Category Archives: Miscellaneous

Oct 15

When It’s Time for a New Heart – Part 1

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 Christiaan Barnard performed the world’s first adult human heart transplant on Louis Washkansky on December 3, 1967 in Cape Town South Africa. One month later, Norman Shumway performed the first adult heart transplant in the United States on January 6, 1968 at Stanford University Hospital. Since this time, heart transplantation has become fairly common with about 5,000 heart transplants being performed annually worldwide, 2,000 of those being performed in the United States alone.

The heart is an important organ. I am so thankful for the advancements that have been made in the field of medicine. Because of such advancements, countless lives have been saved through procedures like heart transplants.

Did you know the Bible talks about the heart over 900x’s. Our heart is the essence of who we are. The wise man said it best when he said, “As in water face reflect face, so the heart of man reflects the man” (Prov. 27:19).

Just as the condition of our physical heart determines the outcome of our life, the spiritual condition of our heart determines the outcome of our soul!

In Ezekiel 36:24-28, God tells the people of Judah He is going to give them a new heart and a new spirit. But why? Why did they need a new heart?

Their Lives Weren’t Pure!

The people of Judah allowed their lives to be corrupted by sin. Notice what God tells the people, “I will clean you from all your uncleannesses” (v. 25); “I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses” (v. 29); “I will cleanse you from all your iniquities” (v. 33).

The fact that the people of Judah allowed their lives to be corrupted by sin is evident by the lifestyle they were living. They were worshipping idols and false gods instead of the God who had done so much for them. Their lifestyle was so bad, God called the people of Judah a rebellious and stubborn people who transgressed against Him (Eze. 2:3-4). I don’t know about you, but I’ve been called stubborn before, but I pray it has never been by God. The people of Judah’s relationship with God was drastically affected because their lives weren’t pure, they were corrupt.

Friends, Satan wants nothing more than to contaminate our lives with sin. This is fairly easy to do since there is a sin epidemic all around us. It doesn’t matter where you are, it’s there. A few weeks ago I was walking around one of the stores here locally. While standing in the aisle, there were a couple of teenagers, maybe early 20’s, cussing with every other breath they took. The sad thing is I wasn’t the only customer in this aisle. There were small children standing with their parents too. It was a sad reminder that our world is contaminated with sin.

I’m afraid Christians think on a personal level, “If I stop sinning, I stop the problem.” Unfortunately, this is simply not true. When our lives aren’t pure, it’s more than a sin problem, it’s a heart problem.

Our lives aren’t pure when our hearts aren’t pure.

Consider what Jesus said to His disciples about what defiles a person…

18 And He *said to them, “Are you so lacking in understanding also? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the man from outside cannot defile him, 19 because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and is eliminated?” (Thus He declared all foods clean.) 20 And He was saying, “That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. 21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, 22 deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, [envy, slander, pride and foolishness. 23 All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man” (Mark 7:18-23).

Our impure lives indicate we have a problem with our hearts. Jesus said it’s not what goes in but what comes out of the mouth that defiles a man because it comes from the heart. We can stop sinning but that doesn’t change the problem. Let me give you an example…suppose a person was committing adultery on their spouse. Just because this person stops committing the physical act of adultery doesn’t mean this person doesn’t have a problem. Jesus said, “Everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matt. 5:28). Just because he is not outwardly committing adultery doesn’t mean everything is okay. He still has a problem. His heart isn’t pure!

We can use the example of murder and see the same thing. A person doesn’t have to physically commit murder in order to have an impure heart and be a murderer. John said, “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him” (I Jn. 3:15). This person still has a heart issue.

John Piper said it well when he said, “The aim of Jesus Christ is not to reform the manners of society, but to change the hearts of sinners like you and me.”

Our desire as Christians should be to have a pure heart. The Bible teaches that the pure in heart will see God (Matt. 5:8). I have no doubts this is the desire of every person reading this post. The problem is not our desire; the problem is we allow our lives to be infected with sin to the point it corrupts our hearts. The people of Judah needed a new heart becasue their lives weren’t pure.

“Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the issues of life” (Prov. 4:23).

Now that’s Something to Think About!

Oct 08

Middle School Madness

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This past weekend we held our first Middle School only retreat. At the beginning of 2012, I decided I wanted to do both, a high school and middle school only retreat, in addition to our Spring and Fall ADVANCE! After this weekend, I am so thankful we made this decision to add these two new retreats this year. Let me share with you a few of the things I learned during Middle School Madness.

