CottonwoodChurch.net

2011-01-13T21:30:00.000-08:00

This is my last blogger post. We now have a blog up on our church website that links to Facebook - our reason for getting on blogger in the first place. Check us out at www.cottonwoodchurch.com, and/or link to the new blog here. Meanwhile, I’ve a pastoral pet peeve to write about.

Someone new comes to church and says, “Thank you so much for that sermon today pastor. You know where I use to attend, we just didn’t get any meat. We want to attend somewhere where we are being fed.” Or – they leave because, “We just aren’t getting fed here anymore.”

Right. So now you look spiritually deep and the church family you are leaving is spiritually shallow.

But put this spiritual talk into the physical world for a minute. There is a thirty-something-year-old guy out grilling T-bones. He pulls them off medium rare and asks his wife to come outside. Then he hops up into a high-chair, straps on a bib, and asks her to feed him. “Oh, honey, could you blend it first?” Really, who gets fed meat?

I’m not making excuses for church being shallow; I’m just saying we need to develop self-feeding followers of Christ. And, saying you aren’t being fed isn’t saying much for your maturity. By the time you are a meat-eater, you should be a self-feeder. New believers need milk. Mature believers need to reproduce and feed themselves with meat.

Skipping Christmas Church

2010-12-23T09:51:00.001-08:00

Skipping Church after Christmas

Christmas Eve is one of my favorite services of the year. The Sunday after Christmas isn’t.

“Pagan! How can you suggest one Sunday is different from another?” Simple, it is. Proof is in the attendance numbers. We’re just burnt out.

One thing we learned during our Advent Conspiracy study is that we need to slow down if we are to enter the story of Christmas. That’s our plan, and skipping Christmas Church at Cottonwood is part of it.

Christmas Eve Service 7PM: This is our focus for Christmas worship 2010. You can arrive at the school as early as 5 to help set up the manger, drinks, Christmas lights, incense, advent, communion, music, readings, and the whole shebang. You can wait and show up at 7, and bring some goodies to share with the rest of us. Bring a friend too, you won’t want to miss this service.

December 26 No Service: Take a break from ministry for a week. You don’t have to come early to set-up, or teach kids or make coffee, or greet or… just sit back and enjoy. Go ahead - join your home team or another church and worship with them. January 2^nd life will be back to normal at Cottonwood (whatever that means). Meanwhile…

It’s our prayer that this isn’t just a way to get out of work. We pray it will help all of us, church staff included, to slow down and enter the story of Christmas. May we all be able to worship fully on December 24, 25, and 26.

Merry Christmas,

Dan

JOY

2010-12-16T10:16:00.000-08:00

I love the message of Christmas.

I love the old carols, and the new stuff (check out I Heard the Bells by Casting Crowns here). I love to hear about joy, hope, peace, love, the virgin birth, the deity of Christ. I love our home traditions of giving PJs on Christmas Eve, listening to Scrooge and drinking hot cocoa. I love the food. I love decorating as early on Thanksgiving as possible (while driving JoLynn crazy) as the kids and I remove everything that isn’t Gold, Silver, Red or Green. But that’s not the message of Christmas

I love our new Advent Conspiracy traditions of spending less and giving more meaningful gifts here, so we can send our money to those who need it more. I love that our little church gave Christmas to six families here, while at the same time sending over $700.00 to Haiti for families there. But mostly I love the message.

I love thinking about the JOY that the Shepherds, Simeon, Mary, and Joseph felt; and about the JOY those six families in Rio Rancho and those in Port-au-Prince will feel. But, the reason we give is because of the message. The message is…

You matter to God.

That’s the message of Christmas. That’s why He came – that’s why He was born, why He lived, why He died, and why He rose again. You matter to God. That’s the message I love. That’s Christmas.

How great our JOY!

Dan

Reminder:

CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE 7PM. Food, hot cocoa, lights, hot cocoa, manger, and you.

NO SERVICE DEC 26. Take a break from our set-up and tear-down portable church work over Christmas. Join your home team or another church and worship with them. Just don’t like them more than us!

Happy Hanukkah

2010-12-09T13:13:00.001-08:00

Have you ever been in total darkness? When I worked for Camp Peniel, we had a crazy leader who took us into an uncharted cave. There were three adults, (the unnamed leader, myself, and the bus driver), and 16 junior high boys. We hiked, crawled, and scratched our way through a maze of up, down, and sideways muddy tunnels until coming to what seemed to be the end. By this time we had been in the cave for over an hour. We sat down and turned off our flashlights to see just how dark it really was. No matter how close your hand was to your face, you could see nothing. Nada. Zip. There was this moment of panic when you wondered if any lights would come back on.

On the way out a boy was injured, and our unnamed leader, at the front, the only one who knew the way out, hurried out with the boy, leaving the rest of us behind. He told one of the boys (I was at the end of the line, so didn’t know what was happening) to “take lefts” on the way out. Now I was in the lead, and lost, and when tunnels go up and down as well as left and right, which left do you take? I took the wrong one.

We were now down to two flashlights (others had broken, bad batteries, dropped into water, etc), crawling through an area inhabited by thousands of bats, and doing everything possible to remain sane. One flashlight was extremely dim, the other was bright enough to freak out the bats. We knew we were lost - nothing looked familiar. The cave seemed like an endless labyrinth of ant tunnels. We prayed plenty.

Every time my thoughts slid down the “what if the last couple flashlights die” path, I forced them to climb back up. It was too scary to consider. We were over three hours in the cave before finding our way out. Once out, I let the thoughts slide. The other leader and I sat down and considered the confusion, misery, panic, and worst possibilities – all for the lack of light. “God said, ‘Let there be light, and there was light.’” Genesis 1:3.

Hanukkah is called the “feast of lights.” It’s the celebration of the lamp of God being re-lit in the temple after the Greek army was defeated. In John 10 Jesus travels to Jerusalem for Hanukkah. It’s the at this time, when the city was lit up in celebration, Jesus said, “I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.” John 12:26

“O LORD, you are my lamp. The LORD lights up my darkness.” 2 Samuel 22:29

Happy Hanukkah,

Dan

Love All

2010-12-02T09:25:00.001-08:00

Love All – really? No way.

Love All is the final sermon/point in the Advent Conspiracy series/book. I understand “God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son…” (Jn 3:16). But, I’m not God. I don’t know that many people – how can I love those I don’t know? Is it even honest to say I love those I don’t know? And, more importantly, where does God tell me to love all?

Please don’t give me the “love your enemies,” (Mt 22:20) and “love your neighbor” (Mt 5:43) teachings. I know my neighbors and I wish I could forget my enemies. Somehow God can help me love them both. But, love all?

This Christmas season, the church office has been flooded with calls from unemployed single moms and dads who need help. If love is an action, how can I help them all? I can help a child through Compassion.com, and poverty in Haiti for a few. I can help a family or two who can’t have Christmas this year. But, I can’t help all the 3900 kids who will die due to dirty water tomorrow, or the hundreds of thousands of homeless in Haiti, or even all those who have called the church office for help with Christmas (well, maybe, but JoLynn wants to keep our house). Loving all is overwhelming.

I’m not sure how to teach this lesson on Sunday except to say - I can’t love all. That’s a God-sized task. Jesus can, He is God. That is why He was able to die for the sins of the entire planet. I can’t, I’m not. As Christ lives in me, in my attitude, I can love all, and in my actions love some. I hope and pray I’m not coping out.

Loving some,

Dan

Enter the Story

2010-11-24T14:16:00.000-08:00

Do you ever feel like you “missed it” when Christmas is over? Think back - what gifts do you still have from last Christmas? How many gifts do you remember that you received or gave? What if God had a better way, a real way to enter the story of Christmas?

Most of my life from my High School days is gone. The ’62 bug, my horse, every Christmas present I had received to date is history. But one thing I kept.

It’s an old army trunk my dad bought me in 1975, as I was leaving for college. On the lid he wrote my name in huge letters. I still love seeing my name in his old style cursive handwriting. The trunk was used - very used, but it was what they could afford. Dad’s gift was personal and risky - and I still love it.

Jn 1:14 says, “The Word became human and made his home among us.” His gift was personal - and risky. The best gifts are still like that. If we give like Jesus gave, we can enter the story of Christmas, and God continues to impact the world.

Enter the story…

1 – Spend less by giving more personal, risky gifts. They may still be around in 35 years – even Oprah’s big spending 2010 VW Bug giveaways will be in the wrecking yard by then. Use rethinkingchristmas.com for ideas. When you give to a friend, you can also invite them to the Christmas Eve Service. In this way we enter the story of Christmas.

2 – Give away what you didn’t spend (so your total Christmas budget is the same) to those who truly need it. Places like heartlineministries.org, or compassion.com, or our Angel Trees at church are a good place to start. Shoot, you can even give to Cottonwood. In this way God continues to impact the world… through you.

Let’s not miss Christmas this year.

Dan

What Do You Do With Nothing?

2010-11-18T10:09:00.000-08:00

Have you ever given somebody something major, something you had to sacrifice for, were really jazzed about, and the response was… nothing? What do you do with nothing?

Luke 17:11-19 tells a story about 10 lepers being healed by Christ. It’s a big deal - Leprosy. They were outcast - isolated from family and friends, and… sick. Surely it sucked. Nine, once healed, took off. They were given a major gift, but returned nothing.

But, one returned to thank Jesus for healing him. The result? He was healed and saved. (A different word for healed is used here than was used earlier. The word healed in verse 15 means cured. This time it means saved or delivered. The Message translates it ,“Your faith has healed and saved you.”) No Thanks, no salvation. What do you do with nothing?

James 1:17 tells us every good gift comes from God. So, what do you have to be thankful for?

Dan

BTW, we have some cool new links.

1. Check out Stephanie’s (our Youth Director’s) first online publication here

2. Also – Check out Cottonwood’s new 2010 Photobook here

Spend Less, but don't boycott...

2010-11-11T11:35:00.001-08:00

I’d like to wade in on the Merry Christmas, Xmas, and Happy Holidays controversy. It’s a suicidal tendency, I know, but I think we are wrong to punish stores that no longer say “Merry Christmas.”

After discussing this in our Advent Conspiracy group, I’ve become convinced it’s our opportunity as Christians to share Christ at Christmas. That means it’s not the job of a store. We shouldn’t boycott the world for being worldly.

Stores are in it for the money. They don’t worship Jesus. They are selling short-term happiness at your current Visa card’s interest rate. They aren’t evil, but they aren’t Christian either. Why would we expect them to tell the world about a Christ they may not even believe in? They aren’t selling Jesus at Christmastime. That’s our job.

What would happen if we acted like Christ at Christmas? Instead of boycotting we could spend a bit less (overspending and getting what we want while others go hungry is an odd way to celebrate the One who came to set us free from sin/selfishness), and use the spare time/money to…

· Give More Like Jesus – Meaningful gifts like time, our presence and creativity (ideas at www.rethinkingchristmas.com)

· Worship Like the Wise Men - Giving what we now don’t spend to those really in need– like to our local Crisis Pregnancy Clinic or Haiti Relief or the local abused women’s shelter. Think of it as spending less for junk made in China for people in America who don’t need it, and spending more for homes made in Haiti for those who live there and desperately need it.

· Worship Like the Shepherds – Investing in others and inviting them into the story of Christ. Maybe even to a Christmas Eve service and a meal at your place.

· Love All – Even the “Happy Holidays” door holder who is trying to cheer you up while stuck working retail at the most difficult time of the year. Give him a tip and wish him Merry Christmas in the name of Jesus. He might remember.

Wading out,

Dan

Christmas Can Still Change the World

2010-11-04T14:36:00.000-07:00

Two years ago we, as a church, decided to live lean in order to have our money follow our priorities – and we went portable. Now we are partnering with AdventConspiracy.org to celebrate Christmas by spending less, giving more, worshiping fully and loving all this season. Lord willing the result will be helping families in Rio Rancho, NM and Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

It’s not just about saving money; it’s about giving our presence instead of presents. After all, that’s what the first Christmas is all about. (For fun, personal gift ideas go to rethinkingchristmas.com.) For some cool Advent Conspiracy videos just type their name in YouTube, or click here.

The Real Deal With Halloween

2010-10-28T10:32:00.000-07:00

People get crazy around Halloween. Christians are the worst.

I remember church people that were freaked out by Halloween - “Satan’s holiday” they called it. They preached about the costumes, demons, razors in candy, and devil-worshiping wackos they seemed to believe were given free reign on this night. As a result they hid in a back room, lights out, praying for the night to pass. They missed the greatest “love your neighbor” outreach opportunity of the year. Satan must hate Halloween outreach.

Halloween is like the greatest opportunity ever. When else can you dress up, drop in on your neighbor, and be in an immediate conversation? It’s a night of neighborhood community. Here are some suggestions…

DON’T hide in your closet. Put on some silly clothes and hang out with your neighbors. On this night families care about safety, costumes and candy. Don’t give Satan a holiday – he doesn’t deserve it.

DO worship on Halloween morning. At Cottonwood we’ll learn about the history of Halloween, The Day of the Dead, and All Saints Day – and worship through communion. Just don’t go back to church Sunday night.

DON’T do the Halloween alternative with Bible character costumes. First, it’s lame. And second, someone may come as one of the seven naked sons of Skeva! Instead take church out of the box and into your neighborhood.

DO have fun. Make Halloween the beginning of a connection. Start some conversations, make some friends. Invest in your neighbors now and maybe you will get to invite them later.

DON’T go weird the other way and enjoy the night too much – in ways that are inappropriate for followers of Christ.

DO overcome evil with good (Romans 12:21). Have some cheap flashlights ready for those who may need them, give some hot cocoa to the parents, scare some kids by jumping out from behind a bush, give the best candy on the block. In short – love your neighbors. Satan will hate it.

Dan

Restored

2010-10-21T09:27:00.001-07:00

Years ago I was given an ’83 Toyota pickup from my dad. It was my favorite car, which I acquired just a few years before my dad passed away. I drove it for maybe 5 years in Tucson, and then rebuilt the engine while we were living in Winnipeg. The body started to rust, so I ground down all the rust I could find, put on some fancy rust treatment, and had it repainted. We even had the bottom undercoated for the wicked Winnipeg winters.

After 7 years in Winnipeg, we moved to New Mexico where I put on a 2” body lift and some larger tires. It looked great, but was getting tired. Now approaching 200k miles and needing it’s second timing chain and engine rebuild, shocks, brakes, and every rubber component made, it was a bit worse for wear. The rust was starting to come back around the bed. Under the floor mats you could drop a football through the floor to the ground below.

The truck was too far gone to sell, too expensive to repair, and too sentimental to send to the wrecking yard – (otherwise known as auto hell). My wife knew how I felt, and left it to me to wrestle my emotions against reality. Like so many others who don’t know what to do with their left-over junk, I gave it to a mission in Mexico.

It would have been expensive to restore the old truck, in time and money and common sense, but I sometimes wish I’d thrown reality out instead of the truck. Restoration is always costly.

Numbers 6:26 says, “May the LORD show you his favor and give you his peace.” Showing you his favor means to look you in the eye – right down into your soul. He wants to see the rust and worn out timing chain. To be at peace means to be set at one again, to be healed. God is in the restoration business, and the cost is no object.

Dan

Reflection

2010-10-12T14:10:00.000-07:00

Numbers 6:25 says God wants to bless us by making His face reflect in ours. But – what does that look like?

Is He old, or forever young? Does he dress more like a policeman, or Santa? What superhero does He remind you of – Superman? Underdog? The Incredibles? Is he all bright and glowing, or can you look at Him? Does He come to you with a hug or a spanking?

Imagine a combination of the above, an old, bent over Underdog glowing under a Santa suit walking toward you with a paddle. Or Superboy dressed like a cop wanting a hug. Maybe you have a better idea?

