdom? What if bosses dealt with their employess using wisdom?
The more this society forsakes wisdom and embraces higher criticism, reason, logic and doing what seems right unto themselves we are a doomed culture. To forsake wisdom is to embrace the consequences that come with foolish choices.
Don't believe me. Ask Rome. Ask Israel. Ask Germany. Ask our forefathers in the United States. We are not the nation we once were. We have fallen from nobility into debauchery.
With all our acquiring may we acquire wisdom.
7 "The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your acquiring, get understanding.
Wisdom is needed in the world today. For a society who prides itself on the value of education, we sure make some moronic decisions that lack wisdom. We introduce young children to issues way beyond their ability to understand. People push their agendas.
I am horrified when I keep reading reports about drag queens reading books to children in public libraries during story times. In some instances, these story times are financially sponsored by city budgets. I even read one report where the reader got on the ground and parents let their children crawl all over him. Does that seem wise to anyone?
Is it wise to introduce young children to confusion about their gender at such young and impressionable ages and adolescence? This can alrady be a confusing time for youngsters before adding this issue. We are not solving a gender identity issue. We are creating a crisis that will not be fully understood until years down the road.
Pedophilia has a name for the kind of behavior being introduced to some children. It is called grooming. They use such techniques to introduce sexual behavior to their victims. It seems clear to me that a drag queen reading to children is dangerous on two levels. First, they hope to make such reprehensible behavior more and more acceptable by mainstream society. Secondly, they are actively recruiting children who fall victim to them and eventually adopt their lifestyle. All the while, parents smile and say they want to introduce their children to diverse points of view and cultures.
In colleges, all sorts of things are being taught as truth. Professing to be wise they make themselves fools. Truth is absolute. Higher education espouses that truth is what feels like truth to you. If you believe it that can be your truth, even though it may not be true for someone else. Every idealology is given supposed equal footing. Except for Jesus Christ and Christianity for vehemenently rejected and opposed.
We are instructed to acquire wisdom. Wisdom and skilled understanding and divine intelligence. Wisdom is both revealed and learned through experience and study. You gain wisdom from life, from trying and failing, from dealing with people, from painful trials and victories. Wisdom must also be studied. In books, Most especially in the Bible. It more than gathering information and intelligence. It is gaining God's perspective. It taking God's world view.
We are exhorted to acquire wisdom. That means we are to go to great lengths to gain it and possess it. How? For starters, by reading, studying, and meditating on the truths in the Bible. God has chocked full His word with wisdom. Wisdom about finances. Wisdom about marriage, raising children, relating to people, how to overcome adversity, how to handle success, how to endure, how to avoid anxiety and a host of other topics. All there ripe for the picking to the diligent students who long for more understanding.
We are also exhorted to ask for wisdom in the book of James expecting that we shall receive it. If we pray for wisdom, God will bless His followers with greater understanding.
What if wise people were put in places of leadership in our society? What if our President and Congress ruled with wisdom? What if judges decided court cases with widsom? What if professors taught with wisdom? What if parents raised their children with wisdom? What if business people led their companies with wisdom? What if bosses dealt with their employess using wisdom?
The more this society forsakes wisdom and embraces higher criticism, reason, logic and doing what seems right unto themselves we are a doomed culture. To forsake wisdom is to embrace the consequences that come with foolish choices.
Don't believe me. Ask Rome. Ask Israel. Ask Germany. Ask our forefathers in the United States. We are not the nation we once were. We have fallen from nobility into debauchery.
With all our acquiring may we acquire wisdom.
The Power Of Wind
Yesterday morning about nine a cold front hit. You could not miss it. The temperatures dropped rapidly. The winds changed directions blustering from the north. The trees danced in the wind. Leaves swirled in the air raining back to the ground. The chill behind those winds had a bite that went to the bones.
The lake tossed and turned with white capped waves beind those winds. I could actually feel the vehicle being pushed behind the winds.
Wind is a pwerful force. This is evidenced after a tornado or hurricane. Wind can be destructive. It can also be harnessed for good like a windmill or the sails on a ship.
I find it interesting that on the day of Pentecost, when God released the Holy Spirit for His followers, it came in the form of a mighty rushing wind.
I meditate on that this morning. How I yearn to hoist the sails of my life, and for Spring Creek to hoist our sails as a church, so that we might catch the fresh wind of God blowing in our midst. He has the power to lead us to undescribable enounters. He has the power to blow through communities convicting and saving the lost. He has the power to breathe life into valleys of dry bones. He can blow empowering us to serve Him. He can blow new life into us.
I yearn for that. I yearn to catch the wind of His Spirit and let Him drive me and Spring Creek into greater encounters with Him. To drive us into more effective service. To fuel us to serve with endurance. May the Lord help us to get harnessed to His power.
Acts 2:1-2 (NASB)
1
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.
2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
The lake tossed and turned with white capped waves beind those winds. I could actually feel the vehicle being pushed behind the winds.
Wind is a pwerful force. This is evidenced after a tornado or hurricane. Wind can be destructive. It can also be harnessed for good like a windmill or the sails on a ship.
I find it interesting that on the day of Pentecost, when God released the Holy Spirit for His followers, it came in the form of a mighty rushing wind.
I meditate on that this morning. How I yearn to hoist the sails of my life, and for Spring Creek to hoist our sails as a church, so that we might catch the fresh wind of God blowing in our midst. He has the power to lead us to undescribable enounters. He has the power to blow through communities convicting and saving the lost. He has the power to breathe life into valleys of dry bones. He can blow empowering us to serve Him. He can blow new life into us.
I yearn for that. I yearn to catch the wind of His Spirit and let Him drive me and Spring Creek into greater encounters with Him. To drive us into more effective service. To fuel us to serve with endurance. May the Lord help us to get harnessed to His power.
Acts 2:1-2 (NASB)
1
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.
2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
Alone With My Father
Father,
Like so many other times, it is just the two of us meeting early before the day dawns. The joy we share in these meetings is something I cherish. Thank you for waking me early just to meet with You. In these times, our communion is the greatest desire and delight of my life. I praise You for these early morning encounters.
I never know how You will lead in these times. I anticipate that You will come and meet with me. I fully expect You will take Your word and fill my heart and mind with Your truth. I expect to hear from You out of the sacred pages of Your word.
I think of my family scattered across this big state. Me in south Texas. Brenda and Turner sleeping in Runaway Bay and the three oldest sons all in Plainview preparing for their last football game. I ask You to watch over them and to protect them. I ask You to bend each of their hearts toward You. May their hunger for You compel them to have their own quiet times.