  1. Middle school students will sing out even when the high school students aren’t around. The singing we enjoyed was amazing for such a small group. We are  use to having 75 people help us sing and praise God. This weekend we have only 15 and it was some great singing.
  2. Snakes really do bite people when you mess with them. No worries, none of the kids were bitten, only one of the adults who was handling the snake. It was nothing serious, it just broke the skin and caused minor bleeding. BTW…the snake handling, is not what you are probably thinking, the snake was capture inside the girls cabin.
  3. Middle school students don’t appreciate someone jumping out of the woods dressed as a gorilla late at night. We all had a good laugh about this after the kids calmed down.
  4. Playing Apples to Apples with Middle School students is great fun. We played this simple game for over 2 1/2 hours and had a blast. It’s funny to see how young people associate certain things.
  5. Middle School students are up for anything. We played several crazy games but my favorite was broom hockey. Watching the students get into this game and have fun with it was an incredible experience.
  6. When you are hanging with middle school students, be prepared to have weird/silly conversations. Some of the things we talked about, had no point whatsoever, but we had a blast talking about it anyway.
  7.  I work with an awesome group of middle school students. This weekend just reinforced what I already knew, this group of students has the potential to be really special. I’m looking forward to working with them and watching them continue to grow in their walk with the Lord.

Our first annual Middle School Madness was a success. The kids and adults all seemed to enjoy themselves and we learned the truth about the awesome God we served. I’m thankful to God for blessing us with an incredible weekend.

Now that’s Something to Think About!

Sep 25

I QUIT!

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Have you ever uttered those words? I can remember playing in the backyard with my brother when I was a kid. You see, my brother is 5 years older than I am, so we would be outside playing some game and eventually he would use his size and age advantage to try and blow me out. Before he could get to whatever score we were playing to, I’d yell, “I QUIT!” and go into the house before he could beat me.

I QUIT are some of the most depressing words in the English language. Why do I say this, you ask? Because too often we shout these words and quit on things when we shouldn’t. For instance, I know people who have quit on their families, their relationships, their jobs, their health and overall well-being and some have even quit on God.

If you are a person who has ever spoken the words “I Quit” in reference to the things listed above, I want to challenge you to reconsider quitting. You’re right, I don’t know why you chose to quit, but I know with God’s help, we can overcome anything. God never gives us more than we are able to bear (I Corinthians 10:13). He will help us in our relationships with our family and friends, He will give us patience and strength in our jobs, He will help us in our efforts to be more healthy and He will walk beside us in our relationship with Him.

Friends, don’t quit, trust God to help you in all areas of your life when you feel like quitting.

“I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

Now that’s Something to Think About!

 

 

 

Sep 24

The Church Needs More People Like Epaphroditus

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In Philippians 2 Paul writes about some incredible men who shined as lights in the world. The greatest example was Jesus. However, Paul mentions two other ordinary men by name, Timothy and Epaphroditus. Most of you may be familiar with Timothy, but what about Epaphroditus? Let’s consider a couple qualities which made Epaphroditus one of the men the Apostle Paul chose to write about concerning his example.

Epaphroditus Impacted Others:

Paul loved and respected Epaphroditus. Paul calls him, “my brother,” “fellow worker,” and “fellow soldier” (v. 25). The word “brother” is a term of endearment. This word indicates Paul’s love for him. The terms “fellow worker”  “fellow soldier” show Paul thought of him as one who was equal to him and worthy of respect. Epaphroditus was a partner in Paul’s ministry for the cause of Christ and apparently made a huge impact on the Apostle.

The church at Philippi loved and respected Epaphroditus. Out of everyone they could have chosen, they chose Epaphroditus to be the one who delivered a financial gift to Paul on their behalf (Phil. 4:18). We wouldn’t trust just anyone to pass on a financial gift for us, would we? Yet, the church at Philippi had such deep admiration, respect and love for Epaphroditus, they chose him. When the church received word he was ill, they must have been concerned because Epaphroditus was longing to go back to them (v. 26). So much so, Paul was sending him back so the church could rejoice (v. 28). Why would the church be so concerned about his illness to the point it distressed Epaphroditus, unless he was a man who had made an impact on their lives.

Epaphroditus Served Others:

Epaphroditus was a servant. The fact Epaphroditus was chosen to make the trip indicates how the church felt about him, but the fact that he chose to make the 700 mile trip from Philippi to Rome says even more about him. He was a servant. Paul, when addressing the church at Philippi concerning him, even said, Epaphroditus ministered to my needs (v. 25). He risked his life to serve and ended up paying a heavy price for his devotion by becoming ill to the point of death (v. 30). He was an unselfish individual who cared more for others than he did himself.

Paul even told the church at Philippi to hold men like him in high regard (v. 29). In other words, honor men like Epaphroditus. Paul wanted the church to give him a welcome home second to none. Why? Perhaps for two reasons: 1) He was a faithful servant of God’s who Paul felt deserved to be honored, 2) It appears even though Epaphroditus was in distress over the church at Philippi, he still wanted to stay and serve/minister to the needs of the Apostle Paul. Paul made sure to point out that it was him who was sending Epaphroditus home and not Epaphroditus who was necessarily making this choice (vs. 28-29). Thus, Paul wanted him honored.

The church needs more people like Epaphroditus. We need men and women who are loved and respected because they are faithful servants of God whose lives impact those around them. If you know people who are always consumed with serving God, why not take a minute and write them a note, shoot them an email or give them a call and tell them how much you admire and respect them. Honor those who deserve honor (Rom. 13:7). The church truly needs more people like Epaphroditus.

Now that’s Something to Think About!