What does it mean to have the face of God reflect in yours?　
　
Dan
　
"May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you." Numbers 6:25 nlt

The Lord Protect You

2010-10-07T13:24:00.001-07:00

We’ve gone from being safety conscious to paranoid. I remember the good old days, riding in the back of the Studebaker Lark station wagon without air-bags or seat-belts. (Yes, that's our car on a family road trip - remember those water window cooler things? Are we the only ones who had one?) We used sticks as swords, hiked without a GPS, and drove on recap tires. We felt safe without a cell phone and drinking from the faucet. But now, to be safe, we somehow need low IQ warnings:

1. "Warning: has been found to cause cancer in laboratory mice." This was printed on a box of rat poison. Guess it works.

2. "This product is not to be used in bathrooms." Printed on a bathroom heater.

3. On Children’s Cough Medicine: "Do not drive a car or operate machinery after taking this medication.” We wouldn’t want any 3-year-olds with a head cold driving a tractor while on meds.
4. On packaging for a clothes iron:"Do not iron clothes on body." Darn – no free tan.
5. On hairdryer: "Do not use while sleeping." It’s hard to dry the hair stuck on the pillow anyway.
6. On a package of Foaming Face Wash – "Caution: May contain foam."
7. ON a package of Pine Mountain Fire Logs - "Caution: Risk of fire."
8. More on Sunday…

“The Lord protect you” flys in contrast to our lable-obsessed, sue-obsessed culture. Paranoid to a fault, we filter our water, have more airbags than cup-holders, and print, "Caution, contents may be hot" lables on cups of... hot coffee. I’m not saying trying to be safe is a bad thing – just that the extremes we go to are proof of our paranoia. We’re afraid of pain, of death, of giving up control, of change. However, the only ones who are truly safe in this world – the only ones who truly live - are the ones who have given up control.

Only God can mold you into all that He designed you to be, and only God can protect you in that process. Maybe it’s time we gave Him control.

Dan

Blessings

2010-09-29T11:49:00.000-07:00

In 1979 Gabi Barkai in a salvage excavation in tombs outside Old Jerusalem found the oldest written documents of Biblical texts in existence. These tiny silver scrolls were worn as amulets or charms. They have been dated by NASA as over 2600 years old, proving the belief in Jehovah and the ancient accuracy of the books of Moses. At that time Solomon’s Temple was still standing. The invasions of Babylon, Greece, and Rome were still future. They were engraved 600 years, that’s almost three United States Histories before Jesus. Why did God see to it that these ancient texts were preserved? What portion of Scripture did He have engraved in silver for our generation? This is the text God had put in silver 2600 years ago, preserved in silver just as it is written in our Bibles today:

Numbers 2:24-27 - “May the LORD bless you and protect you. May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. May the LORD show you his favor and give you his peace.”(NLT)

This is our text for the month of October. We would like to know - What does it mean to “be blessed?” Does God still want to bless His people? Does He still want and expect us to say “blessings?” Should we wear amulets with verses in them to protect us today? This is the oldest written text of the Bible in existence.

Ah-ah-ah-Choo!

Bless You. Dan

The Greatest Grief You Can Give God

2010-09-23T10:39:00.000-07:00

Who gets to pick out the new dog in your house? We had decided no more dogs, not that the kids and I didn’t want another one. But when mom says enough, well, it’s enough. Then she saw Max.

JoLynn was in a pet rescue shelter looking at a dog with a friend, when this beautiful, blue-eyed, beanie baby like ball of curly fur looked up at her. Her eyes picked him out of the litter. Her hands picked him up, and she caught that pet store smell of money – puppy dog breath. Later, her husband’s wallet dished out the cash. Six years ago Max came home just in time to destroy our house for Christmas. Why is he still here? Because she picked him out, and up, and for some unknown reason loves the mutt.

Colossians 3:12 says “God chose you to be the holy people He loves.” He picked you out of humanity. To be holy means to be “set apart” - His hands picked you up and He holds you close. God reached in His wallet and, Acts 20:28 says, “He purchased you with His own blood.” What is the greatest grief you can give God? Not to accept His grace. Accept. One day He will bring you home for Christmas.

Dan

Is This as Good as it Gets?

2010-09-16T12:52:00.000-07:00

Do you remember the Old Milwaukee Beer commercials? They use to end with the line, “It just doesn’t get any better than this.” That’s sad, really.

Every once in a while you have that day that just seems perfect. That day at the beach, the mountains, in an AMC Gremlin with endless red licorice - you want to freeze time and save it forever. But time moves on. The day ends, and then – it’s sad, really.

Here’s my thought. For the world, this life is as good as it’s ever going to be. Your best day ever may be sitting on the beach with some friends with a beer. But…

For the believer in Christ, this life is as bad as it’s ever going to get. We aren’t promised perfect health, close parking spaces, or sinless kids. Anyone who preaches differently is selling something. But, as we suffer through this world’s problems, and enjoy this world’s perfect days with endless licorice, isn’t it great to know this is as bad as it gets?

When Paul’s life was a mess and not improving He went to God. God answered, “My grace is all you need.”(2 Cor 12:9) Why was God so short with Paul? Because his life was already as bad as it was ever going to get. Cool, eh?

Dan

Chocolate Chip Grace

2010-09-09T10:23:00.000-07:00

My favorite definition of Grace is “Joy Giving.” It’s the closest definition yet to the Greek idea. When Scripture says to “grow in all grace,” (2 Peter 3:18) it means to grow in giving joy to others. God’s grace is His giving to us. For those who follow through in belief He gives freedom from sin and an inheritance and…

He gives us good when things seem bad. Romans 8:28 says, “We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” Some days are raw butter days. Others are chocolate chip days. God takes them all and mixes them together for something better than either can be alone. I can’t give you freedom from sin, but I’d like to give you some grace – if you follow through.

Below is my own, previously secret, mysterious, addictive, unparalleled, Chocolate Chip cookie recipe.

Cooley’s Chocolate Chip Cookies
High Altitude Directions

1. Heat oven to 375
2. Get out a small plate to put you messy stuff on
3. In a large bowl mix
a. 1 ½ c butter, softened (3 sticks)
b. 1 c sugar (use white sugar first, so then it’s clean for the…)
c. 1 c brown sugar
d. 1 ½ t vanilla (1t if using the awesome Haitian vanilla you bought at the last Haiti fund-raiser. Now put your 1c and 1t measuring spoons on the plate and keep the counter clean)
e. 3 eggs
4. I use our smasher/blaster mixer with the normal whirly blades and mix it until it starts looking a bit airy. Once done remove those normal blades, put them on the plate, stick in the curly mixer blades and add…
a. 3 ¾ c flour
b. 3 t water (which cleans out that dirty 1t spoon you were using. Now dry it off and add)
c. 1 t baking soda
d. 1 ½ t salt
e. 3 c chocolate chips (the bitter sweet 60% cacao Ghirardelli chips are excellent. But, if Dave Ramsey has forced you to go cheap, the Nestles semi-sweet will do in a pinch)
f. 2 ¼ c quick oats
5. Mix until you feel happy. Start spooning. Bake for 11-12 minutes. It makes about 1 ½ batch compared to normal recipes, or 3 cookie sheets worth if you cram them in close using that fancy pampered chef cookie scoop.

Low Altitude Directions:
Move up. I lost that recipe. If you can’t move, I remember you need to use more sugar, more baking soda, less flour, and no water. Try 1 ½ c of the sugars, 1 ½ t soda, and 3 c flour and let us know how it goes.

Cannibals and Vampires

2010-08-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

“If you don’t repeat what you want to say over and over, they will pick out the dumbest thing you say and repeat that.” This was my lesson in dealing with the media. I failed.

One of the dumber things I said from the pulpit was played enough on TV and radio that I purposely quit listening to AM talk for a time. The setting was the Sunday after 9-11. We were living in Winnipeg Canada, and the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corp) had asked to broadcast our service (Elim Chapel) across the nation that day. They set up in the balcony. I forgot.

It was, of course, an extremely emotional week for this American living in Canada (I’m making excuses now). As I was singing some song early in the service, I said to myself, “Self,” I said, “Somehow you need to be more honest at the beginning of this message. You are diving into the text too quickly. Let them know how you feel.” Evidently this was not the voice of God.

I began the service by saying, “I’ve been asked this week how I feel as an American about the twin tower tragedy. As an American, in the flesh, that answer is simple. I’d like to see us find out who did this, and nuke ‘em.” Weeks later I had to place a call to British Columbia (half way across the country). “Oh, I know where I’ve heard of you - are you the nuke ‘em pastor?” they asked. Sigh.

In our passage this week (John 6:25-56), Jesus is asked six questions. He gives the same basic answer six times. In spite of handling the media correctly, they still didn’t get it. Jesus didn’t talk about nukes, but He did make comments that had - and still have people accusing Him of starting a cult of cannibals and vampires.

This week we dive into this last Bizarre Bible Story of the series, given by Jesus Himself. I hope you can join us!

Dan

Next week we start a NEW SERIES: The Scandal of Grace, beginning with Galatians 2 – Getting out of the Doghouse.

Friends

2010-08-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

When is the last time you did something really stupid? It could be short-term but still life-changing stupid. The new debt, the sleep-over, the addiction revisited, the… whatever. Were you alone? Did you avoid certain friends? Did you seek out new ones?

I’m increasingly convinced that our friends determine our future. No matter how independent you think you are, hang around people and you become like them. When I spent time in Mexico I picked up a bit of Spanglish, when living in Louisiana I picked up a liking for crawfish etuffee. Now I prefer green chile and picking up Creole from Ira. Hang around people and you….

What’s great about this principle is we can consciously choose to change the future of who we become by who we hang around. It’s the benefit of church and the detriment of our prison system, but I digress. Spend time in God’s word and with people in whom He is obviously living and you become like Christ. Spend time with idiots and you….

Our story this week is from 2 Samuel 10 – the invention of the first hospital gown – as bad an idea then as now. Read through and see if you can see the connection of how people’s friends determined their future. Who do you want to be like? Are they your friends?

Dan

Service Worship

2010-08-12T11:21:00.000-07:00

I’ve heard the teenage growth years called “that awkward time.” Growth is like that. In fact, it’s likely we will take our next step with Christ in a more awkward, difficult time.

Most Protestant churches have what is called a “worship service” on Sunday mornings. This Sunday we won’t. The interweb defines a worship service as “the act of public worship following prescribed rules.” By that definition maybe we’ve never had one.

This week we’d like to have a Service Worship - serve first, worship second. Come to Stapleton anytime after 8am and we will be serving God by serving Stapleton Elementary School. You may have noticed the thank-you already up on their marquee. We’d like to clean the playground, parking lot and the grounds for the incoming students and staff. It’s how we apply the “foot washing” principle for 600 students and staff without having to take off 1200 shoes.

After the service time, worship should be around 10 in the cafeteria so that we don’t have to set up our portable church equipment. This means it will be unplugged and a bit more interactive. No screens or big speakers - instead songs from memory, a devotional and testimonies.

We understand that this can be a bit awkward. It’s extra work as well. We’ll need to bring breakfast foods (potluck, bring plenty! Btw, Oreos are great for breakfast) and yard tools (rakes, shovels, gloves, etc), explain our weirdness to guests, and sit on hard benches. We may not all smell as good after working, and our older kids will be in the shorter worship time with us. But, we are most likely to take our next step with Christ in the more awkward, difficult times. Take that step with us this Sunday.

Dan

Temporary Insanity

2010-08-05T11:45:00.000-07:00

I love Linus in the Peanuts cartoon. He can explain the meaning of Christmas while believing in the Great Pumpkin. He has the wisdom of sages while paranoid about losing his security blanket. While I’ve never had the wisdom of sages, I did have a blue security blanket. It went everywhere with me. My older sisters made fun of it. When my aunt and uncle came to visit, they were merciless. One day it went in the wash and never came back. That was my worst day of High School.

As a pastor I see people lose their security on a regular basis. There is nothing quite so painful as loss. Our girlfriend dumps us, our employer is downsizing, our husband is messing around, dad dies. We’ve all been there, and when life hits us with a one-two punch it is so much worse. When all our security blankets seem to be pulled from us at the same time, we tend to go postal. We want to drink, to move, to buy the MG convertible, to kill something. It’s crazy, but there it is.

This week we take a snapshot of life of David from 1 Samuel 21. Through no fault of his own, he is estranged from his parents, brother, wife, and best friend. He loses his job, reputation, and popularity. His mentor and pastor dies, and David goes postal. Temporary insanity. Jesus said, “Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today." (Mt 6:33) David, after he recovered from his temporary insanity, said, “Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him! ...Those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing." (Ps 34:8-10)

This week we will take the “taste test” in order to avoid temporary insanity.

Luggage King

2010-07-29T12:07:00.000-07:00

What would it be like to grow up with Jesus - as kids in the same neighborhood? I don't think I would have liked Him. The Bible teaches Jesus is both God and human, 100% each. I like to win. You play hide and seek. How could He lose?

The Bible also teaches that we're to fear God and depend on His love (Ps 33:18). Being afraid of the one who loves you - odd eh?

This week we learn about a King that tried to hide from God in a suitcase (1 Sam 10). Hide and Seek with God isn't bright, but this king had some of the same problems I do. Knowing God isn't the same as fearing Him. Knowing He loves us isn't the same as depending on it. How do we take the step from knowing God to fearing and depending on Him?

Lord willing we will get to some answers Sunday so He won't count to 10 and find us in unclaimed baggage.

Dan

Haiti Masterpiece

2010-07-22T09:58:00.000-07:00

Our service this week is about Heaven’s masterpiece, gold tumors and rats. Don’t miss it! That said, I’d like to thank you so much for helping us go to Haiti. It’s hard to put a 10-day mission trip to Haiti into words. I'll print out some pictures- wish I could send the sounds and smells!! If you go to our Facebook picture page, we’ve been uploading pictures all week since coming home.
We are just learning how to put them on to our website at CottonwoodChurch.com, but they may not be up yet.

Our planes had a bit of trouble, so we arrived at Haiti on 3-hours sleep. That was probably a good thing, as sleeping in the intense heat can be difficult. The heat index the one day I checked was 110f. Knowing that made it seem hotter, so I quit checking. It does cool down a bit at night, but not like in the desert, as it is quite humid on the island. Actually, it’s just stinkin hot 24/7, but it’s amazing how you get use to it.

At first, Port-au-Prince looked pretty much the same as it did in 08. Everything rather grey, lots of concrete, trash, people walking around. Then you look closer and realize half or more of the buildings aren’t lived in. Some are 5 or 8 story buildings now sandwiched into a few feet of height, some leaning sideways, many reduced to looking like large cookie crumbs spilling out into the street. There are tents everywhere – in the yards of destroyed houses, in every vacant lot I saw, in large tent cities, even in the sides of the streets. How do they sleep in a tent on the side of the road in 100 degree heat? Many if not most of the tents are tarps duck-taped together and tied around poles or sticks. Camping tents that were donated just don’t last long when left up – over time the sun seems to lick them through like an old sucker. If a hurricane hits this season, they won’t have buildings to run into.

Our ministry was primarily two-fold. We worked at “English Camp,” and built a house. English Camp has been going on for many summers through Heartline Ministries. In it they teach children English using Bible lessons, skits, crafts (we made the derby box cars), swimming lessons, etc. It’s rather like a Vacation Bible School teaching English. Over the years many of these children have trusted in Jesus as their Savior. One of the boys my son Caleb worked with had come to Christ through Heartline and being adopted by a family in the States, and now was back as a 16-year-old working at English Camp. There were around over 30 children in the morning program, over 100 in the afternoon. At the end of the day we would walk them back to their tent homes. This is a hard ministry run primarily by sharp, committed High School and College volunteers wanting to make a difference.

