At the end of the service today I was hit hard with this image in my mind.  This is not a big theological idea but just my impression.  Today Tommy Brown filled in for Dr. Brooks.  Tommy did a good job with his message on the doubt that many Christians will deal with in their walk with Christ.  Back to my image.  Today we had a someone come down the aisle to publicly profess their belief in Christ.  This is such a wonderful event when God allows our Church community to grow because of him. God has blessed our congregation!  But what is our response?  Of course we clap, then a few more words are spoken, and then what?  The majority of US, including me, get up turn our back to the stage and walk out?  Is that so bad? Today I was really convicted that it is the wrong picture.  In that moment I could not get past the image of all these people turning their back on a new Christian.  In reality we are all not turning our back on this new person in Christ. However, we should all be rejoicing that God has allowed us to experience this time with a new Christian and don’t you want to welcome them to Tallowood?  This image in my mind definitely got my attention and instead of turning my back I walked to the front to greet this person.  Hopefully in the future the longest line in the Gym will be greeting new Christians not the line waiting to exit.  Just take that extra moment to welcome them to our community.

When we think of an extravagant lifestyle, we tend to think about people in Hollywood who live in huge mansions and drive expensive cars.  Or people like Oprah Winfrey who rakes in about $260 million a year (which means she makes more in an hour than most people make all year!)  But I was thinking today about a different way of living an extravagant lifestyle.  What if I sought to be extravagant in what I gave to those around me who are in need?   What if I was extravagant in my forgiveness of others – even those who had been unfair or unkind to me?  What if I was extravagant with my trust in God’s faithfulness and continued to follow him even when my circumstances were uncertain or even painful?  What if I was extravagant in pouring out all of the fruits of the Spirit to people I come in contact with every day?  Showering love where people don’t expect it, expressing joy even in times of darkness, sharing peace that passes all understanding, exhibiting patience when I would rather have my way, showing kindness and goodness to those ignored by others, remaining faithful in the good and bad times, proving that gentleness is a sign of strength and maintaining self-control amidst all of the distractions that vie for my attention.  I strive to achieve an extravagant life.

Do you ever wonder why some Christians just can’t get along? Why is division created when it does not need to be there? As Christians we should be one community brought together by Christ. I was talking with some youth this weekend about the division that is obvious when their grade is together in large groups or at other church functions. The comments from the discussion were very typical responses. The main response was “we don’t have anything in common”. I had to stop the discussion and remind them that they had Christ and that was all the common ground they needed. As Christians we need to fellowship with other believers. We need to be in a community of people who are different but still walk with Christ. How boring would it be if we were all the same? Diversity is great and having Christ as our glue is even better.

I just started reading a book by Dietrich Bonhoeffer , Life Together The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community. He talks about being a community only through Jesus Christ. I think as Christians we need to spend more time building relationships on Christ and less time worrying about why some one may be different.

Don’t take me wrong. We should not just hole up in our Church and create our Christian utopia. As much as we need to be a part of a community of believers, we also need to be apart of peoples lives who are not Christians. A strong community will allow us to mature as Christians and go bring others back to our community in Christ.

Someone ask me the other day why this blog is named Our Hope. My first response was that I did not name it, but then I started thinking about what it meant to me. I think for a lot of people the word hope has a level of uncertainty that comes with it. Just think of how it is used today. Many people will say something like “I hope that works for you”. You can sense in the tone that the person is not really sure what is going to happen. Unfortunately a lot of people live today with this kind hope in their life. They do not know the hope we have in Christ. Our Hope, as Christians, is filled with certainty. Read Titus 1:1-3. Our hope is in a certain eternal life. Our Hope is in a Saviour who died for us so that we have eternal salvation. Do you want to know more about “our hope”? Do you want to know more about the God that has redeemed us? If you want this hope then seek it. Email any questions.

Technorati Tags: Hope, Christ, Christians, Saviour

I am reading a book right now that was recommended by the Youth Director at our church called “The One Thing You Can’t Do In Heaven.”  The book is a real wake-up call for me.  One of the key messages is that if we really believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven why don’t we spend more time trying to take as many people with us as possible?  We can always make excuses.  We think that people are not interested in hearing about Jesus but the reality is that there are many lost and hurting people desperate for the good news.  We think that people will get offended if we try to get too personal about their spiritual lives.  When you think about it, these people could be heading towards eternal separation from God and we are worried that they will be offended?  There are many other excuses such as we don’t know what to say, we are uncomfortable, etc. and the book seems to have a lot of practical advice.   The author points out that Satan would like nothing better  than for us to keep focused on our jobs, getting ahead, and worldly success because it will keep our minds off of our eternal destination and that of those around us.   I am convicted that I often fall into this trap.  I know that I was not put here to live a comfortable life and build up my 401k.  Let’s share the good news!