I lift up the Spring Creek flock to you. You know the ailments of those suffering ill health. You also know the private pains many carry. I ask You minister to each one. You know how to do that far better than me.
I ask You to deepen my desire for You. Not just for what You can do for me or give me. I want more of You. More of Your presence. More revelation of who You are. More fresh words to guide me. There is nothing I desire on earth more than You. You satisfy the scorched places in my soul. You satisfy my innermost carvings. You fulfill my deepest longings.
I bow to say I love You. You deserve all my affection and devotion. You deserve all my service. There is none like You. If I seek You earnestly for the next three decades with all my might, I still will not discover all there is to know about You. I am on a relentless pursuit to discover more and more. I do not tire in this pursuit, but am driven to learn more of You.
I ask You to wake me early all the days of my life. I ask You to fuel a fire in me that cannot be ignited any other way except meeting and encountering You. I ask You to conquer the desire for more and more sleep. I know You created humans so we have to sleep just to remind us we do not have Your unlimited supply of strength and power. I do not want to be like the sluggard who loves sleep. I trust You for just what I need and let me devote more time to seeking and serving You.
Thank You for these early morning encounters when it is just the two of us. When the world slumbers and there are no distractions. When we sit together for long talks. So far I have done all the talking. Now it time for me to listen. Please speak for Your servant is listening......
Like so many other times, it is just the two of us meeting early before the day dawns. The joy we share in these meetings is something I cherish. Thank you for waking me early just to meet with You. In these times, our communion is the greatest desire and delight of my life. I praise You for these early morning encounters.
I never know how You will lead in these times. I anticipate that You will come and meet with me. I fully expect You will take Your word and fill my heart and mind with Your truth. I expect to hear from You out of the sacred pages of Your word.
I think of my family scattered across this big state. Me in south Texas. Brenda and Turner sleeping in Runaway Bay and the three oldest sons all in Plainview preparing for their last football game. I ask You to watch over them and to protect them. I ask You to bend each of their hearts toward You. May their hunger for You compel them to have their own quiet times.
I lift up the Spring Creek flock to you. You know the ailments of those suffering ill health. You also know the private pains many carry. I ask You minister to each one. You know how to do that far better than me.
I ask You to deepen my desire for You. Not just for what You can do for me or give me. I want more of You. More of Your presence. More revelation of who You are. More fresh words to guide me. There is nothing I desire on earth more than You. You satisfy the scorched places in my soul. You satisfy my innermost carvings. You fulfill my deepest longings.
I bow to say I love You. You deserve all my affection and devotion. You deserve all my service. There is none like You. If I seek You earnestly for the next three decades with all my might, I still will not discover all there is to know about You. I am on a relentless pursuit to discover more and more. I do not tire in this pursuit, but am driven to learn more of You.
I ask You to wake me early all the days of my life. I ask You to fuel a fire in me that cannot be ignited any other way except meeting and encountering You. I ask You to conquer the desire for more and more sleep. I know You created humans so we have to sleep just to remind us we do not have Your unlimited supply of strength and power. I do not want to be like the sluggard who loves sleep. I trust You for just what I need and let me devote more time to seeking and serving You.
Thank You for these early morning encounters when it is just the two of us. When the world slumbers and there are no distractions. When we sit together for long talks. So far I have done all the talking. Now it time for me to listen. Please speak for Your servant is listening......
Quest Ranch
Like they say, there is frost on the pumpkin this morning. To be more correct, there is ice on the steps and boardwalk down here at Quest Ranch close to Canyon Lake, TX. It is still drizzling and the temperatures have dipped well below freezing. I made it down yesterday evening to join some of our members on a mission trip.
It ironic. I have been here two other times. Once I preached a camp here and the other I brought a group of students here including my sons. On one of those trip,s I talked with Corky who owns the place. Somehow in the conversation he brought up the fact that a church in Weatherford, TX came twice a year to help with projects around the camp. Quest Ranch is an independent camp ground.
I asked Corky which church, since I served at Spring Creek many years ago as youth minister. You could have pushed me off the chair with a feather when he said Spring Creek Baptist Church. He went on to explain their pastor had recently resigned to take another position. We are talking about five or six years ago. Right there I prayed that God might take me to Spring Creek as their pastor. I had a vacation Sunday, and without telling Brenda my intentions, we attended worship services one Sunday morning. My hope was that during that visit someone might mention that they were looking for a pastor and to see if I were interested. The time was not right. While we rejoiced to see old friends not one person mentioned they were looking for a pastor of asked if I was interested.
I recommended my good friend Jase Waller for the position. They chose Jase to be their pastor where he served faithfully for three years before taking another church. Well by now, you know the rest of the story. Now, I sit in this dining hall all alone collecting my thoughts. It is surreal that I am here now serving as the pastor of Spring Creek. Just sitting here taking all that in humbles me how the good hand of God worked and preserved Brenda and I for this church at this time. It brings a joy I cannot describe.
I forgot about all of that until we were all talking over dinner last night. The memories came flooding back. In some ways, coming to Quest Ranch is like coming full circle. While I had the desire to always come back to Spring Creek, the truth is somewhere along the way that dream died. It was here at Quest Ranch talking to Corky all those years ago God resurrected that dream. Now I am getting to live it. It has been a dream.
. We only served that church in youth ministry for two years. Two short years but the impression those people made on us went much deeper. I returned once to preach a funeral of a dear friend named Junior Barton. I returned to visit a grieving widow after her deacon husband, Benny Barrett, passed away. We attended a meeting there when they celebrated their 135th anniversary as a church.
Now, in the goodness of God, He allows me to stand in that pulpit behind that sacred desk to deliver His word. He graciously saw fit to allow me to sit in that holy of holies pastor office where I get to meet with Him. He has entrusted me with a loving flock to feed and care for.
I thank God for meeting me here at Quest Ranch all those years ago and this morning. One night when I preached that camp here, I got face down on the concrete after a message about fully surrendering to the call of God. I gave Him all of me in that moment surrendering to His will whatever that might be and wherever it might lead. All these years later I sit humbled and blessed to know God intended me for Spring Creek even back then.
God, thank you for Spring Creek. Thank you for Quest Ranch. They are blessings I can barely take in.
It ironic. I have been here two other times. Once I preached a camp here and the other I brought a group of students here including my sons. On one of those trip,s I talked with Corky who owns the place. Somehow in the conversation he brought up the fact that a church in Weatherford, TX came twice a year to help with projects around the camp. Quest Ranch is an independent camp ground.