Byron and Shelley, the couple whose house we lived in and who run the English Camp, had some friends who lost their house in the earthquake. Her name is Marie Noel, his I never could pronounce. They had lost 3 children in pregnancy (the last one in labor) before hearing about Heartline. Byron and Shelley were able to help them get the food, vitamins, and care needed in order to carry David to term. He is now 3 years old. We were able to build them a pre-fab house. It is 13X13 with a 4’ overhang porch and cement floor. It may just be a glorified tuff-shed to us, but when you see what they were living in, it is a bit of heaven. Marie and her husband worked tirelessly helping to get it up. They were so happy!! Much all the sand and gravel for the concrete they hauled in from 50-75 yards away by hand (1 bucket, 1 wheelbarrow). That we could make such a difference doing something so simple is overwhelming.

Thank you for letting us be a part of helping others. It was a ton of fun as well – Caleb learning to open a fresh coconut we got out of a tree, making new friends, riding on top of a huge truck around Haiti, going to the mountains, a flat tire with no spare in Port-au-Prince, and explaining our love for Jesus as the reason why we were there. Oh – almost forgot. When we finished the house there was a tarantula climbing up the outside wall. Then Marie saw it, she knocked it down with a stick, stomped on it, and twisted to make sure it was dead. She was barefoot.

God bless!

Dan

Haiti Missions Trip 2010

2010-07-15T05:31:00.000-07:00

Greetings!

We wanted to give you a glimpse of what we are getting to do here in Port-au-Prince. If you go to our Facebook site at
http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103566623840&s=0&e=001vtaHsJX2IHzgrKFRQD6Fg1YxHLsedsPfuYtOe-HuenMK_dz9lfQ8CbPLYcXH8S_g7EG9-L7B3GXXrdTBoW9kB1ngVjyP79_zk4M5AHI-ByN4d2XAaMIRSyOZi5H31GuJL4e2PEryrtY= you can see our photos. Desta and Caleb are working at English Camp - helping children to know about Jesus and to speak and write English. They have about 30 kids in the morning and 120 in the afternoon. Today they start making the wooden car derby racers as a craft. They have been busy!

The guys - Mike, Chuck, Jothum, and Dan have been making the derby cars, benches for the kids to sit on, fixing plumbing, etc, and making a house for a couple we know here. We hope to complete the house by Friday! They are now living in a tarp house. They tend to last longer than the tents.

Pictures are on Facebook. Please take a look!

Dan 4 all.

NOT the biggest loser

2010-07-01T15:49:00.001-07:00

Judges 3:12-30 gives one of the most bizarre stories about foul play in the Bible. King Eglon is stabbed by Ehud. The king’s size and history leave the servants outside thinking he needs some privacy in the attached bathroom. However, it’s Ehud that needs the privacy, as he escapes through the latrine.

I wonder, what makes an Ehud? He had some nerve – smuggling the dagger past security forces with no clear way to escape. We know God told him to do it, but how did Ehud know God told him – and why didn’t he wimp out?

This Sunday is July 4th. I wonder what made the likes of John Adams, Ben Franklin, George Washington, etc. to have the nerve to stand up against the British Empire? How did they even know it was right? Why didn’t they wimp out?

Aren’t you glad they didn’t?

"Can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with his wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just: that his justice cannot sleep for ever. " Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia, Query 18, 1781

When the Earth Ate People

2010-06-24T12:25:00.000-07:00

Korah was a creep, with creepy friends. He led Dathan and Abiram in a rebellion against Moses that ended up with thousands dead. Numbers 16 tells the story in detail. Psalms 106 gives the cliff notes: “One day in camp some grew jealous of Moses, also of Aaron, holy priest of God. The ground opened and swallowed Dathan, then buried Abiram's gang. Fire flared against that rebel crew and torched them to a cinder.” Bad day.

In Numbers 16 it says Moses told the people to move away from Korah and his buddies, but most of their families and 250 friends stayed – and died. The people who moved could hear their screams when the earth ate them. But then comes the weirder part.

Korah’s sons survived (Num 26, I Chr 9, 26). Evidently, when Moses told the people to move away from Korah - his sons moved. They left dad to follow Moses. Later their descendents became musicians for God’s temple. They even wrote a number of the Psalms (Ps 42, 44-49, 85, 87-88).

“Choose you today who you will serve…as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15

Dan

Blessing

2010-06-17T14:30:00.000-07:00

In Num 6:23 Aaron was told to bless the people of Israel by saying: ‘May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.’ Last week we unpacked this blessing in order to re-word it for Cottonwood. Some folks have asked for a copy of the new blessing. Here we go…

The Explanation: (Words in parenthesis contain a definition of the Hebrew words. Remember that the Hebrew words are more broad, or general than our own, creating a picture of what they want to convey.) ‘May the Lord bless (make you what He designed you to be) you and protect (put a hedge about) you. May the Lord smile on you (May He face you and make your face light up) and be gracious (bend in compassion) to you. May the Lord show you His favor (lift His face/glory to you) and give (appoint) you His peace.’

Our Cottonwood Blessing: May the Lord make you what He designed you to be, and may He put a hedge of protection around you. May His face be reflected in yours, and may He bend in compassion to you. May the Lord lift His face to yours and appoint peace for your life.

Blessings,

Dan

Climb the Mountain

2010-06-10T13:01:00.000-07:00

I once worked at a church with a weird history (seemed weird to me anyway). They had what we called the “throne chair” for the pastor to use when on the platform. They also had a massive pulpit the size of a semi cab for the pastor to walk into (not behind – into!) when he spoke. They seemed to have huge respect for their pastors. But their history proved different. In the past, they had grumbled and criticized and dismissed their pastors, treating them with anything but respect. I couldn’t figure it out.

As their new pastor, I found this more than a bit disconcerting. I was talking to a friend about it (who didn’t go to the church), who was able to explain to me what was going on. He believed that in the past they had preferred distant respect over intimate relationship. That way, if they didn’t like what the pastor was doing, it was easier to grumble and/or dismiss the pastor than if they had really known him as a person. It was an “aha” moment for me. The chair and pulpit finally left and some of my best friends are at that church. But I wonder…

When God was up on Mt. Sinai in Exodus 19:10-21, He invited everyone to climb the mountain and meet Him. But they were afraid of the thunder and lightening, the throne chair and mountain top. So – only Moses went up. And what happens next? The golden calf is worshipped. The Israelites grumble against Moses and chicken out on going into the Promised Land – and finally they reject the offer of the Messiah for the Kingdom. They preferred distant respect over intimate relationship, grumbled and complained and dismissed God. Is that us?

Jesus said, “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life.” (Mt 11:28 msg)

Flush It

2010-06-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

“Don’t rush me Sonny! You rush miracles, you get lousy miracles.” This great theology is from The Princess Bride. My problem is that, God often seems mighty slow – late even. So I rush Him, or go around Him, or forget Him altogether. Something has to be done – time is running out.

Remember the story of Aaron making the Golden Calf when Moses was late coming down Mt. Sinai with the 10 Commandments (Exodus 32)? Were they really being so bad? They weren’t replacing God; they were just adding the calf as a visual way to worship Him. They even sacrificed to Jehovah in front of the calf. And besides, Moses had been gone for over a month. Late again. Something had to be done – time was running out.

But Moses lost it. He burned the calf, then busted the remains into powder and poured it into the creek, forcing the people to drink it. Bizarre. Why drink the calf? My guess? So they would have to flush it. You rush miracles, you get lousy miracles.

Flush it.

Dan

What is a "Real Man?"

2010-05-27T14:58:00.000-07:00

Here at Cottonwood Church we have four Guys graduating from High School. Does this make them men? I went online to get a definition for a man. It said a man is a human that isn’t a woman. Great help. Then Google brought me to askmen.com for their advice. Here are some of the traits of a real man according to askmen.com (or at least the ones I felt comfortable printing)…

1 A real man doesn't cry, moan, complain, or get sick…

2 A real man is macho; tough; a real man doesn't show emotions…If spiders scare you, you'll never be a real man.

3. A real man focuses on power, money, and family.

4 A real man keeps his mouth shut. A real man does not reveal more than he has to and doesn't engage in girlie talk about others.

5 A real man would rather die than break his word.

6 A real man doesn't settle for handouts or charity.

7. A real man doesn't have piercings and long hair, and he doesn't shave his chest.

8. A real man knows that, outside of his barber, all his personal hygiene needs must be taken care of by a woman.

9 Any man who doesn't know how to tie a tie should hand in his (manhood) immediately.

The book The Making of a Modern-Day Knight uses the Bible to come up with what could be called “God’s traits of Manhood.” These four traits, clearly found throughout the life of Christ are:

1 A real man rejects passivity

2 A real man accepts responsibility

3 A real man leads courageously and

4 A real man looks to the greater reward

I like God's list better. In I Samuel 25 it’s a woman who demonstrates these traits, while her husband rejects manhood. Do you know any "Real Men?" Tell us about them...

Repent! The end is near!

2010-05-20T14:51:00.000-07:00

What a stupid message. That was Jonah’s message – but he hoped for the End. Admit it, you’ve felt the same. Haven’t you known folks where if they died and went to hell, that would really be OK with you? Some people just deserve it (we all do of course, it just seems like they deserve it more) - Hitler, Stalin, your boss, your neighbor.…

Jonah hated the Ninevites, and he had reason. (One form of their entertainment was skinning people alive. Another burning people on poles as street lights – not nice.) Repentance was the last thing he wanted for them. So why did God pick Jonah to preach the message? He obviously didn’t want to go. He would be a lousy messenger. And yet – the result was that he was the preacher of the largest revival in history - more than Moses, more than Paul, more than Jesus.

Maybe God was as concerned about Jonah’s heart as He was about the Ninevites. Repent, the End is near.

What Can I Offer?

2010-05-13T16:25:00.000-07:00

The writer of the Psalm asks, “What can I offer the Lord for all he has done for me?” Ps 116:12 nlt. In order to answer that question we have to remember what God has done. I’ll start the list; will you help me add to it?

1. He gives me life Job 33:4
2. Daily he pours His love on me Ps 42”8
3. He gives me an inheritance Ps 61:5
4. He gives me power and strength Ps 68:35
5. He comes near me Ps 75:1
6. He is my sun and shield giving me grace and glory Ps 84:11
7. He gives me rest Ps 127:2
8. He gives me secret riches Isa 45:3
9. He gives me the right words at the right time Mt 10:19
10. He gives me a new heart Jer 24:7
11. He made me his child Jn 1:12
12. He gives me victory over sin and death I Cor 15:57
13. He bought my freedom I Ti 2:6
14. He comforts me 2 co 1:4
15. He answers my prayers 2 Co 1:11
16. He gives eternal life Rom 2:7
17. He gives me a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom 2 Pt 1:11
18. He gave His Son Jn 3:16

Damming Debt

2010-05-06T14:53:00.001-07:00

1. 43% of Americans spend more than they earn.
2. 70% of those who go to church are upside-down in some debt.
3. Credit card debt per household in the USA is $16,000, averaging $3900 per card.
4. 25% of American families have a negative net worth.
5. If you pay with a credit card, you will spend, on average, 12-18% more than if you used cash.
6. The average car payment is now $464 a month. One third of us owe more on our cars than they are worth. We pay on one car or another for about 40 years. If we invested that $464 a month for 40 years at 10%, we’d have 5.4 million. Nice ride.

God came to set us free from sin, free from ALL bondage. Proverbs 22:7 says, “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower becomes the lender’s slave.” I believe God means exactly what He says. In 1950 the credit card was invented. In 1970 15% of Americans had credit cards. Last year we carried 576 billion cards. We only have 218 million people over 18.

Debt has no love, no sympathy, and no grace. If you fail to pay your debts they will crush you. The root word for debt in the Old Testament is “to deceive, seduce, lead astray.” God has a better plan. Come Sunday, lets get on the path to freedom.

Dan

Planning Is Overrated

2010-04-23T10:03:00.000-07:00

I talked JoLynn into going to Houston to see her mom without a plan. When we arrived at the airport, they wanted $714.00 each for us to fly out that day! We didn’t have that much on us so we had to use a Credit Card. When we landed in Houston there was no one to pick us up. Her mom was a little miffed when we called and asked for a ride to her house. She made us wait. On the way we asked if she could take us out to eat because we were out of money. Later our kids called while we were out shopping (we came without clothes) wondering where we were. It seems our house was out of food.

No, even I’m not that silly. If we need a plan for traveling to Texas, why do we think we can find a life of financial freedom, get out of debt, save for the future, and be generous without a plan?

On May 23 we have a meeting scheduled for right after church. We want to show you where Cottonwood is in our financial plan. We aren’t as financially free as I would like (out of debt but low on savings), but we are on our way. Aren’t you glad the church has a plan?

John Maxwell says, “A budget is telling your money where to go instead of wondering where it went.” Tell your money where to go. We will help. Come Sunday.

Dan

Check out our upcoming 5-week Financial Freedom Workshop. Details are at http://cottonwoodff.vpweb.com/

Straight Talk About Money

2010-04-22T14:42:00.000-07:00

You will spend 12, maybe 20 years learning how to make it - I’ve spent 52 years spending it. Most of us work 40-60 hours a week to make more of it. We talk about it, discuss it, day dream of having more of it, and get mad when our government spends it on someone other than us. We spend it, give it, scheme to get more of it, and envy those who have lots of it. It’s divisive - it’s the #1 reason we leave our spouse, it breaks up friends, businesses, governments and families. Loss of it has led to suicides. Obsession with it has caused crime, and lack of it brings on nightmares. God calls it a root of all kinds of evil, and yet it remains a means of great good. I’m told there are over 2000 Biblical passages about it, and 2/3’s of Christ’s parables deal with it. At Cottonwood - there is no more ignoring it.

We start our 4 week sermon series Finding Financial Freedom this Sunday. Also, check out our upcoming 5-week Financial Freedom Workshop. Details are at http://cottonwoodff.vpweb.com/

(The general idea for this blog was taken from a Hybels sermon - I hope he doesn’t mind. It's flattery, right?)

Weird Faith

2010-04-15T13:03:00.000-07:00

Faith is weird. What if I don’t have it? How do you get it? Can you grow it? Rom 1:17 says the Good News is “…accomplished from start to finish by faith.” Somehow I have to get it…

I know what I have faith in. My computer. I know that because I get the “blue screen of death” about every 6 weeks. I hate it. If I had no faith in the machine, I wouldn’t be surprised when the blue screen appears. But I’m more than surprised. I’m upset, frustrated, and everyone leaves the office.

When I get the blue screen, I become immediately fixated on all the things that need to get done, and how difficult if not impossible it will be to do them without the computer. Next I freak out considering how long it’s been since I’ve backed up my data – and about the info I will be losing.

Knowing the possessed machine is undependable; you may ask “Why don’t you back it up?” Well, the laptop normally works, I can usually get it going again (it only completely crashes where I can't resurrect it about once a year), I’m a bit lazy, and -- I must have faith it will work. It’s misplaced faith maybe, but it's faith.

So, what is it about my computer that makes me trust it? Why don’t I depend on God like that? I started my journey with God on faith in what He had done for me, why don’t I continue that way? He has never given me the blue screen… Speaking of which,

I need to buy a Mac.

Dan

Why I Believe

2010-04-08T09:38:00.000-07:00

Last week we talked about why we do or don’t believe in the resurrection of Jesus. In this weeks blog I wanted to give you the reasons I believe in the resurrection. You may not agree with them all or think that any one argument is conclusive. But when you put them together, for me at least, I see no alternative than to believe Jesus rose from the dead. I believe because…

1. The Bible lives. Jesus said He came to give a rich and satisfying life Jn 10:10. Living according to His book does just that. If it works, it’s probably true. If it’s true about how to live, it’s probably true about how He lives.

