The Thoughts of a Young Preacher

The Power of Passionate Preaching

2007-03-29T09:20:00.000-07:00

I am not sure if it is true with all preachers but I love to hear a powerful sermon preached from God's word. I am moved during heartfelt times of worship and prayer but for me there is something very special about hearing the word of God preached. It might have something to do with me being the speaker most of the time but I really do love to hear the word of God preached. Sometimes it moves me into new directions and causes the walls that I tend to build up from time to time around my heart to come down. This past week I had the privilege of attending the Tulsa International Soul winning workshop. It is something that was much needed for this preacher. Just to sit and listen and feel like I have been trying to say something like that but I did not have the wisdom or skill to say it that well.

Now at this workshop there was a sermon preacher by two men that really moved my heart. One I know well, Randy Harris. Some call him the monk of the churches of Christ. Others call him Johnny Cash because he tends to wear black allot. I knew him first as my professor. In fact he was the professor for my preaching/ speaking classes and it is really great when the one that taught you can do it so well. The other man that preached this sermon is Jerry Taylor. I had never heard him before but I better understand know why he is becoming a well known preacher of God's Word.

I thought that the best way for me to explain the sermon and the impact that it has had on my heart was to share the sermon with you. So I am providing the link to the mp3 version of this sermon. It is large so it will take a few minutes to download but I promise you that it is well worth your time. Just so you know the first minute or so is a prayer so if you skip ahead to about 1:54 in the file you will get to the first part of the sermon. To download it more quickly simply right click the link below and chose save as or save file as. The sermon is started by Randy Harris and finished by Jerry Taylor. Please take the time to listen to the whole thing. I promise that it will be worth your time.

Right click here to download the sermon

P.S. I would love to hear your comments after you listen to the message.

Thoughts on Little League

2007-03-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

These days I am helping out a little league team by acting as an assistant coach to a 9 and 10 year old softball team. I was asked to help out by one of the members of our church family and I gladly accepted the offer.I have always been involved in some way in sports so this is a great way for me to be able to do that and give back to the community at the same time.

I must admit that I am having to make sure serious adjustments. I have never really coached girls in anything. Sometimes they get hit with the ball and they start crying and I feel horrible. As a boy our coaches always told us to toughen up, or walk it off and we will be ok. Most of the time it was true and not a serious injury at all. Unless they are hit by a ball that is coming off a bat their is not much chance of the girls getting seriously hurt. So when the girls come up to me crying I have this serious urge to say hey toughen up or walk it off. But I am learning with girls that just upsets them more. (I am reminded of that line in the movie A League of their Own, when Tom Hanks says, Hey there is no crying in baseball!")

Now if you have even been involved in baseball or softball you know that there is a position that none of the kids will volunteer to play. Kids hate the outfield and with good reason at the younger ages. Most balls that are hit never make it out in the outfield and so they rarely see allot of action during the game. In our practices we are completing with the girls trying to show each other the latest dance moves, or who can make the best mud pie.
The problem is that in batting practice because the balls are thrown very softly some of our better hitter will regularly hit the balls in the outfield. Yet if our outfielders are making mud pies they can endanger themselves to get hit by the ball and that could be very bad. We are trying to teach them the importance of being aware, 1 for their safety and 2 so that they can help out the team in a game.

A few days ago I was struck by the comparison of this with the Christian walk.
1. We must be aware. We must be aware of our spiritual life, our priorities, our goals. If not we can forgot about what really matters to God. If we get to sucked into the ways of the world Satan will have a field day with our lives.
Peter says it really well: 1 Peter 5:8 8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. NIV

2. We must be aware to help out the "team." We must be ready to assist other members of the body of Christ in their times of trouble. It is so easier to not pay attention and find yourself doing things that have nothing to do with God. The truth is that we need each other.

My hope is that together we will not only help each other as the body of Christ but that we will help bring others to Christ, who is the only one that can defeat the Lion when it comes.

Poor Little Rich Girl

2007-02-26T13:49:00.000-08:00

I have been thinking about blogging about the Anna Nicole Smith tragety for a while now. The other day one of my elders wrote an article that I thought that I would share with you. Before I do there is something that I want to add. My first thought in this case is I wonder if anyone ever shared Jesus with her. I wonder if anyone bothered to share the Gospel with her. Who shares the Gospel with the celebs. I also find it very sad to see the way that allot of the media is mocking her. I was not one of her fans and yet I am never happy to see someone throw their life away. Now for the article:

A Poor Little Rich Girl

What is it about this tragedy that compels our attention? Even so, most of us have probably had our fill to the sad end of Anna Nichole Smith’s life. This bizarre episode, along with it’s consequences for the relatives, lovers, and children, has been minutely publicized, analyzed, and scrutinized in infinite detail. Whatever our feelings about this matter, on thing from this mess stands out abuntaly clear. Happiness and contentment does not come from fame or fortune. A long time ago a man far greater, wiser, richer and more powerful then Anna ( King Soloman) tried to find happiness in it all. His conclusion, “ Vanity of Vanities, All is Vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 1:2) His summed up life as follows: “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

Alluring

2007-02-19T14:01:00.000-08:00

When I hear the word Allure my mind jump to something that is sexual. Not sure why but this the case. So the last thing that comes to my mind when I hear the word allure is God. I have stumbled upon this during my studies of the Old Testament as I have been preaching through Hosea. (Which by the way is one of my favorite of the minor prophets.) Take a look at this scripture found in the book of Hosea. (This is the NIV translation.)

Hosea 2:14-15
14 "Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. 15 There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.

This is God speaking about the nation of Israel. The Jews have an up and down relationship with God. They would follow Him closely and then fall away usually working other Gods. Yet here just after God talks about the punishment He has in store for them we see His true love for his people shine through. I love the thought that God loves me enough that He would allure me back to Him when I mess up. In fact this scripture really moved my heart. It moved me so much so that it brought me to tears during my sermon this past Sunday. I have often heard lessons and sermon taught about Satan and his ways of leading you astray, yet I never hear about God's methods of brining us back. Never forget how much you are worth to God. In fact that is what Jesus did. He gave His life to win us back to God. He created the bridge that we need to cross over for hopelessness to hope. From sin to purity.

We truly serve an awesome God that love us more then we will ever truly comprehend. I will do my best to love Him back. I hope that you will as well.

In His Awesome Love,
Michael

Why I like Tony Dungy

2007-02-15T08:52:00.000-08:00

If you know me then you know that I love NFL football. I can tell you about most teams and the better players on each team. I enjoy NFL football more then any other sport. This year I have been watching the Colts very closely. Not because I like Peyton Manning (not that I dislike him) but because I really enjoy Tony Dungy. The man just does not seem to talk all that much. Unlike many coaches in the NFL I don't seem him going crazy throughtout the game. Then I find out that He is a Christian. Now I am excited to watch Him and the Colts even more. After the AFL championship game I noticed that Tony said all he just wanted to give glory to God. That was it! I was so thrilled to see a man that very much wanted to give Glory to the Lord for what had happened that day. Then I see this picture that you see above. This really impressed me and I will tell you why. Christians usually start out very excited about God but sometime even a small measure of success and they forget who it is that brought them the success that they enjoy. Granted that this picture was taken shorltly after their win and yet I feel as if this speaks volumes about Tony Dungy. Here is a man that was won one of highest honors in American sports and instead of running around saying look what I did he takes the team to gather his team and say lets give thanks to God. Thank you Tony Dungy! Thank you for showing the world that your faith is something that goes with you wherever you go and no matter what happens.

Faithfulness

2007-02-11T23:29:00.000-08:00

"The question is not, 'Where is the church on Sunday?' but 'Where is the church on Monday?'"

This is a quote that I heard in college. I am not certain of the source yet there is great wisdom in this quote. It forced me to rethink how I viewed what the church really is supposed to be doing.

I had a discussion tonight with a dear brother about the true definition of faithfulness.

Faithfulness is a powerful word.

Dictionary.com defines Faithfulness as:

1. strict or thorough in the performance of duty:
2. true to one's word, promises, vows, etc.
3. steady in allegiance or affection; loyal; constant: faithful friends.
4. reliable, trusted, or believed.
5. adhering or true to fact, a standard, or an original; accurate.

At most of the churches that I have been a part of have defined faithfulness as how steady someone was in there attendance of worship services held at the church building. While I think that coming together as a church family is something that is vitally important I do not believe that it should complete our definition of what is faithful. I have come to know many people in my life that make it a point to be at their church at the appointed times throughout the week and yet seem to forget that they are a Christian unless they are in the church building. The truth is we are the church. The building that we gather at on Sunday and Wednesday nights is simply a place built to hold all of us at the same time. The real work of the church takes place outside of the building in which we meet.

I am reminded of the lyrics of a song written by Casting Crowns:

It's crowded in worship today
As she slips in
Trying to fade into the faces
The girls' teasing laughter is carrying farther than they know
Farther than they know

CHORUS
But if we are the Body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the Body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a way
There is a way

A traveler is far away from home
He sheds his coat
And quietly sinks into the back row
The weight of their judgmental glances tells him that his chances
Are better out on the road

CHORUS
But if we are the Body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the Body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a way

Jesus paid much too high a price
For us to pick and choose who should come
And we are the Body of Christ

Chorus
If we are the body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a way

Jesus is the way

If we really are the body of Christ then let Sunday be the time in which we come to share how the work of Christ is going in our everyday life. Let us come to worship services worn out from the way that we have allowed ourselves to be used build up the kingdom of God. Let us reach, teach, and serve because we are His body.

Faithfulness, it is so much more then simply attending church services. It is a life transformed by the power of God. It is a soul cleansed by the blood of Christ. It is a live that cannot be lived for anyone or anything other then Christ.

Reflecting...

2007-02-08T20:23:00.000-08:00

Tonight once again I am reflecting on the preaching of Patrick Mead. His passion for Christ and for reaching out to those who do not know Him and who the church has never bothered to get to know stirs up great passion in my heart. It forces me to admit that I forgotten how much was done for me on the cross. It also makes me realize that I have allowed fear to limit who I reached out to.

I want to share a post from last year that will help explain the picture above.

I remember the moment I first stepped off of the place in Dominica for the first time. I was 17 years old and excited to be in a place to share the faith that was still very new to me. I was excited but deep down inside I was scared as well. Scared that when it came time to share the word of God with someone that I would not have the answers. That when someone asked that difficult question that I would somehow fumble and cause them to struggle with faith in Jesus. This trip and several others taught me so much about myself as well as how we cannot afford to be comfortable as Christians. In Dominica we worked all day meeting people, setting up Bible studies, sometimes working along side people. We didn't stop for lunch, we slept on the floor of the church building. The Rastas cussed at us , threw bottles at us, even threatened us from time to time and yet none of that mattered to me. I was there to serve the Lord. It was on this beautiful island that I learned that I could minister to people. I could help bring the love of Jesus Christ to others. I thank God for those times and I learned that I could help change others lives.

As I read this post I understand that my biggest fear has not been on the outside of the church but on the inside. We create this environment of fear by having this attitude that says if we get one thing wrong in the church then we might some fall slip through the cracks and lose our salvation. As a minister I have realized that this fear not only hurts the church but truly kills the church. This fear causes us to not reach out to those on the outside looking it. It causes us to form these strange communities where no one can possibly fit in and then wonder why no one new ever comes. We must not be afraid. We must reach out! We must get over ourselves! (As I write this I realize that I am basically preaching Patrick's sermon but it is a message that must be shared!)

Let us wake up in the church and realize that we are too busy trying to figure out it we are following all the man-made rules that we forget our main mission to seek and sick the lost. To encourage the hopeless, to feed the hungry, to go to the deepest, darkest places on this Earth and through the power of Christ pull people out of the dark into the Light!

Resonate...

2007-02-06T20:58:00.000-08:00

Resonate: To evoke a feeling of shared emotion or belief.

This weekend my wife and I brought several teens from our church youth group to a youth rally in Jennings. We went on this journey in order to help strengthen and encourage our youth group and came away with much more then I expected.

The speaker at this youth rally was Dr. Patrick Mead. I was surprised that a man with a Ph.D. that is a preacher in Michigan would take the take to come to a fairly small youth rally in the middle of Louisiana.

What happened at this rally is hard to describe. The word that keeps coming to my mind is resonate. Patrick preached the gospel in such a way that he truly resonated with my heart. God used him to really touch my heart. His classes caused me to reflect on so much of what I am doing as a preacher.

You see I have to admit that I have been frustrated. I have been discouraged. I have allowed myself to lose some of the passion that I have for Christ. I did not grow up in church and so I became a Christian in my late teen years and that journey has led me to full time ministry. I am a preacher because I want to spend my life teaching people about the Good News of Jesus Christ. I want to share with them the joy of knowing the amazing love of Jesus. I want all people to know Christ. To understand the depth of His Love.

So how did Patrick Mead resonate with my heart? My wife said it best, "He preaches true freedom in Christ." That is it, he preaches the gospel with no fear. He boldly and gladly preaches in a way that makes each person understand that Jesus offers you freedom from your sin. Freedom that only Christ can provide. Freedom without the restrictions that are put in place by man.

Patrick preached tonight at a small church in DeRidder and several of us from DeQuincy made the trip to hear him. I had the chance to talk with him and I tried to explain to him how thankful I was for his messages. I am not sure I got the message across because I was emotional yet I wanted him to know that I was so moved by his messages.

He also told of the ministries that his church in Michigan takes part in. I told him that I would love to make the trip up there and spend some time with his church and with him. He told me that it would not take a year to learn all that he knew. Yet I have been so encouraged and touched by 3 or 4 hours of teaching time.

I praise God for men like Patrick. Who have been given a great gift and yet chose not to have a huge ego. Who has a deep intellect and yet chooses to teach the truth of God to teenagers across the country.

I praise God for this reminder of why my wife and I chose the path of full time ministry. To teach the truth of Jesus Christ to all that will listen. To spread his love to all those who are hurting and in need to strength and encouragement.

I thank the Lord for Patrick Mead who has evoked the deep rooted passion for reaching out to all people. Especially those who are not typically welcome in the church.

Let us be people who reach out and be Jesus to others by loving them as Jesus did.

I LOVE THE NFL!

2007-01-15T21:37:00.000-08:00

(It has been way too long since I have written on this and so my one new year's resolution is to write on this blog a minimum of once a week!Starting this week of course! :)

I have heard all of the arguments about them being overpaid spoiled thugs. I have heard all of the disgust for the fancy celebrations being done by men that get paid to play a game. Yet I think the best argument for being an NFL fan is that these guys love them or hate them are the best of the best. I have seen soo many guys that did amazing things in the college game look like fools once they finally got to the big leagues.