I asked Corky which church, since I served at Spring Creek many years ago as youth minister. You could have pushed me off the chair with a feather when he said Spring Creek Baptist Church. He went on to explain their pastor had recently resigned to take another position. We are talking about five or six years ago. Right there I prayed that God might take me to Spring Creek as their pastor. I had a vacation Sunday, and without telling Brenda my intentions, we attended worship services one Sunday morning. My hope was that during that visit someone might mention that they were looking for a pastor and to see if I were interested. The time was not right. While we rejoiced to see old friends not one person mentioned they were looking for a pastor of asked if I was interested.
I recommended my good friend Jase Waller for the position. They chose Jase to be their pastor where he served faithfully for three years before taking another church. Well by now, you know the rest of the story. Now, I sit in this dining hall all alone collecting my thoughts. It is surreal that I am here now serving as the pastor of Spring Creek. Just sitting here taking all that in humbles me how the good hand of God worked and preserved Brenda and I for this church at this time. It brings a joy I cannot describe.
I forgot about all of that until we were all talking over dinner last night. The memories came flooding back. In some ways, coming to Quest Ranch is like coming full circle. While I had the desire to always come back to Spring Creek, the truth is somewhere along the way that dream died. It was here at Quest Ranch talking to Corky all those years ago God resurrected that dream. Now I am getting to live it. It has been a dream.
. We only served that church in youth ministry for two years. Two short years but the impression those people made on us went much deeper. I returned once to preach a funeral of a dear friend named Junior Barton. I returned to visit a grieving widow after her deacon husband, Benny Barrett, passed away. We attended a meeting there when they celebrated their 135th anniversary as a church.
Now, in the goodness of God, He allows me to stand in that pulpit behind that sacred desk to deliver His word. He graciously saw fit to allow me to sit in that holy of holies pastor office where I get to meet with Him. He has entrusted me with a loving flock to feed and care for.
I thank God for meeting me here at Quest Ranch all those years ago and this morning. One night when I preached that camp here, I got face down on the concrete after a message about fully surrendering to the call of God. I gave Him all of me in that moment surrendering to His will whatever that might be and wherever it might lead. All these years later I sit humbled and blessed to know God intended me for Spring Creek even back then.
God, thank you for Spring Creek. Thank you for Quest Ranch. They are blessings I can barely take in.
Friday, November 8, 2019
Praying Prayers Worthy Of God
So much of my life is centered around praying. It feels like I am praying, preaching about prayer or writing about prayer much of the time. Recently, I meditated on praying prayers that are worthy of God. Let me explain.
Reading through the Psalms I saw passage after passage about the greatness of God. I prayed through several of those passages and meditated on them. How great is God? He opened my eyes to see new revelations of how powerful He really is. It dawned on me how I often pray such wimpy prayers. Prayers like God is a miser begrudgingly having blessings and miracles pried from His stingy hands.
That is not God. He is presented in scripture as a loving Father. What loving Father does not delight to meet the needs of his children. It blesses Him to bless them. He is happy to provide for their needs. What about our Heavenly Father. Earthly fathers give out of their limited resources. God the Father gives out of His never ending supply. He wants to be asked, trusted and to bless His children in their needs. Do we pray that way?
I also meditated on the truth that God has never ever been challenged by an impossible situation. Let that sink in. No matter how hard it has been for you to ask God to move a seemingly immovable mountain, it was not hard for Him. He just has to will it to happen and just speak the word and the miracle can come. The Bible is filled with stories of people who encountered such things. So are the pages of history if you read the right people. What about modernity? Can God really be expected to do the impossible? Can He really be trusted in the most trying situations? Is He still powerful to move mountains for His followers? Yes and a thousand times yes. We should pray like we believe it.
If I were to tell you some of the things I am asking and believing God for, you would think I am crazy. You will laugh at me and dismiss me as a wishful dreamer. I wish I could put them in writing. Very specific things. Big things. No, HUGE things. Some spiritual. Some physical in nature. All for the glory of God. I cannot write them about them now, so that nobody will be able to say I dropped hints and manipulated people into meeting those needs. I am all out to show what God can do through prayer.
I have been able to share a few of those with trusted friends and prayer partners. One such friend laughed me off today. I looked in the eye and said, "You will not be laughing when God comes through. He will answer and I will get to brag on Him." My friend responded, "I have doubted before and you proved me wrong." He got that wrong. God proved Him wrong.
Let me ask you a series of questions. Is God able to supernaturally provide you with $15? Most of you will say yes without hesitation. Is God able to provide you with $150,000? I bet you hesitated. If you had a real need for the latter, is that any harder for God than the former? We say we believe God is big and powerful and yet pray like He is weak and impotent. Can God tangibly meet a physical need in your life nobody knows about but you and Him? If you believe He knows everything and is all powerful, why would you not say absolutely. Our faith must increase to believe He can provide.
For Elijah, He provided through ravens who brought him food and a widow who sacrificed to provide for Him. Both were miracles. God commanded both the fowl and the widow to meet needs in Elijah's life. Do you believe God owns everything and can use anyone from anywhere to help you in your time of need? Can He do that with tires, televisions, beds, food, gas, mechanical repairs and paying off debts? You bet He can.
Is God a promise keeper or a promise breaker? He is a promise keeper and a promise from Him is like money in the bank. You can count on Him. It is His nature to be faithful. He can't be anything other than that. We need to pray prayers that show we really believe God is trustworthy and great.
Reading through the Psalms I saw passage after passage about the greatness of God. I prayed through several of those passages and meditated on them. How great is God? He opened my eyes to see new revelations of how powerful He really is. It dawned on me how I often pray such wimpy prayers. Prayers like God is a miser begrudgingly having blessings and miracles pried from His stingy hands.
That is not God. He is presented in scripture as a loving Father. What loving Father does not delight to meet the needs of his children. It blesses Him to bless them. He is happy to provide for their needs. What about our Heavenly Father. Earthly fathers give out of their limited resources. God the Father gives out of His never ending supply. He wants to be asked, trusted and to bless His children in their needs. Do we pray that way?
I also meditated on the truth that God has never ever been challenged by an impossible situation. Let that sink in. No matter how hard it has been for you to ask God to move a seemingly immovable mountain, it was not hard for Him. He just has to will it to happen and just speak the word and the miracle can come. The Bible is filled with stories of people who encountered such things. So are the pages of history if you read the right people. What about modernity? Can God really be expected to do the impossible? Can He really be trusted in the most trying situations? Is He still powerful to move mountains for His followers? Yes and a thousand times yes. We should pray like we believe it.