2. The Apostles were smoking what they were selling. They said Jesus rose from the dead in three days. Then they told the world. Why would they lie, and carry their lie to their death without cracking? Mark was dragged behind horses; John boiled in oil; Paul beheaded; Peter and his wife crucified. This isn’t Scripture, this is history. Check out the rest of their stories at http://vimeo.com/4976791.

3. An eternal God makes more sense than eternal dirt. Rom 1:20-22 says it better than I can. If there is an eternal God, He can raise the dead. Are we all held together by chance, or is God involved? God says Jesus holds everything together (Col 1:17). He does, and He has for eternity. Check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0-NPPIeeRk.

4. Supernatural stuff has happened. From over 300 O.T. Prophecies about Christ written over a thousand years before His birth coming true (one example Ps. 22:14-18), to the Hittite civilization being found (just as Scripture described http://www.hittites.info/), to chariot wheels found on the bottom of the sea, we know supernatural stuff has happened. http://bibleprobe.com/exodus.htm

5. Supernatural stuff still happens. Israel became a nation against all odds in 1948, like God said they would over 3000 years ago in Isa 10:21. If the Jewish people can come back and make a nation after thousands of years (how many Hittite, Moabite or Philistine nations have come back?), why can’t one guy come back from the dead?

6. Jesus has style. He could have risen from the dead and spoke to the Disciples in a dream. He didn’t have to return to Earth. But He did. And He tore the temple curtain in half without hands. And He walked through walls. And he raised a bunch of others from the dead to walk around Jerusalem and freak people out. And He had the stone moved. And He scared the army brats with angels. Style. And with style I believe He rose from the dead.

He is risen, indeed.

This coming Sunday we will be talking about what it means to be a Christ-follower. I hope you can come; it’s centered on the Sesame Street Hymn “Put Down the Duckie.” Trust me, you don’t want to miss it!

A Doubters Confession

2010-04-01T11:39:00.000-07:00

I confess, there are times I doubt the Bible is true, doubt that the resurrection really happened. It is a pretty far-fetched story after all. God becoming human, born of a virgin, dies and comes back to life. But I believe. Why? This week on Sunday I’ll give some of my reasons. Later I'll put them on the blog. Meanwhile, why don’t you give me some of yours? If you believe, give us the reasons for your belief. If not, lets hear those reasons too. I need help with my sermon prep. Put them on the blog or facebook and let’s see what we come up with. Happy Easter!

Dan

Open My Eyes

2010-03-25T09:25:00.000-07:00

Thought about Haiti lately? With the earthquake over; our news has become focused on other things. So have I. It’s hard to feel compassion for all the hurt and wrong and suffering you hear about in the average day. You can’t pray for, or give to, or alleviate it all - so our compassion eyes go blind, and we feel nothing. What little we do is out of guilt, not compassion.

I was reading the story of the triumphal entry of Jesus coming into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday (Mt. 21:1-11). Wondering what the context was, I turned to the end of Mt. 20. On his way to Jerusalem from Jericho Jesus is stopped by two blind guys who keep yelling “Have mercy on us Son of David, we want to see!” Who has been bombarded by more news of suffering than the great healer, Jesus?

The passage says that Jesus was “deeply moved.” My interlinear says it means “he felt compassion.” It’s defined as “a deep awareness of and sympathy for their suffering.” Jesus never let his compassion eyes go blind.

One thing I like about this story is it reminds me that Jesus didn’t heal everyone. Everyone blind didn’t get sight. Everyone who was deaf didn’t hear. Everyone who died didn’t come back to life. But some did. As a human (Divine, yet human), he did what he could with what he had. Jesus never let his brain go blind.

Have mercy on us Son of David, we want to see!

Ps 119:18 (NIV) Open my eyes that I may see...

Fearless Prayer

2010-03-17T18:11:00.000-07:00

The picture is of Fearless Mike. Meanwhile we all started praying...

Actually, we needed some tunes at one of the houses we were working at during our New Orleans missions trip, and Mike and I found a cassette karoke radio for 10 bucks at a thrift store. Such a deal. And such is the stuff of missions trips.

We first came to New Orleans Christmas 06 to help those who lost their homes after Hurricane Katrina. Since then NOAH, the Southern Baptist relief organization we work with, has helped out over 1600 families and homes. When we were taken to our first house to work in on Monday we arrived at... the same house we helped to clean out in '06. This was not organized by NOAH, just by God. And such is the stuff of missions trips.

Deborah, the owners daughter came out to see us yesterday. That was the most cool part of this missions trip. She told us that after we helped to strip the house down to the studs over three years ago, she and her mom hired a contractor to do the rebuild. He started the work, then took off with their savings (over $20,000). This became a common practice, as most of the people doing the hiring had little experience with contracts or contractors. Now NOAH is back helping them rebuild their house.

The way the rebuild works is this: NOAH through folks like us provides free labor. The homeowner has to provide the supplies. This makes for a slow process, but also it also keeps it from being a handout. The result has been between 400-500 people accepting Christ. And such is the stuff of missions trips.

I wonder if we prayed fearlessly all the time, like we do before and during missions trips, if this would be the stuff of life.

Dan

"Devote yourselves to prayer." Col 4:2

Fearless Love

2010-03-10T12:32:00.000-08:00

At church last week we talked about husbands loving their wives as Christ loves the church. In the service we brainstormed how Jesus shows His love for us. This becomes our definition of love in action – and a job description for all us husbands out there. Hmmm, may have some work to do. Click on the blog and add your thoughts to the list. Lets see how many actions of love we can come up with.

Jesus…

1. covers our sins.
2. cares about our loneliness
3. desires to help us.
4. clothes us when we are “naked and ashamed.”
5. seeks us out when we are afraid and “hiding ourselves.”
6. come down from heaven to be with us.
7. makes us promises and keeps them.
8. humbled himself and become human for us.
9. died for us; he sacrifices himself for us.
10. suffers for our sake.
11. conquered sin, death, and the grave to rise again for us.
12. denies himself, his wants, and his desires for our sake.
13. always listens to us;
14. doesn't interrupt or act rude in any way.
15. loves us no matter what.
16. is faithful and consistent.
17. prays for us.
18. gives good sound Biblical advice.
19. serves us
20. heals us.
21. gives us hope; he is encouraging.
22. guides us
23. teaches us.
24. provides, protects, and cares for us.
25. wrote us letters
26. takes our pain,
27. takes our shame
28. takes our place
29. takes our wrong
30. gives joy (grace)
31. gives confidence
32. gives comfort
33. is slow to get angry

Fearless at Home

2010-03-04T14:30:00.000-08:00

My favorite church name (other than Cottonwood of course), is Counterculture. The name, I think, is cool, accurate, and frightening in practice.

The passage for our study this week is countercultural. It’s Col. 3:18-21, which says, “Wives, submit to your husbands… Husbands, love your wives…. Children, obey your parents.”

That’s hard to do. It always has been. It’s hard to submit when your husband is selfish rather than loving; or when your wife is overbearing rather than respectful; or when your parents are singing The Bohemian Rhapsody out the car window as they drop you off for school.

It’s even harder to follow when culture thinks you are an idiot.

One of Dr. Phil's favorite questions is, "How's that workin’ for you?" How’s not applying Col. 3:18-21 working for the rest of culture?

In the late 1800’s 1 in ever 34 marriages ended in divorce. Now that we ignore scripture, it’s 1 in 2. Half of all USA children will witness the breakup of their parent’s marriage (and we’re told the death of a parent is less devastating to a child than is divorce). In fact, divorce is so painful that children who come from broken homes are almost twice as likely to attempt suicide. Prison population illustrates the strength of a solid home in that over 70% of long-term inmates grew up in broken homes. With more broken homes, we have more broken lives. Perhaps this is why our prison population recently topped 2 million for the first time in history. More laws and cops can fight the symptoms. Only Jesus gives us a cure for the cause. (Stats from www.marriage-success-secrets.com.)

I have an idea, “Wives, submit to your husbands… Husbands, love your wives…. Children, obey your parents.” No, it’s not rocket science. We do this because we love Jesus and it is the right thing to do - not because it guarantees perfect kids. Everyone has a free will, and anyone can screw up the process. But, when we let Christ live in us through submission, love and obedience, the home is solid. Satan loses. We win. The world is shocked. It’s counter-cultural for sure. That’s why you have to be fearless. How are God’s promises workin’ for you? Put them to the test. Come join the fun.

Dan

Space

2010-02-24T16:18:00.000-08:00

Life doesn’t have enough space.

Have you ever traveled to another country where people have a different practice on personal space? Or maybe you had a friend who just seemed to get into your space… a friend with bad breath? I like space.

I don’t like my coffee filled to the top – I’m not coordinated enough for that. Plus, it gives me room for lots of cream. I like wide-margin Bibles – it gives me room for notes. I like wide aisles too. Those claustrophobic stores with things piled half way to heaven and narrow aisles I avoid.

If life doesn’t have enough space you’re stuck with what you’ve got. There’s no room for the creamer. The more fast food drive through’s I hit, the more my margins are filled with text. Even with fast food, 5 minute work-outs and 15 minute oil changes, my life doesn’t have enough space. Maybe it’s because of fast food, 5 minute…

Someone once defined discipline as, “Something that creates space in your life.” Spiritual disciplines (taking a Sabbath, reading Scripture, prayer, journaling, etc) aren’t for extra-credit. They are a means of creating space in our lives.

Paul wrote, Col 3:16 (NLT) “Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives.” Maybe Christ would fill my life - if He could just find the space.

Dan

Gold

2010-02-17T14:42:00.000-08:00

I’ve been watching a bit of the Olympics this week with a thought, “What if we poured as much devotion into getting a gold medal from God as the athletes do from the Olympic committee?” We’d lose.

Here’s a fun question I read this week, “How do you chart spiritual growth so that the Pharisees don’t win?” Assuming someone is already a believer, we tend to chart growth as doing things - maybe baptism, church membership, time in prayer, bible study, memorization, journaling, etc. But I wonder, using that type of measure, if the Pharisees don’t win.

According to a recent Reveal (Willow Creek Association) study, at a certain point in our spiritual journey, “increased involvement in church activities ceases to correlate to spiritual growth.” A Barna study revealed that most people believe that “spiritual growth consists in trying hard to follow the rules of the Bible.” Trying hard - the Pharisees win again.

Here’s my thought: In the Olympics you receive gold medal as a result of your work. In the spiritual world you become gold because of the work Christ is doing in you. In the Olympic world you work harder to win. In the spiritual world you surrender to win.

Maybe this will help. My 8th grade Algebra teacher won “The Teacher of the Year” award (just for the state of Arizona I think). I remember it was a big deal, and I was glad, because without his help I wouldn’t have passed. I remember how surprised and humbled he was to receive the award - and all of us students were genuinely excited for him, and made a big deal out of it in class. It was extra special, as he was pretty old (probably about my age now, sigh), and he wasn’t going to be teaching much longer. However, what if he hadn’t helped me overcome my problem in Algebra? What if he had been a jerk snuggling up to the award committee for a decade, doing favors in order to one day get his award? The award then wouldn’t be special, it would be sick. As students we probably still would have done something in his class – but he wouldn’t have liked it.

Someone said, “Self-improvement is no more God’s plan than self-salvation.” Wish I had said it.

Dan

Dirty Clothes

2010-02-10T16:40:00.000-08:00

What’s made the dirtiest you’ve ever been? Mud football? Transmission repairs? Planting with steer manure? Fixing the bathroom plumbing? Have you ever been so dirty the clothes didn’t want to come off? From maybe rain or sweat or something worse they stick to you like they are the outer layer of your skin. If you’ve really gotten down and dirty once you peal ‘em off they’re too disgusting to wash. Even Maytag has it limits. So, you trash the worthless clothes, shower, and put on something clean. The simple process feels great.

That’s the new life Paul describes in Col. 3:5-15. He talks about stripping off our “old sinful nature.” Sometimes our old sins seem as much as part of us as our own skin. Perhaps that’s why the sinful nature is often called our “flesh” (Eph 2:3 kjv). Our old sins stick to us like wet manure soaked Levis.

Jesus offers new clothes. The new life begins the process of trashing our selfishness, being washed clean through Christ (His blood actually washing our sins away- weird, eh?), and putting on His perfect, clean, sinless, unselfish life (actually lived through us – weirder, eh?). The simple process feels great.

I wonder then, why do I sometimes reach back into the trash and pull the muddy Levis back on?

So earthly minded, no heavenly good

2010-02-04T09:33:00.000-08:00

"If the energy with which we pursue our own entertainment and appetites were deployed on behalf of the poor instead, then the world could be a much better place and we would find the life Jesus promised." That’s the last line in an email from Scott Todd, the leader of the Compassion.com medical team in Port-au-Prince. It got me thinking about the old quote (from an Oliver Wendell Holmes and Johnny Cash song –odd combination, eh?) “We’re so heavenly minded we’re no earthly good.”

I assume Oliver and Johnny were saying we can become so self-absorbed with religion the result is we become self-righteous hypocrites. This makes us no good to anybody, not even ourselves. But the opposite danger is just as fatal, and more likely to be in our mirror.

We become earthly minded we are also self-absorbed, self-righteous, and no good to anybody. That’s why Paul writes, “Set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. 2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.” Col 3:1-2 nlt. That's heavenly minded, not religion minded.

Scott’s quote went out as part of a Haiti update from Cottonwood last week. One person wrote, “Wow! What a convicting statement. I highlighted it… because it really hit home."

The truth is we set our sights on plants for the back yard, fixing the car, finishing school, and eating our way through New Mexico. They aren’t bad things, but they aren’t the best things. Good is often the enemy of best. This world seems so real, so important, that it’s hard to keep our sights on the realities of heaven. We forget that we are only here for a bit, but in heaven forever. We forget how quickly that new car (with payments of $400.00 a month) will depreciate, but that the child we support in Haiti (for $40.00 a month) we will be able to hang with 10,000 years from now. We forget that we can send our investments ahead by investing in eternal things (people) rather than investing in stuff. We forget…

Haiti Perspective

2010-01-26T07:54:00.000-08:00

One day after witnessing Jothum and Rochelle arrive at the airport with Salinda all the way from Haiti, I’m mad. Some news cameras were at the airport, and they put the story on TV and their websites. Then comments like this one get posted (on KRQE’s website) “meanwhile, American children starve and freeze to death. I feel bad for the Haitian people, but do we really need to spend our money on them and bring them to this country when so many people that were born here are suffering? I don't think so.”

UGH – what is wrong with people? Let’s get this in perspective!

On September 11, 2001 the United States lost 2973 people when the World Trade Center collapsed. In 2005 hurricane Katrina, with the flood that followed, became one of the five deadliest hurricanes in our history. At least 1836 people lost their lives.

As of Jan 25, the estimate of the dead in Haiti jumped to 300,000. More could follow due to poor and non-existent medical facilities, doctors who can’t get into the country, polluted water, infections, etc. That’s like over 100 September 11th’s happening on the same day, or 163 hurricane Katrina’s hitting on the same weekend. It’s 68 Iraq wars.

But the impact to Haiti is worse than those numbers indicate. Before the earthquake Haiti had a population of just under 10 million (World Bank/Development Indicators). Compare that to the United States with a population of over 300 million. Percentage wise, it would be like loosing 9 million Americans. That’s not just the World Trade Center - it would be like loosing all of New York City (8.3 million) and all of Washington DC (OK, maybe we wouldn’t mind losing DC so much, but that’s another 600,000).

