Two Little Words I Never Heard

 Brenda and I were watching a movie. The theme of the movie was pretty intense. It was not so much as entertaining as it was informative and inspiring. In one surprise part of the movie a fatherless son discovers who is dad is. He already had a friendly relationship with this man and had known him for years. He was driving to meet his new found father for the first time as his father. Both father and son were embracing a new reality. 

Before he even knocked on the door his father saw him coming. The father threw the door opened and said two words I have never heard spoken to me. Those two little words, five letters in total, shot through me like a piercing knife opening a wound. All the father said was, "My son!"

No man has ever said those words to me. To this day I have no idea who my earthly father was. The man I was told was my father was murdered after a life of debauchery. Turns out he was not my father after all. That remains an unsolved mystery that I have buried and left behind. A man, whom I was told was my father, I cannot even recall what he looked like. I certainly have no memories of his love or wise counsel. I grew up fatherless like so many other people in society. It wounded me. It limited me. It impacts me to this day. 

When that father said, "My son," in the movie tears welled up. It sunk in that I had never heard those words spoken to me even once. A flood of memories resurfaced of little league try outs without my father there while all the other little boys had their fathers present rooting them to success. I never had a father to talk to during the tough times. To love me through failures and disappointments. No father ever told me he loved me. No father taught me to hunt, fish, work on things around the house, play ball or countless other things fathers teach their sons. 

It made me grow up angry. A fighter trying to prove that I belonged and could cut in on the athletic field. Truth is insecurity dominated me most of my formative years. Well into college and adulthood. I felt like I had to perform to prove I fit in. My self-worth was caught up in how successful I was in ministry. Therefore my mood rose and fall depending on the Sunday attendance. Needless to say there were some very low Monday mornings. 

Then God revealed something that changed my life. He is a Father to the fatherless. A father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows is God in His holy habitation. [Ps 68:5]

God has been just as real a Father to me as any earthly father could have ever been. He has given me counsel in confusing times. He has comforted me in sorrows. He has encouraged me in failures. He has provided for my family in innumerable times of need. He has shown me favor and opened doors. He has chastised me when I rebelled. More than anything else He has loved me. I belong to Him. I am a part of His family. I have a seat at His table. I cannot put into words what that has meant to me. 

He calls me, "My son," through His Spirit. I am adopted and brought into His fold. He is a better Father to me than any earthly father could ever have been. He has taught and continues to teach me to be a father to my four sons. They are grown up now. I find they still need me. I still delight in being there for them. I still delight in telling them I love them. I need to break this off now. I want to communicate my love to my sons. I never want them to ever feel the way I did for a good portion of my life. My sons. 

A Fresh Gale Blowing

 When I arrived on the scene at Spring Creek enthusiasm coursed through my soul. I saw the challenges that were ahead. The attendance was woefully low. The morale of the people was not much higher, with the exception that they finally had a new pastor. The church had little vision beyond just trying to survive. There were no young families or children. Some of the facilities needed some tender loving care. I knew from the start only God could turn Spring Creek around. 

I recall sitting in this office on my first week in this new position pleading with God bring this church back to life. I pleaded for Him to move. For Him to add the missing pieces to this body of believers. It started very slowly. A few were saved. A few joined the church. Things starting picking up. Then March of 2020 everything came to a halt. We lost the few young families we had reached. Our children's ministry suffered the most. It still has not recovered to what it was before the pandemic. It was just like we started all over again. 

We tried many things and failed many times. Then in the fall of 2021 and into early 2022 God sent a fresh gale of His Spirit blowing over us. We baptized 6 people in the Brazos River one Sunday. This past week God added 12 new people as they joined our church family. Excitement is high. Doors are opening for ministry outside the walls of the church. The pews are filling a little more. 

 It is a far different atmosphere around here than it was two and a half years ago. People are excited. Many parts of the facilities have been updated. New classes have formed. We had over a dozen children sitting on the front steps of the stage for the children's sermon this past Sunday. People are discovering their giftedness and finding ways to put it into service. New visitors show up week after week. God is doing it all. Spring Creek is a far different church than it was not so long ago. We are still the same friendly and loving people. There are some new faces. There is vision now. There is enthusiasm. There are new ministries and new people to help shoulder the load. There is spiritual life. 