If I were to tell you some of the things I am asking and believing God for, you would think I am crazy. You will laugh at me and dismiss me as a wishful dreamer. I wish I could put them in writing. Very specific things. Big things. No, HUGE things. Some spiritual. Some physical in nature. All for the glory of God. I cannot write them about them now, so that nobody will be able to say I dropped hints and manipulated people into meeting those needs. I am all out to show what God can do through prayer.
I have been able to share a few of those with trusted friends and prayer partners. One such friend laughed me off today. I looked in the eye and said, "You will not be laughing when God comes through. He will answer and I will get to brag on Him." My friend responded, "I have doubted before and you proved me wrong." He got that wrong. God proved Him wrong.
Let me ask you a series of questions. Is God able to supernaturally provide you with $15? Most of you will say yes without hesitation. Is God able to provide you with $150,000? I bet you hesitated. If you had a real need for the latter, is that any harder for God than the former? We say we believe God is big and powerful and yet pray like He is weak and impotent. Can God tangibly meet a physical need in your life nobody knows about but you and Him? If you believe He knows everything and is all powerful, why would you not say absolutely. Our faith must increase to believe He can provide.
For Elijah, He provided through ravens who brought him food and a widow who sacrificed to provide for Him. Both were miracles. God commanded both the fowl and the widow to meet needs in Elijah's life. Do you believe God owns everything and can use anyone from anywhere to help you in your time of need? Can He do that with tires, televisions, beds, food, gas, mechanical repairs and paying off debts? You bet He can.
Is God a promise keeper or a promise breaker? He is a promise keeper and a promise from Him is like money in the bank. You can count on Him. It is His nature to be faithful. He can't be anything other than that. We need to pray prayers that show we really believe God is trustworthy and great.
Another Miracle Story II
I prayed for weeks about the need for tires on my truck. They were getting in bad shape. Months ago someone bought me two back tires. The front tires still had a little mileage left ton them. I used it up. I drive a lot each week. I didn't broadcast it. I kept bringing it to God asking Him to help me. I did this for the better part of a month with no answer.
I received a text from Brenda with a picture she sent. Underneath the picture she wrote, "I am literally in tears." I had to enlarge the picture to make it out. The picture was of a check sent to us for the total of $1,000. The people who sent it were part of a church we served nearly a decade ago. Along with the check they sent a card. They wrote, "We have felt like we needed to send this for weeks." Only God could have connected our prayers, with those people we seldom have contact with, prompt them to give sacrificially at the right time to meet needs for us.
We praised God. I got my tires. Then the next crisis came. Tanner called to say someone stole his rent money from his wallet in the locker room. He did not have anything. In order to pay his part of the rent and utilities we sent him $350. We used that same miracle money to meet this need. God foresaw and met the need not only for us but also for our son.
This week I noticed an odd sound coming from the front of my truck. It seemed to progressively get worse as the week passed. I had one of our deacons drive it who used to work as a mechanic. He diagnosed the problem quickly. I had a ball bearing going out in the front left wheel. He offered to repair it before I go out of town next week on a mission trip. The cost $125. Again we used that same miracle money. I praise God for it and for the vessels who sent it.
That couple did not foresee all of those circumstances that presented themselves as challenges over the past two weeks. Even in the midst of trials God still came through and met every need.
There are still other mountains before us, but the same God who worked to get us through these past few trials is the same God who will get us through the next ones as well. Each time He works to help us is another opportunity I get to brag on Him. He has everything we will EVER NEED already in His possession. I trust Him to do what He did last week for the rest of my days so I can testify about how He answered another prayer.
I used to dread and even resent the challenges that come with this faith journey. I look at things differently. Sometimes the trials get me down. Instead of shunning them, I have learned to embrace them because with each challenge, our faith is tested and strengthened. We get to see God come through and we get to tell our stories to those who will listen. It is the latest in what has been decades of miracles stories. I look forward to the next ones I believe are on the horizon.
Psalm 24:1 (ESV)
1 The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,
Psalm 50:10-12 (ESV)
10 For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine.
12 “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine.
God has at His disposal all the money any of us will ever need. He has access to vehicles, houses, furniture, clothing, food, televisions, cell phones, and anything on this planet we could ever need. When His children have a need, His storehouse is always well stocked and full. He never gives out of sacrifice because He owns everything. He always provides out of abundance. No need is to big for His supply. He also is powerful enough to get what He has into your possession when you have a need without you telling anyone but Him. He has countless vessels around the world who are available to give as He prompts them. When you have a need He owns the cattle on a thousands hills. He can sell some off to come through for you.
For my family most recently it was $1,000. Then He gave us a television. Seriously. Brenda's boss bought a new one for their office and was going to throw the old one away. A 55" flat screen. Brenda asked if she could have it. That large television is sitting in my office waiting to be moved into the parsonage. Little by little we are beholding God furnish the parsonage that will be our home away from home for the next 18 months. Yes, God even has access to televisions. I am amazed at what He is able to do. I look forward to telling you the next miracle stories. They have already been asked in faith. We eagerly anticipate the answers for His glory.
What He has done for my family He is more than able to do for you too. Keep praying and trusting. Your miracle might just be around the corner and then it will be your turn to testify.
I received a text from Brenda with a picture she sent. Underneath the picture she wrote, "I am literally in tears." I had to enlarge the picture to make it out. The picture was of a check sent to us for the total of $1,000. The people who sent it were part of a church we served nearly a decade ago. Along with the check they sent a card. They wrote, "We have felt like we needed to send this for weeks." Only God could have connected our prayers, with those people we seldom have contact with, prompt them to give sacrificially at the right time to meet needs for us.
We praised God. I got my tires. Then the next crisis came. Tanner called to say someone stole his rent money from his wallet in the locker room. He did not have anything. In order to pay his part of the rent and utilities we sent him $350. We used that same miracle money to meet this need. God foresaw and met the need not only for us but also for our son.
This week I noticed an odd sound coming from the front of my truck. It seemed to progressively get worse as the week passed. I had one of our deacons drive it who used to work as a mechanic. He diagnosed the problem quickly. I had a ball bearing going out in the front left wheel. He offered to repair it before I go out of town next week on a mission trip. The cost $125. Again we used that same miracle money. I praise God for it and for the vessels who sent it.
That couple did not foresee all of those circumstances that presented themselves as challenges over the past two weeks. Even in the midst of trials God still came through and met every need.