So if you know me you know that I love all things NFL. This year has not been a disappointment. While in my heart I will always root for the Houston Texas as I am a loyal hometown fan I been following the New Orleans Saints this year. What they have done this year is truly amazing all things considered. So I am excited to see what happens as they play for the rights go to the Super bowl. I know that most think that they have no chance and yet there seems to be something special about this team. I am a believer. I know how good the Bears can be and yet there is just something magic about these Saints.

P.S. This has to be the best NFL playoffs as a whole that I have seen in a long time.

It is a good time to be an NFL fan!

What do you mean it's not mine?

2006-12-11T21:57:00.000-08:00

I think that for allot of people that are not Christians that one of the things that can turn then off from Christianity is the topic of money. All you have to do is turn on your T.V. set and you will understand why. There are many ministers today (as well as in the past) that see the possibility to make allot of money as their ministry puts them into a unique position of power. The unfortunate thing is that these types of ministries are very much in the minority and yet because of what they do they will always get allot of attention. The focus of writing this article is not to talk about those people but to attempt to bring out the Biblical facts of what the purpose of giving is all about. For a committed Christian this is true Joy in giving yourself to God. This includes every area of your life. A Christian must understand that everything that we enjoy in this life is really God's. Giving is so much more then simply putting money in the collection plate. It is learning to step by step turn our lives over to the Lord.

WE ARE MANAGERS, NOT OWNERS.

What does this mean?

I find one of the most striking examples of this idea is found in
Matthew 25:14-30

The Parable of the Talents
14"Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. 15To one he gave five talents[a] of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. 17So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. 18But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money.

19"After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. 20The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.'

21"His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'

22"The man with the two talents also came. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.'

23"His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'

24"Then the man who had received the one talent came. 'Master,' he said, 'I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.'

26"His master replied, 'You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

28" 'Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. 29For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

We have been entrusted with life and life's resources and given the privilege of responsibly and joyfully managing them for Him.

What else does God's Word say about this?

Gen. 2:15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

Ps. 24:1 The earth is the LORD'S, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.

1 Chron. 29:14 But whom am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.

Luke 12:48 From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

1 Tim. 6:17-19 Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

How is this done?

As children of God and people that belong to Jesus Christ, and with the Holy Spirit's help, we can:

• Learn how to properly manage our life and life's resources for God's
purposes

• Live to live joyfully as we learn what proportionate living and giving in all
areas of life really means for our live.

• Receive and use God's gifts with thanksgiving.

Easier said then done!

One day it will not matter the size on our bank accounts on this Earth, only the treasures awaiting us in Heaven. The less time it takes us to understand this concept ,the more time we will spend being the kind of givers that the Lord desires us to be.

The little things...

2006-12-09T22:36:00.000-08:00

Have you ever had one of those moments? Those moments that can only be described as Holy. I had one of those moments this past Friday. One Thursday I got a phone call from a woman that called our church first requesting money. I am unable to give away money as I don’t have access to the church treasury and I will always keep it that way. I am thankful for the elders and my congregation and their wisdom in the way that they use the funds given to the church. When people call asking for help I either offer them use of what we have in our food pantry which we usually keep well stocked or I ask them to come to one of our worship services where they can meet with our elders to discuss their needs. On Thursday a woman called asking for money and I explained why I could not immediately help with her need. She wanted some money to go on a trip to see a dying relative and at least in some ways it was a strange request. I told her that I would call her back after I talked with my elders for her. I did and later that afternoon I called her back. I told her that we might be willing to help but that we would like to come to her house and visit her. She agreed but then she admitted that really she just needed some things and was not really going to be going on a trip. Surprised by her honesty I asked her what she really needed. She replied, “It has been really cold lately and I do have heat in my room. It would be so nice to get a few more blankets and perhaps some socks.” (It had been cold. Really cold for Louisiana. It had been 26 to 28 degrees for the past three nights and while that may not seem that cold most people in Louisiana do not have the best cold climate protection as most of the time it is just not that cold here.) I was stunned and I told her that we would be over to see her in a couple of hours.

We got there and the house was no bigger then most of our living rooms and four people lived there. They had one very small gas heater that would not do too much good for the whole house. I went inside and that is when I had this moment. As we are talking to this woman about how we can help her a young boy enters the room and after about five minutes. I would guess that he is probably 16 or 17. After a few more minutes as we are talking with the woman the boy begins to cry and I can’t help but ask what is wrong. Things are just so tough right now. I want to help everyone and get us what we need but I just can’t do it he says. The hardest thing is seeing her suffer he says. As this point I am fighting to hold back my tears. I let him talk a little more and then with a huge smile I am able to look him straight in the eyes and say Don’t worry, we are going to help you today. It felt soo good to be able to say that because I knew without a shadow of a doubt that at that very moment that my elder and I were doing the will of God. I don’t claim to always know that but this was a special moment, and yes a Holy moment for me. Not because I was there or because I want to pat myself on the back but because I had the awesome privilege to give something to someone in the name of Jesus. That is one of the huge blessings of being a minister. Being able to focus on doing God’s work on this Earth. I don’t mean to say that only ministers do God’s work. I know of many people that do God’s work in many ways. These people are the hands, the feet, the mouths of Jesus on this Earth. I just needed to have that moment where I could feel the holiness of doing exactly what God wanted me to be doing. I will never forget that day and that moment as long as I live.

Words are just so small to try to describe how much it really means to be in the position to help others in the name of Jesus Christ. So what does all of this mean for you? I guess I f anything I just want to encourage all of you to know that the little things do matter. That we serve a God that is interested in the little things that we do. He is interested in helping people that no one else wants to help. I love God for so many reasons but one of my favorite things is how he loves us all equally. I want more then anything else in my life to show that love to others. To help them see, even just for a moment, how much God really loves them.

I would love to hear about your “moments” with the Lord.

Reflections on Thanksgiving

2006-11-27T21:18:00.000-08:00

I love the holiday of Thanksgiving for many reasons and this year was no exception. This was however, not the typical Thanksgiving. My earliest memories of Thanksgiving go back to spending time at my grandparent’s house. Eating this huge meal that my grandmother had very skillfully crafted. Then enjoying watching football which always includes the UT and A&M game which is always fun because my family is split down the middle of who they want to win the game.

This Thanksgiving was different. This year my wife did not have off for very long and so we did something different. My mother and my sister who both work in retail had only a day or so off and my mother (who would normally cook a thanksgiving feast) had to work the night before until10:30 P.M. So we planned a little adventure. We booked a hotel room for all of us in a nice hotel on Galveston Island and then the next day way ate at this Thanksgiving feast at the San Luis resort in Galveston. Now when I say feast I mean a feast. They had mountains of every kind of food that you could imagine and for $20 you could eat all you wanted. The walls were lined with your traditional thanksgiving food but they had things like veal, mahi mahi, prime rib, shrimp, crab, and full ice cream bar and much more then I can possibly think of. It was a meal of epic proportions. In the middle of this meal something strange happened to me. In the past Thanksgiving had always really been about food, family, football, and just plain relaxation. Yet at this meal I have this moment of true thanksgiving. I think about all that God has given me. I thank him for all of it in my mind. My mom notices me thinking about asks if I am ok and then I just can’t help but share how truly thankful I am. Now some of you reading this are saying yeah this is kind of a preacherly thing to say and yet I promise you from the bottom of my heart I understand for perhaps the first time the tremendous blessings that I enjoy in my life. I say that because I very reflective the rest of the day. I think about the fact that all of the servers that are at this amazing meal and here on Thanksgiving Day so that I can stuff my face. This really does bother me. I realize that somewhere probably close to the very hotel where there are these mountains of food, that there are most likely people that do not have enough to eat. This bothers me so much that I blurt out to a server, “So what happens to all the left over?” She just looks at me like I am crazy. I am very serious though and so I ask another. They say that they actually throw all of the food away! What! You can’t be serious. Yeah , we have tried to give the food away in the past and some people had sued the catering company because they got food poisoning. I just shake my head.

I really do have so much to be thankful for and I am excited about sharing this new found thanks with others.

That night my wife and I decide that we might do something crazy. We see all of the ad’s for the crazy sales in all of the stores and I decide that I would like very much to have brand new computer system for only $200. So that night neither of us can sleep so we decide to be sneaky and go to one of the stores early, at 2 A.M. to be exact! So we drive up to circuit city and what do we see? About 200 to 300 people wrapped around the building waiting in line for these great deals. I am shocked! People are not only lined up at 2 A.M. but we learn that some have been waiting at the store since 10 P.M. for a store that will open at 5 A.M. ????!!!??!! I wanted a good deal on a computer but not that bad. We go home and go to bed. What a strange thanksgiving! Strange yet a time that I needed to fully realize all that I have.

Things that I am very thankful for:
1. A God that loves me enough to sacrifice His son in order to show me that love.
2. The people that took the time to share with me the face that God does in fact love all of us, even me!
3. A beautiful wife that is truly my best friend. I don’t deserve her!
4. A family that loves me.
5. A house over my head, food in my stomach, and all of the other basic needs in life.
6. Friends that always make an effort to let me know that they care. This is a gift that I take for granted far too often.
7. The freedom that I have to worship God , to speak my mind, to live where I want and how I want. I do truly thank God for this country.
8. Life in general. Each day is a gift that I look forward to unwrapping to see what might be in store for me. Not that my life is perfect, it is just that I truly love this gift of life!

Just something to make you smile!

2006-11-16T20:18:00.000-08:00

Just a random blog to make you smile!

These are some answer that some children gave our real tests at school.

The future of "I give" is "I take."

The parts of speech are lungs and air.

The inhabitants of Moscow are called Mosquitoes.

A census taker is man who goes from house to house increasing the population.

A virgin forest is a forest where the hand of man has never set foot.

Water is composed of two gins. Oxygin and hydrogin. Oxygin is pure gin. Hydrogin is gin and water.

(Define H2O and CO2.) H2O is hot water and CO2 is cold water.

The general direction of the Alps is straight up.

A city purifies its water supply by filtering the water then forcing it through an aviator.

The people who followed the Lord were called the 12 opossums.

Most of the houses in France are made of plaster of Paris.

The spinal column is a long bunch of bones. The head sits on the top and you sit on the bottom.

We do not raise silk worms in the United States, because we get our silk from rayon. He is a larger worm and gives more silk.

One of the main causes of dust is janitors.

A scout obeys all to whom obedience is due and respects all duly constipated authorities.

One by-product of raising cattle is calves.

To prevent head colds, use an agonizer to spray into the nose until it drips into the throat.

The four seasons are salt, pepper, mustard and vinegar.

The word trousers is an uncommon noun because it is singular at the top and plural at the bottom.

Oliver Cromwell had a large red nose, but under it were deeply religious feelings.

Syntax is all the money collected at the church from sinners.

The blood circulates through the body by flowing down one leg and up the other.

In spring, the salmon swim upstream to spoon.

Iron was discovered because someone smelt it.

In the middle of the 18th century, all the morons moved to Utah.

A person should take a bath once in the summer, not so often in the winter.

The Wonder of Myspace!

2006-11-11T22:03:00.000-08:00

Chances are that you have heard about myspace.com If you have not then you would be amazed and what a simple idea can turn into. In my mind myspace is a true glimpse into the life of a person. It includes pictures, slideshows, videos, music and so many other ways to learn about a person. I got off of myspace because of all of the junk on it. My great little sis taught me more about filtering your account so that you would get the "fake" spammers sending you stuff and I have come back to the crazy world of myspace. The thing that is amazing to me is simply the vast number of people on myspace. I can find most friends from college and even long lost friends from highschool. I have really enjoyed that experience. Want to check it out.

Click on this address to see my myspace account: CLICK HERE

What does it mean to be a community?

2006-11-08T20:27:00.000-08:00

Technology has dramatically changed the world in which we live. The use of the internet, cell phones, satellite, PDA’s, and many other devices has made this information age. We have information at our fingertips waiting for us twenty four hours, seven days a week. Some have referred to the time in which we live the communication age as it is easier then even to get in touch with someone. While I enjoy all of this technology and the convenience that it provides my life, I also see some negative aspects of technology. I am talking about the erosion of community.

Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

I do not think that this scripture is saying that if you mange to miss one Sunday at church that you are going to hell. I believe that this scripture is pointing out something much deeper. This scripture warns us to not forget how much we need each other. This scripture calls us to encourage each other as the Day is approaching. The Day of course is when Jesus Christ returns to claim His people. When we gather together to worship as a church family our first purpose must be to worship the Lord in spirit and truth but the very important secondary purpose involves encouraging one another. I talk a lot about having real relationships with one another but maybe I have forgotten to mention that bigger picture. We need to understand the importance of community. I am not talking about civic clubs or things of that nature; I am talking about this church family.

We are a spiritual community joined together by Jesus Christ. Jesus does not want us sitting in front of our computers, TV’s, and any other device we might own while neglecting the body of Christ. Jesus does not want us floating through this life sitting in front of our TV’s. Jesus wants us interacting, eating together, laughing together, and praying together. Loneliness is something that we should never experience in the church. If being a part of a loving community of faith is a taste of heaven, then certainly isolation is a bit of hell, and to that degree, here on Earth, we decide in which state we would like to live.

So turn off your computer and put down the TV remote and get to know the people that you worship with. Pick up your phone and call a brother or sister and do something together. Make a point to be more involved in the life of this church family. For that matter get to know the people that are not in the church. Get to know the people next door, your workplaces. We need to grown as we get to know all kinds of people. As we consider the church, together let us encourage one another until Jesus returns to take us home.

A question for the ages...

2006-10-21T20:38:00.000-07:00

Here is a question that every Christian asks at one time or another. I have been thinking about this is in detail as I am going to preach on the topic tomorrow. I have been away from the blog thing for sometime and for those of you that still have me linked, thanks!

So here is my question, How do YOU know God's will for your life?

I would love to hear some replies.

I will do another post on Monday talking about the sermon and at that time I will outline what I spoke about.

The Return of the Jedi!!!

2006-08-25T13:46:00.000-07:00

Ok so I am not a Jedi but I am finally back to the blogging world! I am amazed how many of you kept the faith over this extremely busy time. I am back and have a lot of amazing things to share with you. I will officially start writing again on Monday just to let everyone know. I hope that everyone is doing well and I look forward to doing the blog once again!

In Him,
Michael Potthoff (Jedi Master!)

Away to Camp

2006-06-17T18:34:00.000-07:00

Summer Camp, oh the memories of being away at camp! Some great and some not so good. Bottom line is that I will be away for a week teaching and preaching at a Bible camp in Texas. I am excited about this because I love working with teens. They are honest, they don't try to hide how they feel as much as adults do. They ask real questions and for many their lives are changed by a camp that helps that experience God, some for the very first time. I ask that if you read this that you would pray for me! Pray that God would work in amazing ways and that lives would be changed. That broken hearts would be healed and that many would for the very first time understand how much God truly loves them. As for those of you in blogland have a good week and have fun while I am off on this great adventure.