Here is a question for you. Why do we have to wait for our church to organize a “project” before we do something for someone in the name of God? Can’t we just go down the street and help out a neighbor, or group of neighbors who are in need without waiting to get the missions committee to put something together? Why do we make serving God so hard?

Mowing a widows lawn for free; taking food to a family who is in need; giving money to someone on the side of the road who needs to eat, or get a fix. Who are we to judge? These few things and countless others can be done by us without waiting for someone else in our church to act. Please do not get me wrong, the Church is stronger as a body, but can’t the hand reach out to another who is in need without waiting for approval from a committee?

As Christians we are called to just get out and serve God and His people. Committees are great for big long-term projects, but we do not need to wait on them to serve in our daily lives.

I am not sure if anyone has noticed this, but there seems to be a lot of Christian bashing going on lately. I know it is not something new, Nero was doing it in the early church along with many others, but it seems like it has become more prevalent over the last decade. We could blame the Internet, we could say it is the end times, or it could be that more Christians are out there ruffling feathers. I have not done a scientific study, so I will not try to put a statistic behind this “persecution.”

What I will do is state that Christians cannot back down from this bashing. We cannot sit back and let those who do not know the love of Christ tell us and others that there was not such a person, and that He did not rise again. There are thousands of sites, blogs and forums out on the Web today that are telling people that God does not exist. Paul teaches us in Romans 8 and 2 Timothy 1, as well as many other passages, that as God’s church we are not to be timid, because the Spirit which God gave us at Pentecost was not “a spirit of timidty, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” (2 Timothy 1:6-7)

Paul also reminds us in Romans 8:14-16, that the Spirit we received does not makes us a slave to fear, but it is a Spirit of strength and compassion. Much like Paul and Timothy did not cower under the oppression of Nero, we are also charged not to stand back in the shadows, and let others who are not Christians tell the “story” of Christ. We must tell them the Truth, and love them as only Christians can love, and be strong in a way that only Christians can be strong.

Today I came across a link to a blog that prompted me to check it out. This blog was how I kept up with one of my college roommates last summer. Read the post for 6/4/07. Jason talks about missing Jeff. Jeff Wilson was one of my roommates my freshman year at Baylor. You can also read an old post of mine from 7/21/06 to learn more about the story. I am really saddened by what happened to Jeff. I think some of my sadness comes from not knowing who Jeff was spiritually. Even though I lived with him for 1 year I could not tell you where is today. Maybe I am thinking about all this because of Duane’s sermon last week. I have to ask myself, can I be a witness? Matthew 28:18-20 commands me to be witness. How can I be the person that will share their faith with anyone at anytime? I think the answer to that question is to become more like Christ. Live the Word, Study the Word, & Pray.

Thanks for listening

I recently saw an interview with Christopher Hitchens. If you do know who he is then check out the New York Times best sellers list for non-fiction. His book, God is not Great, is currently number one. I think the title will give you glimpse as to what the topic is. I admit I have not read the book but I can say it does not support any religion. Another book in the top 25 is The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins. Hitchens and Dawkins are both atheist and speak critically of all religions. I bring up this point because you have to ask yourself if you are equipped to defend your beliefs. Can you stand before someone and explain the hope and faith that is real to you? Can you explain how God is completely sovereign already knowing his plan and how it works, yet He gave us free will to accept Christ? There are so many questions that a non-believer will ask. We must be able to give answer.

I Peter 3:15-16 commands us to be ready to answer for what we believe:

15But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.

Just keep learning. Stay in the word. Challenge yourself to have conversations with people who are around you.

Live It.

Do you really understand how good you have it? Well, if you are reading this on the Internet then you are doing better than most of the world. The realization of this great life has also brought to question what we do with it. The easy road is to sit back and relax. How do we challenge ourselves? How do we take what we have and utilize it to the fullest? How do we benefit others? Read James 2:14-26. We need to understand that as Christians we should live our lives differently. We should reach out to the others. We should serve!

What am I going to do? Honestly, I do not have that answer. I have been praying and searching for my place. I will let you know as move down this road. I heard a great sermon this weekend that really calls us into action. Check it out at Tallowood’s website.

Live It

DT