There are still other mountains before us, but the same God who worked to get us through these past few trials is the same God who will get us through the next ones as well. Each time He works to help us is another opportunity I get to brag on Him. He has everything we will EVER NEED already in His possession. I trust Him to do what He did last week for the rest of my days so I can testify about how He answered another prayer.
I used to dread and even resent the challenges that come with this faith journey. I look at things differently. Sometimes the trials get me down. Instead of shunning them, I have learned to embrace them because with each challenge, our faith is tested and strengthened. We get to see God come through and we get to tell our stories to those who will listen. It is the latest in what has been decades of miracles stories. I look forward to the next ones I believe are on the horizon.
Psalm 24:1 (ESV)
1 The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,
Psalm 50:10-12 (ESV)
10 For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine.
12 “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine.
God has at His disposal all the money any of us will ever need. He has access to vehicles, houses, furniture, clothing, food, televisions, cell phones, and anything on this planet we could ever need. When His children have a need, His storehouse is always well stocked and full. He never gives out of sacrifice because He owns everything. He always provides out of abundance. No need is to big for His supply. He also is powerful enough to get what He has into your possession when you have a need without you telling anyone but Him. He has countless vessels around the world who are available to give as He prompts them. When you have a need He owns the cattle on a thousands hills. He can sell some off to come through for you.
For my family most recently it was $1,000. Then He gave us a television. Seriously. Brenda's boss bought a new one for their office and was going to throw the old one away. A 55" flat screen. Brenda asked if she could have it. That large television is sitting in my office waiting to be moved into the parsonage. Little by little we are beholding God furnish the parsonage that will be our home away from home for the next 18 months. Yes, God even has access to televisions. I am amazed at what He is able to do. I look forward to telling you the next miracle stories. They have already been asked in faith. We eagerly anticipate the answers for His glory.
What He has done for my family He is more than able to do for you too. Keep praying and trusting. Your miracle might just be around the corner and then it will be your turn to testify.
Wednesday, November 6, 2019
Pleasant Places
Brenda and I have known our share of troubled times and desert experiences. We have endured such for one third of our marriage. We have known trials, death of visions, closed doors, times of confusion, seasons of depression, immovable mountains and more financial crisis than we care to remember.
There were times when nothing we tried in ministry seemed to work. Our prayers seemed to fall on deaf ears. More than once we have watched a church slowly die under our leadership, and nothing we did prevented it.
We also have known seasons when God shut doors for future ministry. During one such stretch I got turned down by well over 100 churches. I can still feel the sting of those rejections. Then there were a few we met with and yet had no peace God wanted us to serve in those situations. It was a long frustrating season. Not for a few months. One such season lasted about seven years.
Today, I stumbled across a verse that ministered to me and explains this new season of our lives.
Psalm 16:6 (ESV)
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
God has allowed the lines of His will to fall for us in pleasant places. The word pleasant means lovely, delightful, desirable and beautiful. When God opened the door for us to go back and minister at Spring Creek Baptist Church, I almost had to pinch myself to make sure it was real. There is no church I love any more, desire to serve more faithfully at this time and find any more delightful and beautiful than the people who make up that flock.
Just yesterday, I walked through the sanctuary to another part of the building. I kept repeating, "Thank You Lord for choosing me for this church." I spent time in there on my knees in worship and intercession.
The Spring Creek people are loving. They are hard working. They are a friendly flock welcoming new comers. They love God's word which makes me love them all the more. Truly God allowed the boundaries of His will to fall in pleasant places for the Edwards family. The fact that we walked thorough some wilderness years makes this season all the more delightful to us. We don't take it for granted.
After years of trials and sorrows, I was down and out. It felt like God would never bless the work of our hands again. We tried. We tried at Faith Community and we tried at Heritage. We could never seem to turn the corner. I began to believe that I would never again enjoy the blessed ministries we enjoyed at FBC Paradise and FBC Seminole.
Sometimes you have to wade through the mud to get to the other side. We waded through a lot of mud and shed a few years before God ushered us to Spring Creek to plant us. I can now say along with the Psalmist, "I have a beautiful inheritance." To put that another way, we have a beautifully good gift from God in the Spring Creek Baptist Church.
I sit in my bookshelved lined office and rejoice. I used to sneak into that office as the youth minister to read the pastor's books when he was not there. He had over 10,000. Now I get to enjoy that office on a nearly daily basis. I get to preach in a beautiful sanctuary increasingly filling with new people. I get to work along side some very wise and servant minded deacons. I get to worship through an experience of songs both old and new. Wonderful songs that lead me to fresh encounters with God. I get to hug children and work with teenagers. I am truly having the time of my life in this church.
I can't take away from previous churches. We loved and love people from all those previous places we served. We had many powerful encounters with God with those people. Spring Creek is special. We saw God do amazing things when we served there before. I always longed to go back. We are seeing Him to the same again.
The lines for the Edwards have fallen in pleasant places and His inheritance to us is beautiful. We love you Spring Creek.
There were times when nothing we tried in ministry seemed to work. Our prayers seemed to fall on deaf ears. More than once we have watched a church slowly die under our leadership, and nothing we did prevented it.
We also have known seasons when God shut doors for future ministry. During one such stretch I got turned down by well over 100 churches. I can still feel the sting of those rejections. Then there were a few we met with and yet had no peace God wanted us to serve in those situations. It was a long frustrating season. Not for a few months. One such season lasted about seven years.
Today, I stumbled across a verse that ministered to me and explains this new season of our lives.
Psalm 16:6 (ESV)
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
God has allowed the lines of His will to fall for us in pleasant places. The word pleasant means lovely, delightful, desirable and beautiful. When God opened the door for us to go back and minister at Spring Creek Baptist Church, I almost had to pinch myself to make sure it was real. There is no church I love any more, desire to serve more faithfully at this time and find any more delightful and beautiful than the people who make up that flock.
Just yesterday, I walked through the sanctuary to another part of the building. I kept repeating, "Thank You Lord for choosing me for this church." I spent time in there on my knees in worship and intercession.
The Spring Creek people are loving. They are hard working. They are a friendly flock welcoming new comers. They love God's word which makes me love them all the more. Truly God allowed the boundaries of His will to fall in pleasant places for the Edwards family. The fact that we walked thorough some wilderness years makes this season all the more delightful to us. We don't take it for granted.