Or, compare Haiti’s earthquake to Katrina’s effect on the USA. It wouldn’t be like losing some costal areas of Louisiana and Mississippi, it would be like losing all of Louisiana (4.4 million) and all of Mississippi 3 million) and almost all of New Mexico (2 million – would Santa Fe really be a loss?) combined.

But that doesn’t tell the whole story yet. The average American family makes about $50,000 a year. An individual is considered poverty level if they make under about $12,000 a year (it changes a bit depending on their state). The average Haitian makes under $400.00 US a year. They have no insurance, no unemployment benefits, none of the advantages we as Americans enjoy.

So we, in our ignorance and pride, write things like “I feel bad for the Haitian people, but do we really need to spend our money on them and bring them to this country when so many people that were born here are suffering?” Once we put this catastrophe in perspective, the only answer is, “Yes, we do.”

For the newscasts about Salinda go to:
Channel 7: http://www.koat.com/news/22339789/detail.html
Channel 13: http://www.krqe.com/dpp/news/world/albuquerque-family-adopts-haitian-orphan

To give go to http://www.heartlineministries.org

The Salinda Stallings Story

2010-01-24T14:31:00.000-08:00

The Salinda Stallings Story:

For about five years now Jothum and Rochelle Stallings have been traveling to Haiti as short term missionaries helping out http://HeartlineMinistries.org. Heartline does a number of different ministries in Haiti. There is a church; (It’s English-speaking with a few hundred people, some Haitians, some UN workers, some guys hoping to pick up an American visitor…); a women’s ministry (teaching women pre-natal care, how to sew, bank, invest, and become self-sufficient); and an orphanage (boys and girls homes in different houses, many waiting for adoption.) They do lots of other stuff too that you can find on their website. Back to our story…

When they go to Haiti, Jothum is usually doing repair and plumbing work, Rochelle working in the women’s center and orphanages. They keep going back because, well, they just love the people. About once a year they bring a group from Cottonwood Church with them. Over two years ago, when Jothum was working in the girl’s orphanage, one of the babies made it into his lap. God spoke. Jothum was hooked. Her name is Salinda. Since then Jothum, Rochelle, and Heartline have been working on her adoption. But there have been setbacks…

• Once they decided to adopt, Rochelle became pregnant. Should they still go forward with adopting Salinda?
• Once they had all their paperwork translated, the money sent, and the dossier sent in, it was lost. Should they start all over?
• Once they started all over (by now Jothum Jr. was born) nothing happened. Nothing. Like zero, nada, zilch. The money was paid, the new dossier sent in and translated, but nothing seemed to be happening. And yet another year went by. Sometimes it’s so tempting to quit.

But then came the earthquake. First they didn’t know of Salinda was alive. Then they got news that not only was she alive, but some children were having their adoptions fast-tracked by the government if the process was already started. Then they got news that some of the Heartline children were coming to the US, but some not, (thanks to government paper work). Then, last Friday, they received a call. Salinda was on her way to Florida. The adoption was final. Saturday they left for Florida. Today they are with her. Tomorrow they arrive in Albuquerque. Inconceivable! That word, I do not think it means… Well, it means squat to God.

If you want to meet Jothum, Rochelle and Salinda at the airport, their flight comes in at 6:35, its SW #390. However they made me PROMISE TO DO EVERYTHING LOW KEY. Salinda is going through a major culture shock (she is almost 3 now). Please, no loud noises, no balloons, none of that fun, wild American stuff. Just lots of Haitian type hugs. I believe we have meals starting on Tuesday (let Malinda know if you want to help millymac@msn.com).

Lets take a minute to thank God for answering prayers for Salinda. Jothum and Rochelle can say, “For this child I prayed; and the Lord has granted me what I asked of Him.” I Sam 2:27.

Please continue to pray for Heartline Ministries, for Ira’s friends and family still in Haiti, for Compassion International as they look for the thousands of children they still have missing. May this one miracle be the beginning of many!

Dan for Cottonwood

Haiti Doctor's Notes

2010-01-21T14:41:00.000-08:00

Joe Boyle is a doctor who came to work with Heartline. Here are his notes from the last 4 days. Unbelievable.

DAY 1:

Have arrived safely. They seem to have security well in hand. The only danger I see thus far is a potentially fatal SCREAMING caffiene headache.

We are getting everything ready and will begin bringing patients in tomorrow.

I have not gotten to see Sebastien yet. He is only a few blocks away but security will be needed.

The line at the gas station which finally reopened today was several miles long.

We have an 18 year old first pregnancy with pre eclampsia.

We had the meds I needed for her so far.

Joe

DAY 2:

Am being productive.

Yesterday converted women's sewing center to a clinic.

There was supposed to be a military evac of 40 orphans.

They asked us (maranatha ond one other group to sleep in a home that accessed a road good enough for the convoy that was to arrive at 0200.

No go, but it was sort of fun to camp in the forier with 30 orphans and a half dozen nannies.

Sebastien and I were able to get a little pad almost to ourselves. Every time he stirred he would reach over to rub my arm and would sigh contedly when he found me.

I awoke to find most of the kids transported back to their orphanages. Sebastien and Gino and vinney were still there. (the three amigos). Belle was there as well. Those kids stayed because their parents were there. The boys were so busy I hardly noticed the other 25 had left.

Tim(another dad) and Meghan ( good Samaritan). Spent all day at the embassy and it looks like we will get a visa soon. I don't know if it's soon in a Haitian time or US time.

Several charters have fallen through. Tomorrow and Wednesday are already cancelled Thursday is still a possibility. Friday heartlinehaiti has one scheduled which is a strong liklihood. (Mike I put you on the list to see if my Friday shifts can be covered)

The clinic today was busy. I spent most of the day debriding open fractures and setting closed fractures.

Our surgical referral options are severely limited. We have found someone to take amputations

Joe

DAY 3:

What a day.

I cannot even begin.

Got to see seb before his bedtime.

I never would have guessed what we'd be doing.

I cannot stress enough that the help has not arrived. We have not been able to refer anyone out since yesterday morning. I amputated a forearm today. I will be performing a surgical airway and debriding a neck abcess tonite unless I find some other option.

Each time we have tried all of our connections, Haitian police, Military, Aid organizations and noone can take these patients. If anyone can expand our referral network please contact. We drove her to the isreali surgical team that took a pt from us yesterday but they had sealed the entrance and would not take any patients

I am fearful of killing someone because I cannot provide the correct care.

There is a man at the clinic that will likely die tonite because of a severe wound infection. The internist performed an extensive I and D. He is septic. I know he would not survive an amputation tonite. There is rumor of a podiatrist tomorrow. If the gentleman survives the night then we will decide what to do tomorrow.

When I say clinic, I am describing a house that is normally used as a womens center. Today we were performing OR cases under general antesthesia on the screened in patio and have more than a dozen people staying for ongoing care.

Forward to anyone who can help.

Joe

DAY 4:

Ok

A pretty good day today. All the previous cases seem to be improving. Carlos, the wrist amputation is doing great.

Tim and Meghan had a frustrating day at the embassy. They were basically ignored all day because the gal they had been working with was off and her replacement said he couldn't find all the documents going through her e-mail. I think tim had to exercise considerable restraint to keep from strangling him.

The aftershock today was impressive. Things swayed impressively. No damage to any of the buildings we are using or staying in. No one was injured. The Nannies all refuse to go into the houses again. Everyone is sleeping in the driveway. The security guards are keeping a tighter vigil because some of the wall is completely down.

The HMS Comfort pulled into port today. Jen (ER resident from florida) was e-mailing one of her friends on board. He put her in contact with the officer in charge of their medical division and he said he would take anyone who needed immediate surgery.

We sent 10 and included the Pregnant lady with the pelvis fracture. She didn't exactly fit the "immediate" criteria, but I am glad to have her there. They will take good care of her.

We lucked out because they hadn't secured their perimeter. (We were there waiting for their initial team.) They landed in several helicoptors and began to set up their triage area. They told us that the orders were to take patients referred from the haitian hospitals (only 2 of 5 functioning). Byron said the triage officer was excited to see the surgical cases and seemed eager to take them. He said they could not accept any more until the haitian hospitals have evacuated all they need to. I don't expect any more help from them for a few days.

Backing up a little. Just as we were loading, our evacuees, Jon arrived with a load of 25 injured from Simon Pele'. I found 3 there that needed immediate surgery a week ago so we loaded them.

Byron had witnessed a car vs pedestrian and transported her. She was comatose so we loaded her for the Hospital ship, but she died before they even left.

There was one leg in the group from simon pele' slum that I had wished I had sent to the ship. He is a 25 year old with a leg crushed in the disaster. He was still walking on it and he didn't look septic.

When I got his leg exposed it was obvious that he had gangrene. I did a procedure called a faciatomy to drain the infection and relieve the pressure. I started at his ankle and on the outside of his leg the skin and muscle was completely dead. almost to the knee. Any hope of saving the knee involved draining the rest of the infection.

The inside of his calf was under tremendous pressure, but the muscle was only dead to just above the ankle. The pressure was very high all the way to the knee.

I opened the fascia to relieve the pressure and had a terrible time controlling the bleeding.

I was just finishing when the truck delivering patients to the navy returned and said no more for a few days. I had no idea what to do, and was trying to formulate a plan for amputating at or above the knee.

Then another team arrived and there was a podiatrist there who has extensive experience with amputations! It was such a load off. She looked at him and thought that if the debridement I did stopped the spread of infection then she would try below the knee tomorrow. I wasn-t able to show her the part that was worst because I was concerned about stirring up the bleeding. I anticipate a above knee amputation for him tomorrow. We are going to try the isreali place and the HMS Comfort first. I will be shocked if they are able to help. I feel it's important to try before operating on a patio though.

4 of the people we sent to the hospital ship were under 15. Their parents were not there, and some we have only seen when we picked the kids up. I sharpied the kid's names onto their chests along with my e-mail and the number a phone we were using that only works about 10% of the time. Two of the boys asked if I could go to the ship with them. It's hard to imagine that they were our kids' age.

The lady with the raging neck infection improved for a while with steroids and antibiotics, but she is feeling worse tonite.

A lady with advanced breast cancer showed up and said she had not recieved any treatment since her hospital collapsed. Suzanne was her name and even though all we could offer was some pain medicine, her emotional thank yous had several of our helpers and translators crying.

I stopped by to see Seb tonite and there were 2 NYC paramedics wandering around and had about 200# of medical supplies.

They had been unable to fly into PAP but wanted to help. THey flew into the D.R. and hitched across the border hoping to help. Their ride was delivering supplies to a different orphanage, but that orphanage had brought us patients so they sent the pair to us. I invited them to stay with Byron and me promised them we'd find work for them in the morning.
There is such an outpouring. We have over several hundred doctors and nurses hoping to rotate in. No one seems to be able to get anything up and running. We are actuall perusing resume' to find doctors and nurses to replace us. I can't really find anyone to replace me, but if we bring in 2 or 3 strong canditates it won't be too much of a loss.

I think that this place will be needed for months, so the next investment is X ray. An indoor operating suite with non halogen lights would be on my list.

You cannot believe how hot it is in there with the lights on. Good thing it's winter time.

I feel much more at peace today.

Ann recieved our I-600 approval in the mail today. It was completed and USCIS claims mailed before the disaster. For some reason this struck me as very funny!

I appreciate your prayers and support. I am convinced that I am where God wants me to be this week. There is constant and specific prayer here, (like for the podiatrist to show up) and they have been answered faithfully.

I am optimistic about a visa tomorrow, but probably not early enough to catch a flight until Friday.

Love Joe

Haiti and Glory

2010-01-20T21:58:00.000-08:00

First - the bad news. I'd like to put in a portion of John McHoul's blog from www.heartlineministries.org, the ministry we partner with in haiti. John is the director. Then - the good questionn.

First - John. "Yesterday Troy and I were driving through out various parts of the city and he took several dozen pictures. On the street in front of the cemetery were a few dead bloated bodies lying on the street and what seemed to be a couple of bodies that were being burned in a fire. But this scene touched me the most.

The area had the stench of death and most of the people had something covering their faces. I stopped a few times to give people a ride just to get then away for the area.

I couldn't help but wonder about the person in the casket who had died and of the men who were carrying it. The person must have been special to them. They must have cared for this person to go through the effort and expense of caring for the body and buying the casket.

There, I have read, have been up to twelve thousand people who have not been identified and have been buried in a mass grave outside of the city. I saw a photo of bodies being dumped into big trucks by front end loaders. I wonder how many of those had family members that will never have the closure of a burial in graveyard.

It makes me sad.

John McHoul "

By the way, If you would like to donate specifically to the earthquake relief funds, you can do so at www.haiti-relief.com.

John once said that, "The safest place is where God wants you to be." If that is true, and I believe it is, Haiti may be in the safest place it's been for the last 200+ years. Governments don't seem to be able to move an IV from the airport to a hospital. Christian organizations on the other hand have been working in Haiti for years. They were there before the earthquake and will stay after everyone else has gone home. They are on the ground and effective.

"Christ in us is the hope of glory," Paul writes in Colossians ch. 1. Jesus is getting the glory as Christian organizations work together and make the greatest difference to the suffering country. Individuals give Christ the glory as He works through them. The church, the body of Christ gets the glory as TV reporters show Christ in action in Haiti. God gets the glory as His promises are showing to be true. Mt 7:7 "Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking and the door will be opened to you." Haiti is asking. God is answering, through people like you. May He be glorified.

Dan

Help Haiti!

2010-01-13T08:36:00.000-08:00

By now you have heard about the Earthquake in Haiti. The picture here is taken of the house next door to the boys orphanage (the one we work at with Heartline). They lost some walls - this house was totally destroyed. I'll include all the information we have below. All the children are safe.

If you would like to help in the relief efforts, you can give directly to Heartline Ministries by going to http://www.heartlineministries.org. Jothum and Rochelle are trying to get back to Haiti ASAP. I assume we (Cottonwood) will be helping them with travel and/or supplies to bring. You can give to Haiti through Cottonwood at our Paypal giving site on http://www.cottonwoodchurch.net and designate it for Haiti. Also, if you will read through the letters I've cut and pasted below you will see other ways you can help this immediate need. I've taken the different blogs and letters from our friends in Haiti and pasted them below.

If you go to the Heartline Ministries website, John (John and Beth have lived in Haiti for 21 years now working with Heartline) keeps up a terrific blog so you will have a good picture of what is happening and how we can help.

PLEASE PRAY!!

Dan

LIVESAY BLOG

January 13, 2010
The Morning After - Earthquake Haiti 2010

The sun is about to come up. The aftershocks continue. Some more noticeable than others. There is no way to even begin to share the things we've heard and seen since 5pm yesterday. To do so would take hours that we don't have to give right now. Some of them feel wrong to tell. Like only God should know these personal horrible tragedies.
The few things we can confirm - yes the four story Caribbean Market building is completely demolished. Yes it was open. Yes the National Palace collapsed. Yes Gov't buildings nearby the Palace collapsed. Yes St Josephs Boys home is completely collapsed. Yes countless countless - countless other houses, churches, hospitals, schools, and businesses have collapsed. There are buildings that suffered almost no damage. Right next door will be a pile of rubble.
Thousands of people are currently trapped. To guess at a number would be like guessing at raindrops in the ocean. Precious lives hang in the balance. When pulled from the rubble there is no place to take them for care Haiti has an almost non existent medical care system for her people.

I cannot imagine what the next few weeks and months will be like. I am afraid for everyone. Never in my life have I seen people stronger than Haitian people. But I am afraid for them. For us.

