Do I Hear "The Criminal on the Cross"?

Talk about a trip down Memory Lane? I got back from our retreat at Paris Landing State Park, and one of the many highlights of the retreat was getting to hear a "reunion" concert from some of the old Acapella singers. This is Gary, Keith, George, and Rodney (I don't have Donna hear to tell me how to spell their last names right) singing one of the many songs that first captivated all of us so many years ago. My mind went back to great memories of trips with our family in our Ford Club Wagon and listening to Acapella cassettes booming through our stereo system. They truly were the first ones to wake us all up to the fact that there are some awesome songs that aren't in our song books, and singing can be fun, inspirational, and magic. It was nice to share that with Keith as we've become good friends over the last six years of being at this retreat together. He still sounds incredible! They all did!

Steve Maxwell, a not so old member of Acapella, joined in with the "oldies". He has an awesome voice too. This group has gotten together to do some concerts outside the country to help the missionaries and churches where they are going.

Yes - Rodney sang "Amazing Grace" and shook the walls and our hearts just like he did over two decades ago. There's no one who sings that song in such a clear bass voice like he does.

And then there was the scary addition to the group as Jerry joined in to help them sing his favorite song - as he calls it "The Water Song."

The only thing nicer than the concert was the sweet fellowship we had with some wonderful folks we only, for the most part, get to see once a year. I am so thankful for the wonderful opportunities God gives me over and over again, to draw closer to Him by drawing closer to my loving brethren. It was a great retreat - again.

Tool Talk

Yesterday I presented a lesson on God's Tool of the Bible, and what an incredible tool it is too. The more time I spend with it, digesting it, and meditating on it, the more I realize how little I've understood about it in the years past. I am especially overwhelmed by the challenge God had of trying to communicate a totally spiritual message to a totally physical world. And add to that, say it all in such a way that it could be grasped by a first century culture or a twenty-first century culture. Still, as amazing as it is, I pointed out yesterday that the Bible is a tool to use not a god to be worshipped. We've all been raised to respect and honor the book, but to elevate it - as a physical icon - is idolatry. Sometimes it's easier to exalt a book than it is to live it's message.
God said it was a tool. It's part of what He gave us so that we would be completely equipped to do all He asked us to do (2 Tim.3:16-17). Our challenge is to use it correctly(2 Tim.2:15). That's why I shared the four "C's" of interpreting/studying God's Word. They're not that amazing, but they are essential if we are going to use the tool properly. They are Context, Consistency, Command, and Christ. Context means we look at the "whole" message and understand the author, the audience, and the limitations of what he was doing. Consistency is simply keeping the spirit of God in the forefront of what we study and let His Spirit - His nature - guide us. Command? Do it! God is clear about what He wants. He doesn't imply or create puzzles or make you guess about examples. And the most important one is Christ. What does this passage tell me about Him? How does He want me to see it? How will this help me be more like Him?
The Bible is a tool. Like any tool it's only effective if we use it. It's not the only tool and it was never God's intent for it to replace any of the other tools, but there is only ONE message from God.

We'll be at a retreat for the next four days. Hopefully I can update this blog on Friday evening. Have a great day, and don't forget to use His tools.

Let the Fun Begin!

Yesterday Lowes delivered all the material we ordered to build our covered porch on the back of our house. This is something that I have wanted since we bought this house four and a half years ago. We love the view of "The Pond" out back, BUT - because we have direct sunlight on the back of the house all day long, it's really hard to sit out there and enjoy it. It also means we have a daily struggle to keep our house cool inside with all that sun beating down on it. We have tons of things to spruce up, replace, upgrade, and decorate in nearly every room of the house, but that's all stuff that' s "just nice" - it still works. The porch, with the view and the shade is, well - pure function. I take function over fashion any day. So the work begins. We used a gas auger and a post hole digger to dig the ten thirty inch deep holes for our ten concrete foundational pylon's. Oh, my! Lots of really hard work. We can't do anything else now until the county inspector says we made them according to code.

Here is most of the lumber for the porch and roof. You can also see some of the holes that we dug. Three of the hole had to go through the existing concrete porch. My buddy, Steve Smith smashed them out yesterday.

This is the rest of the material for the porch. Everything from the concrete tubes, plywood, sacks of rocks, joist hanger, 50 bags of concrete mix, and much more. For now, it has replaced our parking spaces in the garage. Incentive to use it as as soon as possible. The goal is to have it mostly finished by our family vacation here first of August. That may be too hopeful.

Heavenly Thoughts

Last Sunday evening I answered any and every question that could possibly be asked about heaven. Well, almost. I shared a lot of things that dealt with how we should interpret the scriptures in regards to heaven. We waste a lot of time and energy looking for verses that will give us one little aspect about eternity and then we disrespect it by trying to make it literal, physical, and appealing to the senses. It's a spiritual world folks! It's the dwelling place of God and all that is limitless, timeless, and non-physical. The reason God intentionally gave us very little information about heaven is because He wants us to trust Him. He calls it FAITH!
I mentioned that my favorite verse in all of the Bible for getting insights into what heaven is all about isn't Rev. 21, John 14, or Luke 16 - it's Gen.1:26. It's one of the most ignored verses in the Bible. God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness." The strange change from the singular to the plural has been attributed to poetry, multiple authorship, and God's way of messing with our brains. But just think about it. We've focused on the words image and likeness and missed the us and our. It's not about us looking like God or each of us somehow been one pixel in the large canvas of God's photograph. What is us and our all about? Relationships - togetherness - love! That's what God is all about. He made us to want and need relationships - like He and Jesus and the Holy Spirit have. There is no real love without relationships. His plan for redeeming man is driven by His love for us and His desire for us to know love. He gave us His church as a tool to help build loving relationships, He gave us His Son to make possible our relationship with Him - for eternity!
Now - what does that have to do with heaven? How can heaven possibly be anything except the realm of complete relationships - with Him and with one another? So all those questions about will we recognize each other, be with one another, remember and interact, and on and on... That's what heaven is for! It's the fulfillment of God's plan for us. We will finally and truly be "in our image." In spite of my warnings about taking scriptures literally - there's a reason why Jesus described heaven as sitting down to a feast together (Matt.8:11). Heaven is about togetherness, relationships and love.