I'm humbled to be a part of it. I have served in places where no matter how much we prayed, what outreach ideas we tried, or how we implemented new programs to turn things around the morale the attendance sunk like ship with a gaping hole in it. I do not take for granted when God decides to blow a fresh gale of Spirit among us. He does the saving. He does the adding. He does the vision casting. He calls the workers. He inspires the worship. He sets people in the body as He desires. It all about Him. 

The best part is He is just getting started. He has shown me things through prayer about our future. A bright future. A kingdom of God focused future. A future of faith challenges and adventurous encounters with Him. A future of salvations and revival. A future that is beyond our imagination. 

For my part, I'm humbled and thankful God let me be a part of it. Humbled to shepherd these wonderful people. Awed at His moving among us. Grateful God brought us back home after decades away. Contented with what He is doing among us. No pastor was ever anymore in love with the flock entrusted to him than I am with the people of Spring Creek. It is a joy to serve here. To feed these people the word of God. To labor alongside them. 

Spring Creek, may we hoist the sails of our faith to catch the wind of His Spirit blowing. May we trust God to take us to places and use us in ways that some might say was impossible. Let us believe Him to work mighty miracles here that bring Him much glory. Most of all, may we do all this together, united, in one accord, and of the same mind. It has already been a fun ride and the best is yet to come. 

Greater Than We Know

 God is greater than we know. In our fast paced society, few really jam on the brakes long enough to meditate on the greatness of God. That happened to me this morning. I cannot say I was looking for it. I opened the Bible dutifully to read. I prayed a very common prayer to a very uncommon God to start. 

Something changed. I wrote in my journal, "God, You are greater than I know." With that little sentence, I got whisked away into the vastness of God in a way I have not been recently. I thought about His love. Who am I that God should choose to love me. I am not a man of great talent. Not a celebrity. I have no great list of accomplishments to my name. I am often inconsistent. Why should God choose to love me when I bring nothing to the table for His benefit. To put that another way, He does not need me or anything I can offer Him. That makes His love all the more mind boggling. He chooses to love ordinary me in extraordinary ways. He does the same for you. 

I think about His holiness. His being set apart from the rest of creation. He is other worldly. Sacred. Pure. Righteous. Without blemish or imperfection. Perfect in all of His ways. Those concepts are stunning. He is right. Always right. His holiness is steadfast from generation to generation. He does not change with the prevailing politically correct winds. He remains constantly vigilant in His holiness. He does not bend or fudge the rules to meet the moral or immoral majority. He lays down His laws and demands compliance. Blessings follow those who obey and chastisement for those who rebel. He has maintained this position since creation thousands of years ago. 

God is Almighty. He is all powerful. There are no limits to His strength, power or might. He can do anything He pleases and purposes to do. He can install and remove rulers at His whim. He can build and topple nations as it suits Him. He can prosper economic fortunes or bankrupt nations. He can save any lost person no matter how far gone as He intends. He can also hold the wicked to judgment no matter how rich and influential they may have ben in this life. He can provide for any need no matter the amount. He can heal any disease with a spoken word. He can revive any dead church. He can usher in days of spiritual awakenings. He can lift any burden. Answer any prayer. Move any mountain. Cast away any fear. Comfort any brokenhearted. Sustain the weary. Renew the vision of any leader. There is nothing our great God cannot do. 

Trying to explain God is like taking a thimble to the ocean and trying to drain it. It is impossible. God is beyond our ability to fully grasp. He is greater than our minds can conceive. He is beyond our ability to adequately praise and exalt. He is indescribable as Chris Tomlin sang some years ago. How dare we ever show up for a devotion or to a Bible study or worship service in boredom. He is the most fascinating subject to study. The most mesmerizing person to meditate on. He is the most charismatic personality to contemplate. 

Don't fool ourselves. He is greater than we know. Trying to get to know Him is a like a child reading one simple children's books in a huge library of tens of thousands of other books. It like trying to count the grains of sand in the desert. It is like trying to count the stars in the heavens on a moonlit clear night. It is like trying to swim across the ocean.There is more to God than we know. He is the summit of a mountain that we will never be able to top. He is the depths of the oceans of which we will never dive to the bottom. He is far more expansive than outer space. 

The most amazing thing is that He chooses to relate to us. He choose to reveal Himself to us. He longs to be known by us. He needs nothing. He does not need us. He chooses to love and save us anyway. He is worth our pursuit, love, worship and service. He is greater than we know. Give your to the pursuit of knowing this God.