For those of your that are interested please read the experiment post as I am still looking for some volunteers to write some articles for topics already posted or to give me some new ideas for possible subjects.

Fathers Day

2006-06-15T14:20:00.000-07:00

Fathers Day is coming up this Sunday June 18th! (For those of you that forgot you can thank me later!) This week I have been doing some research for a fathers day sermon that I am hoping will be very different then the typical fathers day sermon. I am actually going to try to encourage fathers rather then ripping them to shreds like most father's day sermons that I have heard. I thought that I would share with you some of the stats from the research I did that I found most interesting.

A report by Warren Mueller revealed that where both parents attend church regularly, 72% of their children continue in the faith. Where only the father attends, that percentage drops to 55 percent, but where only the mother attends, just 15 percent of the children remain involved in the church.
This phenomenon reinforces what the Bible teaches about the natural order that God has established (Genesis 3:16 & 1 Corinthians 11:3). If the husband knows Christ as his Savior, the wife is more likely to follow this leadership than the other way around.

Now considering that I did not have either parent making me go to church I know that these stats are not always right but apparently most of the time they are. That means that most men are far more important to the spiritual development of their children then they realize. That leads me to a question that I wanted to ask the readers of this blog. Why do women seem to be more spiritual then men overall? As a preacher I know that it is not always true and yet I see it a lot. I would love to hear some different view on this one and also some reactions to the stats by Mueller.

An Experiment...

2006-06-14T13:00:00.000-07:00

I want to try something different on my blog. I haven't see it done yet on other blogs to the extent that I want to try it but I have seen other bloggers use guest writers which I think is kinda cool. I have more people reading this blog now so I thought it would be a good time to try something a little different. I want to have a series on Developing a Healthy church. I want to ask several different people both ministers in some cases and just members in other cases. Here are the topics that I want to discuss by asking a guest writer to write an article which will be posted on this blog and then opened up for discussion. Here are the topics that I have decided on so far. And I plan to keep this going as long as it seems to be working. (The topics with a * by it already has a writer assigned to it but if you are interested in any of these topics enough to write an article on it then please e-mail me.)

How can ministers support the church more effectively? (One article written by a church member)

How can the church better support women's ministry? (One article written Written by any female church member.)

*How can church members with no youth group children support a youth ministry? (1 article written by a youth minister.)

*How can parents help support a youth ministry? (1 article written Written by a youth minister?)

How can the church as a whole help support a children's ministry? (1 article written Written by a church member or Children's minister.)

*How can a church better support their preaching minister? (1 article written Written by a preaching minister.)

How can a church better support family ministry(1 article written by a family minister or a counselor and 1 article written by a church member.)

How can a church better minister to the community in which it exists? (One article written by any type of minister and one article written by a church member.)

That is all for now but I will think of some more soon, but please either give me some more ideas about what articles you would like to see written as well as if you would like to write an article on any given topic. Thanks!

World Cup

2006-06-13T08:36:00.000-07:00

I am curious to see if any of the readers of this blog are soccer fans??? I have to admit that I have had about zero interest in soccer for most of my life. It was the only little league type sport that I didn't play during my childhood. A few weeks ago I am watching some TV and I see this commercial for this guy named Ronaldo from Brazil. The guy is amazing and the crazy thing is that he was that good as a child. So it kinda peaked my interest a little bit. So yesterday I have the rare chance to come home for lunch and I watch a little of our USA team getting killed by the Czech's. They clearly know more about soccer then we do! :) So here is my question for the day. Why is soccer so big around the world and yet so little here in the US. I mean there is no comparison between the love of football, baseball, basketball with soccer in the US. Yet the rest of the world goes nuts for the game?? Are we missing something ??? Some say that it is the low scoring nature of the game but I am not sure I by that ??? I have watched several baseball games end with the score of 1 to 0 . So I am not sure? What are your thoughts?

The Church Family

2006-06-12T12:41:00.000-07:00

At the church where I am employed as a minister I can honestly say that we understand that idea of a church family. We know how to love and help each other. How to reach out to one another. We are small enough so that we notice when someone has been away for awhile. We notice we someone seems to be down and out. All of these things are good but there is one part of all of this that I have really struggled with. What do you do when family issues outside of the church cause problems in the church family itself. I guess in the long run maybe you can't separate the too when you have a tight nit church family. I am frustrated by this sometimes. Just when we really start gaining some momentum it seems that so bad choices cause a division in a family that in the long run has nothing to do with the church and yet really it is always part of the church. As I write this I know that I am not doing so in a very clear manner. So what about some advice for some of you that are more experienced? How do you deal with outside family issues when they becomes church family issues?

P.S. For the first time in my life I am watching the world cup and while I know nothing about soccer I am actually enjoying it, although the US just got beat 3-0.

Worth the Price of Admission...

2006-06-05T12:46:00.001-07:00

This past Friday night my wife and I attended the Houston Astros game at Minute Maid park. The Stros got trashed but I still had a good time. This year I decided to go in on a season ticket package with a group of friends. We each get 15 games of two tickets each and the cool thing is that you actually get to know the people around you. It makes things alot more enjoyable. But the highlight of the game for me the other night?? It didn't even happen on the field although Ken Griffey Jr. had a pretty awesome catch. Nope the highlight that night was the stadium itself. Mintue Maid park is unique in that it has a retractable roof. Now this might not sound so impressive but just imagine being inside a large stadium and all of the sudden you see the huge roof moving! I was in awe! The Astros try to play most games with the roof open and so far this season all of the game had the roof open the entire time. This past Friday though it started to storm and so for the first time I got to see the roof close! It is so impressive to see something that big close in 7 minutes! I do have to admit though my is always telling me that I am very easily amused and you know what she is right! :)

Roof Open!

Roof Closed!

The Roof: Architects from the HOK Sports Facilities Group recommended early on that a retractable roof would be appropriate for the Texas climate. Since building the first retractable-roof ballpark - the Skydome in 1989 - designers have crafted several kinds of retractable roofs. Some, for instance, open only over a Small central section. The roof at Minute Maid Park, however, retracts completely off the ballpark to reveal the largest open area of any retractable roofed baseball stadium in existence today. A total of 50,000 square feet of glass in the west wall of the retractable roof give fans a view of the Houston skyline, even when the roof is in the closed position.

Uni-systems provided the technical expertise to design the best roof structure for Minute Maid Park. Mechanized roof panels open and close in 12-20 minutes. The roof moves back and forth an estimated 160 times a year, a distance of 14.6 miles. To cover the ballpark, steel panels roll in sequence along tracks on the east and west sides of the stadium. When the roof is open, the southern and northern panels, each of which measures 537 by 120 feet and weighs 1,905 metric tons, rest at the north end below the large middle section with its dimension of 589 by 242 feet and a weight of 3,810 metric tons. Designers determined the roof's shape - lower side panels flanking the high center panel - by tracking a batted baseball's hyperbolic flight path.

Forged steel wheels measuring 35 inches in diameter transport the three roof panels. Each of the 140 wheels has its own braking mechanics and 60 are equipped with electric motors.

If the track is slightly out of alignment, all the weight of a roof panel could come to rest on one wheel, causing severe structural damage. To prevent this, a polyurethane suspension pad that acts as a spring is attached above each wheel to distribute the roof's weight. The low track/high track configuration and the roof's built-in glass wall not only offer valuable efficiency, but afford a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape unlike any other roofed ballpark.

Here are some facts about the Park

Minute Maid Park: Facts and Figures

JUST THE FACTS

Distances from plate:
Left field - 315 feet
Left-center - 362 feet
Center field - 435 feet
Deepest point - 436 feet
Right-center - 373 feet
Right field - 326 feet

Height of wall:
Left field - 19 feet
Left-center - 25 feet
Center field - 10 feet
Deepest point - 10 feet
Right-center - 10 feet
Right field - 7 feet

Seating:
TOTAL - 40,950
Diamond Club - 259
Field Boxes - 6,168
Crawford Boxes - 763
Bullpen Boxes - 2,326
Center Field Patio - 74
Club Level - 4,776
Mezzanine - 2,337
Suite Level - 918
Terrace Deck - 3,316
Upper Deck - 9,131
Outfield Deck - 1,677

Size:
Gross Square Footage - 28.97 acres

Total Square Footage - 1,263,240 square feet

Building Height - 93 feet

The year 2000 saw something the grand old game of baseball had not experienced since 1964 - a Major League team in Houston playing on natural grass outdoors. While clear skies and real grass were welcome additions for fans, Bayou City hardball faithful also enjoyed another first in Minute Maid Park's 242-foot high, retractable roof. Fans approved the new ballpark overwhelmingly, resulting in a record of more than 3,000,000 fans through the Minute Maid Park turnstiles in the 2000 season. The club has welcomed almost 6,000,000 visitors in the facilityÂs two seasons of play.

A jewel in the crown of the majestic downtown Houston skyline, Minute Maid Park has become a welcome home for the Houston Astros and has ushered in a new era of Major League sports in the city. The downtown ballpark continues the proud tradition of visionary innovation in stadium construction, beginning with the club's previous home - the Astrodome. Minute Maid Park's retractable roof technology brought open-air baseball to Houston for the first time in 35 years, and the natural grass surface and classic architecture provided Minute Maid Park the atmosphere of the great ballparks of baseball's Golden age.

Location: Minute Maid Park is located at 501 Crawford Street on the northeast end of downtown Houston. Situated near the George R. Brown Convention Center, the ballpark is located one block west of U.S. 59 and is bounded by Congress Avenue on the north, Texas Avenue on the South, Crawford Street on the west and Hamilton Street on the east.

Architect: HOK Sports Facilities Group. Construction Manager: Brown & Root Services, a business unit of Halliburton Company.

History: The idea for a public-private financing drive for a downtown Houston ballpark was conceived in 1996. Fourteen leading Houston companies joined together to form the Houston Sports Facility Partnership. The Partnership agreed to provide a $35 million interest-free loan with no repayment due until 10 years of ballpark operation. With the Partnership's initial commitment, the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority had the support it needed to present a ballpark proposal to the public in November 1996. Voters approved the $250 million project.

Union Station: According to HOK's design platform, the most literal tie between Houston's past and its new ballpark is a physical line to Union Station. The building is a symbol of the important role the railroad has played in the city's relatively short history, especially early in the 20th century. The director of Minute Maid Park's identity and graphics takes its cue from this period.

The railroad created Houston. Flourishing trade established a base of wealth and culture, an infrastructure of banks, a port and railheads. By 1910, railroads constituted the city's largest industry. In 1911, Union Station - already key to the rail industry's growth and influence - was redesigned and reopened.

Built at a cost of $500,000 at the corner of Texas Avenue and Crawford Street, Union Station was dedicated on March 2, 1911. It has been estimated that between 7,000-10,000 Houstonians passed through its front doors at the 45-foot-high lobby, which included three varieties of polished marble. By the mid-1940's, Union Station was handling 5,000 travelers daily on 36 passenger trains.

Team officials note that approximately 60 percent of fans enter Minute Maid Park via Union Station. Union Station's lobby features The Shed, the Official Astros Team Store and a cafÃ©. Walk-up or booked Minute Maid Park tours, offered year-round, also begin in the Union Station lobby.

The second and third floors comprise the Conference Center, open 365 days a year and providing a wide array of meeting rooms that can provide businesses and organizations with state-of-the-art facilities. Nestled in different areas of the ballpark are additional meeting rooms and areas that provide the perfect atmosphere for a meeting or luncheon.

First Games: The Houston Astros and New York Yankees played an exhibition game on March 30, 2000, with Houston winning 6-5. The Astros hosted the Philadelphia Phillies in the first official regular-season game on April 7, 2000, with Philadelphia winning 4-1.

Name: On June 5, 2002, the Houston Astros and The Minute Maid Company announced that they had expanded their relationship to create a long-term marketing and community partnership. The multi-year partnership agreement included naming rights for the downtown ballpark, rechristening the field "Minute Maid Park."

The partnership agreement also stipulated that the popular Minute Maid Squeeze Play attraction at the ballpark will continue for the length of the 28-year agreement, along with pouring rights for products of The Coca-Cola Company, ongoing advertising and marketing programs, and a commitment by Minute Maid to support youth baseball programs in the Houston area.

Houston's downtown ballpark was originally named Enron Field on April 7, 1999, and was renamed Astros Field on February 27, 2002, by agreement of the Houston Astros and Enron Corp.

The Minute Maid Company is an operating unit of The Coca-Cola Company and the flagship of its worldwide fruit beverage business. The Minute Maid Company has been headquartered in Houston since 1967.

Train: A replica of a 19th century locomotive (circa 1860) and linked coal tender became a fast fan favorite in the inaugural season. The train provides an architectural icon which combines sight, sound and motion for a dynamic entertainment and celebration feature. It also proves a link to the past for Houston and the Union Station site. The train was designed by Uni-systems and built by SMI & Hydraulics, which also provided the transporters for the retractable roof. Weighing close to 50,000 pounds, the train runs along some 800 feet along the low roof track on the west side of the ballpark.

The Word of God...

2006-06-01T10:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was given the task by my wife to get us a movie to watch. I was in the video store waiting in line and I just so happened to be wearing a t-shirt that had my churches name on it. An older man in front of me saw the shirt and began asking me my beliefs on the day Vinci Code. We talked for a good 30 minutes there in the video store. The man was intrigued by the fact that I didn't just dismiss the day Vinci Code as garbage and that I took the time to discuss it with him. He said that most ministers he had talked to had told him to ignore the movie and not worry about all of it. In my mind that is about the worst response we can have. In my mind the day Vinci code fury is something that we as Christians should take advantage of. It is a great excuse to talk about the Bible and Jesus Christ. That has to be a great thing or we have just blown a great opportunity. So if you are reading this bloc and scoffing at the idea that they Bible is the word of God then I challenge you to something. I ask you to get your hands on a bible (I recommend a NIV version as the language is modern and much easier to understand then many version) and read through the New Testament. Read about the teachings of Jesus , if you are having struggles in life then read the book of James. Want to try to understand the sacrifice of Christ read Philippians chapter 2. The Bible is amazing and I believe that it is the word of God for our lives. I believe that it is God's will that we follow the Bible and in doing so that we will glorify the Lord. I think as Christians we must be prepared to defend the Bible but in doing so we need to be open to discussion. When people disagree with Christian beliefs it is not necessarily a bad thing, if fact that may just be started a journey to find the Truth and want to see if we really do believe the things that we claim. The Bible has been around for thousands of years and has always stood up to the challenges and claims that men have made about it. The Bible is the Holy Word of God and that means that it is absolute truth. Truth always comes out on top and so when someone disagrees with truth we don't need to be so defensive, after all Truth is truth and someone saying it in not true doesn't change that.

