Tis The Season...

Here we go folks, it's that time of year again! This year lets live it and experience it with contentment and thankfullness. Tis the season JESUS is the reason.

Jim Wallis wrote, in part, the following thought and I thought it was worth re-stating.

The political ads are finally off the air. (We can all give thanks for that!) But now there is a new wave of advertisements hitting all of us. Each one will give us a different reason to consume. Each one will put pressure on us to show our love, compassion, and thankfulness through buying more stuff with money we don't have on things we probably don't need. I've already heard a barrage of commercials on TV and radio telling me that I don't even have to wait for Black Friday to start my spending this year. "Those who care, consume," they say.

That message is clear -- and clearly wrong.

The pervasiveness of our consumer culture has been met with some backlash. "Buy Nothing Day" has grown into movement that competes with the sometimes deadly crowds of "Black Friday." "The Advent Conspiracy" has challenged Christians to take Advent as an opportunity to show the world the compassion of Christ and not be conformed to the consumptive patterns of the world.

The relentless pressure of advertising tells us that "there is never enough," and that you should "worry" constantly about what you eat and drink, what you wear, whether your future is secure, and more. But Jesus says the exact opposite. They say, "Worry all the time!" But Christ says, "Don't worry!"

The pressure we feel doesn't just come from the ads we get in our inboxes or see on television. All of us have family and friends who are going to be doing a lot of shopping. If a friend goes out and spends money on us, we feel guilty if we don't reciprocate at roughly the same level. What's worse is if someone gets us a gift and we don't get them anything at all. The problem is not giving gifts. Giving gifts becomes a problem when the exchange of stuff replaces building relationships.

How should we respond to these pressures during this season? Here are a few thoughts:

First, try and make decisions about gift giving with friends and family. Get everybody on the same page before all the spending happens. You could try sending around this column to get the conversation going. Your values, not commercials, should inform how you show your gratefulness to those you love.

Second, try some alternative gift giving this year. find a charity or a good cause that you can give time or money to. There are many businesses and non-profits that are committed to a mission that makes sure each dollar you give or spend has a positive impact on the world.

And finally, as we think about Thanksgiving and look forward to Christmas, let's take stock of our lives and priorities and make sure they are being driven by our values and relationships and not just our culture of consumption.

He Made You

Michael Josephson, Who is the founder of the Josephson Institute wrote this compelling article.

He made You
As Lily Tomlin said, "No matter how cynical I get, I can't keep up."

Our economy has been shattered by widespread corporate fraud; kids lie, steal, and cheat at unprecedented rates; and their parents beat up each other or referees at youth sports events or supply alcohol to fuel organized hazing. Our confidence in the integrity of journalistic institutions, the accounting profession, stockbrokers, college sports, organized religion, and business in general is continually shaken by a relentless barrage of shameful behavior.

It's tempting to throw up our hands in despair and surrender to cynicism.

It reminds me of the tale of the pious young man whose car broke down on his way to his place of worship. He had to walk through an area where homeless people huddled against buildings for warmth, alcoholics and mentally ill adults wandered the streets, and crack dealers sold drugs to kids. He was overcome with a sense of despondency and doubt about the power and intentions of God.

"God," he prayed, "how can you allow all this pain and misery and do nothing?" Receiving no answer, he became frustrated and raised his voice, "Lord, my faith is at issue! How can you allow all this suffering and do nothing?"

Then someone behind him whispered, "He didn't do nothing. He made you."

What a profound insight and daunting responsibility it is to realize that you are the instrument of reform, that your courage, compassion, and creativity in your own sphere of influence can set into motion a ripple effect of healing actions and attitudes to make a better world.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Truth and Civility

While I don't agree with everything every Christian believes and writes about. I do believe we have to show the world we know how to stand together and work together until we all come into the unity of the faith (Ephesians 4:13).

One place we need to discover truth and civility again is in the political marketplace. There is so much negaitivity and divisive words thrown around so carelessly it's hurts my heart.

Jim Wallis is a Christian writer who has taken stances that sometimes I agree with and other times I disagree with. But, this is one stance I'm whole heartily behind

https://secure3.convio.net/sojo/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=355

What do you think?

Finishers

In the story of Nehemiah and the people of Israel, God called them to rebuild a wall. And at first the job seemed overwhelming. But, with God’s help they began to believe it was possible. And so 52 days after they began Nehemiah 6:15-16 says this

Nehemiah 6:15-16 (NLT)
15 So on October 2 the wall was finished—just fifty-two days after we had begun. 16 When our enemies and the surrounding nations heard about it, they were frightened and humiliated. They realized this work had been done with the help of our God.

That is a verse that God wants to be true in the lives of all his followers. God is looking for people who hear him and follow him. People who trust him to help them finish what He has called them to do. People who stay radically committed in the areas of life that matter most.

So let me ask you: What is the insurmountable task that is in front of you that you know God has called you to finish? Because, if you can identify it and rise up in faith and start doing that one thing that God has called you to do - you can finish it!

And boy doesn't our world need more finishers.

The Local Church Is...