Uncommon

 We deal in the common every single day. Common clothes. Common food. Common colds. Common schedules and routines. Common days. It is a rare thing to ever deal in the uncommon. Before I go any further we need to define uncommon. 

Uncommon: out of the ordinary, unusual, remarkable. 

We live pretty ordinary lives, have ordinary jobs, live in ordinary residences and spend our money on ordinary things. I am betting it has been awhile since anything you experienced would be defined as remarkable happened to you. 

Our third son, Tucker, works at ChicFilA when he is not in college. He was working outside taking orders in the drive through when a man in a large truck pulled up. Tucker asked the man for his order and thought he recognized him. After taking the order, Tucker asked the man if he was such and such. Turns out the guy was a pretty famous country singer passing through. Tucker took a selfie with the guy. 

Those are not ordinary experiences. We take common things for granted. Time with family. Meals. Sleep. Friends. Vehicles. Our days go round and round on a merry go round of the usual. I am sad to point out this even happens in our worship. Both private and corporate worship. 

In recent days, I have been trudging through the books of Leviticus and Numbers in my Bible reading. I admit that is some pretty dry reading. Until I came across some scriptures today that really shouted to me. In those books, God communicated to His people that He was uncommon. That is why all the restrictives laws. God demands to be treated as holy and with reverence. When He was not treated that way in the scripture people suffered for it. Ask Korah. Check out Uzzah. Look into Ananias and Saphira. Each treated God as common and paid a price for it. In fact, God required their lives. Korah and his band of 250 followers were swallowed whole by the earth. The earth opened up underneath them and they all fell in and then the ground closed back over the top of them. Uzzah died for reaching out his hand to steady the ark of the covenant as it toppled on an ox pulled cart. He did not treat God has holy and thought he could stead the ark like a common piece of cargo. Ananias and Saphria both lied at different times before the Lord and God struck them both dead in Acts 5. 

Think of the casual ways we approach God in prayer, devotion, and worship. Think of how lack luster we are in public worship. How easily we dismiss His word or the promptings of His Spirit. How we treat the sanctuary as a common ordinary room like other common rooms we frequent. There is little reverence anymore. 

God is uncommon and should be treated that way. He is not ordinary. When we come to Him that is a unique encounter unlike encounters we have with common people. When we open His word, we are opening a remarkable book that is living and active sharper than a two edged sword. When we walk into the sanctuary that is a place to worship and learn about God. It not like our living room or dining rooms. It is a place to devote all our attention to Him. When we sing His songs they are not common. Some people sing louder in their vehicle to songs on the radio or their playlist than they ever sing to God. Admittedly some people sing songs to God in their vehicles. I think that might be more unusual than people singing a country, pop, hip hop, or a love song. 

Everything about God is uncommon, remarkable and extraordinary. I'm thankful for that reminder today. Maybe this will serve as a reminder for you too. Our God is uncommon and those things that are associated with Him are uncommon as well. Let us treat Him that way with reverence. 

Creative

 God is the original Creator. He created with just His spoken word and imagination. He created within human beings the capacity, desire, and inspiration to also create. They may be limited unlike God in their creations. They do it many different genres. 

The painter takes oils, paints, and canvas. They paint vivid scenery from nature or their own imagination. They capture moods with colors. Like pain, despair, joy and delight. Their tools are brushes, paints, and canvases or paper. They can get lost for hours in their creative genius. History celebrates such artists. Their magnificent works outlive them. My favorite painter is Thomas Kincaid. I have stood in an art gallery mesmerized by his paintings for hours taking in every hidden detail. He brilliantly used light in his works through the sun or moon. 

There are other artists who use hammers and chisels to sculpt. Others sculpt with their hands at the pottery wheel. They are able to see something beauty in the mundane. They skillfully and delicately work to bring the beauty out for the rest of us to see. They are able to see it before any of us do. They create beautiful statutes and pottery. That is a creative talent to see beauty in things most others ignore. Their creativity has blessed multitudes.

There are creative people who sit at a computer or drawing desk and design houses and commercial buildings. They make them both beautiful and functional. They dream up designs that have never been created before making each building unique. Some buildings are simple and others are ornate. Each is a creative marvel. Building an idea from raw materials into something people get to enjoy. Like churches, schools, businesses, restaurants and homes. 

