Changing a Life with $1

Recently at my local church in Colorado Springs, our pastor shared a message on money.  It was unusual in two respects. 

 

First, rarely does our pastor preach about money.  This particular message was in reference to how we can worship God not only in songs on Sunday mornings but with our lives, using our finances to glorify Him. 

 

Second, the service was out of the ordinary in that at the conclusion of the message offering plates were passed and worshipers were all encouraged to take money OUT of the plate.  We were challenged to think about how we could take a single dollar and turn it into something that would serve the Body of Christ and glorify God in the process.

 

But how does one go about worshipping God with “just a buck”?

 

My son Zechariah is 14 years old and while I don’t think of him as adopted, the reality is that I am not his ‘birth mother’.  He came to me at 5 weeks old, the product of the Utah Foster Care System.  Even though his bio mom was facing tremendous obstacles, she chose to give life to this little boy who eventually found his way into my home and more importantly, into my heart.

 

Zechariah found a way to turn his dollar bill into a project, a challenge to others to support mothers in difficult situations who want to choose life for their unborn babies.  You can read more about his exciting challenge at www.firstgiving.com/zechallor

Today that challenge culminated in the annual Life Network Walk for Life.  We are so very grateful for all our friends and family who supported Zechariah in this effort.  He raised  $450.00…so far. 

It’s not too late to contribute on-line at his sight…

By the Book: U.S. Militarys’ Justification for Destroying Bibles

 Would it surprise you to learn that the U.S. military has rounded up some Bible in Afghanistan and destroyed them?

The Bibles translated into Dari & Pashto languages had been mailed by an Evangelical Christian church to an American soldier serving in Afghanistan.  The military, concerned that the soldier in question might try to convert others to Christianity, ordered chaplains to confiscate the Bibles and destroy them.  None had been distributed.

In a Pentagon briefing yesterday, Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff articulated that it is the policy of the U.S. Military that no one on active duty will “push any specific religion”. 

Unless the “specific religion” is secular humanism?  Right Admiral?

Names Of Jesus

Recently I was blessed to be speaking to a group of women at Woodmen Valley Chapel in Colorado Springs about the names of Jesus.  What a GREAT time of sharing!  The women are wonderful and eagerly received the Word of God as I shared.  The main topic was Living Water but since they had been studying many different names of Jesus over the course of the past year, I wanted to show them how all the names fit together.

 

God gave me an idea for a simple demonstration using a cup full of rocks to help the audience visualize what happens when we fill our cup…symbolizing our heart vessel… with things other than water which represents the Living Water, Christ Jesus.  On each of the rocks I had written a single word of a problem or sin and next to it I wrote the Name of Jesus which applied to that particular issue. 

 

Many ladies have asked for a copy of this part of the message I shared so here you go:

 

“Stones take all kinds of shapes and sizes and some of them are even beautiful…like serving at church, teaching Bible study, volunteering for ministry purposes…but none are to take the place of Living Water.  Just as a glass was designed for water, You and I were designed by our Creator to receive Living Water.  Yet we fill our vessels with things that we were never designed for.

 

“So what happens when we come to Jesus, the Living Water with all our stones?  Jesus longs to fill us with Himself in the person of the Holy Spirit but look at the junk that’s in the way!  The stones are occupying space that belongs to Living Water. 

 

“What are the stones in your life occupying the place in your heart that was intended for Living Water alone?  How much are you missing out on because there’s just no room for Him?” 

 

“As I pull out stones, let them be a reminder of who Christ has taught us this year He is…”

 

A stone of confusion…Jesus told us that He is our Guidepost.  We don’t have to be confused, because He will guide us into all truth.   {Isaiah 58:11; Psalm 119:4-9; Jeremiah 31:21}

 

A stone called fear…We can get rid of that one in the name of Jesus because He is our PRINCE OF PEACE.  We have nothing to fear.  We walk in peace.  {Isaiah 9:2, 6-7; 26:3; Isaiah 32:17-18; Luke 1:67, 76-79; John 14:27, 16:33}

 

What about the stone called worry?  Jesus is our Provider, according to His riches in glory.  He knows what we need.  He provides.  {Phil 4:19; Genesis 22: 1-8; Matthew 14:19-20}

