Sunday Morning Leftovers - September 15th, 2013

Clarification...

I mentioned in one of the services today that King David reminds me of James Bond, Bill Clinton and Billy Graham all rolled together.  Here is why: In some ways David is like James Bond: always victorious in battle and with many beautiful women by his side. He is like Bill Clinton -reaching the political pinnacle of success, but unable to control his personal lusts. David also reminds me of Billy Graham in that he has a unique connection to God.

Today's sermon covered a couple of chapters in First Samuel, setting the stage for David to be King. One of the things we learned today is, 'God may give us what we want, even if it is not what we need.' The challenge for us is not to present God with our list of wants/needs; but instead seek God's desire for our lives and then we follow.

I love the fact that God chose David for a Purpose and a Destiny.  David was as insignificant as humanly possible.  His own father didn't even think that he was worthy enough to come and visit when the Prophet Samuel arrived.  He lacked everything that a leader needs, except one thing: David had a heart for God.  David's Purpose was to experience God's love and his Destiny was to reflect God's love to his people.

As I think of young David being chosen to be the next King, it hits me that there are some similarities between David and Jesus... Can you think of some similarities between David being chosen to be king and Jesus' early years?

Send in your answers or any questions in the Comments section below...

Tuesday Morning Sabbatical - August 12th, 2013

A 48 hour fast, terrifying prayer, and being alone in the woods.  More adventures in my Summer 2013 Sabbatical.

So last week I did something that I have never done before -No, not finally preach a good sermon or get a decent haircut-  For five days last week I took a solitude retreat, isolated in a cabin, just God and a pile of books...

Have you ever taken a solitude retreat?  I want to hear what you did and how you felt about it...  I found that a solitude retreat it can be both imminently rewarding and hauntingly terrifying all at the same time.

My friend Pastor Pete recommended that I start my time away with a 48 hour fast.  This is designed to get my heart focused on God and allow Him to speak into my life. So from Monday morning to Wednesday morning I only drank fluids; using my time to read through the first four books of the New Testament and to pray.  On Wednesday I drove to the nearby local cafe and broke my fast with this tasty breakfast.

(I love the local color of hometown cafes...  BowHunter Magazine and Field and Stream jammed in the periodical rack, every man in the place was both over 60 and wore a farm implement hat, and every neck swiveled as I placed my order.  Guessing no one had ever ordered cottage cheese with their breakfast).

The retreat was more ascetic than what I had planned.  Left my toiletry bag at home so I could not shave, and I was not able to figure out how to make the shower hot (yes I am slow like that).  I tried to use as little electricity as possible, so only natural lights and candles to assist in reading, with meals consisting of fresh fruits and simple foods.

Saw plenty of animals, deer, the rare black squirrel, wild turkey (the bird not the beverage), and all sorts of rabbits.  For exercise I ran three miles every morning and walked an hour every evening. The balance of my time was spent studying and preparing for a fall sermon series on the life of David, Israel's greatest King.  (I am so pumped about this character study and preaching the Life of David. Southbrook Church will kick off our fall ministry year on Sunday September 8th, which is also our first Sunday of three morning services 8, 9:30 and 11am!)

Here is what I learned while in the woods:
-Intentional Rest is Tough.  I am so used to a life of instant access: news/sports/entertainment/stock quotes, etc... even instantly connecting with family and friends.  The benefits that come from intentional rest are amazing.  Rest allows you to become more in tune with God, your environment, and even your own soul.

-God Rested, We Should as Well.  Genesis tells us that God rested on the 7th day. He did not need a break or to catch his breath.  By resting God models for us a reminder that He holds everything together.  He rests because he can.  We are wise to follow His example.

-Technology promises salvation, but delivers captivity.  The next time you are at your doctors, read a copy of Popular Science- circa the 1950's.  Promises of 12 hour work weeks, flying cars, and robots who do all the housework and cleaning -fill its pages.  Technology promises a life of health, exercise in a bottle, and wrinkle free looks.  Taking a sabbatical from our technological dependence is a way of reclaiming our humanity, a way of resetting our souls.

-Prayer Can be Terrifying. Yes it is great to know that we can communicate directly to God, anytime, anywhere.  But to be alone with God, where He has access to your innermost of thoughts -well this can be terrifying.  The need to regularly confess is critical to a healthy prayer life.

I had hoped to end my solitude week by connecting with a local pastor.  So a few weeks earlier I found a local bible church, emailed the pastor and inquired if he wanted to meet up for coffee.  The final morning of the week Pastor Tim and myself sat and talked for 3 hours about life, ministry and being pastors to our communities.  What a great way to end a powerful week!