A True Shepherd!

2006-05-31T08:43:00.000-07:00

Last week I was in Richardson, Texas as a part of a program through the Waterview church of Christ. I got a chance to preach there and I also spent a week doing some studies with Robert Oglesby which was really beneficial to me. On Wednesday night Robert invited me to come and observe their elders meeting there. There were 12 elders in all and I was very interested in seeing how this would all take place. So we entered the elders conference and as soon as you enter you see this huge round table and these nice leather chairs surrounding the table. I quickly made the observation that this looked a lot like a business conference room. The meeting began and they followed parliamentary procedure which was a little different to me. Then it happened, I made a snap judgment of the group. I decided that they were trying to run a business and not running the church like true shepherds. About half of the meeting was spent talking about various things that needed to be done with the church including a capital improvement campaign. Then I saw something I really liked. These men took time to pray over the entire prayer list of the very large church. It took quite some time as they are a very large church family. They then spent the rest of the time talking about spiritual matters and some ways in which they could help the church grow spiritually. I was very impressed. I was wrong these men are true shepherds in my view. I dawned on me that night how difficult a task these men have. I think that it is time that we stopped judging these men called elders. They do a noble work before the Lord and I value their wisdom in so many ways. I for one have great elders! They are men that love the people of the my congregation so deeply. I am very happy to serve under them and yet they give me the privilege of serving side by side with the. I praise God for the elders of any church. For any of you in ministry you no how much blood , sweat, and tears that give to the task of shepherding the church. I know of a few of my ministry buddies that are trying to minister in a church without elders and you better believe that they dream of the day when they can appoint new elders. I for one refuse to take them for granted and praise God for the eldership that I serve with. We seem to focus on the qualifications of the eldership alot and that is valid and yet many times we forget what kind of relationship that scripture calls us to have with our elders.

A. Appreciate the elders (1 Thess. 5:12)
B. Esteem them very highly in love (1 Thess. 5:13)
C. Be submissive to the elders in their leadership of the church (Heb. 13:17)
D. Live in peace with them (1 Thess. 5:13)
E. Obey the elders (Heb. 13:17)
F. Do not sharply rebuke an elder; appeal to him as a father (1 Tim. 5:1)
G. Do not receive an accusation against an elder except on the basis of two or three witnesses (1 Tim. 5:19)
H. Remember them and imitate them (Heb. 13:17)
I. Count them worthy of double honor (1 Tim. 5:17-18)
J. Call them when in need (James 5:14)
K. Correct them when they continue to sin (1 Tim. 5:20)
L. Elders are fellow Christians, therefore they are entitled to all of the mutual duties the Body of Christ fulfills to each other Christian.

Iron Sharpens Iron!

2006-05-23T15:36:00.000-07:00

Proverbs 27:17
17 As iron sharpens iron,so one man sharpens another.

Today I feel as though I have been sharpened! This is only day 2 of a 5 day trip to the Waterview church to work one on one with Robert Oglesby Sr. I have learned so much here. It is amazing how clear everything becomes when you mix a learning environment with some real solid experience. Experience has cleared the waters some so that I know what I need to ask in order to become a better minister. My goal is to be that guy that can never learn enough, that can never be good enough! I want to remain sharp and effective. I praise God for this experience. Today I preached a sermon one on one for Robert Oglesby and then he coached me on several aspects of the talk. He liked me sermon structure so he just helped me make the talk a little more flashy! Some might not like this type of interaction but I really do enjoy it. I love the impact of immediate feedback! I feel blessed to be here and learn some things from a man who has been preaching very effectively for 40 + years.

One other note, I plan to blog on this whole Da Vinci code fever very soon but I would love to know how the readers of this blog respond to the book and the movie. Do you live the book/ movie ? Does is change your view of the Christian religion? How should Christian Churches respond to this fiction book/movie ? Or should they respond at all?

Back on Track!

2006-05-22T20:19:00.000-07:00

Today was a great day for me. As I get back on track with my blog journey I find myself going through a cool experience. This week I am at the Waterview church of Christ going through a type of preacher mentoring program. Waterview is a great church! They have a great youth ministry, A Chinese ministry, a Spanish ministry, and that is just to name a few. They have more ministers then I can name on staff and an impressive membership that is highly involved! I am so excited to learn( every for just a week) about what makes this church tick. If you are a reader from ACU and you happened to be in ministry department then you had classes with Robert Oglesby Jr. He is a great man and I learned alot from him during my time at ACU. Now here is the cool thing, I am now learning from Robert Jr's dad , you guessed it Robert Sr. The cool thing is that he has been the preacher here for over 40 years and if you know anything at all about ministry you know how impressive it is. What is even more impressive is that the church started at 20 people and Robert Sr. over the years built it up to around 2,000. This week I am under this ministers wing. A kind of a mentoring type deal. The great thing is that this guy is humble and yet he really does know what he is talking about. Plus know that I have close 3 years of ministry experince under my belt I know alot more about what questions I need to ask. We are talking about group dynamics, sermon structure, conflict management, and many other things. Today I felt like a kid in a candy store as I have so many different questions and he really does have the answers. He doesn't claim to have the only way to do this thing called ministry and yet he is very effective at what he does. I am only in day one of this experience and I already feel like this trip was worth my time.

On another note I different experience tonight. After spending the day at the church Robert and I headed to one of the members homes where a group was meeting that was connected with the Chinese ministry. The people included a bunch of young Chinese people from the People republic of China Ministry of religion. I might be wrong but my guess is that they are some kind of government watch group or who knows maybe they are trying to create more religious freedom, but given China's history on the matter I doubt it. I had an amazing talk with one of the guys that was about 30. He asked me what I did and I told him that I was a minister. That really got him interested and he asked me question after question about my faith. He want to know more and so we traded e-mail. I am excited about this possibility. Who knows what could happen. I would to open this up to the readers. What should I tell this Chinese official about Christianity? I would like to hear some suggestions! Great to be back on the blog! Hope to see some of you faithful readers soon!

I am Back!

2006-05-21T21:57:00.000-07:00

After a Huge layoff I will be back in full force starting tomorrow! I will be blogging again from Monday through Friday with weekend off! I told you not to give up on me! Sometimes ministry means no time for much else but I have time again and I have alot to say!

See you tomorrow!

More good stuff...

2006-04-27T13:40:00.000-07:00

If you are in ministry I cannot recommend this book enough!

Here is some more meat from the book:

Tolerance is defined by Webster as sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one's own. The very idea of toleration implies enduring or putting up with something that you don't like or value. OUR CULTURE DIETS ON THE CANDY OF TOLERANCE, BUT WHAT IT REALLY CRAVES IS THE MEAT OF GRACE. Tolerance does not value people people but simply puts up with their behavior or beliefs. Tolerance alone cannot accommodate both justice and mercy- it can only look the other way. Tolerance might deal with differences, but it can't embrace us in full knowledge of sin and remove our guilt.

God is the most tolerant being in the universe. No one exhibits more tolerance for beliefs or practices conflicting with his own then God. Paul points this out in Romans 2, addressing those who judge others unworthy yet fail to see their own sin. "Do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you towards repentance? Yet God far exceeds the requirements of tolerance with grace. If we are to re-present God through the church, we must exhibit far more then tolerance. We too must show grace.

Wow, this is the response to the whole tolerance issue that I having been trying to come up with and yet never could! This book is really resonating with some of the frustrations that I have had in the past of trying to create an effective ministry to people that know knowing about God.

Blogging

2006-04-26T13:53:00.001-07:00

Ok so I am blogging today to prove I am still alive and well! I am very busy but let me tell you! This week I have been so busy studying the word with several new people at our church! I cannot wait to share with everyone some of the great stories that have come out of this week!

Don't give up on this blog! I will be back soon!

No Perfect People Allowed!

2006-04-21T08:45:00.000-07:00

I have been reading this book called, "No Perfect people allowed. Creating a come as you are culture in church." by John Burke

It is really an awesome book. This is cutting edge ministry stuff combining all of the postmodern/ emerging stuff with just practical common sense biblical teaching about what the church should be. He constantly compares the church of today with the Corinthian church. He says man they were messy, man they would not most likely fit into most of our churches today. I think he is for the most part right. I have not finished the book yet but I can't hardly put it down.

Here is my favorite quote so far:

No longer can we afford to stand on the cliffs high above the cultural mudslide, chastising people for not climbing out of the mess to come up to higher ground. No longer can we feel content throwing our heroic lifelines of propositions intended to save. No longer can we idly sit by, bemoaning change, wishing to turn back the clocks to nostalgic days gone by. No, it is time for Christian leaders, tethered to the lifeline of God's spirit and a community of faith, to gather up courage and plunge into the swirling mess of the cultural flow. Just as Paul said he did in Corinth, we too must try to bring them to Christ. We must emulate the God who dove right into the sewer of life himself in the body of Jesus. And we must reawaken his dream- God's dream of swimming this rescue mission on Earth through a new body- the Body of His church- Christ's Body re-presented.

I would love to hear your reactions to this quote. Especially if you are in ministry.

Easter Sunday!

2006-04-17T08:18:00.000-07:00

This is the image I used to help the audience focus on the message of my sermon. (both through powerpoint and the bulletin.)What a great picture and it really is worth 1,000 words!

Yesterday was Easter Sunday and we have a great worship service at our church. We had a very large crowd. I was very excited to see so many at our church for the very first time. My goal is to keep them coming. It might be tough but I know once they really begin to understand who God is that for some that will be all it takes. I was very happy to many of them signed our visitors cards and checked that they would like a visit. Hey visits are one of my favorite things! So I end this blog entry with a question? Why does Easter Sunday bring people to church that never come otherwise. I have pondered this question and while I can come up with several different answers none really answer what is at the heart of their attendance. This preacher is really happy about it, I mean it gives us such a great outreach opportunity right in our own church building!

P.s. I have received a few e-mails asking why I haven't been blogging everyday recently and the answer is that blogging is a luxury for me that I only have when time permits. My goal is still a daily blog but it will always be a goal and not a promise! Thanks to my dedicated readers! (Sounds strange to say that! :)

My New Family!

2006-04-07T09:52:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I know that I have taken a couple of days off from the blog but I have been distracted during my freetime recently. We have a new family! Really we just have an awesome young family staying with us for about a month until some things can get lined up with their home. I am learning a lot of kids and I must confess I love them! We are really enjoying getting to know this Christian family better!
Here are a few pictures of the family which are taken at the birth of their newest baby!

This has to be my favorite picture!

Grace for the Journey...

2006-04-03T09:08:00.000-07:00

I did not know His love before,
The way I know it now.
I could not see my need for Him,
My pride would not allow.
I had it all, without a care,
The "self-sufficient" lie.
My path was smooth, my sea was still,
Not a cloud was in my sky.

The ship that I had built myself
Was made of foolish pride.
It fell apart and left me bare,
With nowhere else to hide.
I had no strength or faith to face
The trials that lay ahead,
And so I simply spoke His name,
And bowed my weary head.

His loving arms enveloped me,
And then He helped me stand.
He said, "You still must face this storm,
But I will hold your hand."
So through the dark and lonely night,
He guided me through pain.
I could not see the light of day,
Or when I'd smile again.

Yet through the pain and endless tears,
My faith began to grow.
I could not see it at the time,
But my light began to glow.
I saw God's love in a brand new light,
His grace and mercy, too.
For only when all self was gone,
Could Jesus' love shine through.

It was not easy in the storm,
I sometimes wondered why.
At times I thought, "I can't go on."
I'd hurt, and doubt, and cry.
But Jesus never left my side,
He guided me each day.
Through pain and strife,
He helped me all the way.

And now I see as ne'er before,
How great His love can be.
How in my weakness He is strong,
How Jesus cares for me!
He worked it all out for my good,
Although the way was rough.
He only sent what I could bear,
And then He said, "Enough!"

He raised His hand and said, "Be still!"
He made the storm clouds cease.
He opened up the gates of joy,
And flooded me with peace.
I saw His face now clearer still,
I felt His presence strong,
I found anew His faithfulness,
He never did me wrong.

And now I know more storms will come,
But only for my good.
For pain and tears have helped me grow,
As nothing ever could.
I still have so much more to learn,
As Jesus works in me;
If in the storm I'll love Him more,
That's where I want to be!

This Thing called Life...

2006-03-31T10:27:00.000-08:00

Some days are good days. The kind of day when we just enjoy our lives, jobs, families. Some days are bad days. Days when things just don't seem to go right.

Some days are filled with inexpressible joy. These are the days when we fully realize the true gift of life.

Some days are tough to be alive. They are full of pain that we are not sure we can make it though. These are the days when you don't understand how we can make it to tomorrow.

In all of those days both good and bad God is there. He loves us beyond anything we can possible hope to dream up in our minds. Yet I know that some people will read these words with great bitterness. They say if God loves me so much then why did X happen? Or why did this person do these things? Or insert your question here. My response is a simple one and yet I really believe it. God reaches out to all people everyday. Some have more difficult lives then others but all people everyone have the choice to seek after God or to run away from Him. Let us chase after the Lord. Sometimes we will do so full of Joy and peace. Sometimes we will do so filled with anger and doubt. In both times God is faithful. In both times God reaches his hand out to us and ask us to trust. I think God for this life, both the good and the bad, yet I know that if I will seek after the Lord then I will understand the true gift that life is for all of us.

A Parents take on The Prodigal

2006-03-30T13:37:00.000-08:00

At this moment in time I am not a parent, yet one of my members constantly comes to me for prayer and advice about responding to choices that there "child" (now full grown) are making despite knowing the Word of God. We found this article and wanted to share it with you. We are not sure of the author but it is from the Gospelcom.net website.

Loving Your Prodigal Gods Way

When I became a parent I realized that a parents love for their child far exceeds the ability of that child to fully comprehend. And I have come to believe the same is true of our Fathers love. Perhaps when we get to heaven, we will understand the depth of Gods love, but until then, all we can do is speculate. I hear repeatedly about sons, daughters and spouses that have strayed from the path of healthy living and gone instead down the road to addiction. Being exposed to these situations causes me to ask the question, How can I love my prodigal, Gods way? The world is full of philosophies, but what does the inspired word of God say?

In the Bible, we learn that God is the Father to which every family on earth owes its name. Paul said it this way : For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. (Ephesians 3:14, 15 NIV). Being the Father gives God ultimate responsibility for each one of our lives. This, of course, includes the lives of our children and spouses. God the Father sees, far better than we, the need for discipline. Again, if we look to the wisdom of the Bible, we read, Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. (Hebrews12: 9-11 NIV).

I think that it is important to note that the purpose of all loving discipline is to benefit the person being disciplined with a harvest of righteousness and peace. Remembering this desired result, we will be able to endure the discomfort necessary in the process. We can compare it to the pain that we would allow our child to undergo in having their appendix removed. Granted the child will suffer, but the end result will be healing. We could never expect a young child to grasp this concept fully, but that would not prevent us from doing what is in their best interest, because we love them.