After years of trials and sorrows, I was down and out. It felt like God would never bless the work of our hands again. We tried. We tried at Faith Community and we tried at Heritage. We could never seem to turn the corner. I began to believe that I would never again enjoy the blessed ministries we enjoyed at FBC Paradise and FBC Seminole.
Sometimes you have to wade through the mud to get to the other side. We waded through a lot of mud and shed a few years before God ushered us to Spring Creek to plant us. I can now say along with the Psalmist, "I have a beautiful inheritance." To put that another way, we have a beautifully good gift from God in the Spring Creek Baptist Church.
I sit in my bookshelved lined office and rejoice. I used to sneak into that office as the youth minister to read the pastor's books when he was not there. He had over 10,000. Now I get to enjoy that office on a nearly daily basis. I get to preach in a beautiful sanctuary increasingly filling with new people. I get to work along side some very wise and servant minded deacons. I get to worship through an experience of songs both old and new. Wonderful songs that lead me to fresh encounters with God. I get to hug children and work with teenagers. I am truly having the time of my life in this church.
I can't take away from previous churches. We loved and love people from all those previous places we served. We had many powerful encounters with God with those people. Spring Creek is special. We saw God do amazing things when we served there before. I always longed to go back. We are seeing Him to the same again.
The lines for the Edwards have fallen in pleasant places and His inheritance to us is beautiful. We love you Spring Creek.
Tuesday, November 5, 2019
Not Satisfied
Lord, I confess I am not truly satisfied,
For so many are still lost unsanctified,
When the masses violate Your commands,
Arrogantly giving You a list of their demands,
I'm not content when the marriages fall apart,
Leaving another wounded with broken heart,
How can I be at ease when our nation is adrift,
When I see racial and political tensions a rift,
When the numbers populating hell keep increasing,
And those for heaven appear to be only decreasing,
When Jesus and His gospel keep getting refused,
And the innocent little ones keep getting abused,
When Sodomites and fornicators are promoted,
When a sin gorged nation gets fat and bloated,
There is only one hope for our spiritual survival,
God I beg for another real heaven sent revival.
For so many are still lost unsanctified,
When the masses violate Your commands,
Arrogantly giving You a list of their demands,
I'm not content when the marriages fall apart,
Leaving another wounded with broken heart,
How can I be at ease when our nation is adrift,
When I see racial and political tensions a rift,
When the numbers populating hell keep increasing,
And those for heaven appear to be only decreasing,
When Jesus and His gospel keep getting refused,
And the innocent little ones keep getting abused,
When Sodomites and fornicators are promoted,
When a sin gorged nation gets fat and bloated,
There is only one hope for our spiritual survival,
God I beg for another real heaven sent revival.
A Long Awaited Miracle
I prayed with a clear end goal in mind,
A miracle I prayerfully hoped to find,
I saw the miracle by faith not by sight,
I pleaded all housr both day and night,
I could see the answer just as if t'was real,
A crafted piece of both wood and steel,
It did not come at first when in faith asked,
Persevered in faith as days and weeks past,
I felt confident remaining calmly in peace,
The prayers of faith offered did not cease,
I waited - I trusted in God to hear my plea,
Believing Him to answer on bended knee,
To my utter delight the answer came indeed,
He blessed with the very thing I did intercede,
Be encouraged friend - God can do for you
A miracle sent from way beyond the blue,
Don't fret, worry in delay nor give into fear,
Your long awaited miracle might just be near.
A miracle I prayerfully hoped to find,
I saw the miracle by faith not by sight,
I pleaded all housr both day and night,
I could see the answer just as if t'was real,
A crafted piece of both wood and steel,
It did not come at first when in faith asked,
Persevered in faith as days and weeks past,
I felt confident remaining calmly in peace,
The prayers of faith offered did not cease,
I waited - I trusted in God to hear my plea,
Believing Him to answer on bended knee,
To my utter delight the answer came indeed,
He blessed with the very thing I did intercede,
Be encouraged friend - God can do for you
A miracle sent from way beyond the blue,
Don't fret, worry in delay nor give into fear,
Your long awaited miracle might just be near.
Another Miracle Story
He did it again. God did it again. He took our small faith and prayers and connected them to His miracle supply and worked again. I am sure you get tired of hearing these stories, but I assure you I never grow tired of sharing them. I pray I many more to share until my last breath. I hope to leave a written record of what God can do through prayer.
Most people know that though we serve Spring Creek Baptist Church in Weatherford, TX, we still reside in Runaway Bay, TX. It is exactly one hour from my drive way to the church parking lot. We promised Turner we would let him graduate from Paradise High School where he has attended all but two years. We are happy to do this and multiple times a week I commute to the office and on Wednesdays and Sunday. It has been three months now. The drive is not bad. I use it most days to pray.
I have been praying some very specific prayers as we prepare for that transition to live over here in Weatherford permanently. The church owns a parsonage that just became vacant. We plan to set it up as a home away from home on the weekends and for me during the week when I have late meetings to have a place to sleep. I have been praying to make that transition possible.
Today God answered a very specific prayer I have prayed for the past several weeks toward that end. I got a phone call from one of our members telling me about a bed, box spring, and mattress that will soon be set up in the parsonage. This person did not know how Brenda and felt about sleeping on a used bed. When I told this person I had been praying for that specific thing for the past several weeks, we both rejoiced. I also learned, not only will there be a bed, but a matching dresser with it. Again something I specifically asked God for as well.
It is not coincidence that I prayed for that very thing. We do not have a spare bed. They are all occupied when the boys are home from college. Truth is there have been times when two of the sons had to share a bed or one sleep on an air mattress. God heard and once again met a need in our lives through answered prayer. I am giddy with excitement over this.
I prayed something very specific. I asked God for each piece of those things donated today. A bed, mattress, box spring and dresser. I stood on faith and God honored it. Blessing us with the very things we asked Him to provide. This is just one more instance when we get to prove Him through prayer. This is another opportunity we have to brag on Him and glorify Him. I love telling these miracle stories, and I love getting to live out faith and prayer to demonstrate God's faithfulness to a watching world. Hallelujah! Praise His holy name!
Most people know that though we serve Spring Creek Baptist Church in Weatherford, TX, we still reside in Runaway Bay, TX. It is exactly one hour from my drive way to the church parking lot. We promised Turner we would let him graduate from Paradise High School where he has attended all but two years. We are happy to do this and multiple times a week I commute to the office and on Wednesdays and Sunday. It has been three months now. The drive is not bad. I use it most days to pray.