When the quake hit it took many seconds to even process what was happening. The house was rocking back and forth in a way that I cannot even begin to describe. It felt fake. It felt like a movie. Things were crashing all over the house. It felt like the world was ending. I do not know why my house stands and my children all lie sleeping in their beds right now. It defies logic and my babies were spared while thousands of others were not.
There are friends and co-workers that are missing. People whom no-one can account for. People we work with and love. There are more than I can name, but in particular we wait on one single friend who lived near the Hotel Montana - which has reportedly collapsed.
The horror has only just begun and I beg you to get on your knees - I truly mean ON YOUR KNEES and pray for the people of this country. The news might forget in a few days - but people will still be trapped alive and suffering. Pray. Pray. Pray. After that - PLEASE PRAY.
Tara for all of us

BYRON AND SHELLEY EMAIL

Thanks to every one of you for your prayers and concern for us.

We find ourselves in a difficult place today - we are in Florida while our five youngest children - and the 17 children who we care for are all in Haiti facing the aftermath of the earthquake which took place this afternoon.

FIRST - God has shown us great mercy - every child is safe and unharmed. The walls have fallen down, the gates have fallen over, there is great damage to the homes - but every single person is fine! Our good friend Kelly, and Brittany Gilbert who works with us, have done a terrific job of handling this emergency. They waited in the street for quite some time before John was able to reach them - the street was a safe place, nothing big which could fall on them. Our neighbor's roof caved in, and the house which was next to the boy's home is completely gone. As the homes are built of blocks and concrete it is dangerous right now.

All of the children and workers are sleeping in Village Theodat at the Buxman's home. They are sleeping in the driveway. As I understand it, all of the children are asleep except for our youngest two - Belle and Dominique. It is very difficult for me to be here.

We have changed our flights. We were scheduled to return on Monday, tried to fly out tomorrow but American has cancelled all of their flights into Haiti tomorrow. Byron was able to secure the very last seat on a flight for Thursday. I will follow on Friday. We will spend tomorrow purchasing supplies to take back with us. We hope to take back 5 bags each - supplies will be crucial now.

Our first two bags are free, and the three additional bags will cost us $100 each. IF you would like to help us purchase supplies, or pay for extra baggage, will you please email me OR call my mom and let me know? That will help us know what we are able to purchase. Donations will need to be sent to Heartline Ministries, c/o Nichols Accounting Group, 5680 East Franklin Road Suite #110, Nampa, ID 83687. Please attach a note which specifies that this is money for the purchase of supplies.

We are praying and trusting that God in His sovereignty has this under control, and that He intended for us to be in the states at this time. Please pray that God gives us wisdom when we purchase our supplies, and that we will not allow our minds to imagine any more than we know, and that He continues to protect those who are in Haiti. Please pray that we trust Him completely.

We love each of you!

Thank you so much for everything,

Byron and Shelley

JOHN AND BETH EMAIL/BLOG

At about 5:00 PM as I was almost ready to send this e-letter, the house began to sway and I could hear the sound of breaking glass and of walls falling.
Haiti had just been hit by a major 7.0 earthquake. All the Heartline people are fine but the houses.especially the walls have sustained major damage. The wall at the boys' house is 75% gone as well as a major portion of the girls' house. In my house a good portion of the front wall is gone and a portion of the back wall.
We are running off of batteries power and have no running water due to the pipes breaking.
The people filled the streets running to somewhere. We do not really know the damage sustained throughout the rest of the city.
All the children at the homes and the nannies and the Tlucek kids and visitors are sleeping outside tonight in the Buxman's yard due to several after shocks.
There are people sitting in the streets as they are afraid to go in their homes due to aftershocks. Even s I typed that sentence we just had a strong aftershock.
I am able to send this bu using the internet at a friends house that lives nearby. Our service has been knocked out.
I have posted several pictures that I hurriedly took. You can see them at http://heartlineministries.org/Blog20.aspx

John

Walk Fearlessly

2010-01-07T14:38:00.000-08:00

I’ve learned a new word this week; Syncretism. It means “a fusion of cultures.” It’s become the religion of choice in North America. We cut what we like about Buddhism, Mormonism, our friends advice, Christianity etc. and fuse it all together into our own religion. If others disagree, thats OK too. They can fuse together their own religion. All fusions are tolerated; the syncretistic is only intolerant of those they consider intolerant. It’s those who believe in absolutes, in something or Someone above and beyond us that can’t be tolerated. If there is an Absolute, our fusion is flawed. In the end we don’t deny Christ, we dethrone Him.

Barna research reported that American adults, by a 3-to-1 margin said truth is always relative to the person and their situation. 83% of teenagers said that moral truth depends on the situation and only 6% said that moral truth is absolute. The fusion of different ideas won’t set you free.

Syncretism is a religion of fear. We’re afraid of Absolute truth because we are afraid of change, our change. In the abortion debate, “When does life begin?” is a question avoided. Instead we have shadow discussions about choice and freedom. Macro evolution debates are focused more around church and state rather than around the origins and complexity of life. Truth can be a scary thing.

Believers in Christ must walk fearlessly. If the Bible is true in everything it teaches (as Cottonwood’s doctrinal statement says), then bring on the debate! Lets explore any and all theories about the beginning of our universe. May truth win! Lets debate when life begins and look at when a fetus feels pain, when the heart begins to pump blood, etc and focus our discussion on truth rather than choice. Truth is absolute, it’s stubborn, and it changes the way you live. The Truth will set you free Jn 8:32. Walk Fearlessly.

Two Resolutions

2009-12-28T14:40:00.000-08:00

Making New Years resolutions? Here are some stats stolen from leadership journal…
• 45 % of Americans usually set New Years resolutions, but only about
• 8% of us are always successful in keeping them, and
• 24% of us have failed on every resolution every year. The rest of us are somewhere in-between.

My resolutions are to learn English, develop a taste for chocolate, and quit drinking. Put me in the 8%.

This year let’s do something different. Lets grow. Not just in height or the waistline or in church numbers. Lets make more, bigger, brighter glory. 2 Peter 3:18 says “You must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to him, both now and forever! Amen.”

Growing in grace and knowledge – this is a process that continues to bring Jesus glory and doesn’t stop until there is a flat line of the screen next to the bed. But… how do we do it?

Grace = giving joy. The definition of Grace commonly given as “unmerited favor” is too narrow to fit here. How do you grow in unmerited favor? Sin more? The word is better defined as “joy giving.” We can do that. Take five minutes to write down what would bring joy to others – your family, neighbors, co-workers, students. Do it.

Knowledge = taking the bib off. Knowledge isn’t about going to church, putting on a bib and being fed. It means to grow in practical knowledge, to make wise decisions, day to day, in accordance with God’s Word. The Pharisees knew the facts. The disciples followed the Master. That’s why Jesus had the 12 feed the 5000, and let Peter walk on water. He didn’t do ministry for them, He did it with them. We can do this. Take five more minutes to write down what you can do with Christ. Become a self-feeding Christian, and give your bib to the next person you introduce Him to.

Then, when others are watching the flat line next to our bed, Jesus will be glorified.

Prince of Peace

2009-12-21T14:16:00.000-08:00

Have you ever broken a bone? For me it was my ankles. I broke my left one twice and right one once. It’s not weak bones, its Cooley coordination. My problem was knowing if I should go to the doctor or not. Is it broken, or isn’t it? If you choose to go get x-rays, you want it to be busted so you don’t look like a wimp. The worst was when they told me it wasn’t busted, so I limped around for a month, went back, and then they found the fracture. Ugh. A broken bone is bad enough, walking around thinking it should be OK is worse.

The word peace is from “sar” which means “person in charge.” Sar became czar and Caesar. Peace, or shalom, means “to make one again,” and was used medically for broken bones being put at peace (made one again). Jesus is the person in charge who will make things one again, He will restore our broken bones. Our problem is realizing we’re broken.

No matter your view of global warming, we can all agree this planet is broken. The song says, “no more let sins and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground; He comes to make His blessings flow, far as the curse is found…” There is evidence of the curse in the tumbleweeds in Tucson, the cancers in Canada, and the devils in Dan. We have thorns in our soil, sickness in our bodies, and monsters in our soul. Admit it. Being broken is bad enough, denying it is worse.

The Prince of Peace is our God of restoration. He wants to restore our planet (Rom 8:22), our bodies (Ps 103:3), His kingdom (Ac 1:6), and our relationship with Him. (Isa 53, Ps 23,). God says, “I'll refresh tired bodies; I'll restore tired souls.” Jer 31:25 (MSG)

Dan

The Everlasting Father

2009-12-16T13:03:00.000-08:00

Fathers – they are seemingly never satisfied, and seldom around. So what good are they? Well…

• 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes.
• 90% of all homeless and run away children are from fatherless homes.
• 85 % of all children that exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes
• 80% of rapists motivated with displaced anger, 71% of high school dropouts and 75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes - as do 70% of juveniles in state-operated institutions.

These statistics mean that kids without dads are:

• 5 times more likely to commit suicide,
• 32 times more likely to run away,
• 20 times more likely to have behavioral disorders,
• 14 times more likely to commit rape, 9 times more like to drop out of school, 10 times more like to abuse drugs, 9 times more likely to end up in a state-operated institution, and
• 20 times more likely to end up in prison.
(Stats come from Rick Johnson’s book “The Power of a Man,” page 173, individual sources sited on that page).

Jesus is called “The Everlasting Father.” The stats show us that we need a father. We need a father who can accept us, who is satisfied - and simply there. Ps. 103 is a short psalm that illustrates what kind of father Jesus is. He is called:

• Compassionate
• Merciful
• Slow to get angry
• Filled with unfailing love
• He doesn’t deal harshly with us, as we deserve
• His love for those who fear him is as high as the heavens over the earth
• He forgives us and removes all our sins
• Tender, knowing how weak we are
• His love remains forever
• His salvation extends to the grandchildren of those who obey his commands.

That’s Jesus, our Everlasting Father. Merry Christmas.

Dan

Mighty God

2009-12-10T09:11:00.000-08:00

Mighty God

My sister use to date this guy who loved to drive. He would put on his special driving gloves and get a spark in his eye when he settled behind the wheel. Then he'd sit up super straight when he shifted and lean in over the steering wheel like he could see better if he was four inches closer to the road. He loved to drive his… Pinto. Weird.

Joy to the World, Peace on Earth – do Christmas songs describe your life, or do you find it filled with sickness, hardship, and disappointment? God promises The Abundant life – did He exaggerate? Is God a bit like a used car salesman, where He exaggerates the car’s good points while forgetting to mention the 200k miles, burning oil and four previous car wrecks? Does Christianity sometimes seem like you were promised a Ferrari but ended up with a Pinto? Jesus came over 2000 years ago, yet our world is full of crime, war, starvation. What gives? Is He really a Mighty God?

I was reading a book recently called “I Became a Christian and All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt.” You can check it out at www.lousytshirtbook.com. Anyhow the author got me thinking about Christianity and why it doesn’t seem to measure up. Here are two of his reasons why:

1. Christianity can turn into a religion. You believe this set of rules, behave a certain way, and life will turn out OK. That’s a religion. It’s a Pinto – it sucks. You may live better than the next guy, but there is still an empty hole in your gut. So, we decide it’s all about relationship.

2. Relationship, too, is a Pinto. I remember when I was dating JoLynn (now my wife), and she said those magic words, “I just want to be friends.” Bad day – a pinto, it sucks kind of day. It should have been expected, in light of my dating history, but it was bad nonetheless. She wanted a relationship – but you can have a relationship from a distance. In a relationship you can move away, grow distant, and/or keep it shallow. Christianity must be more than a relationship.

Christianity is about The Incarnation. The Mighty God put on sin and becoming human in Jesus – but it doesn’t end there. The incarnation is the beginning of the good news – Jesus came, lived the perfect life, died and rose again. The good news is now we can have that new life. The Mighty God wants to put on skin and become human in YOU. Phil. 2:13 says “God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.” NLT. God working IN you doesn’t make everything happy and easy. That’s our desire maybe, and one day when Christ our Mighty God returns there will be peace on earth and joy in the world. Meanwhile there isn’t justice – there is just us. God working in us, giving us the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.

Mary was ridiculed for having a baby out of wedlock, Joseph for marrying her despite her assumed sleeping around, Jesus for His teaching. But Mary, Joseph and Jesus drove Ferraris. How many world-wide holidays are there in celebration of Pharisees? There can be peace and joy in our hearts today. One day The Mighty God will return and bring peace and joy to our planet. Meanwhile Joseph can pick up Mary in his Ferrari and drive on gold streets. Not bad.

Dan

“We are here on earth to do good to others. What the others are here for, I don’t know” W.H. Auden

Wonderful Counselor

2009-12-03T12:26:00.001-08:00

Is counseling overrated? Is accountability something worse?

When was the last time you needed a counselor? Did you find one – maybe on the phone, over coffee, or going to see a professional? Did they do any good – i.e. did you change for the better? Counselors worth their salt have “the mind of Christ.” Some do, some don’t. None do all the time.

Accountability means “an obligation to account for our activities.” But I don't think the dictionary definition fits reality - at least not as we Christians use the word.. We have an anger, or gossip, or gambling, etc. problem. So, we meet on a regular basis with someone “less messed up” to hold us accountable. This “less messed up” person is a friend. They sympathize with our lack of ability to change. They are into sympathy not reality. The result? Both people end up with a problem. Maybe sin is contagious and righteousness isn’t.

We’re all messed up. We need a counselor who isn’t. We need a wise counselor who is never surprised by our sickness, who we can be honest with and who knows how to push us when we try to cover, a counselor who is lovingly, brutally honest. We need a Wonderful Counselor.

Isa 9:6 (NLT) “A child is born to us, a son is given to us… And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor.”

Dan

P.S. In the old days we didn’t have accountability partners. CS Lewis and Martin Luther had confession partners. They felt they needed to confess their sins to God in front of someone else (Js 5:16). James says this brings “healing,” and “accomplishes much.” For me having to pray and confess my sins in front of someone else would keep me in line way more than meeting them at Starbucks.

Favorite Quote of the week: Craig McWade – "Expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are a good person is like expecting the bull not to charge because you're a vegetarian."

God is good. All the time.

2009-11-25T11:18:00.000-08:00

A year ago at Cottonwood we were stuck. Our shopping center lease was taking over 40% of our budget. We had no room left to grow. The shopping center wanted us out in order to remodel and bring in higher paying tenets. We had been praying for God to “close doors,” so we would follow Him. He did. We had only two choices. Move or die.

We called our move from the shopping center in west Albuquerque to Stapleton Elementary School in Rio Rancho Cottonwood 2.0. We saw it as the only way to follow Him. It would allow us to expand ministry, save money on property expenses, and begin outreach here in New Mexico (rather than just in Mexico and Haiti). We had no idea that moving our worship location would be more than a change. It was a whole new beginning.

Not only has our location changed, so has our church. Some friends left. New ones have come. The result is that we are a different group of people with a clear focus of living lean in order to do more for Christ. The result of living lean has given us the opportunity to do some new things in 2009. Some we might have done had we been able to stay, but all of them - NO WAY! Here is a partial list…

Some 2.0 firsts for 2009 - it was our first…

1. Mexico Orphanage Christmas box emphasis with the Orphanage Director (Leo) here to explain the ministry to us. Leo is great fun. Lord willing we will be able to deliver the boxes ourselves at Christmas 2010.

2. Haiti missions trip emphasis with the Haiti English Camp Director (Shelli) here with us to explain that ministry (found at www.heartlineministry.org). Lord willing we will have a gang going down to Haiti for English Camp this summer.

3. Haiti fundraiser supper with some Rio Rancho Haitians with us. By God’s grace we had our first Haitian visitor to Cottonwood come to church the week of the fundraiser (other than the children folks in our church have adopted). Now we have a connection with the Rio Rancho Haitian community. Who would have thought?