Likewise, God knows what will work best in our lives and allows us to feel the consequences of our actions as part of the sanctification process. Sometimes we inadvertently see God as a cosmic ogre looking over our shoulder waiting to thump us if we sin. This concept is not accurate. While God does promise to execute judgment over His creation for wrongdoing, sometimes consequences suffice. If I tell my young son or daughter not to touch a hot stove and they do, I dont need to punish them because they will experience pain as a result of their actions. Often times we shield the prodigal from the consequences of their sin and interfere with the discipline of God. The problem is that we will continue to rescue them until their consequences are so big that there is no way they can deal successfully with them alone. The time will surely come when we will be unable to rescue them. At that point we must ask ourselves if we have really helped them at all. Jesus was a Master at the use of illustrations to help us to grasp spiritual concepts. There is a story in the book of Luke about a father that had two sons. It goes like this:

The Parable of the Lost Son

Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
"When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.' So he got up and went to his father.
"But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'
"But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate. (Luke 15:11-24)

What can we learn from this parable about loving the prodigal - Gods way?

1. We have to let go. Sounds easy, but its not. In fact, it can be excruciating. The father in this story didnt have to give his son his inheritance before he died, but he did. Why? Because we get to the place with the prodigal where we realize that nothing we say or do is helping. At this point we must trust in the fact that there is a God in heaven who loves your prodigal and He has a plan that right now doesnÂt include us. Until you take this step, the road to recovery cannot and will not begin.
2. We can't interfere with the discipline of God. We may get a call for help. We must be careful that we are not prolonging the downward spiral that eventually is going to allow the prodigal to come to his senses. As cruel as it may seem, pain is a necessary part of the change process. It will be amazing to see how much a prodigal must undergo before accepting the need for change. We cannot shortcut this part of the process.
3. We must never give up. Remember that it is God that we are trusting at this point, not ourselves. We have the option to pray for our prodigal, and doing so will help us to cast our burden on the Lord because He cares for us. The father in the story saw the son coming a long way off because he was looking for him. Expect God to accomplish what you could not.
4. We need to be ready to rejoice when it is clear that they are ready to make a life change. Notice the contrast between the intended speech in verses 18 and 19 (I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.) and the actual words spoken in verse 21 ("The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.) you will see that the father was so happy that the son never actually got a chance to complete his speech. It was because the father couldn't wait to celebrate. This is evidenced by Jesus words in Luke 15:7, I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. While they are rejoicing in heaven don't be afraid to join in here on earth.
5. We need to realize that NOW is the time to offer the help we had to hold back earlier. For the returning prodigal there are difficult times ahead. While there are the consequences of sin that he/she must face up to we need to be ready to encourage and assist them as counsel directs. We must do this with caution but we must do this with love. We can talk about the love of Christ Âuntil we are blue in the face,Â but now is the time to demonstrate it.

And finally, like every parent, the last thing we consider is ourselves. Have we strayed from our Father in heaven and gone far away? Is He perhaps looking for us from a distance? Maybe we have never come to our senses and acknowledged our need for Him. Jesus said, Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.Â (Matthew 11:29). Maybe you have tried that without much success. A well-educated man named Nicodemus tried to come to Jesus on the basis of his knowledge alone. Jesus informed him that head knowledge wasn't sufficient to get him into heaven when He replied, I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. (John 3:3).

If you would like to take this step, in order to know God more intimately, talk to the person who gave you this, or call us here at the ministry. Remember the verse that we read earlier that said I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. (Luke 15:7) Why not take this step of faith today and give your heavenly Father cause for celebration?

Prayer...

2006-03-29T12:32:00.000-08:00

Luke 5:16 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

This past week was one of constant activity. The Tulsa workshop was awesome but it also meant going non-stop. I find myself needing to be still before the Lord. To simply pray and sort though every thing right now. God is good and to be with him in prayer is an amazing privilage. Please don't take it for granted.

I am reflecting on these thoughts:

To read about the life of Jesus is to read of a life filled with activity. His public ministry began with His baptism. Then 40 days of solitude in the wilderness immediately followed. After that, His was a full schedule.

Two interesting observations can be made about the pace of Jesus' ministry. One is that He never hurried anywhere. Jesus was never in a rush. His purpose was so clear that other things were not allowed to put him in a rush.

The other is that He consistently found the time and the quiet to pray. A healthy prayer life needs those two things: time and quiet.

How can you have a healthy prayer life without taking time to pray? You can't. Some praying we do "on the run." It may be that we pray while driving or while working around the house. Still, we need quality prayer time, undistracted by any other activities.

The other need is for quiet. Finding a time and place where you are undistracted is vital to a healthy prayer life. For some, those times and places are easy to find. For others, it is a challenge.

Jesus set the example. He took time and found a quiet place to pray. Will you?

Do you take time to pray? Why not right now? Jesus did. We should also.

Reflections on the Tulsa Soul Winning Workshop

2006-03-28T08:35:00.000-08:00

As you can see in my last post the annual Tulsa Soul winning workshop was an interesting event to me even though I had never attended the workshop before. Some had told me that the workshop had gone off into the "deep end" and left the biblical truths behind. Yet some told me about great lessons that had learned about from the workshop and greatly enjoy attedning the workshop each year. The church I preach (The DeQuincy Church of Christ) for has a great set of elders.Each one of my elders had been before and wanted me to be able to go. Here are my reactions to Tulsa this year.

Overall: This year was by far the most controversial of any that they have had the workshop. (Because this is my first time to ever attend Tulsa I can only reply on the comments of others as far as this statement being true.) The controversy lies in the subject of unity between the Christian churches and the Church of Christ. In general (because of the autonomy of the churches associated with each group it is impossible to say this for all churches under either umbrella.) the main difference between the independent Christian Church and the Christ of Christ is instruments. Having said that I will now give a reaction to each evening service at the workshop.

On Thursday night: The Keynote Speakers were Jeff Walling for the Church of Christ and Chuck Booher from the Independent Christian Churches. Jeff took us on a journey of his experience with Christian churches. Walling is a gifted speaker and he is very good at taking everyone along for the "ride" of his experiences. He talked about how as he was working in youth ministry that he became a popular youth speaker and was asked to do more and more talk at Church of Christ events. He was asked to do a certain youth rally for a Church of Christ in the North. He agreed and did not have any idea that the rally was a group of instrumental churches of Christ. As the day got closer he got some calls from some people asking are you sure you want to speak at this? It concerned him and he wanted to back out of the event after finding out that there would be instruments involved. Because it was so close to the event date he asked that they do some songs before he spoke acapella because it would make things more comfortable for him. They agreed and he did the talk. (More about this talk later.)

Chuck Booher shared a heart wrenching story about a Christian family loosing their son and how they ministered to the drunk driver that had killed him.

On Friday night: I learned this night is viewed as the Main event in Tulsa each year. In fact Ruth and I had to be in the auditorium an hour and a half early just to get decent seats. Tonight Max Lucado (who I have never heard speak since becoming a popular author) and Bob Russell a preacher at the largest Christian Church in North America (19,000 members) spoke on the importance of Unity for Christians.

Max Lucado started with a good message about how we need to work together for the unity of the Gospel in order to prevent people from going to Hell. We must reach out together to save the lost. Then he lost me. He went through and named most of the largest churches in his city of San Antonio and talked about how they all played a part in saving the soul of this hypothetical woman. The problem in my mind is that not all of these churches preach the whole gospel. Max also failed to preach the biblical way to salvation. I was disappointed by this because it was obvious to me that he was purposely vague on this point. I can't say for sure but I don't believe that he thinks baptism is an essential part of salvation any longer. If he does think that he sure didn't preach it when he had a chance to.

Now Bob Russell speaks. He starts out and CLEARLY states the way to salvation is exactly what I beleive that scripture teaches. He says you must believe , confess, repent, and be baptized. After the sermon by Max I am excited by Russell's sermon. He then goes on to list serveral things we can do to reach out more effectively to our communities. I like Bob Russell and while I might not like instruments I can say that the man preached the gospel clearly and unashamed.

On Saturday night: This is the final night of Tulsa. Many have already left but I wanted to be a part of the entire workshop so I am still there.

Alan Dunbar preaches first from the Christian church. He preaches a great sermon. He preaches about he we see people that are lost everyday and do nothing to save them. We must use our lives to save people that do not know Jesus Christ.

Marvin Phillips has had a lot of things on his heart. He obviously has the brothers and sisters of the most conservative churches of Christ that chose not to attend on his heart. The man is one of the best preachers that I have heard speak! I was very impressed with his message.

Because Marvin did an amazing job summing up Tulsa I am going to include most of his comments in this post:
Marvin asked several rhetorical questions to the audience and then answered every single one of them.

1. WAS THE GOSPEL PREACHED? Scripture warns us not to "preach another gospel" (Gal.1:8,9); it also reminds us the gospel is "the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ" (1 Cor.15:1-3). Those beauiful truths were emphasized and reaffirmed over and over.

2. WAS BIBLE AUTHORITY HONORED? The Bible urges us to "Preach the word" (2 Tim.4:2); and reminds us we will face God's "open books" in the final judgment (Rev.20:12,13). This was heard repeatedly at the workshop. Some will sincerely say, "yes, but we say instrumental music is 'authorized'; they say it is 'unauthorized'! Which is right?" The key is in the word "authorized"! How do we determine what is/is not authorized? Churches of Christ have traditionally used "command, example and inference" to tell. If a thing has neither of these, it must be unauthorized, and unscriptural". Christian churches, equally concerned with Bible authority have used, "Is it commanded? Is it mentioned? Is it forbidden?" But it is VERY important to note that both "processes" are "human"! Therefore a matter of opinion. We will stand by what the Bible specifically teaches; we will be tolerant in what is "humanly determined". Bible authority was emphasized again and again.

3. WAS THE BIBLE ANSWER GIVEN TO "WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?" It is true many don't teach "the Bible plan of salvation". Acts 2:38 is powerfully used by "both streams"; the conversions in the Book of Acts are strictly adhered to by ICC and CofC alike.

4. WAS THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH HELPED? Well, "It's all about souls!" (my topic for Thursday afternoon). The Great Commission ( Mt.28:19,20; Mk.16:15,16, Lk.24:47 and John 20:21) is the marching orders of the Church. Jesus prayed for unity "so that the world may believe" (John 17:20,21).

5. WILL THE CHURCH BE CHANGED? Aye, here's the rub. Many are afraid that the church they've always known and loved will disappear. So there are two answers!
(1) NO! We are together on vowing that the church will continue to be what Jesus always wanted and the Bible always taught!
(2) YES! We believe the church WILL change! We will change in that we will STOP fussing, arguing and dividing! "If you keep on biting and devouring one another, take heed that you are not destroyed by one another!" (Gal.5:15)

6. WAS JESUS PLEASED? That's the most important question, AND the easiest to answer.
Of course Jesus was pleased! His closing prayer was for unity of the Believers (John 17:20,21). Scripture further implores us to "make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Eph.4:3). We made fervent efforts to get "the people of God" to unite on the essentials of scripture and march hand in hand for the saving of our lost world!

Overall this was a great event and I was very pleased that I got to go. I didn't agree with everything that was preached at this event but I got alot out of 95% of the Tulsa soul winning workshop. I do think that Unity is very important and I know that my generation of the church will have to do a lot of figure out what unity needs to look like and what things we cannot compromise on. I do believe that I will go back next year to Tulsa. I want to look at things for myself. To challenge them or accept them with my own eyes and ears. I feel blessed to have been a part of this event and I look forward to doing so in the future.

Soul Winning Workshop

2006-03-21T08:49:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow morning Ruth and I leave for Tulsa, Oklahoma to attend the International Soul winning workshop. We have never been to this event before. We have heard so much about it and so many different people are going this year. I have learned from some Christians that I know and love that come from a more conservative viewpoint that this event is one that I should not go to. That by my attendance that someone I am doing something wrong. Others have talked about the amazing encouragement that they get from worshiping with 30,000 other Christians. This year at the Tulsa worship is particularly interesting to me. The topic will be Unity. Specifically unity between the Church of Christ and the independent Christians churches. A meeting of this sort is very difficult for two reasons. Neither group is an actual denomination so they have no official people to represent them. It would be impossible to accurately represent both groups. Yet I view this meeting at this point as a positive one. Unity is something that the gospel talks about over and over again. God's wants us unified. As Christians that has been one of our biggest problems. We have been divided on some many issues. So for the next 3 days I will not be blogging but you can expect a super blog next Monday complete with reactions, observations, and lots of pictures. We have lots of friends that we are hoping to run into at the workshop. Pray for our safe travel! I look forward to this event pray that God will be glorified in it!

Out of your Comfort Zone!

2006-03-20T08:09:00.000-08:00

I remember the moment I first stepped off of the place in Dominica for the first time. I was 17 years old and excited to be in a place to share the faith that was still very new to me. I was excited but deep down inside I was scared as well. Scared that when it came time to share the word of God with someone that I would not have the answers. That when someone asked that difficult question that I would somehow fumble and cause them to struggle with faith in Jesus. This trip and several others taught me so much about myself as well as how we cannot afford to be comfortable as Christians. In Dominica we worked all day meeting people, setting up Bible studies, sometimes working along side people. We didn't stop for lunch, we slept on the floor of the church building. The Rastas cussed at us , threw bottles at us, even threatened us from time to time and yet none of that mattered to me. I was there to serve the Lord. It was on this beautiful island that I learned that I could minister to people. I could help bring the love of Jesus Christ to others. I thank God for these trips. So now I share a part of them with you. The pictures start from the high school trips and go to the ones that I went on during college. Check them out and know that this was the place where my dream to be a minister came to life!

Click here for the picture gallery!

Today I am Irish!

2006-03-17T16:19:00.000-08:00

I think it is funny how today everyone has some Irish lineage somewhere in there family tree! Having said that I always enjoyed St. Pat's Day. It is fun and Irish people for the most part are pretty cool! Be careful out there tonight. So tend to have too much fun!

P.s. Yes I know the blog was having trouble today and I am not sure what that was about. I normally don't do anything on the blog during the weekend but I am going to do a special Sat. Edition tomorrow.

Cry Out to Jesus...

2006-03-16T13:12:00.000-08:00

To everyone who's lost someone they love
long before it was their time.
You feel like the days you had were not enough
when you said goodbye.

And to all of the people with burdens and pains
keepin' you back from your life.
You believe that there's nothing
and there is no one who can make it right.

There is hope for the helpless, rest for the weary,
and love for the broken hearts.
There is grace and forgiveness, mercy and healing
He'll meet you wherever you are.