I have been praying some very specific prayers as we prepare for that transition to live over here in Weatherford permanently. The church owns a parsonage that just became vacant. We plan to set it up as a home away from home on the weekends and for me during the week when I have late meetings to have a place to sleep. I have been praying to make that transition possible.
Today God answered a very specific prayer I have prayed for the past several weeks toward that end. I got a phone call from one of our members telling me about a bed, box spring, and mattress that will soon be set up in the parsonage. This person did not know how Brenda and felt about sleeping on a used bed. When I told this person I had been praying for that specific thing for the past several weeks, we both rejoiced. I also learned, not only will there be a bed, but a matching dresser with it. Again something I specifically asked God for as well.
It is not coincidence that I prayed for that very thing. We do not have a spare bed. They are all occupied when the boys are home from college. Truth is there have been times when two of the sons had to share a bed or one sleep on an air mattress. God heard and once again met a need in our lives through answered prayer. I am giddy with excitement over this.
I prayed something very specific. I asked God for each piece of those things donated today. A bed, mattress, box spring and dresser. I stood on faith and God honored it. Blessing us with the very things we asked Him to provide. This is just one more instance when we get to prove Him through prayer. This is another opportunity we have to brag on Him and glorify Him. I love telling these miracle stories, and I love getting to live out faith and prayer to demonstrate God's faithfulness to a watching world. Hallelujah! Praise His holy name!
A Close Call
Around 8:30 p.m. Brenda, Turner and I left the prayer meeting at one of our member's home to commute back home. When we reached the interstate, we debated about stopping for something to eat or just going home. We decided to go home.
I topped a hill on the feeder road and Brenda yelled, "Look out!" Out of the corner of my eye I saw a man dressed in black standing in the middle of the road. To his left I saw something else in the road as I jammed the break, steered to miss both and prayed all simultaneously. The person scurried toward the shoulder to avoid getting hit. We noticed the object in the road was a motorcycle.
I quickly pulled off on the grass and made my way back up the hill. Turns out the person was a man trying to get his motorcycle off the ground. I feared for him as oncoming traffic might come and never see him before it was too late. By the time I reached him, he had the motorcycle up and asked if I could help him get it off the road.
Traffic backed up as we did this. I had to go back out and retrieve his windshield from the ground holding my hand out to keep people from running me over. People asked if we were okay as they rolled past.. The man seemed rattled by not badly injured. He told a deer ran out in front of him knocking he and his motorcycle to the ground.
He took his helmet off and told me what happened again. He said nobody else had stopped. How could I not stop. I nearly ran the man over. I could not believe a deer ran so close to I-20.
I told him I was the pastor at Spring Creek Baptist Church and I wanted to pray for him. We had prayer and his wife pulled up in a car just after we finished. She had followed him but stopped at a store. She told she had an uneasy feeling as she topped the hill. She saw the cars backed up.
This same man got run off the road by a car just two weeks before. I told him God protected him and had a plan for him. He took down my phone number and asked if I had a business card, which I did not. The whole scene played out in less than five minutes. I stayed nervous for him and his wife as they both were still near the edge of the road just below the crest of the hill. I urged him to move his bike and themselves a little further off the road for safety.
He complained that his hip was sore but nothing else seemed to ail him except his nerves. Looking back I wish I had shared Jesus with him. It all happened so fast. At first, I just wanted to get him and his bike out of the road before something more serious happened. Then, I became concerned for my own safety retrieving the windshield. Then I further concerned myself with his and his wife's safety as they stood on the narrow shoulder.
It was a close call. How easily I could hit and possibly killed that guy. My thoughts immediately turned to a lady in our church who continually tells me she prays for our protection during all the driving we do. It was also a close call because we talked about Turner driving home that night as he still has his beginner's permit. Brenda and I both praise God he was not behind the wheel. I praise God I could see. Two years ago my vision degenerated so badly I could not drive at night. I praise God He has restored it. Just as I reached our car to leave a eighteen wheel truck came barreling over the hill driving must faster than the speed limit. If that man would have still been trying to retrieve his bike or getting up off the ground himself he would have been hit.
I do hope that man and his wife will call me. I hope one day they show up at Spring Creek and I get to lead them to a saving relationship with Jesus, if they do not already know Him. I know I blew that opportunity, but looking back the man was in shock and his wife gravely concerned for her husband. They were in no emotional state for a sermon. God knows them. He is more than able to preserve His work in their hearts. I believe God will intersect our paths again.
I topped a hill on the feeder road and Brenda yelled, "Look out!" Out of the corner of my eye I saw a man dressed in black standing in the middle of the road. To his left I saw something else in the road as I jammed the break, steered to miss both and prayed all simultaneously. The person scurried toward the shoulder to avoid getting hit. We noticed the object in the road was a motorcycle.
I quickly pulled off on the grass and made my way back up the hill. Turns out the person was a man trying to get his motorcycle off the ground. I feared for him as oncoming traffic might come and never see him before it was too late. By the time I reached him, he had the motorcycle up and asked if I could help him get it off the road.
Traffic backed up as we did this. I had to go back out and retrieve his windshield from the ground holding my hand out to keep people from running me over. People asked if we were okay as they rolled past.. The man seemed rattled by not badly injured. He told a deer ran out in front of him knocking he and his motorcycle to the ground.
He took his helmet off and told me what happened again. He said nobody else had stopped. How could I not stop. I nearly ran the man over. I could not believe a deer ran so close to I-20.
I told him I was the pastor at Spring Creek Baptist Church and I wanted to pray for him. We had prayer and his wife pulled up in a car just after we finished. She had followed him but stopped at a store. She told she had an uneasy feeling as she topped the hill. She saw the cars backed up.
This same man got run off the road by a car just two weeks before. I told him God protected him and had a plan for him. He took down my phone number and asked if I had a business card, which I did not. The whole scene played out in less than five minutes. I stayed nervous for him and his wife as they both were still near the edge of the road just below the crest of the hill. I urged him to move his bike and themselves a little further off the road for safety.
He complained that his hip was sore but nothing else seemed to ail him except his nerves. Looking back I wish I had shared Jesus with him. It all happened so fast. At first, I just wanted to get him and his bike out of the road before something more serious happened. Then, I became concerned for my own safety retrieving the windshield. Then I further concerned myself with his and his wife's safety as they stood on the narrow shoulder.