Let Them Eat Cake!

This is a picture of the wedding cake Donna made for a wedding at Florissant this morning. The bride actually had them laid out this way so they would be easier to serve. What a wise girl. These four cakes are not all the same. Some were double chocolate and the others were French vanilla - and both were good. I tried both, just to be sure. As always, they were not only beautiful to look at, but wonderful to eat. Boy, am I glad the "Yuck" is over.
I guess it's a sign of aging, but every time we go to a wedding now-days I never think about our wedding - 37 years ago this coming December, but the weddings of our three children. Weddings are always so hectic and even stressful because of all the things that have to be done to make them exactly like "the Bride," or more importantly, "the Mom" - want it to be, that sometimes memories tend to get blurry over over the years. Like my memory of mine and Donna's wedding, my memory of the details of Pat and Deborah's, Chad and Elizabeth's, and Jonathan and Holly's weddings is getting a little fuzzy. Yes, I've forgotten things that "my girls" would never dream of forgetting, but - there are some things I remember quite well.
I remember how much I trusted my three children to pick the right person. I remember how quickly I came to love and respect their choice. I remember how proud I was that they found a life-mate who would help them get to heaven. And as I look at how their relationship with each other and with God has grown through the years, I remember how thankful I was that He guided them to the right person.
I can't imagine how horrible it would be to know your child was marrying the wrong person, and know that you can't interfere for fear of damaging your relationship with them. Or to know that they are committing their life to someone who won't provide any spiritual leadership in their family and you have visions of their spiritual journey becoming an uphill climb. I'm glad I never had to know what that was like.
They each married a very special person that God provided for them "to find" who would understand that success in this life means nothing if you're not prepared for the next one.
Did I mention how good that cake was?

Is "Yuck" really a word?

I fully intended to do a blog on Tuesday, but the day was too busy. Then I woke up Wednesday morning sick. I'm still sick, but getting better. It's one of those achy, stomach crampy, fevered headache kind of yucky sick that just puts you in bed. Now, I'm not sure if all my muscle aches are from the illness or from being in bed so long. My lovely wife just made me a grilled cheese sandwich, and it went down just fine and I actually feel a little better.
The only reason I share these personal aches and pains with you is not to garner sympathy (though a short "poor Mike" would be okay), but to point out how blessed I truly am. Donna and I were sitting at the kitchen table moments ago and neither one of us could remember the last time I as sick. How incredible is that! I have thought on many occasions that God has blessed me with a strong immune system. Do you have any ideas how many hugs and handshakes I've shared over the last thirty-five years with people who had colds, flues, and various other communicable illnesses? I don't know how many times, usually in the Winter, I'd shake hands with someone at the back door of the auditorium and say, "How are you doing?" and they say, "Oh, I'm just getting over a bad stomach virus." I want to scream, "AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING SHAKING MY HAND?" Oh well, God has protected me from all sorts of germs, viruses, and the people who insist on sharing them at church.
So, unless this illness kills me, I have to look at it as a small bump in my plans that I shouldn't have been so focused on anyway. And if it does kill me, Praise the Lord! I'll get to find out if there are bathrooms in heaven!

Is A Hero Just A Sandwhich?

I have been troubled for several years now about the over usage of the word "hero," and no, I'm not talking about the TV series, though it does somewhat speak to the point I want to make. Anyone trying to learn the English language today would have to assume that everyone is a hero. If you're famous - you're also a hero. If you or your sociological group are the subject of a talk show - you're a hero. If you give money to a worthy cause - you're a hero. If you help with any service project - you're a hero. If you did something honest or showed integrity - you're a hero. If you are underpaid, overworked, and under-appreciated, or if you put your family first, or if you join any military service, or if you honor those who serve, or if you called 911 for someone else - you're - well, by now you get the point.
Our generalized application of hero has made it an almost meaningless word. The news media throws it at anyone who is nice, does what's right, sets a good example, or is being the good citizen we assume and expect everyone to be. It's like the NFL players who pound their chest, dance their personal dance, and basically scream "Look at the awesome tackle I just made!" Well Duh! Isn't that what they pay you millions to do? And didn't the work of ten other guys have a little to do with it? And you think you're a hero?
I know - the dictionary says that a hero is someone who is admired for their accomplishments. So yes, Mom you're a hero for all the work you do, and Dad's a hero for playing catch with Junior. I guess being born right after WW2 and during the Korean War, I tend to think of a hero as someone who does something "above and beyond" what is expected. It's the person who risks their life to help others! It's the willingness to sacrifice and do what few people are willing to do. Doing something "heroic" is doing something extraordinary, not doing what any responsible person should do.
I don't know? I guess I can't help but think about the 1200 WW2 veterans who die each day, who paid dearly for this right to do a blog and keep goose-stepping black-shirted government killers from closing the doors of my church. Men and women who pass from this life unnoticed and forgotten as we spent days mourning the loss of TV stars and musicians, and listen to other celebrities call them heroes.
I don't want to take honor and recognition away from anybody - but I do wish we'd save the word "hero" for people who truly did something heroic. If you're a hero for collecting litter from off the street, what would you call someone who allowed himself to be crucified to pay for the sins of all mankind? Now that I think about it, I can't remember a time when anyone referred to Jesus as a hero. Why not?