Cry out to Jesus. Cry out to Jesus.

For the marriage that's struggling just to hang on
have lost all of their faith in love.
and they've done all they can to make it right again
still it's not enough.

For the ones who can't break the addictions and chains
you try to give up but you come back again.
Just remember that you're not alone
in your shame and your suffering.

There is hope for the helpless, rest for the weary,
and love for the broken hearts.
There is grace and forgiveness, mercy and healing
He'll meet you wherever you are.

Cry out to Jesus.

When you're lonely and it feels like the whole world is falling on you
you just reach out, you just cry out to Jesus

Cry to Jesus.

To the widow who suffers from being alone,
wipin' the tears from her eyes.
For the children around the world without a home,
say a prayer tonight.

There is hope for the helpless, rest for the weary,
and love for the broken hearts.
There is grace and forgiveness, mercy and healing
that meets you wherever you are.
There is hope for the helpless, rest for the weary,
and love for the broken hearts.
There is grace and forgiveness, mercy and healing
that meets you wherever you are.

Cry out to Jesus. Cry out to Jesus.

Cry out to Jesus. Cry out to Jesus.

These words move me. They remind me on the pain I have experienced in my own life. If you are reading this and you don't know Jesus you might read these words with some doubt that they could ever be true. All I can say is cry out to Jesus. Ask Him to take your burdens. Ask him to remove the pain and the fear. Let Him lead you to the truth for He is truth. Let His words guide your life. Let His blood grant your the purity that no one can ever hope to describe. I know that Christians (my self included) fail to show this beautiful message the way that we should. Please don't let that take away from your view of who Jesus Christ is for your life.

Now these are not my words they are the lyrics to a song that has really reminded me of so much. They are written by a band that has meant a lot to me over my walk with Christ. TFrom the time when I was a brand new Christian teen looking for some new music to now when I am expected to be more spiritual mature this band has always spoke to my heart. This band is called Third Day. Click here to hear the song!

Thank you Lord for who you are. I cry out to you today and everyday that you would take this sinful man and use him to share you amazing love. May I bring honor and glory to you this day and all the days of my life.

A humbled servant,
Michael

Catching up...

2006-03-15T14:10:00.000-08:00

This week I was encouraged to get into myspace.com Several people had encouraged me to do it and so I decided to take the plunge. I was amazed at how fast I started getting messages and responses from people. They have this deal on there where you can put in your school so I decided to do my high school and college. I did and I found people that I had not seen since high school and even a few from Junior high. I have not planned to really develop my whole my space thing but since Ruth took some of our teen girls from the youth group out last night I decided to put a little effort into it. I put some pics on there and even one of my favorite songs. I decided to look at some people from back in high school and even left a few messages. I was really cool to so how well some are doing. I guess I have to say it is sad to see the lifestyles that some are choosing as well but let me say that I felt blessed to catch up with some people from the past. I had been encouraged to get on this at youth minister meeting but let me warn you guys and gals in youth ministry when you do you may find some things that you didn't want to know and pics that you didn't want to see but I do feel like it will help you minister in a more effective way to the teens. I hope you all have a blessed day and for anyone that is reading this from my Clear Creek or ACU crowd ! Hello it is good to see you!

The Beauty of His Strength

2006-03-14T10:30:00.000-08:00

What is beauty? I can ask that question to many different people and they will most likely all reply with different answers. For me beauty is so many different things. Today I am focused on the beauty of the Lord.

The LORD is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear?The LORD is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid? When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh,when my enemies and my foes attack me,they will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me,my heart will not fear;though war break out against me,even then will I be confident. One thing I ask of the LORD,this is what I seek:that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.
Psalms 27:1-4

The words of king David bring so much peace to my life. Things get pretty crazy on this Earth. So many different things pull at your attention trying to dominate the hours of your day. So much chaos, stress, and yet all the while so many fail to look upward. They may pause from time to time to admire the beauty of the creation and yet fail to see the beauty in the creator. Like David I see beauty in the face of the Lord. I see beauty in the fact that while the world around us changes faster then most can adapt the Lord never changes. He is the same God keeping the same promises never letting us down. We will fail to understand why things happen the way they do. We may experience anger and frustration because of events in this life and yet He will be there prepare to answer our questions and heal our pains. Thank you Father for your beauty, your power, your amazing promises. May more come to know the depths of your Love!

Movies, Movies, Movies ...

2006-03-13T08:54:00.000-08:00

Ruth and I love movies. We can always agree to watch a movie if there is nothing better to do. So I thought it would be cool to find out what some of your favorite movies are. Before I find out,

Here are mine:

My favorite of all time so far: Forest Gump ( I never get tired of watching it)

My favorite action movie: Matrix 1 (How do you like my mini movie ?)

My favorite movie based on History: Saving Private Ryan

My favorite movie that I was forced to watch aka Chick Flicks: The Notebook

My favorite movie that I have watched recently: Walk the Line

So what are some of your favorite movies??
How about responding with a comment listing some like this post! Talk to you soon!

What are you doing this weekend??

2006-03-10T08:33:00.000-08:00

The weekend is upon us and I would like to accomplish two things with this post. First I would like to know who is reading this blog. I have a lot more hits on this counter then I thought I would. So do me a favor. If you read this blog then comment and tell me who you are or if you are one of those private people then just how you came to read this blog and then what are you doing this weekend.

We don't have any big plans this weekend by I am looking forward to some downtime with my wife! Tonight is usually our date night so we might do dinner and a movie but we actually have no solid plans which is kinda nice since we almost always have some kind of set schedule. We are counting the days to the Tulsa Mission Workshop. We have heard so many good things about the workshop are we are looking forward to the time of reconnecting with a bunch of our ministry friends.

In His Love,
Michael Potthoff

The Blessing of Godly Parents

2006-03-08T14:45:00.000-08:00

Today I did something that I have never done before. I don't have kids yet so it would be expected that I have never been to a parent/ teacher conference. Yet today some concerned parents called and asked if I could be at a parent/teacher conference today. I agreed and it was really a neat experience. The teacher was really great. Godly teachers are a blessing as well. I am so grateful for parents that care enough about the spiritual life of their child that they ask me to could to try to emphasize the important of the situation. As soon as I walked in the class room the child started to cry. He told me later he was sorry for disappointing me and he was so concerned that I would never look at him the same again. I think today was a turning point for this child. After the conference the teacher even asked me to pray about all of it right then and there. I was honored to do so and really praised God for the moment. So if anyone is reading this and is a parent, involve the ministers at the church with your child's life. I can not speak for all of them but this minister felt like the opportunity was a great privilege. Thank you Lord for Godly Parents!

A Date Night...

2006-03-07T08:40:00.000-08:00

One of the best pieces of advice that I ever received from my ministry profs was to always schedule time for my wife/family. Ministry can be a demanding thing and the longer I am in ministry the more I realize two very important things.

1. You have to be willing to say no sometimes. In ministry every opportunity to serve someone or to be at a certain even most likely will have some element of good to it. When I first started in ministry I said yes to everything and I found out very quickly that this takes it toll on you.

2. Have a set time each week where no matter what you will be with your spouse or your family. Ruth and I have a date night each Friday where our congregation has knows that we do have plans on Friday and no we will not break them. They are a few exceptions like an emergency but other then that we faithfully take time for our us each Friday. That is not to say that this is the only time that we spend time together but it is a guarantee that we will have time just for us. Ministers cannot afford to neglect their wife's, marriages, or their families. No one wins when that happens no matter how much time your are spending with the people in your church.

Now last night Ruth and I had a date night because this past weekend we could not do Friday night because we were with our youth group at a youth rally. I really enjoyed this date. We went out to eat. We walked in the mall for a while. We even found one of those picture booths that actually give you real color pics in a small strip with 4 different shots! We had to do it and it was fun! We then went to a movie and played air hockey before the movie. As I am writing this I am thinking to myself now why am I writing each detail of our date. I guess I just had a lot of fun last night and I want to encourage the others ministers that read this blog to make sure and do the same.

God's Richest Blessings
Michael

Renewal 06

2006-03-06T11:35:00.001-08:00

This past weekend Ruth and I took a group of teens from our church to a youth rally in Baton Rogue, La this weekend. I wasn't sure what exactly to expect but I was excited to get our youth group reconnected with the youth rallies around the state. They have been fairly disconnected for some reasons unknown to me. I have to say that I was really thrilled. They really connected with this rally. Our the trip back we asked them about the rally and each night as we got back to the places we were staying we talked to the teens about the rally and everyone of them told us over and over again that they loved it. In my mind there was one image that really describes the effectiveness of this youth rally. On the last night during the last talk there was an invitation made for the kids if they needed to rise up and renew there lives. I was at the edge of a pew so I could see clearly down an isle and without hesitation a young girl maybe 12 or 13 got up and went down front to the edge of the steps near the stage then got on her knees and humbled herself before the Lord. It was a striking image to me! What a powerful moment. It was something that I had not seen a lot but I appreciated it in so many ways. A few seconds after she went up several in her group surrounded her and simply placed there hand on her in a great show of encouragement! That is what the body of Christ is all about! Being there for each other when we are hurting! Helping us heal and learn to get past the temptations of this life. Later one of our own teens came forward. He is a young guy that I truly believe is already doing and will do great things for the Lord. I was impressed with this youth rally. The entire congregation poured themselves into this time and it really meant so much to me. Those of you that know me know that while I feel called to preach instead of being a full time youth minister know that I have a special heart for teens. After all when I was lost and knew nothing about the love of God a group of loving teens and adults reached out to me when I was an angry, crude teen that really didn't fit in the youth group. Because of their patience and perseverance I am redeemed by the blood of the lamb! Praise God for church like the South Baton Rogue Church of Christ! I am proud to see what Christians are doing around the state of Louisiana and I look forward to helping our teen grow closer to God on a daily basis. Thank you Lord for shining so brightly during this youth rally!

In His Love ,
Michael Potthoff

An Introduction and a Request...

2006-02-28T08:06:00.000-08:00

I would like to introduce you to a good friend of mine. His name is Alan Loomis and he is a 13 year old boy. I first met Alan when I started my first ministry position in Billings, Montana. The church needed a teacher for the Junior high kids on Wed night and I had some experience in that area from my youth ministry days so I jumped at the chance. Little did I know that I would meet someone that would change my life forever. Alan is really one of those special kids. Anyone that has ever taught no matter whether it is in the school system or in the Bible class knows that you naturally pick your favorites. I try not to do this and yet I can't help it. Alan was always kind to the other kids. Here always was thrilled to be in Bible class and always was ready to answer the questions. He never seemed to be swayed by the crowd and this impressed me. I think my favorite thing about Alan is his big smile. He always has this huge smile on his face. In late Jan of 2005 Alan got really sick and after some testing the doctors discovered that Alan had a very rare form of Leukemia. The call it A.L.L. with the Philadelphia Chromosome,If you don't know what that means just know that is a very rare form of blood cancer that mutates and makes it very difficult to treat. As you can imagine this is very tough on Alan and his family. They are all really great Christian people. So today on this blog I wanted to share with you a couple of their journal entries about their experiences with reveals their faith as well as the struggle to make it through this tough time.

The first journal entry:
Thursday, March 19, 2005 9:37 AM CST
This is to let you all know where we have been and are hoping to go from here. First Alan was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) with the Philadelphia Chromosome on Jan 31 2005. Todd, Alan and I left for the Denver Childrens Hospital on Feb 1 2005. He was in the hospital till Feb 8. He had a central line put in for all the chemo and blood draws to come
from. He had a bone marrow tap and a spinal tap. He started his first round of chemo on Feb 4. Then we returned home and on Feb 11 he had more chemo in Billings. Feb 18 he had more. On Feb 22 he was admitted to the hospital because his liver was not working right. He stayed till Feb 26 then on March 3 Todd, Alan and I went to Denver again. Todd, Makayla and I were being tested to see if one of us could be a bone marrow donor. None of us matched. It is rare for children to get the Philadelphia Chromosome and also for it to be (ALL). Anyway he is now waiting to start the next phase which will start out by being in the hospital in Billings for five days and then a shot an medicine for the next three weeks. We get the plan only weeks at a time. His liver level is still to high to start the next phase so we are hoping that on Monday March 21 it will be down and he can continue on with the next step. We do what to thank everyone for everything. It does make it easier. He has a great spirit and he is very positive! As we know more I will let you all know. Thanks for all the cards! WE LOVE THEM!

The most recent journal entry:
Monday, February 27, 2006 2:55 PM CST
Hello,
Well Alan is finally feeling good. He still gets sick everynight. We may have to try to change the time of his medicine again. It seems that we have to move it around to keep him from getting so sick. He was able to help Todd at the show they had this weekend. He had a great time! He was also able to attend worship. He went to school today for the morning classes. He had a great time! He is doing a math test tomorrow afternoon. We are going to ride ATV's this afternoon. It is so nice here we wanted to do something before he starts again. His counts are up enough that he will start the next round of chemo on Wed. It is early we have the surgery at 8:00 and then check in to St. Vincent after that. This one is a five day treatment. We only have five more to go. We are counting down the time. Hope you all have a great week. We love you all.
Love, Tammy

I would like to ask that you pray for Alan. Lift his name up to the Lord. I know that God can heal anyone! I believe that with all of my heart and I ask that you pray for Alan today! Instead of leaving comments on this post, I ask that you go to Alan's website. There is a place on there where you can sign his guestbook. It doesn't matter if you don't know he just tell him who you are and let him know that you will be praying for him. This really encourages him.

Click here for Alan's website!

Thanks so much for doing this!

Monday Morning Blues...

2006-02-27T12:23:00.000-08:00

Ok well I am not exactly down I am just a little thrown off. I was gone for 5 days because of a death in our family and it has really thrown me off. I am becoming aware that I really am a planner and I tend to enjoy structure more and more. Each month I try to plan the topics for my sermons for the next month. They are not set in stone and I change them often but I like to have a common thread throughout my sermons each month. So any ideas? Any sermons that you would like to hear preached?? I am excited about a Youth rally that is coming up this weekend. Our church is growing and along with that our youth group is growing. We have Van full of teen that will be going to Baton Rouge this weekend and Ruth and I are looking forward to taking them. Now after telling you how much I like planning and structure I must also admit that one thing I love about ministry is that it is so different everyday. I rarely have a day where someone new and unexpected comes up. I know this is random and really short but hey I have a lot to do! Happy blogging! Oh and don't forget to sign our guestbook. The link is to the left in our links section.

May the Lord Bless You and Keep You!

Balance...