 

A favorite among Christian women, the stone of preoccupation with busyness.  We can loose that one in Jesus name…Jesus is our Good Shepherd who guards our going out and coming in, in Whom we can find rest.  {Psalm 23; Isaiah 40:11; John 10:2-3, 10:7-10}

 

This hideous stone of sinful appetites?  Jesus is our Bread of Life.  He satisfies our hunger and as we feast more & more on Him, we are filled, no room for other appetites.  {John 6:48-51, 53-58; John 6:35; Psalm 103}

 

The stone of unforgiveness?  He is our Bright, Morning Star that chases away the shadows of woundedness, the Light of the World that allows us to release the darkness of those who have hurt us. {Rev 22:16; Numbers 24:17; II Peter 1:16-19; Psalm 139: 11-12; Isaiah 29:18-19; Luke 1:78-79}

 

The stone of distrust of others?  Jesus is our Friend, we can trust Him.  {John 15:13; Proverbs 17:17; John 21:4-7; Proverbs 18:24}

 

The stone of loneliness?  Jesus is our ever present Husband.  {Isaiah 54:5-7; Rev. 19:6-9; Hosea 2:19-20}

 

The stone of striving?  Jesus is our Victor!  {I Cor. 15:57, I John 4:4; Luke 10:18-20; Matthew 28:18; II Cor. 10: 4-5}

 

Unhealthy habits?  Jesus is our Deliver.  {Luke 1:68-69; Job 5:19; I Co. 10:13; II Titus 4:18; II Peter 2; 9; Acts 5:18-19, 12:7}

 

The stone of anger?  Jesus is our Comforter/Helper.  {II Cor. 1:3,6; Psalm 77:2; Psalm 54:4}

 

Abandonment?  He is Emmanuel, God with us!  {Matthew 1:22-23; Matthew 28:20; Psalm 139:7-10}

 

The stone of selfishness?  Jesus is our Alpha & Omega…when we realize that it’s ALL about him, from beginning to end, there’s no place for selfishness.  {Isaiah 44:6, 48:12; Rev 1:7-8, 22:13}

 

Critical spirit, nagging, complaining?  Jesus is our Encourager, our JOY!  {Romans 14:17; John 15:9-16; Psalm 16:11, 43:4; Isaiah 61:7; Galatians 5:22}

 

And the stones of shame & guilt? Jesus is our High Priest, {Hebrews 4:14-16, 9:11-14; I Peter 2:9-10; Romans 8:31-34} and the Lamb of God who forgives our sin.  {John 1:29; Isaiah 53:7; I Peter 1:18-21; Rev 5:6, 9-10}

 

Slowly the stones were removed from the cup until eventually the cup was empty and ready to be filled to overflowing with Water.

 

“In the name of Jesus we can loose the heavy stones that weigh us down and occupy our vessels. When Jesus our Living Water comes to fill us as His vessels, we have a constant well springing up in us to give us a heart of worship in spirit and truth.  And in the name of Jesus we have heart vessels that overflow with Living Water, spilling over into the lives of those who count on us…husbands, children, family, friends, co-workers, even strangers at the grocery store…who need us to share this hope in us, the fountain of Living Water. 

 

There is no name that is stronger, no other name that can free us, no other name but the name of Jesus.  AMEN.

The End is Near…

I’m intrigued by the voting in my previous poll about a possible relationship between Billy Graham’s eventual death and the end of the age.  {Scroll down to view results.  If you haven’t voted yet, go for it!}  Makes me wonder about a few things…like, if I knew the world would end tomorrow would I change anything about my life today?

What if you knew that this world’s clock had only 5 more years ticking on it before the alarm sounds?  Would you still be so wrapped up about your failing retirement fund?   Would the demands of the office give way to purposeful energy invested in spouse and children?  Would you exchange the pettiness and resentment you feel toward someone for forgiveness?  Would you be inclined to develop your own “Bucket List” of activities and adventures to conquer?   Would you make a passionate effort to get your everyday life off the “Groundhog Day” track and do something radically different?  Would you be more purposeful in counting your blessings?  Would you reevaluate your relationship to your Creator and try to “make peace with God?” 