4. Compassion International (www.compassion.com) emphasis with Compassion child (Peter) with us. Peter was raised in Uganda, educated through compassion, and came to the US for college. It’s amazing story you can find on our website at http://www.cottonwoodchurch.net/audio_video.htm, click on the “special speaker” block at the bottom of the page. He taught us our opening service phrase, “God is good… All the time!”

5. 24 pizza devouring business meeting. What fun, who would have thought we’d have such a crowd? It concluded with a B-ball tournament (still sore – old guys rule!), and Chess/dominoes tournament (bearded guy rules). Special communion was a tradition we must keep.

6. Portable cart crash (no one hurt)

7. Projector bulb crash (wallet hurt)

8. Breaker blown (pride hurt)

9. Jamez rappelling/camping trip. (body hurt)

10. Gather ‘round cafeteria portable baptisms – a new, really cool, Acts 2 tradition

11. Wedding proposal in the middle of a service – it’s in the middle of one of the early Heart Attitude sermons you can find at http://www.cottonwoodchurch.net/audio_video.htm,, but I can’t remember which one.

12. CareNet walk for life with Cottonwood band serenade. That was a cool day, raising over $11,000 for Rio Rancho CareNet www.carenetabq.org.

13. Christmas Angels – helping special needs and Stapleton families for Christmas. On Dec 13 we bring our gifts to the manger during the service. Later we get to deliver the gifts directly to the families.

14. Year of local/Stapleton outreaches (garage sales, jumping castle, Christmas Angels, Testing days, etc) http://www.rrps.net/NewElementa/stapleton/default.htm

15. Year to really live lean. Our property spending was under 15% of our income, down from over 40% the year before.

G is good… All the time!

Dan

SHIFT

2009-11-18T15:02:00.001-08:00

Shift
Did you ever have a Thanksgiving where you felt like you were forcing yourself to give thanks? It feels unnatural to give thanks when the year has been more about worrying and whining than thanking. 09 has been that kind of year.

We started the year in a recession, we end it with double-digit unemployment – will I keep my job? We’ve added another trillion dollars to our debt load – how will my kids ever repay it? The flu bug packs an H1N1 double punch – should I get that vaccine? Church has new faces coming with older faces leaving – should I look around too? Public schools become more violent and less tolerant of Christian views – should I pull my kids out?

We need to shift.

We use to have an ‘85 Suburban that was as ugly as it was large. One day it started whining. Then it sounded like I’d run over a trash can full of rocks. The transmission quit working in anything but 2nd gear. So, I drove home in 2nd gear – with the engine overheating and the whining continuing. It needed to shift, but it couldn’t. We can.

This year, if you’ve been anything like me, we’ve been focusing too much on ourselves. We’ve become nervous worrying and whining humans. It’s time to shift our focus off of ourselves and on to the God who is faithful. Lets shift our focus on to the Great I AM.

Psalms 100:1-5 says, 1 Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth! 2 Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. 3 Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. 5 For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation. (NLT)

I AM was around before there was an earth, He is here now, and He will be faithful to watch out after our children’s children. Even after this earth is destroyed, His love for you continues. We will praise him then. We can thank Him now. Lets stop whining. Lets shift into another gear.

Dan

Heart Attitude No. 7b Follow Leaders - Inconcievable!

2009-11-12T09:41:00.000-08:00

Titus 1:6 says “An elder must live a blameless life.” Have you ever tried? Inconceivable (with credits to Princess Bride)! If we only follow blameless leaders then church will be anarchy. Remember Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned…” Who besides Christ qualifies? If you are looking for a reason not to follow me just ask JoLynn. Or Megan, or Amanda, or… How are we to interpret such a radical command?

The Greek word for blameless, Cooley definition is “Teflon coated.” Accusations don’t tend to stick due to the person’s character. Think of past presidents. Some accusations slid of like butter on Teflon, some like gorilla glue. Some knew how to apologize, others how to spin words and make excuses. I’ve got an old rule for leaders, developed from the betrayal of Christ (and some time in Dr. Scott Peck’s wonderful book, People of the Lie). I call it the three Rs. Here it goes:

Rationalization. This is zero change after being confronted with our sin, and making up excuses why we are still OK. Remember the Pharisees? They took money from the temple (too cheap to use their own) and paid Judas to betray Jesus, they had people lie about Jesus, and then they watched Jesus be tortured to death as a result of their actions. After the event, when Judas threw the money at them and confronted them with their sin, what did they do? The rationalized, “If we don’t put the money back in the temple treasury, we’ll be off the hook for lynching an innocent man,” they thought. Weird - sick.

Remorse. This is a 90 degree change. It’s a Judas change. He felt awful about betraying Jesus – but it didn’t make him blameless. Mt. 27:3 says he felt “remorse.” But remorse doesn’t lead to reconciliation, only death. It isn’t going far enough. So Judas went out and hung himself. Forgiveness and reconciliation were available, but ignored.

Repentance. This is a change of 180 degrees. It’s a change like Peter experienced. Just 50 days after denying Christ he is willing to die for Christ. This is the mark of a leader. It’s being blameless.

Being blameless isn’t being perfect. It’s being repentant. It’s living differently after being confronted with our sin. It’s closing the loop, cleaning up after we mess up. Repentance puts a Teflon coating on our character.

Inconceivable – that word, I do not think it means what you think it means.

Dan

Heart Attitude No. 7 Follow Leaders

2009-11-05T13:41:00.000-08:00

I WILL FOLLOW MY LEADERS WITHIN SCRIPTURAL LIMITS AND MAKE IT A JOY FOR THEM

Do you remember the 55mph days? It was a law made to hate. Then Paul has to go and write,"Everyone must submit to governing authorities..." Rom 13:1-2. Why couldn't Paul have stopped after chapter 12? Romans 13, the unlucky chapter. They were tough days in which to drive a 240Z. But, I still wanted one...

Paul wrote this during a time when Christians weren't fined for driving too fast. They were taking their life into their hands by simply living out their faith. Those who have a hard time with Obama would have flipped over Nero - the antichrist born before his time.

We must obey God before man, but if the authorities over us aren't breaking Scriptural limits, we are told by God to obey them. There is no alternative. God wants us to obey our parents, our boss, our government, and our church leaders. He even wants Christian slaves to obey their masters. Remember that first Heart Attitude, "I will put the goals and interests of others above my own?" This is when the going gets bumpy. But God isn't messing around here...

When the Isralites didn't want to follow Moses, God burned some alive! Num 11:1-2. God gives us another warning in Heb. 13:17 nlt "Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your sould, and they are accountable to God. give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit." Let God hold your leaders accountable, that isn't our issue. Our issue, our questions is...

"What can I do to make it a joy for ______ (my parents, boss, church leaders) to lead me?

Dan

Heart Attitude 6b Using My Spiritual Gifts

2009-10-28T13:29:00.000-07:00

I WILL PARTICIPATE using my sp gifts

I would use my spiritual gifts if I knew what they were. It’s not just wondering what my gifts are – but what are spiritual gifts in general. In scripture they included signs and wonders. Are those gifts still around? If so, I want one. I wonder - do people really get healed anymore? Rise from the dead? Sell houses to help the poor? Speak in languages they never knew? Understand languages they have never heard? Heard any prophecy without error recently? Or – is everything we see today fake?

And, IF signs and wonders aren’t happening around us, are any of the other gifts like administration, teaching, helps and giving happening anymore – or are they all fake? Is our teaching any more Holy Spirit energized then the average instructor at UNM? Is our giving to charitable causes any more sacrificial then our neighbors? Could our service be done out of physical talents instead of supernaturally given gifts?
Which makes me wonder; do we confuse gifts and talents in order to say we have spiritual gifts today? In the Bible there seems to be a clear difference. Here are some differences from I Pet 4:10:

· Anyone can be talented, but only Believers in Christ have Spiritual gifts
· Talents you are born with, gifts begin when we are born again in Christ
· Energy for talents comes from within, gifted energy comes from God
· Talents are to win, gifts are to serve the church
· Talents bring glory to us, gifts bring glory to God

That helps, but I think there is a bigger difference here. I think that, if God wanted to show that gifts come from Him and not from us, that He would gift us in areas where He has NOT made us talented. I think the Bible gives us some examples of that:

· In Ac 4:13 the Pharisees are shocked at the teaching and boldness of a couple fishermen (Peter and John). Not their normal occupation.
· Moses the stutterer and fugitive became the spokesperson to lead Israel out of Egypt.
· Paul the Jewish rabbi became the apostle to the Gentiles.
· Nehemiah the wine taster became a builder and leader.
· Sampson the wimp tore down the city gates. OK, my assumption.

Some churches get too wrapped up in spiritual gifts, however, there are too many passages to simply ignore the topic (Rom 12:3-8, Eph 4:11-13, Heb 2:4, I Thess 5:19-22, I Cor 12, I Pet 4:10-1). Here then are my questions and thoughts.

1. Are all gifts still given today? God can do whatever He wants whenever He wants. There is a reason He is called the Holy Spirit, or Holy Wind. So, much of what I have seen may be fake, but that is NOT to say it all is fake. Plus, what have I seen in comparison to what is happening all over the world all the time? We may be missing it. Since Scripture has many passage about spiritual gifts, and they are never said to have stopped (no, not even in I Cor 13:8), there is no reason to assume they are over.
2. Why did He give me this gift? God gives us the gifts He wants to give in order to accomplish what He is doing. Sometimes languages, sometimes bringing the dead to life, sometimes selling a house in order to give more.
3. Do I have one gift for all time? It seems the OT builders were gifted by the Holy Spirit for that specific task. The same could be said of those inspired to write the bible. Tongues and miracles throughout scripture seem to be for a specific reason at a specific time. I suppose it depends on how long God needs you to do what you are doing
4. Can my talent my gift? God may gift us in our area of passion, but I believe usually NOT in our area of talent.
5. Can a spiritual gift test tell me what mine is? It seems to me that the body of Christ, (your local church) is best equipped to tell you if you are an ear or a foot. Some spiritual gifts tests use others to evaluate you – a cool idea. However, even then we aren’t instructed to look for our gifts, but to serve and our gifts will come to the forefront. But, for those type A among us who get their kicks out of taking assessments some can be found at http://www.oneishy.com/; http://www.allthetests.com/; and http://www.churchgrowth.org/.

These are my thoughts for now. Take me out for Starbucks and you may change my mind. Meanwhile lets get serving somewhere.

Dan

Heart Attitude 6 Participate in Ministry

2009-10-22T08:56:00.000-07:00

I WILL PARTICIPATE IN MINISTRY

I don’t like ministry – the word. It’s one of those Christian only words. What does it mean to “participate in ministry?” Do I have to preach? Change diapers in some church nursery? Wave my hands and sing? Become a missionary in Pakistan? Get plastic hair and ask for money on TV? Go with Rochelle to Haiti? Give 10%?

According to my online English dictionary, the word “ministry” means “the act of serving.” My Greek dictionary tells me the Biblical word translated minister, deacon, and serve are often the same root word. So, ministry is serving. Lets change this heart attitude.

I Will Serve Others. Much better. A simple Heart Attitude for a simple mind. You can serve here as well as in Haiti. You can serve with time as well as with money. You can serve with your actions before your sermons. You can serve in church, home, school, etc. But – if I live my life serving others, what’s left for me? Where is “freedom in Christ” if I’m serving others?

Galatians 5:13 says “You have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.” We serve one another, not because we have to, not because it’s some church’s heart attitude, but because we want to. We use our freedom to figure out how to serve, and we have the freedom to enjoy serving each other. We’re free to fill a need, or serve where we are gifted, to use our talents. All of this we do because we want to serve others. But this brings up other questions.

How do I know what God wants me to do? What’s His will for where I should serve? Am I talented, or do I have a spiritual gift for fixing Fords? What’s the difference between a talent and a gift? We’ll tackle those questions next week. For now, feel free to serve.

Heart Attitude 5 Support my church family

2009-10-13T13:55:00.000-07:00

I WILL SUPPORT MY CHURCH FAMILY
By praying, attending, inviting, and giving

Why should I support my church family? Church will go on just fine without my support. I know – it has in the past. Here’s the deal…

Prayer is a waste of time. Can’t God do whatever He wants anyway? Won’t He? What kind of a God am I praying to if He needs my advice? As for church…

Why attend - what good does it do me? The music is too mellow, the sermon I’ve heard before, and the youth get to the best bagels before I arrive. It’s frustrating. Invite others, well maybe if it was a Lobos game. And then there is…

…giving. Does God need my money? When did He go broke? Here’s what I do. I throw up my cash for the week. What God wants He takes. I get the rest.

Support comes from the Latin meaning both "sub" and "to carry" – giving the idea of carrying something by supporting it from below. Some definitions are: 1. To bear the weight of, especially from below. 2. To keep from falling, sinking, or slipping. 3. To provide for or maintain, a. To aid the cause, policy, or interests of:. b. To argue in favor of; advocate: 4. To endure; tolerate: 5. To act in a secondary or subordinate role

Supporting our local church is all of the above. Does God need our prayer or our money? Of course not. He could squish me whenever He wanted and take my money and my Jeep. Sad. Praying is for me – it brings my mind in tune with His. Giving is for me – it brings my heart in tune with His - “for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” God expects us to support our church because He wants us to grow up. He wants us to become like Him.

As for inviting and attending church, those two areas are not primarily for me. The one clear passage about attending church says Heb 10:25 (NLT) And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. Maybe attending church is more about encouraging others then getting the music and teaching I want. Maybe Christianity is more about becoming a self-feeding follower of Christ then being fed.

Heart Attitude No. 4 Clear Up Relationships

2009-10-06T12:10:00.000-07:00

I WILL CLEAR UP RELATIONSHIPS

Lucy called Charlie Brown a Blockhead. Calvin’s babysitter is a Cretan. My old favorite was, “You’re a gravy-suckin’ pig.” Amazing how creative we can be when we can’t cuss.

Jesus said, “If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone you are in danger of the fires of hell.” Mt. 5:22 I’m doomed.

But hey, at least I’ve got you with me. I’m sure glad for those words “are in danger of.” Beats “will be going to….”

The rest of the passage, vs 23-24 tell us to go to the person who holds something against us and try to make things right. In other words, when we mess up we need to clean up. Otherwise HE may get involved. I’d rather keep HIM out of it.

What I don’t want to do is be guilty of one of those false apologies. You know, “It was stronger drink than I realized… I’m sorry you got bent out of shape when I slept with your best friend… I’ll start with a wimpy apology and then do another one if this one isn’t enough… FORGIVE ME!!”

Gary Chapman and Jennifer Thomas have a book out called “Five Languages of Apology.” Here are the five languages as I remember them (sorry if I mess them up a bit). 1. Express Regret, 2. Accept Responsibility, 3. Make Restitution, 4. Repent (ie change and don’t do it again), 5. Request forgiveness (but don’t demand it).

Cretan Cooley

Heart Attitude 3, Humbly Give and Receive Scriptural Correction

2009-09-30T15:28:00.000-07:00

THE DAY DIRT ATE PEOPLE
I'm in the process of writing my next "Bizarre Bible Stories" book, and I'd like help with a story about the earth eating people. It goes along with our third heart attitude.

Our third heart attitude says "I will humbly give and receive scriptural correction." I'm not sure if it is harder to give it or to receive it. But to not receive it can kill you. Here's how the story starts. Remember - it's a kids book!