2006-02-24T09:04:00.000-08:00

BALANCE
What does it mean to have balance? If you want to get technical Dictionary.com says: A state of equilibrium or parity characterized by cancellation of all forces by equal opposing forces. I guess that would help shed some light on the topic. The reason I write about this topic is that I really try had to be a balanced person. To never find myself in the extremes on a topic or argument. Sometimes I find that people accuse people like me of being spineless and never having a stance on anything. If that is balance then I know that I don't have it. I see balance more as a disciplined effort to see both sides of an issue. To make sure that you don't dive off into a discussion without fully understanding both sides of an issue. Lets take for example theological beliefs. I used to consider myself a conservative until I found that to that to some my conservative theological views were considered liberal by some. Labels really are useless. We need to learn to look past them and see that we can never really live by them. I know that you have heard this before but I really think it is more important then even that we just be Christians. Not liberals or conservatives but Christians. If you want to be liberal then be liberal in love, liberal in forgiveness, liberal in the time you give to the Lord. You want to be a conservative or an "anti" then be anti sin, anti hate, anti pride. Let us be people that are more worried about how we look to God then how we look to each other. A lot of the blocs that I am reading by Christians are of men and women struggling with issues. They are struggling on the right stance of these issues. I say trust God. Trust is His Word. Trust Him in prayer. Let us know that we will never have it all figured out. We will have things that we believe today that we may look back on in 20 years and say I am not sure why I struggled with that. If you are struggling then that is ok. Just don't struggle alone, let Jesus walk with you and guide you. Let us focus on Jesus.

Ok now back to something else I wanted to talk about as long as I am talking about balance. I need some advice on something. Maybe from another minister or maybe from someone that can help slap some common sense in my head. How do you balance theology and practical everyday living. Some of the things I discuss with my ministry buddies I would never discuss in lets say a Junior High Bible class ( which is what I am currently teaching on Wed nights.)or really in my sermons for that matter. I see the need for theology because it helps me develop my faith. Sometimes thought I struggle with all of our theological talk because I wonder how it helps me reach out to the average person that does not know Jesus Christ. I guess you could say that I have been thinking about this because after 3 years of full time ministry I am thinking about doing some grad work part time. I will stay in ministry full time ( I am hooked!) and try to get an MDIV part time, at least I think. I struggle with where to do my schooling and what type of training I should seek. It all boils down to the whole balance issue. Anyone able to make any sense of this or am I just to far all over the place today ??

Give me your Links and say Hello!

2006-02-23T11:59:00.000-08:00

I have decided my favorite thing about blogging has been my connection with tons of people that I haven't talked with in a long time. Blogs give you a small glimpse into the lives of people that you have known at different stages in your life. It is cool to see how everyone is doing! I like keeping in touch with people but I am bad about it and it has been good to hear from some people that I havent seen since high school(mostly my football gang) and others since college. So I want to start making links to various blogs. So if you want me to link to your blog ( the only requirement is that I actually know you! :) please comment on this post and include your link. Also I have noticed that many people come to the blog but never comment. I understand this because you don't always have something to say about some posts. Yet I want to hear from everyone! So please take a moment and sign our guestbook so that we can connect with as many as possible. I have included the link in my links section so please take a moment to do so. Thanks for checking out the blog and I hope to hear from more of you soon!
Oh and here is the link for the guestbook! Sign it please! I love to hear from everyone no matter how long it has been.

Click here for the Guestbook

P.s. If you are wondering why I have not been blogging it is because I was out of town for several days. I am back and so is the blog!

A Spiritual Legacy

2006-02-20T15:40:00.000-08:00

This past Thursday morning I got a call from my family telling about me about my Aunt Hazel passing away.(She is really my great Aunt but I was close to her so I always called her Aunt Hazel.)I felt a mix of emotions ranging from sadness to peace. Sadness because Hazel was always a great example to me and peace because she was in a lot of pain. Her body was worn out and it was time for her to leave this Earth. Peace because she lived her life with great dedication to the Lord. Peace because I have no doubt that she is now with the Lord. Hazel was not a success as far as the world is concerned. She never made a lot of money, never drove a fancy car, and never lived in a huge house. As far as the Lord is concerned I imagine that she has many great treasures stored in heaven. I can't wait to see her mansion in the Lord's kingdom one day. Hazel lived for the Lord every single day and she displayed the fruits of her faith. She always looked for ways to serve and no one would mistake her first love which was Jesus Christ or her second love for that matter, her family. She always encouraged me when I got the chance to spend some time with her. Even as her life was coming to the end should would give me a big smile when I visited and say, " Michael, I love you and pray for you every day!" This meant so much to me because I knew that it was true. She always kept up with me and lifted my name up to the Lord. My family asked me to take part in the memorial service by speaking about Hazel and I gladly accepted. To speak about Hazel was an honor and a humbling experience. Yet I did so not with sorrow but with great joy. Joy because she honored the Lord and now I had the chance to honor her. Hazel left for our family a great example. A legacy not of great worldly accomplishments but of spirtual accomplishments. I will do my best to continue this legacy. I will do my best to serve the Lord first and my family second. To serve the Lord with great Joy. Thank you Hazel for the life you lived! You pointed us all to Jesus with your life. We are eternally grateful.

What God wants...

2006-02-16T08:30:00.000-08:00

I believe that Christians at times become blinded by religion. We get caught up in everyday church stuff. Not that church stuff is bad , I mean after all I am a minister, but we must have a heart for all people. We cannot afford to always be looking inward because if we are not careful we develop a tunnel-vision of sorts that blocks out the people that we really need to be focused on. Last week I had a convicting experience. One of the things that I enjoy about living here is that I live in a area where people are not too concerned about what kind of car your drive or clothes you wear. It is refreshing to me. Last week we had middle-aged couple come to the church in the morning. I could tell they were some what embarrassed to be here. They needed help with food and clothing. They were struggling like so many at least in part because of the hurricane. The lady with tears in her eyes said we really just need some help. I was so glad to say anyway that this church can help you we will. I helped them with some food and filled their car with gas. As were gathering some food from our church pantry the woman kept repeating I am soo sorry. Finally I had to stop. I told her that she had no need to be sorry. I explained that many in this church struggled to put food on the table ( which is true, my guess is that 1/3 of our members are at our below poverty level.)and that we were thrilled to be able to help them. Without hesitation she asked why? I told her because we tried our best to be people that show Jesus to others. We don't always do it like we should but we try to honor God by helping out. She burst out in tears and her husband just kept looking uncomfortable and uncertain about what he should do. We stopped and sat in our fellowship hall and talked for about 45 mins. They explained there struggles and I just listened. Finally the woman asked , "Can you talk to God for us about all of this?" I smiled and said we can all talk to Him together. We spent about 15 mins in prayer together. Both thanked me and said they would maybe come to worship with us sometimes. I told them they were welcome and wanted. It made me feel so good to be with them. It convicted me also that we are not doing enough to reach out to the poor in our area. We are really good at taking care of each other in our church family. When we have a member in great need their needs are always meet. This past Sunday our in the elders meeting I brought the topic and the elders agreed that we need to do some more to reach out to the poor in our community. I am excited about this. We are looking into becoming a part of Angel food ministries which helps provide food to families. We want to do this in addition to our normal food pantry. Pray about this. I am excited about digging deeper and doing more to show all people the love of Jesus Christ.

Matt 25:34-40

34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Who are the least of these? I think as we answer that question will we be able to understand how we can show Jesus to more people. We need to make sure that we reach out to all people everywhere. I want to make this church a place where people know they can go for help. We there know they can belong no matter how there life is going.

Pray for me! I want to be a real man of God in action. Not because I am a preacher but because I love Jesus with all my heart! I don't ever want to get caught in religion! I want to be focused on Jesus and all that he desires of my life.

Candy Hearts, Roses, and Teddy Bears...

2006-02-14T14:06:00.000-08:00

Today is a very interesting day! Today is St. Valentines Day! A day to celebrate love or at least expressions of love. I must say that for a long time I really dreaded this day because as a teen it meant getting together enough money to take the girl you might be dating for the week out to dinner and if she is really special you might even through in some flowers. I am proud to say that has all changed for me. I enjoy valentine's day. I have the love of my life to celebrate the day with! That makes me so thrilled to celebrate this day. Let me explain why: I am not be any stretch of the imagination a romantic. I don't naturally think of romance and to be honest I still struggle with the concept of how to be romantic! Don't get me wrong! I love my wife, I have no problem telling my wife just how much I really love her. In fact I make it a point to make sure that I express that daily. I also have no problem showing affection or telling her just how beautiful she is to me. Yet I still feel like I struggle to be romantic. So this day is a good day for me. It helps the romantically challenged people like myself to get up and do something romantic. I am learning everyday what it means to be romantic. Guys and girls have such different ideas about what is romantic and it is up to us to try to figure on what they view as romantic. Ruth and I have been married almost 4 years now and I can honestly say that I fall more in love with her every single day. I know her in so many different ways now and I love everything! It love it all, the good days, the bad days and everything in between. God's design of marriage is such an awesome thing!

Now here is my Top ten reasons that I am hopelessly in love with my wife:

10. The Sound of her voice!
9. Her calm sweet nature.
8. Her beautiful smile.
7. Her amazing servant spirit.
6. Her amazing compassion for all people.
5. Her physical beauty really does reflect her inner beauty. I love her heart!
4. Her blue eyes!
3. The way she laughs out loud at most of my cheesy humor.
2. Her never ending encouragement and support of my ministry.
1. Her undeniable love for her Lord Jesus Christ!

I hope you all have an great valentines day! Also guys calls you mom's on this day! It should be a rule for life!

A Second Post

2006-02-13T12:42:00.000-08:00

I had to share something that I did this afternoon! Everyday I usual spend the morning in study, research, and administration and then in the afternoon I make visits throughout the community which can include bible studies, hospital visits, times of prayer and things of that nature. Today is the first afternoon since I have been in DeQuincy that I have absolutely nothing planned! Some minister I am ! If you know me well you know that I cannot stand sitting around. So I decided to spend some time in prayer for friends and family. I got an e-mail today from a friends from ACU and it included his blog. Being fairly new to this blog deal I checked it out and found tons of others that have blogs. I went from blog to blog reading and praying for each person! It was really a neat experience! One of the things that I realize that I took for granted at ACU was being around so many great Christian friends. I miss you all so much sometimes! Good news, Ruth and I will be going to Tulsa this year for the Soul winning workshop! I am excited to see many of you there! God richest blessings to you all!

The Power of Numbers

2006-02-13T08:41:00.000-08:00

This past Sunday was a great time for the church. We had a great worship service, I felt good about the sermon, we had several visitors from the community, things were just really good anyway I looked at it. After service though several members were in a buzz about something. I wasn't really sure what it was until one of them pointed it out to me. "Did you know that we had 122 people here today?" (This might not seem like a lot of people to some of you but when we first started here the numbers were around 60 or so.) In fact I did not know how many had been there that Sunday. I could tell we had a pretty good crowd. We have someone that counts the number in the service and then posts it on a bulletin board in the back of the church building along with the giving for that Sunday. It was good news for me and yet I was shocked about how excited people got over it. It made me happy to see some of them so excited about the way things are going at church but it surprised me that a number could spur on such excitement! Then it hit me numbers drive so much of our lives. We have SAT scores, GPA's , credit scores, bank accounts, and so many other things where numbers determine how the things are rated. We have numbers that tell us how popular a president is , what movies you should see, what music you should listen to, and what products to by. It is funny how something as small as a number can have such an effect on your life. I am glad that our church members are excited about the growing number of people in our church services but I don't want us to become too focused on numbers. We are looking to save souls and not just fill our building with warm bodies. Does anyone know how to put a number to spiritual maturity ? If you do let me know I want to look at the numbers! :)

To show the true depth of my mind...

2006-02-10T08:10:00.000-08:00

Here is my new profile picture!

Yes the dancing chicken. I have done this for two reasons.
First I have been watching the news to much and there are just too many people out there on the net doing bad stuff for me to be putting real pics up on the net.
Two several friends have commented on the serious nature of this blog. LOL surprise, surprise I have a serious side!!! I hope to balance this blog with my theological thoughts as well as they off the wall humor that spins around in my mind.

P.s. We had such a good bible study last night. I was one of those lightbulb moments for some people that Ruth and I really think are going to develop into servant leaders in the church. God is good and I love the power of His word!

Now how is that for balance!!

Guaranteed to make you laugh!

2006-02-09T12:05:00.000-08:00

My posts at this point have primarily been serious. For those of you that really know me probably are wondering who is really writing this blog ??? Mike is one of the biggest goofballs that we know and what is with all of this serious stuff! So that leads me to my post for the day. Three videos that you must watch! Three videos that will cause you to laugh or at the very minimum bring you some sort of entertainment.

Disclaimer: A preacher should never have to do this but I promise you that all of these videos are more then safe to watch and have nothing inappropriate . Also they will download faster if you right click and save as. Save them on your desktop in you are one of those that can never seem to find where the computer puts your files! Also you have to have your sound on to fully appreciate these!

Ok they had to make you laugh or at least smile! I am hoping to bring some more people to the blog so share the link to this blog with others. Or if you are really nice include a link to this blog on your blog! I will be happy to do the same!

2 Thoughts

2006-02-07T10:20:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a good day for me. It was an extremely busy day and yet I really enjoyed it. I spent the entire day with people. Some were Christians and some were not. Two needed rides to places they needed to go. 1 family was in desperate need of prayer and encouragement. I am so blessed to get to do what I do. To be a minister has been a dream of mine in so many ways and as I live out that dream I don't want to lose sight of what a privilege it is to be a full time minister. One of my favorite things is that I never have to tell someone, "Sorry, I can't spend that much time with you, because I have to get back to work." My privilege is that the people in my congregation have empowered my to be able to do this full time. To always have time for people. To always be able to be with them. Not that I have some special gift to share with them, it is just that I serve an awesome God that always gets me excited!
This past Sunday night I was flipping though the channels and I ended up on one that I have never actually watched. CSPAN! Yes I actually watched CSPAN for about 45 mins! Something caught my attention as I was flipping through the channels which caused me to stop on CSPAN. It was the title National Prayer Breakfast. This is basically a group of people that meet to encourage and pray with the president. It has been going on for a while now and I personally think that it is a great idea. Someone that had just finished speaking was stepping down from the podium and someone that I did not expect to see got up to the pulpit. BONO from U2. I had heard rumors that he was a Christian but I always thought it might just be wishful thinking by a few. BONO preceded to preach a sermon to both Bush and Christians around the world. He included some of the struggles that he has had in his life but his closing remark really struck me. He recalled a meeting with a minister and shared the minister's recent advice: Stop asking God to bless what you're doing. Find out what God's doing. It's already blessed. "That's what I want," Bono said. "I want to align my life with that." AMEN BONO ! I never thought I would say that but AMEN! I to want to align my life with that. Apparently it is a quote that has been used before but I have never heard and it really hit home with me. Maybe TV isn't so bad after all!

To Question God?