Some people create with spices, meats, dough, and vegetables to cook delicacies that make the taste buds dance in delight. They are great in the kitchen. Whether baking, grilling, frying, sautéing or basting, they create dishes that dazzle and that drive our taste senses to their heights of pleasure. Such people find great pleasure in sharing creations with others. It is a labor of love. 

Some are able to sit down at an instrument to create pleasant notes, melodies, crescendos, and chords making music. Some do it through the instrument of their voice. Others use pianos, guitars, flutes, trumpets, saxophones, drums, and violins to create sounds that whisk people away from the mundane monotony of life. They create sounds of music to be enjoyed by different types of people from different walks of life. It is joyful to hear worship music that exalts God and praises Him. How thankful we are for creative music. 

I am not gifted in any of those areas. I never enjoyed art in school. I actually failed wood shop in junior high school. I am not gifted with my hands. Hammers and saws are not my preferred tools. Neither are wrenches or screwdrivers. I am not able to play any instrument. God called and gifted me to create in another way. 

My tools are legal pads, pens, and computers. I work with words to capture thoughts, to paint scenes in writings, to instruct, inspire, sway opinions and encourage people with ink on a page or words on a screen. I construct with words. I paint with nouns, verbs and adjectives. I sculpt with scriptures. I create with language. I marinate and sauté in thoughts that gel into savory sentences. It is a creative craft I adore. I can get lost in it forgetting time for hours on end. 

Some people write to live. They pump out material to earn a living learning to perfect their profession. I live to write. It is the one chance I have to be creative. To paint, build, construct and create something for others to enjoy. 

What might God use you to create for others to enjoy? What special talent, gift, or unique ability do you have just waiting to be discovered by others. It took me decades before I ever shared my craft with the world. I did not want to be rejected. I know I often make mistakes in these blogs no matter how I try to proof them before posting. I have determined not to let my lack of perfection to hinder me from creating. I know some posts are more valuable than others. Sometimes there are dry spells when there is little to no creativity. I am blessed to be inspired by others creative genius. 

How can you be used in some way to inspire others around you? I am sure there is a way. Maybe in the machine shop or the wood shop. Perhaps in the kitchen. Maybe around the table telling stories. Possibly with your hands in painting or voice in singing. Perhaps over a sewing machine. Wherever God gifted you to be creative, I exhort you to use it for the glory of God and the enjoyment of others.  

Suffering Saints

 I have been a pastor for 26 years. I have never seen more people sick at one time in all those years. It seems I daily get reports about someone else getting sick among our congregation. At last count we were near two dozen people. That is a good many in a church no larger than Spring Creek. 

I checked on one of our men today. He told me he felt normal for the first time in three weeks. I understand. I have slept in my bed twice in the past two and a half weeks because of coughing and sinuses. I missed one Sunday and have gone home early from the office in cold chills running fever. It has been about a month that I have battled one health issue or another. 

So many people are suffering. This Omicron seems more contagious than any disease in my memory. Schools have been forced to shut down because so many teachers and students have been affected. People are extremely nervous to get out around others. Doctor offices are filled as well as hospitals. Pharmacies are out of cough syrup. People are having to call in sick from work. It is spreading like wild fire. 

So many suffering. The saints have not been exempted. The saints suffer as well. We get sick. We face set backs. We grieve the death of loved ones. We battle despair and the dungeon of doubt like others do. We face set backs, snares, and sinister temptations from Satan. 

We are not the first saints to suffer. Nor will we be the last. History is filled with the stories of suffering saints. Fanny Crosby was blind but she wrote thousands of hymns. William Cowper suffered from debilitating depression but he wrote the hymn There Is A Fountain. Amy Carmichael was bedridden but she continued to rescue orphans. William Carey lost his wife on the mission field but he continued to labor for the souls around him. Hudson Taylor lost two wives and two children to death on the mission field. It did not deter him from the completion of his mission to win the Chinese to Christ. David Brainerd suffered from Tuberculosis. He still ministered to the Indians despite his chronic sickness. John Bunyan suffered in prison for refusing not to preach the Bible. He made the most of his time by writing the famous book, Pilgrim's Progress. David Livingstone suffered long stretches without being near his wife and children as he labored in Africa. He died on the mission field knelt by his cot in prayer. Elizabeth Elliot lost her husband to savage Auca Indians who murdered him. She persevered and won her husband's killers to Christ. Jackie Pullinger has suffered in Hong Kong for over five decades laboring with prostitutes, drug addicts, and gang members battling the forces of evil. It has not been an easy road for her but it has been a rewarding one. 