Thanks to our good friend Erica for encouraging me to go, along with my wife Lynn and our son Jacob for creating the environment which would allow me this rare time away.

As much as I am enjoying this Sabbatical rest, I can not wait to get back into the ebb and flow of Southbrook Church!

Monday Evening Sabbatical -July 8th, 2013

Meeting God Over Pizza, A Screaming Bladder, and Driving 85mph Down Rawson Avenue.

This past week we accomplished some more house projects.  We started cleaning out our basement storage and main room.  Wow, where did all this stuff come from?  It is eye-opening to realize how easy it is to accumulate so much stuff.  Cleaning out the basement is cathartic, tense, and in the end -well worth it.  We were able to give some great items to friends and a few car loads made it to the local Goodwill.  Realized through this that our spiritual lives contain basements, which -more often than not- need the same attention as the ones in our homes.  Doing a spiritual inventory of what we are holding on to and what we need to get rid of -works wonders for the soul!

One day last week Jacob and I went to Tazino’s in Oak Creek.  This pizza buffet is perfect for our 13 year old man-child.  It was great to be greeted with a huge hug from Southbrook Church member Wanda C!  While we were eating our lunch, a group of five businessmen came in and sat down near us.  Before they ate, one of the men bowed his head and prayed before his meal.  A few minutes later as he was getting up for more pizza, I thanked him for praying before he ate.  We had a solid conversation about living out our faith.  What a cool God moment !

One thing I thoroughly enjoy about what I do in life- is using my Super Pastor-Powers to connect and meet with others who share this calling.  This week I met with three local pastors from three different churches.  Pastor Pete recently announced that he is retiring from his service to his church: Redeemer Evangelical Free Church.  He has faithfully served the Lord in four different churches with character and integrity.  On the other end of the spectrum is Pastor Dave from New Hope Community Church.  Dave has been a senior pastor for all of four months.  I am impressed with his passion and determination in leading his church to be externally focused.  Near the end of the week I had lunch with Pastor Ansen, who leads a Central City congregation -the Word is God Worship Center.  He is a man who is passionate about preaching the Word and spending time with his family.  I am so thankful that God has brought these guys into my life!

On Wednesday from 4am to about 1pm, I rode along with two different Franklin Police Department Officers.  Let me tell you, very little happens in Franklin at four in the morning!  At one point a call came through that there was a fire at a local gas station... Well, the officer put the pedal to the metal and we were flying down Rawson avenue.  I’ve never been in a car that drove over 85 miles an hour.  Good thing my police-issue pants are dark blue as my bladder was screaming louder than the car engine.  The ‘fire’ turned out to be a few gallons spilled gas on the ground, no flaming inferno, no trapped civilians who were in need of an alert Chaplain’s life-saving assistance; alas no great sermon illustrations...  However God did provide me with some solid opportunities for me to listen and connect with these officers, all of whom seemed willing to talk about spiritual issues...  A new Police Bible Study is possibly even in the works!  I am so thankful that the City of Franklin called four years ago to ask if I would be their Chaplain...

By the end of the week, we were packing up the clothes that our son needed for his Youth Group Missions Trip.  Jacob joined 30 students and 6 staff for a week long work camp to Cincinnati, Ohio. Not sure why we packed so many clothes, as we are certain that he will return in the same clothes that he was wearing when he left.  On the day we said good bye to our son, we welcomed two Southbrook families into our home for dinner.  What a joy to get to know these families, to hear their stories of Christ at work in their lives, and to eat a dynamite meal together!  It is amazing the bonds that can form around food!

I am thoroughly enjoying this Summer 2013 Sabbatical and at the same time, miss tremendously the great people of Southbrook Church....

Wedding Prayer

Call them old-fashioned, call them antiquated/ traditional, or whatever term you wish; but this photo of about-to-be-married Josh and Bre Curtas is causing quite the commotion.

Josh wanted to pray with Bre before their wedding, so they prayed for the Lord to bless their marriage and their faithfulness to each other.  Bre wrote this about the prayer saying, 'My husband prayed that God would bless our marriage, that through thick or thin together we would never lose hope in one another. That instead of focusing on each others' imperfections we would always rely on Christ’s perfection. That we would wake up every day and choose to love one another not through our own strength but by the power of Christ’s perfect love.'

The New York Daily News and other media outlets picked up the story, putting this photo and their prayer into the national spotlight.  Read it by clicking here