2006-02-02T14:16:00.000-08:00

I got a call yesterday from a fellow minister. His question is one that I have been asked many times before mostly by teens when I was doing youth ministry in Abiliene. He told me that he was struggling to answer this question. Are we allowed to Question God ? My friend told me that a college student that is an active part of his college ministry was really struggling with the loss of a teammate on his college soccer team. The student was angry because he felt like his teammate was getting close to becoming a Christian and yet because of a drunk driver will never get the chance. If my friends had called me a year ago I would have probably answered this question much differently then I do today. When I was a minister in Montana I was shown something that I have never seen before. It was one of those things that was right in my face and yet I failed to see the significance of the bigger picture. A woman in our congregation in Montana had lost a child several years before to SIDS. If you don't know anything about SIDS just know that it causes babies very suddenly and unexpectedly to pass away. There is no way to detect and there is no medical explanation for this as far as I know. To make a long story short this woman after losing her child had a very difficult time with her faith. She talked about how one day she was feeling guilty for asking God why he had let her child die and then she read some scriptures that opened her heart. In Matthew 27:46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"-which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" NIV If the very son of God is supposed to be our example in everything then he would not have questioned the Father if it was not ok with the Lord. Hear I was a Bible major, studied the word in depth under some amazing teachers and I had never thought of such an obvious example. For the record I agree with this women. After looking at the scripture and the entire setting of what happened during the crucifixion I believe that Jesus really wanted to know why this is the way it had to be. Why did he have to suffer so much? Why could salvation not be passed on some other way? I know that there are several other scriptures that involve this topic but I think that we serve a God that wants to hear our hearts in both amazing times and desperate times. He wants a real relationship with us more then just about anything else. I say if you are really struggling with the things of this life and wonder why they have happened then go to the Lord. He may not answer you in the time frame that you want, He may not give you the answer you want. I do believe that the Lord can handle any question. That He can stand and answer anything that happens to us in this life when we just cannot understand. I am confident that our Lord can take anything that has gone wrong and turn it into something good. More then that I am grateful that he allows sinners like himself into His presence with open arms!

Going deeper

2006-02-01T11:32:00.000-08:00

There are some days in ministry where you just feel drained. In sports when you where completely exhausted the coaches also used to try to teach us to simply dig deeper. To mentally decided that you will not be tired even though your body is screaming at you that you have nothing left. Sometimes I feel that way in ministry. Yesterday was one of those days. So many people to see and just not enough time to do it all as effectively as I would have liked. I love this thing called ministry both in the days when it is a joy and the days when it is a great challenge. Some days though you are vividly reminded that you cannot do it on your own. I must be constantly dependent on God. I cannot afford to not have a really great prayer life. I cannot afford to fail to let scripture be the authority in my life. LOL, if this sounds like a rant it is not it just that sometimes when people come to you and they explain how bad sin has messed up their life I feel like God is slapping me in the face with a reminder about the beauty of holiness. Yes the beauty, the peace, the comfort knowing that you are living in a way that is consistent with the creator. When you see the stress, the pain , the suffering that sin causes it really contrasts to the joy of holiness. Don't get me wrong. I am in no way saying that I am some special holy man or that I don't sin and fall short. The people in our church will be the first to tell you that I am not afraid to be tramper with my own sins and temptations. (Otherwise how can I expect them to do the same ?) Yet there is a certain clarity that comes from dealing with people everyday. You see the joy of those with a right relationship with God. You also see the pain in those that for whatever reason have chosen to serve themselves. I feel like part of my role is to somehow help people experience that clarity. To share the horrors of sin and also the wonders of Grace. To expose the people lost in the darkness to the transforming experience of being in the light for the very first time. So as for me and my ministry I am not going to try and dig deeper no I am simply going to try and be more dependent. More consistent in my walk, my prayer life, my study of the word. After all I believe that when the lord says to Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, and mind is the greatest commandment, when I hear is that He wants a real relationship with us. I am committing this day to being more focused on my actually relationship with God. To be less focused on programs and activities and more focused on developing a stronger and deeper relationship with God. I really think that there are time in life when we need to say no to ministry and yes to prayer instead. We cannot do this on our own. The fastest we grasp that concept the longer we will be able to be effective ministers to others. Pray for me. It is the greatest gift that you can give me. Ask God to continually renew me, to shape me, to mold me into the man that He wants to see in me. Oh yeah ask him to shake some of this pride out of me as well. This blog thing is great, it really allows me to share the thoughts of me heart and feel like people that really care are reading those. God bless you all!

A Makeup Entry!

2006-01-31T07:41:00.000-08:00

I failed to write my blog entry yesterday. I plan on writing an entry every day Mon-Fri if it all possible. I was gone for the morning and the evening and I got home late. It was a good day. In the morning I was in Lake Charles with several preachers from TX and LA for a time of prayer and encouragement. It was really a great time for all those involved. I am continually convinced that preachers go crazy when surrounded by other preachers. We goof off more, we let loose so to speak. Maybe it is because it is one of the few times that some feel free to do so. For me I have no problem being goofy all of the time but it was fun yesterday. Also yesterday Ruth and I went out with a couple from our church for dinner and a movie. Good food, great times. Fun all around. The movie though prompted my mind to think about all kinds of things. We saw the movie Glory Road. It is about the Texas Western team that won the NCAA championship against all odds. Texas Western (The University of Texas El Paso as we now know it) was the first school to start all black players in the NCAA tournament. This happened in 1966 which blows my mind. I guess it is a reminder to me that very strong racism is such recent history. Not that I had never learned that but I just forget that so often. In my generation it truly was never much of an issue. I grew up in Houston which is very much a muti-cultural place to live. I always was around kids of all races and I never thought anything of it. I am very grateful for my upbringing as I was never taught to "see color." I am aware of racism that still goes on today. Yet I think of how far we have come as a country as a whole is such a short time. We still have a long way to go and yet I feel that the future looks bright. Will racism ever cease to exist ? I say no way. People of all colors everywhere will always carry some sort of racism whether it be simple stereotypes or hatred that is some how passed on from generation to generation. This is not an excuse and yet I believe that it is reality. My hope is that the body of Christ will never excuse racism as it has done in the past. That we will always focus on the common bond of Jesus Christ and never allow ourselves to be caught up more in the culture that we live in then the God that we serve.

The Purpose of the Church

2006-01-27T14:45:00.000-08:00

"This is a big old ship, Bill. She creaks, she rocks, she rolls, and at times she makes you want to throw up. But she gets where she is going. Always has, always will, until the end of time. With or without you."

This is the opening quote in Phillip Yancey's book entitled "Church Why Bother?" It captures such a great truth for us today. No matter how many problems, how ugly, how plagued by the struggles of the flesh, the church/ the body of Christ has the perfect captain. I imagine on the Navy's finest captains steering the ugliest most ratty looking fishing boat and I laugh because the must be how frustrated God is with us sometimes. Sometimes the church messes up with people. Sometimes we fight about the most insignificant things. Sometimes we exclude people because they don't "fit-in." While I am not ok with any of these behaviors the fact remains that no matter how hard we might try the church will never be perfect as long as we remain on this Earth. Thank God we server a perfect Lord. Thank God that He is willing to forgive us despite our failure to quit serving ourselves. We must never give up on God and now more then ever for me that means that we must never give up on the church. After all the church is the bride of Christ. The church is the family of God and that means that as long as we don't' jump ship one glorious day we will be able to fully understand what is mean to be forgiven.

I often think about my own life and wonder how do I ever get to this point where I am a minister. The world says that Christianity is just an emotional crutch for those unable to deal with the reality of life without God, and those that are strong enough to do without religion should do without religion. I smile at the statement as much as it troubles me because the truth is that yet God is a crutch, well He is much more then a crutch, He is a life support system for those of us who chose to call Him Lord. He is a bridge from hopelessness to hope. From death to life. From life without a purpose to life with a clear singular purpose. I realize this because I am fully away that dependency is something that the church so be proud of. We need to depend on each other. We need each other in order to fight sin. More then that we need the Lord to take away that sin. I am quite comfortable with people that view me as weak because I serve the Lord and His church. There are some that will go throughout this life fully and completely dependent on no one else but themselves. Yet I hate to think about that day when they will realize I can never escape this ocean of sin without being on the boat. I dream of a day when people in the church will stop trying to pretend that everything is alright. That we are doing just fine. Let us celebrate our dependence on Jesus Christ. Let us be fully aware of our need to be a part of His body. We need Jesus Christ more then ever and I am proud to be on this boat no matter how much it might rock, creak and roll.

One Life to Live

2006-01-26T14:46:00.000-08:00

I found out something today that caught me by surprise. I talked for a few minutes with one of my friends back from my hometown and found out some bad news about an old friend. I found out that my friend from my junior high and high school days had committed suicide about 7 months ago. I guess I need to clarify this post by saying that I have not talked to Derrick in almost 10 years. We met on the prestigious football field of League City intermediate. Ok, maybe the fields were not that prestigious but we both we soo excited about playing football. We both love loved all aspects of the game except for the shared hatred of wind sprints. We were not the best of friends but we had know each other somewhat by in the same area and going to the same schools for most of our lives. We seemed to be good friends during the football season and then we seemed to go our separate ways after each season was over at least until spring training. We both just shared a love for contact sports and being physical. This friendship continued till high school when sometime during my sophomore year Derrick dropped out of school. Apparently he drifted into a world of drugs and partying. I don't know much else. It is funny how learning of the death of a friend that you have not seen can hurt your heart but it can. The thing that I think about now is how much I wish that I had been able to share the gospel with Derrick. You see I was not a Christian at the time and while I believed in God I knew nothing about salvation. It makes me think about a lot of my other friends. Have they found the forgiveness of Jesus Christ. Or they on the edge desperately trying to find answers. I bet a lot of them would get a good laugh out the fact that I am a preacher now. I wonder though how many would listen as I talked about how God has transformed me in so many ways. How he was taken away my sins. How He has given me peace, love, and hope. We all only have one life to live and I am reminded about that today. May I spend more of my energy telling people about Jesus. May I pour out more of my life that people might catch a glimpse of Christ's love reflected in my life.

What do they really think...

2006-01-25T12:50:00.000-08:00

I found a video that I had sent to me some time ago. I can't remember who sent it to me but I watched the full video for the first time today. It basically shows a guy interviewing people about what they think of Jesus Christ and what they think of Christians in the downtown area of some large city. Many don't have nice things to say about Christians althought for the most part they seem to respect Jesus. As I watched the video something really convicted my heart. A lot of people believe a lot of things about God and the church/ Christians because of bad experiences they have had or stories they have heard of others bad experiences. This video was a good reminder to me about several things. The first is that as a Christian I cannot afford to be spiritually lazy. What do I mean by that ? I mean I cannot afford to let my prayer life dwindle. I cannot afford to fail to read the Bible. I especially cannot afford to miss the opportunity to show Jesus Christ to someone with my actions. Too many people are trying to make their way through this life without Jesus in their lives. Too many have a bad taste in their mouth because of bad things that other Christians have done to them. I know that some of you are saying that is never an excuse they should look at the Lord and not humans for an example. I remind you of a scripture in 1 Peter 2:11-12 "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us."

We are called to walk as Jesus did. To show people his reflection by our lives. By the way that we love the love by really choosing to live for Him. Let people look at us and make no mistake about who we belong to! We belong to Jesus Christ and his blood is too precious for us to forget that!

Here is the video link; (Please note this is a large file, 107 mb so you will probably need a high speed connection to download this.) Right Click this and save link as to download this movie!

Another source of Strength

2006-01-24T06:57:00.000-08:00

I am one of those independent people. I like to take care of things of my own. I like to do things a certain way. I don't like to do things half way. I am either going to do the very best I can do or nothing at all. For the most part that is not a huge problem. People like someone that is willing to work hard. Yet the longer that I am in full time ministry the more I realize the fault in this type of mindset. Independence is fine as long as you leave God out of the picture. That is what our culture teaches us. I am not 100 % sure but I think for the most part it is an American thing. Just do it, your way right away, and all kind of messages are thrown at us by our culture. I think at least in some ways this mindset makes our country a great place but not when it comes to God. Like I said before this becomes crystal clear in ministry. You see you can preach the best lessons, teach the best Bible classes, plan the most enriching retreats, and organize the most entertaining fellowship events and if God does not bless your ministry then really nothing special will happen. I hear alot about ministers feeling "burnt-out" and while I can understand that feeling from time to time I can't help but wonder is it because we try and rely to much on ourselves. If we are truly dependent on God will he not lift us up. We he not guide and direct us ? I have really learned the great value in a committed prayer life. Why is it as Christians that we can fill our lives with Godly activities and yet not take the time to spend praying and talking with the one we call our Lord. When I find myself feeling pushed to the max, or overwhelmed with my life I usually find that I am trying to be too independent and not fully relying on God for my strength. Gods strength will always be more then enough. It just takes a little more dependence to figure that out. I close these thoughts with glimpse into a conversation of sorts between Paul and the Lord. Paul wants God to take away a problem for Him and the Lord reminds him of something. 2 Cor 12:9- he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

May we learn to allow the Lord to be our strength. May we proudly be dependent on Him!

Thoughts on Life

2006-01-23T12:46:00.000-08:00

This is my first offical post on my brand new blog. Today as I thought about why I was starting this blog all I could come up with is everybody fasination with a young preacher. I simply want to share my life with anyone that cares to read about it. So today I share with you my main motivation for becoming and being a preacher. So many people use their talents everyday to bring wealth to their family and themselves. Don't get me wrong, their is really nothing wrong with that. It is just that to me in the end the thing that matters most for my life is Jesus Christ. I want to do something that allows me to spend time with God. That allows me to spend time with people. That allows me to focus on the one thing that I will try my very best to hold as a priority in my life. That it what ministry is for me. It is a privilage. Something that I do not take for granted. My task is to be someone that is close to the Lord. Someone that knows the word of God inside and out. Someone that has a desire to have real realtionships with people so when those tough times come they know that they can come to me because I really care. Everyday in ministry provides a new challenge, perhaps a new opportunity, sometimes it is something you look forward to and sometimes it is something that you wish never happened. So to kick off this blog, I say that to be a young minister preaching the gospel for me is a dream come true. It is not something that is easy and yet it is something that I love so much. When I preach I look out at the audience and think to myself, "These people have come to hear the Word of God preached today, and they expect me to do it." That is a huge responsibility for me! I do not take it lightly. This life is a short one. It contains great joy and deep sorrows. It can be gone in the blink of an eye. I chose to live this life doing the thing that I love. This beautiful challenge called ministry. My prayer is that I do it well. My prayer is that I serve till it hurts. My prayer is that my life will speak of God's love to the hearts of people everywhere. I love this gift of life. More then that I love the God that allows me to have this beautiful gift. I love you Lord!