Jesus suffered. So did Matthew, Peter, James, John, and Paul. Suffering continued with saints like Stephen and Polycarp. In each of these cases, the people persevered through their sufferings to make Jesus shine all the more brightly. Their suffering did not deter them. 

Now it is our turn. I contemplated this yesterday. I thought about other suffering saints who did not allow their suffering to be an excuse for not being faithful. Nor can we. Persevere you suffering saints. Jesus is shining through you. 

Let Me Pick Your Brain

 The two of us sat on his back porch eating dinner and watching a bowl game. In the course of our conversation, he brought up a topic that has long fascinated me. I started picking his brain for more information. I am a curious person by nature. I asked question after question taking in all my friend's expertise. In fact our evening ended with me still asking him questions about a different topic. I might still be there if Brenda had not pulled me away. 

I spent a good portion of this morning doing research on the internet about a topic related to the church. I sought answers from all points of view. I then fired off an email to an expert for his thoughts and recommended resources. I followed that up with a phone call to another expert. All in an effort to learn and make the best informed decisions as possible. 

I have been out of formal education for a long time now but, I still have an insatiable thirst for knowledge and to learn. There is so much I dod not know. So much about God I have not discovered. Truths in the Bible I have not mined nor taught. Spiritual experiences I have not enjoyed. I want more. 

All around me are people who have gone further, discovered more, dug deeper, and experienced greater God encounters than I have. I want to learn from as many of these people as I can. I am still a student at heart. Partly this is done by reading. I am currently reading five books. They all interest me. I read a little in one and then some in the next and so forth. I want to pick other people's brains to be more effective. There is no end to knowledge. There are so many books and so little time. 

There are people who have great wisdom on a variety of topics. They have so much to offer if we just take the time to ask. I want to spend more time asking. Learning. Growing. Progressing. Listening instead of taking. Asking instead of answering. 

The information highway available through the internet has a labyrinth of information available at our finger tips. More information than we can possibly ever use on every topic imaginable. It is overwhelming how much information is out there to be consumed. Not all that information is true. Some must be sifted through scripture. We can be well informed students of life, culture, history, politics, the Bible, theology, prophesy, and every other topic imaginable. 

I hope we will make a more concerted effort to pick the brains of people, books, and other sources of knowledge in 2022. May we progress in our understanding this year. Especially as it relates to knowledge of God and His word. Happy picking my brothers and sisters. May God give us the hunger and the capacity to keep learning while we still have life. 

What Lies Ahead?

 No doubt by this time you have heard numerous greetings and hopes for a happy and prosperous new year in 2022. Truth is none of us knows what lies ahead. It may turn out to be the greatest year of our lives. It could also be one of the most trying years we have faced. Only God knows what lies ahead. 

Whether you are filled with great optimism about 2022 or carry a more pessimistic outlook, one thing is for sure. Whatever happens in 2022 God will still rule and reign in supreme control. He will see us through both triumphs and defeats. He will stand by our sides in times of grief as well as gratitude. He will not forsake us when we fall into sin nor be overly impressed when we do right. His love will remain steadfast. 

So no matter what lies ahead, we can be confident that our God will see us through. He will faithfully meet our needs. He will shoulder our burdens. He will grant peace in turbulent times. He will comfort in sorrow. He will offer guidance in times of confusion. He will be both mountain mover and miracle worker when needed. He will be strength in our weakness and perseverance when it would be easier to give up and throw in the towel. He will be our light in the darkness, our refuge in the storms, our reason to praise at the midnight hour. He will be faithful and true. He is the great I AM. 

We need not fear 2022. Go ahead and dream. Just let your dreams be God inspired rather than self driven. Go after those God inspired dreams. He will be all. you need to see those come true. 

After living over five decades, I am convinced of this truth. 2022 will bring seasons of great joy as well as some of sorrows. 2022 will present some challenges to overcome as well as some testimonies for over comers. In this fledgeling new year, there will be opportunities to trust God. There may also be times when doubt could possibly creep in. Keep your eyes on God and stay focused in His word. They will not fail you no matter what lies ahead.