It was a close call. How easily I could hit and possibly killed that guy. My thoughts immediately turned to a lady in our church who continually tells me she prays for our protection during all the driving we do. It was also a close call because we talked about Turner driving home that night as he still has his beginner's permit. Brenda and I both praise God he was not behind the wheel. I praise God I could see. Two years ago my vision degenerated so badly I could not drive at night. I praise God He has restored it. Just as I reached our car to leave a eighteen wheel truck came barreling over the hill driving must faster than the speed limit. If that man would have still been trying to retrieve his bike or getting up off the ground himself he would have been hit.
I do hope that man and his wife will call me. I hope one day they show up at Spring Creek and I get to lead them to a saving relationship with Jesus, if they do not already know Him. I know I blew that opportunity, but looking back the man was in shock and his wife gravely concerned for her husband. They were in no emotional state for a sermon. God knows them. He is more than able to preserve His work in their hearts. I believe God will intersect our paths again.
Friday, November 1, 2019
New Cart
The modern church age is fascinated by the new. New technology. New programs. New methodologies. New songs. New ways of doing everything. Churches are fascinated with relevance, practicality, millennials, while generations in the past concerned themselves with doctrine, holiness, evangelism and revival.
Israel lost the ark of the covenant early in the book of I Samuel. David decided it was time to bring it back home after a long while. A delegation went to bring it back with great pomp and celebration. The ark was carefully placed on a new cart to make the journey back home. Along the way the oxen stumbled causing the ark to topple a little. A guy named Uzzah reached out to steady the ark. He died right then.
Suddenly the great celebration turned somber. David got angry and refused to bring the ark back. I am sure many wondered why Uzzah died. What did he do wrong. He was only trying to help.
Let's investigate a little closer. First, when has God ever needed someone to hold Him up to keep Him from falling. The ark represented the place where God dwelt. It was more than just a chest. It was a symbol of the holy presence of God. In fact, the Bible states God dwelt between the cherubim on top of the ark. When Uzzah reached out to steady the ark, he forgot who dwelt with the ark. He forgot who God was. He did not treat God as holy. It cost Uzzah his life.
The other problem goes back to the fact that the ark was transported on a new cart. That is how the Philistines transported the ark to send it back to Israel. The Israelites should have known better. God gave clear instructions on how to transport it in Exodus. The ark was to be transported by poles on the shoulders of priests. God commanded the ark be treated as holy. If Israel had obeyed God, Uzzah would not have died.
Doing it God's way is always best. In the church age, to attract a crowd it appears some very sacred things are being sacrificed on the altar of church growth. Holiness is not in high demand. Doctrine is dodged so preachers talk about felt needs. Technology is preferred to prayer.
Now, I think some old paradigms in church can and should change. I also think there are some timeless things that should never change. New carts might be more efficient but in the eyes of God they are not always more effective. Sometimes they are downright offensive.
New carts cannot produce the power of God. New carts cannot save souls. Only God can do that. New carts might show up in the form of worship centers, but buildings do not revive communities and nations. Only God does that. Beware of putting your trust in new carts.
Israel lost the ark of the covenant early in the book of I Samuel. David decided it was time to bring it back home after a long while. A delegation went to bring it back with great pomp and celebration. The ark was carefully placed on a new cart to make the journey back home. Along the way the oxen stumbled causing the ark to topple a little. A guy named Uzzah reached out to steady the ark. He died right then.
Suddenly the great celebration turned somber. David got angry and refused to bring the ark back. I am sure many wondered why Uzzah died. What did he do wrong. He was only trying to help.
Let's investigate a little closer. First, when has God ever needed someone to hold Him up to keep Him from falling. The ark represented the place where God dwelt. It was more than just a chest. It was a symbol of the holy presence of God. In fact, the Bible states God dwelt between the cherubim on top of the ark. When Uzzah reached out to steady the ark, he forgot who dwelt with the ark. He forgot who God was. He did not treat God as holy. It cost Uzzah his life.
The other problem goes back to the fact that the ark was transported on a new cart. That is how the Philistines transported the ark to send it back to Israel. The Israelites should have known better. God gave clear instructions on how to transport it in Exodus. The ark was to be transported by poles on the shoulders of priests. God commanded the ark be treated as holy. If Israel had obeyed God, Uzzah would not have died.
Doing it God's way is always best. In the church age, to attract a crowd it appears some very sacred things are being sacrificed on the altar of church growth. Holiness is not in high demand. Doctrine is dodged so preachers talk about felt needs. Technology is preferred to prayer.
Now, I think some old paradigms in church can and should change. I also think there are some timeless things that should never change. New carts might be more efficient but in the eyes of God they are not always more effective. Sometimes they are downright offensive.
New carts cannot produce the power of God. New carts cannot save souls. Only God can do that. New carts might show up in the form of worship centers, but buildings do not revive communities and nations. Only God does that. Beware of putting your trust in new carts.
Do You Trust Me?
What if God asked you, "Do you trust Me?" Really trust. Have confidence in Him, full assurance in Him and belief in Him? Do you believe what He says? Do you believe what He promises? Do you believe with your heart more than your mind?
When we are put to the test do we trust? It seems people often doubt the most when tested the most. When we need the greatest trust in God, unbelief can blind and cripple faith.
So how do we build our trust, grow our faith and retain our confidence in God? I offer a few simple suggestions.
1. We must grow close to God. We trust people we are closest to if we believe they love us.
2. We must know what God says and promises to us to bolster our faith. That means reading His word and memorizing His word.
3. We learn to trust one step of faith at a time. That means one prayer at a time and one challenge at a time.
4. We must persevere in prayer and not lose heart. Don't give up. Keep pounding the doors of Heaven.
5. We have to learn to patiently wait on God's timing in answering prayers. God is never late but always on time.
These few simple steps can help us develop a greater trust in God no matter what challenges we face. He is bigger than all our challenges. May our faith grow as we grow closer to the God who loves us and works on our behalf.
When we are put to the test do we trust? It seems people often doubt the most when tested the most. When we need the greatest trust in God, unbelief can blind and cripple faith.
So how do we build our trust, grow our faith and retain our confidence in God? I offer a few simple suggestions.
1. We must grow close to God. We trust people we are closest to if we believe they love us.
2. We must know what God says and promises to us to bolster our faith. That means reading His word and memorizing His word.
3. We learn to trust one step of faith at a time. That means one prayer at a time and one challenge at a time.
4. We must persevere in prayer and not lose heart. Don't give up. Keep pounding the doors of Heaven.
5. We have to learn to patiently wait on God's timing in answering prayers. God is never late but always on time.
These few simple steps can help us develop a greater trust in God no matter what challenges we face. He is bigger than all our challenges. May our faith grow as we grow closer to the God who loves us and works on our behalf.
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