Ten years ago, in anticipation of the year 2000, the cover of Time magazine carried a photo of a barefoot man with long hair wearing a flowing white gown and a sandwich board sign bearing the message  “The END Of The WORLD!?!”.  As the world prepared for certain annihilation at the stroke of midnight Y2K, people all over the globe took inventory of their lives and made adjustments to their priorities. 

In our melancholy and/or panic we considered that life is short.  We searched for purpose and meaning.  One of the most popular books of the decade…The Purpose Driven Life…flew off store shelves as we sought to make sense of our existence.

Now, here we are again ten years later and none the wiser.  Rats returned to the maze, wondering who moved our cheese…

The Bible makes it very clear that life is a vapor.  Man is but a blink of an eye in an infinite cosmos.  If you could truly begin to comprehend this fact, what, if anything, would you change?

For me, I have been taking a hard look at what it means to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength…” Mark 12: 29.  Mine is an on-going quest to relinquish those things in my life that so easily become idols, to instead focus on Christ as my everything.  To LOVE Him with ALL that is in me. 

Such a quest cannot be confused with religiosity and a lengthy list of “thou shalt nots”.  Instead it requires a daily surrender of all that is in me in exchange for ALL that He is.  Being the selfish creature that I am, surrender does not come easy.  Still, I am learning that it is the only road worth traveling.  Whether the world comes to an end tomorrow or not at all in my lifetime, I long to be a spiritual being consumed with livin 4 Jesus.

 

The Sound of Love’s Sacrifice

 

Some folks shot me strange looks as I was coming out of Home Depot a few days ago. 

 

I was carrying a 5’ wooden cross.  I also got some nods of partial understanding…it was, after all, Good Friday.  Members of my family in Christ didn’t need to know the reason for the cross I was carrying.  They simply did the math and reckoned it had something to do with Easter celebration.  I lugged the cross through the parking lot feeling the splinters of the oak beam dig into my shoulder.  For a moment I paused to consider the weight of the Cross Christ bore on the Via Dolorosa. 

 

It is no secret to anyone who knows me that I love special occasions.  My domestic flair peaks with the approach of a holiday.  Determined not to permit decorating and cooking for 20+ people to overshadow the meaning of our Lord’s death and resurrection, I had gone to Home Depot with a mission in mind.  The cross would be placed out side my front door with 9” spikes partially nailed at opposite ends of the crossbeam.  A sign posted above the cross draped with a crimson sash read “It wasn’t the nails that held Him there.  It was His love for You.” Guests would be invited to hit one of the spikes with a hammer as a visual and auditory reminder, “Christ took the nails for me”.   

 

Predictably the guests began to arrive and each person was surprised to be greeted with a hug and a hammer.  Still all understood the powerful imagery and were sobered at the invitation to hit the spike.  The sound of the hammer driving the nail was powerful and sent chills down my spine each time I heard it.  It was the sound of Love’s sacrifice.

 

What must it have been like that day at Calvary?  Christ did not simply hear the spikes, He felt them.  Every blow.  In His wrists.  Through His ankles.  These were not little nails but large spikes ruthlessly driven deep into His flesh.  Did He grimace?  Did He cry aloud?  Did He weep?  Whatever His response to this torture, we know 2000 years later the nails were not what held Jesus to the Cross.  As a mob at His feet mocked Him to save Himself, Jesus could have called legions of angels to His rescue.  But love made a choice that day, a choice to hang there.  Love chose to endure the agony.  Love chose to die for the sin of mankind.  Love chose to pay a price man could never afford, to give a gift man would never deserve. 

 

He endured the suffering that should have been ours. Isaiah 53:4

 

Praise be to God that Calvary was not the end.  As I celebrated Easter Sunday with friends and family today, we gave thanks for the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross and we rejoiced in His Resurrection.  Because He lives we have hope for this journey.  Beyond that, Christ’s victory over the final enemy…death…offers us the promise of eternal life with Him in heaven.

 

“God raised Him up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it.” Acts 2:24

 

Jesus Christ is RISEN!