CHAPTER 1: THE DAY DIRT ATE PEOPLE

Scripture Passage: Numbers 16
So What? So be careful who you follow – it’s never too late to turn back!
For Parents: [Anything in brackets]

Introduction
This story is about jealousy. Do you know what jealousy is? Can you give me an example of someone being jealous? [Practical Word Studies defines it as “wanting and desiring to have what someone else has. It may be material things, recognition, honor, or position.” (PWSNT #2200)]

Before we find out about the time when the earth ate people, we have to learn about the bad guys in our story. These guys were behaving badly because they were jealous. Their names were Korah – he’s the leader - and Dathan, Abiram and On. How would you like the name On? At least it’s easy to spell! And somehow it sounds better then being named Off. Korah, Dathan, Abiram and On were jealous of Moses. Can you think of anything Moses had that these guys might have wanted? Was he super smart? No. Did he have lots of money or a nice car? Nope. Do you have any other ideas?

These guys were jealous of Moses because Moses was the leader of the country of Israel. He was like a king, but he wasn’t rich or called a king. He ruled over more than two million Israelites. That’s like… [For us it’s like four Winnipeg’s put together- maybe you can figure out how big it is compared to where you live.] So Moses was in charge of lots of people. He would talk to God (maybe about where to get food, or where they were going to travel), and God would tell him what to do. Moses would come back from talking to God and say, “Hey everybody, we need to go over here next.” And off they would go. He was in charge. And Korah and his three friends didn’t like it. Then didn’t like it one bit. They wanted his power and fame.

Korah and his buddies were also jealous of Aaron. Aaron was Moses’ older brother and the high priest. In those days, the high priest was kind of like a pastor in charge of all the other pastors. It was a very important position, and Korah and his friends were jealous of Aaron’s position. They wanted to be high priests. And they were jealous of Moses; they wanted to act like a king. They wanted to be the leaders of both the church and the nation. [This often seems to be the way Satan controls people; he wants both spiritual and physical leadership. From Caesar to Stalin to the Antichrist, Satan desires total control.] Of course Korah would have been the real king. The other three were following him.

Korah and his friends were jealous of Moses and Aaron, but they were also afraid of them. When bullies are afraid of those they want to challenge, what do they usually do?

Korah and his jealous friends were afraid of Moses and Aaron, so they worked at getting more people on their side. Jealous bullies work best when they’re in a gang. They don’t want a fair fight. So they searched around the two million people of Israel to find others to bully Moses and Aaron. In time, they found 250 people who had money and power who wanted Moses out of the way. [The NIV calls them “250 other prominent leaders, all members of the assembly.” (Numbers 16:2) If you’ve seen church control fights, this story will sound all too familiar.] Now Korah had over 250 angry, bitter, jealous people who were glad to blame Moses and Aaron for all their problems. This would get them in a lot of trouble - be careful who you follow!

All 250 some of them came together against Moses and against Aaron and said, “You’ve gone too far!” What they meant was, “You think you’re so hot! You have too much power! You shouldn’t be in charge! God is with all of us. So how come you’re ruling us? Who do you think you are anyway? We don’t want to follow you anymore!”

Then Moses told Korah and his friends they had, “gone too far.” Do you ever fight like that? “You think you’re so big!” “No I don’t, you think you’re so big!” “Do not!” “Do so!” Have you ever been in an argument like that when you knew you were right, but you couldn’t win? That’s where Moses was, and that’s how he must have felt. He couldn’t win because Korah was accusing him - of what Korah was doing! This is how people – maybe even us sometimes – try to cover their sins. If someone lies a lot, they may accuse you of lying. If they’re cheating by reading off your paper, they may accuse you of cheating. If you argue with them, you’ll never win. It’s your word against theirs. You can’t always prove you are right. When that happens, you have to give the argument to God, and believe He will make things right in His time. You can’t win, God can.

Have you ever had someone accuse you of doing something wrong [i.e. cheating, lying], when they were the ones doing it? How did you feel? What did you do?

Moses knew this was a dangerous time. What should he do? Rather than trying to defend himself, Moses said, “We’ll let God decide who will rule Israel.”

In the days when Moses and Aaron lived, those who loved God worshipped Him in a building called the Tabernacle. It was a gigantic tent, and was used kind of like a portable church. Sometimes when the priests would pray for the people, they would put fiery coals and/or incense into brass pans. The pans looked kind of like a large frying pan, but without the handle. [They were called censors.] The smoke coming up from the fire was a picture of their prayers going up to heaven. You could try something similar with your parents when you say your prayers tonight. Sometimes it’s hard to know that God really hears our prayers. You could have your mom or dad light a candle in your room. After you pray, blow out the candle. You’ll see the smoke going up like your prayers went up to God in heaven.

Moses told Korah, “Show up tomorrow morning at the Tabernacle with pans full of coals of fire. God will decide if you and your followers should be leading Israel – or if Aaron and I should continue. It’s you who have gone too far!”

Later Moses tried to talk to Dathan and Abiram, but they were so rude they wouldn’t even talk to Moses. All they wanted to do was lie about him. Do you remember the other jealous guy named On? He isn’t mentioned again in the story. We don’t know what happened to On, he just drops out of the story here – which, if you were On, is probably a good thing. Maybe he realized his jealousy had gone too far, so he quit following Korah. It’s never too late to turn back when you’re doing something wrong. Don’t keep going on and on and on!

The next day, Korah and his followers showed up at the Tabernacle. His 250-some jealous leaders had been saying bad things about Moses and Aaron to the people – and the people believed them! It looked like it was Moses and Aaron against everyone else: two against two million! Everyone was standing around the entrance to the Tabernacle to see what would happen. The leaders picked up their pots of fiery coals.

Then God showed up.

Have you ever looked up at the sun on a bright day? What happened? If you look too long it can damage your eyes. Sometime you may get the chance to see a solar eclipse. Do you know that that is? [The moon blocking out the sun – if you’ve seen one, describe it to your children.] To watch a solar eclipse you have to wear special sunglasses. Can you guess why? [If you look at the eclipse without them, or with regular sunglasses, you can be permanently blinded.]

Then God showed up – but not in all His glory. No one has ever seen God outside of Heaven and lived [Jn 1:18, I Jn 4:12]. They all saw God like we see the sun. They got a glimpse of His glory and it was all they could take. He let them see as much of His brightness as they could stand to see and still live. What do you think He looked like? One day we will get to see God, and He won’t be too bright for us then [Job 19:26, Mt 5:8].

Then God told Moses to tell the people to get away from Korah, Dathan and Abiram. "Quick!" he [Moses] told the people. "Get away from the tents of these wicked men, and don't touch anything that belongs to them. If you do, you will be destroyed for their sins." [Num 16:26] So everyone backed away from Korah, Dathan and Abiram. Then Moses said, “If these men die a natural death, then the Lord has not sent me. But if the Lord performs a miracle and the ground opens up and swallows them and all their belongings, and they go down alive into the grave, then you will know that these men have despised the Lord.’ He had hardly finished speaking the words when the ground suddenly split open beneath them. The earth opened up and swallowed the men… The earth closed over them, and they all vanished” [Num 16:29-35] As if that wasn’t enough, God sent fire down from heaven, probably something like lightening, and the fire killed the other 250 leaders who were jealous of Moses and Aaron. This was the day the earth ate people – complaining, jealous people who followed the wrong leader.

Do you think God was too hard on Korah and his friends? What would have happened if God had let Korah and his friends take over? [What would have happened to Moses, Aaron, and the two million people?]

God loves us, and He wants us to be careful who we follow. He knew if Korah and his buddies ruled Israel, Israel would be ruined. God put Moses and Aaron in charge because they were humble, not jealous. God wants us to follow people who lead in the right direction. When people are continually jealous and angry, we have to separate from them and find other friends – or we will be destroyed along with them. Of course the earth probably won’t open up and eat us, but we will feel pressured to follow those friends away from God. That pressure always leads to destruction. On had the right idea and he turned back before it was too late. If you turn back on sin and follow God - someday you will really see Him!

Remember – On Had God’s Word on It!

Matthew 5:8 God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God.

Deut. 8:19 I assure you of this: If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods, worshiping and bowing down to them, you will certainly be destroyed.

3 John 1:11 Dear friend, don't let this bad example influence you. Follow only what is good. Remember that those who do good prove that they are God's children, and those who do evil prove that they do not know God.

Micah 4:5 Even though the nations around us worship idols, we will follow the Lord our God forever and ever.

Job 19:26 After my body has decayed, yet in my body I will see God!

It's Just Us

2009-09-24T09:27:00.001-07:00

JUSTICE IS JUST US

Bob Pierce founder of World Vision prayed “Let my heart be broken by the things that break the heart of G.” Tough prayer.

You never know what to expect being a pastor. One day I was called out to help a single mom (not from Cottonwood) with a broken door. The place was… filthy. My levis were dirty, but her sofa was worse, and there was no way I wanted to drink out of one of her glasses. Here’s the deal - I felt used to help someone who didn’t even keep her own place clean. So how’s that fit with our Heart Attitude “I will put the goals and interests of others above my own?”

We should name them, “The Hard Attitudes.”

Are the poor just lazy? Proverbs 23:20, 20:13 says some are poor due to overdrinking, overeating and oversleeping. Must we help them? Is that enabling? How’s your diet coming?

Most of the world’s poor are there for other reasons. Some are poor due to lack of opportunity or education, war, natural disasters, HIV, location, greed/politics, wrong choices, addictions, even choosing poverty to serve God. I wonder if we must to serve all the poor, or can we pick and choose a bit? Could we serve all the poor even if we wanted to?

I remember being in Nogales Mexico visiting folks in a massive squatters village. Homes there are one room huts made from cardboard and tin and whatever else they can find, with dirt floors. Most held one small (twin) mattress with about the room of another twin mattress to walk around. Cooking and bathrooms duties were done outside. Water came from the river/sewer. Visiting one hut I was shocked to see a woman and her four kids from church the day before. Somehow I had always separated those in church from those in the squatter’s village. Odd.

We often say “getting saved” is about giving our lives to Christ. Jesus said He came to “bring good news to the poor.” Luke 4:18. He will one day return and bring justice. But, until then, it’s just us. How well am I following? How much of my life have I given?

Proverbs 19:17 says “If you help the poor, you are lending to the Lord— and he will repay you!” Cool. I wonder how.

Heart Attitude No. 2

2009-09-15T11:20:00.000-07:00

I will live an open and honest lifestyle.

Ever spend time with someone who was a bit too open and honest - too much information? How do you stop them? It's AWKWARD! Which makes me wonder, What’s the open and honest limit? How much is too much?

Ever lie? Yeah, you lie lots.

Sometimes we lie nice. Truth is, we are more concerned with being liked then being nice. We say, “I don’t care where we eat. You haven’t aged a bit. No, I didn’t see that cheese hanging from your chin all night...” We aren’t open, we aren’t honest. I'm not even sure we are being nice.

Sometimes we lie mean. Often it's by our silence. We’re so concerned with being liked that we allow our friends to sink into sin without warning. James says “If someone among you wanders away from the truth and is brought back, you can be sure that whoever brings the sinner back will save that person from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.” James 5:19-20 nlt.

Is it open and honest to stay silent when a friend is slipping into sin? How about if they aren’t a friend? What if the sin is gambling that's breaking the family finances? Drinking? Sleeping around and the spouse doesn't know it? Anger? Gossip? What’s the limit? What if they react badly? Is it worth it? Ezekiel has some scary words on the topic in Chapter 3 verses 16-21. God says “If you do not warn them, they will die in their sins. None of their righteous acts will be remembered, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths.” Wow. But… I want to be liked. How about you?

Dan

Heart Attitude No. 1

2009-09-11T10:17:00.000-07:00

Heart Attitude #1: I will put the goals and interests of others above my own.

Sure you will.

Ever have a default setting change on your computer? Somehow it gets stuck printing landscape instead of portrait, or prints out 53 copies before you realize it instead of one. Worst of all it defaults to the blue screen of death instead of windows. AAGGGHH!! You Mac users wouldn't understand.

Jesus said the greatest commandments are to love God and others. Right - how do we do that? How do we know if we have loved God and others? If we think we are doing well, would our co-workers agree? Our spouse? Our…

A Heart Attitude is an internal default setting we develop in order to put love into practice. It gives us a way to measure how we have done, are doing, and where we are going. We don’t always like them, but we at Cottonwood agree to work towards them.

The first Heart Attitude pretty much encompasses them all. It says, “I will put the goals and interests of others above my own.” Well, sometimes. And...

Even if you wanted to - could you? If I always looked after others, how would you live own life?

Truth is, we have to care about our own lives if we care about others. Suicide is one of the most selfish acts possible. We need to take care of ourselves if we care about those who depend on us.

When the Philippians were caught in a selfish mess, here is what Paul wrote about Heart Attitude #1…

Php 2:5 (NLT) You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. 6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. 9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 12 Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. 13 For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. 14 Do everything without complaining and arguing…,

In-your-face Paul made it clear. It's not about me.

Dan

Does God Care About Church Pt. 3

2009-09-03T10:31:00.000-07:00

Does God Care About Ch Pt. 3

God tells us to worship Him. Together. In weird ways. Why does he do that? For instance…

Why can’t we just worship Him alone?

Can the simple addition of more bodies worshipping together really change our soul and therefore our worship? Really? Why does God keep insisting (in the Psalms, Hebrews, Revelation) that we worship together? How about we sleep in on Sunday, read the Bible over breakfast, sing in the shower, and send my money to the needy and skip being with others. We would save a ton of money on carts and video projectors. The question is, why does God insist on being together? Are we that interconnected? Does He know something we don’t know?

While we are on the topic, do we have to raise our hands? Honestly, what difference can it make? And kneeling. Can’t God hear our prayers when we sit? And standing. Is that just to keep us awake while we sing?

Do we, in truth, believe a simple change of posture change our souls and therefore our worship? Are our bodies and souls that tightly connected? Does He know something we don’t know?
Does the most powerful Being in the known universe really need our worship? Isn’t that a bit over the top? I mean, He is already God, why does He need us to tell Him what He already knows?

Or is worshipping Him, not really for Him, in the end?

Does God Care About Church Pt. 2

2009-08-25T15:11:00.000-07:00

Does God Care... About Church? Pt.2
Odd couples - do you know any? You know, the young classy wife married to the loud red-neck with Jr. Hi. humor, or the heavy, smelly bride married to the tall, emaciated, perfume salesman. It just seems odd. I mean, sometimes it's not even about money.

And then there's The Bible Story. The richest, most powerful, all-knowing God in the universe caring about... red-neck us. If He truly loves us, can He really be that smart? Is that an oxymoron in a sentence? Does He have lousy taste?

We are an odd couple - us the lucky smelly bride with the Perfect Husband. Then He died so we would no longer stink Eph 5:25-27. Maybe He knows more about what you can become than you do.

Such a deal.

And it's not only about God and us, it's about us and each other.

Eph 5:25 (NLT) For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her 26 to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word. 27 He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault. 28 In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man who loves his wife actually shows love for himself. 29 No one hates his own body but feeds and cares for it, just as Christ cares for the church.

Dan

Thought of the week: "Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Cor. 5:17

Does God Care About Church Pt. 1

2009-08-25T14:30:00.000-07:00

Does God Care... About Church? Pt.1

Statistics tell us thousands of people are giving up on church every year. One has to wonder if God will join them.

Church life reminds me of my Jeep. My '95 Wrangler lives in a constant state of repair, limping on a few cylinders between rebuilds. Last weekend I repaired the wiring harness. Next on the list is tie rods. I have a few exhilarating days every year when it runs with the engine light off. Why love it?

It's the removable top and doors, the 4wd low range, the weird way it handles, and how your innards bounce out on washboard roads that make it loveable. The rattles, leaks, and windy ride are part of the love affair.

There is nothing quite like church. It may leave spots in your driveway, but the wind in your hair is unstoppable. :)

I love Cottonwood. Set up comes early some Sundays, and the preacher can be long-winded, but God isn't giving up on church. I'm not either.

Dan
Thought of the week: "I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go to the house of the Lord." Psalms 122:1