The local church is the hope of the world.

There is nothing like the local church when it’s working right. Its beauty is indescribable. Its power is breathtaking. Its potential is unlimited. It comforts the grieving and heals the broken in the context of community. It builds bridges to seekers and offers truth to the confused. It provides resources for those in need and opens its arms to the forgotten, the downtrodden, the disillusioned. It breaks the chains of addictions, frees the oppressed, and offers belonging to the marginalized of this world. Whatever the capacity for human suffering, the church has a greater capacity for healing and wholeness.

Still to this day, the potential of the local church is almost more than I can grasp. No other organization on earth is like the church. Nothing even comes close.

~ from Bill Hybels’ Courageous Leadership

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Thoughts?

Breaking Free

Jesus made a staggering promise about his ability to transform human lives when He said this;

John 8:36 (KJV)
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

That is an incredible promise and an incredible opportunity that is available to all of us. The question is - Do you feel like your relationship with God has made you FREE? Do you feel like you are FREE?

For many Christians that's a hard question to answer because they have no idea what Christian freedom really looks like. And that a problem because if you don’t know the kind of freedom Jesus came to bring, you will only EXPERIENCE the kind of freedom people tell you can have or the kind of freedom you come up with in your own mind. And you will find yourself PURSUING that kind of freedom, most often in a religious way.

Religious ways like; human effort, self discipline, traditions and rituals, a list of do’s and don’ts, by trying harder or denying greater, doing more or disciplining more and the list could go on and on.

But you’ll never feel FREE. You’ll feel saved, maybe. You’ll feel like you’re better than others. You’ll feel good about yourself when YOU achieve, when YOU work, when YOU accomplish and follow the list. You'll feel judgemental of those who are not like you. But, you’ll never feel the freedom Jesus talked about in John 8:36.

So how do we get the focus back on the freedom that Jesus came to bring? I believe it will only happen when we come alive on the inside.

Somehow we start right, we start by pursuing and experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit. But then the focus shifts to our outward human efforts and the outward holiness requirements of the church. And this gets our focus off of the freedom that Jesus wants to lead us into.

Galatians 3:3 (CEV)
How can you be so stupid? Do you think that by yourself you can complete what God's Spirit started in you?

You can’t achieve the freedom Jesus came to bring through following a set of rules, through more discipline, through more human effort, through a positive mental attitude. You can only experience it one way - through coming and saying alive to the Holy Spirit which is in you.

Can you read the following passage and see Gods desire for you to come alive to His Spirit? Or do you focus more attention on what YOU need to do?

Romans 6:11-14 (NLT)
11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
12 Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires.
13 Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God.

Your answer, if you are honest with yourself, is the key to you breaking free and beginning to live in the freedom that Jesus promised you.

Soft addictions and vices

We will be starting a new sermon series at our church entitled "Breaking Free". And the aim will be to not just break free FROM things but to break free INTO better things.

I believe that's what Jesus came to do - to set us free FROM things and set us free to step INTO better things

So I'm studying the facts and points for the first message and an incredible thing happened to me.

I'm looking at all the things we need to be set free from - some of them big like alcohol, pornography and anger. While others are soft like gambling and over-working and debt. And what I noticed is this. There are levels or types of each of these addictions and vices that people partake in. And as long as you do them at a low level then society kind of winks at it.

Take for instance gambling. it spans from Bingo to Bookies, from the Lottery to the casinos. And for the most part if you keep it on the "soft" side then it seems to be OK.

Even the church struggles to challenge people to heavily in the low, soft levels of any one of the hundreds of vices and addictions. And as I asked myself why, here's what I discovered was true for me. I was reticent to address the topic because I didn't have a Bible verse or a clear principle to challenge with. But, the real answer that I feel the Lord challenged me with was this: I was intimidated to challenge and loving confront issues in others peoples lives because I had some soft, low level ones in my own life

That has to change. We cannot sit around and let all the low, soft vices, addictions and weights slow us down. We have to open up our hearts and lives to be set free from them and set free to experience better things

It's like the Lord is opening up my eyes to this in my own life. I'll be talking about them during this series so I hope you can make it. But, here's one of the experiences I've had this week...

I'm in the office looking at all the levels of destructive addictions and vices and I'm working on pornography and I notice that there is soft porn and hard core porn. There is visual porn (pictures) and written porn (books). So I'm looking on the Internet at what "SOFT" porn is. And it goes from seemingly harmless to borderline destructive pictures and words and while I'm viewing what soft porn is a guy walks by. And in my heart I wondered if he saw what I was doing? But, regardless I felt like in that moment the Lord said to me. That is how the devil works to keep us all bound and small in our walk with God. It's not the big stuff that destroys us it's the little, innocent, soft area's that keep us limited

How many area's of our lives are filled with "SOFT" addictions and vices? How many times do we throw people off the path of righteousness because our lives are not a clear reflection of freedom? How many people do we neglect to challenge or encourage in a "grey" area because we have shades of gray in our

For me I want to be set free to pursue righteousness and holiness will you join me? If so I hope to see you during this sermon series.