February, 2015

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Hypocrisy

Thursday, February 26th, 2015

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Name one thing which is considered to be one of, if not the most damaging chink in Christianity’s armor and I suspect you may get 9 out of 10 saying, “Hypocrisy.” Many lives have been derailed by exposure to someone who claimed to be what they were not or how they acted.

Hypocrisy is nothing new. While we tend to have blinders on at times, it is no should be no surprise hypocrisy was part of the early church as well.  “Well, of course,” you say. “Remember Ananias and Sapphira?” That pops to our mind readily. But not so readily is the guilt of the early leaders. Men who were “pillars” (Gal.2: 6 & 9) were also guilty. In fact Paul is pretty blunt in his assessment of Peter in  Galatians 2: 11-14. Paul was not a mess-around type of guy, especially when it came to the Gospel and telling the story to all.

Grace is for all people, all races, all nationalities, all persuasions. In the early church that meant Jew and Gentile alike.  The problem which developed determines how much you wanted to hold to tradition or be a “grace-giver.” Peter chose to hide. Paul chose to be up front.

We can learn several lessons from this small passage of Scripture (which I plan to share Sunday morning):

  • Anyone can fall, even those who seem to have it all together.
  • Right doctrine without right behavior always produces hypocrisy.
  • Truth is more important than outward beauty and peace.

Paul once told Timothy to “Watch your life and teaching closely.” (I Tm.4:16) It doesn’t matter who it is. Hypocrisy strikes all walks of life. All ages. All professions.

Sometimes grace rebukes. Ask Peter.

Your prayers are appreciated.

Quotes

Wednesday, February 25th, 2015

Earlier this week I went with 5 other guys from the church to Catalyst OneDay. I wrote about that here.  I’m a still a little shell-shocked from the traveling, two late nights (for me), and a whole day of learning. Wednesday I spent some time in court (no I’m not in jail) so that always brings a certain amount of “nerves” and then release.

So I’m a little fried. I thought I would let others speak for me.

“The longer a church is stalled, the harder it is to break out.” CG  That sure says why some churches trapped in tradition for so long are often “dead in the water.”

“If you are not dead, you are not done!” CG  So true. How many give up without a fight thinking they are over the hill? Even though my age says 62 and I certainly don’t have the stamina I used to, I feel more alive than I ever have.

“We are not a megachurch. We are a microchurch with a mega vision.” CG  I like this one. A big vision helps expand the thinking of the church, and therefore expands the ministry of that church.

“Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” David in Psalm 127:1 I am not one who calls the place of worship the house of God. I believe the Holy Spirit is present in each Christ-follower, making us His temple-His house. The church is the body of Christ, not a building. Unless He builds the church, we waste our time.

Any thoughts?

CG is Craig Groeschel from Lifechurch.

Idols

Tuesday, February 24th, 2015

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I grew up in West Mifflin, PA, a suburb of Pittsburgh. Can you say, “Steel(er) country?” More to my liking can you say, “Pirate country?” But I rabbit trail.

Pittsburgh, if you check the history books, was a melting pot of nationalities. The promise of employment in the steel mills brought people from every nation on the planet. Polish. Greeks. Czechs. Slovaks. Italians. Negro (as they were called). You name it, it was there. So telling jokes on each other was par for the course.

So was religion. You name it, it was there, except for the prominent cults today (JW, Mormon), who were minor players back then. I grew up in a large Catholic area. When I thought of idols I thought of statues made of stone or metal. Idols bowed down to and worshiped. Idols on car dashes.

It is easy to dismiss “idol talk” being personal if that is the only picture one gets from idols. “I’m in the clear! Whew!!” But, as you know, an idol is more than a statue of stone, or a carving of some kind. An idol is a representation of what we honor, esteem, pay allegiance to, or worship. (p.73). Good definition. A definition which leaves none of us out of the discussion. An idol is something which attracts our attention and motivates us. I won’t lie. Basketball was, for the longest time, an idol to me. I have to watch cycling does not become that, especially in the summer.

Bobby says, “An idol, at its core, is a God-supplanter.” (p.75) I’m not sure one can find a better statement than that about idols. It takes the place normally reserved for God and places Him in a lower position. You know what?

GUILTY AS CHARGED!

The real Game of Thrones is who will we place on the throne? Any thoughts? What idol do you struggle with?

More

Monday, February 23rd, 2015

I wasn’t going to post anything just for the sake of posting. However, I have this song (among other things) running through my head this Monday morning.

I was first made aware of this song by one of our worship leaders, Peter, who has had to take a hiatus from our band due to temporarily moving to Nashville, TN for his wife, Stephanie, to take care of her ailing mother. Her mother went to be with Jesus a couple of weeks ago but since  Peter does tile work and had made commitments to people through April, he/they will be staying there until his projects are finished. He most certainly will be welcomed back. He/they are missed.

If you prefer something with a bit more pep, check out this Martin Smith song.

There. A song to make you think. Pray. Long for.

A song to tap your feet to. Enjoy!

Missing

Sunday, February 22nd, 2015

I’m posting this Sunday night like I always do. (I post at 8:00 the night before and posts run all day).  But this post comes with something different.

Monday, Ryan (our youth pastor) and I head to Catalyst OneDay in Lexington, KY with four other guys for a one day lesson in Leadership on Tuesday. Craig Groeschel and Andy Stanley are the featured speakers. I have attended 4 OneDays so far and have come away enriched in leadership each time. I look forward to it this time and what makes it better is five other guys will be going with me.

The difference? I will be unable to respond to this post past 10:00 Monday morning and none at all on Tuesday. So rather than just post something for the sake of posting something, I will be missing in your inbox on Tuesday. I know that makes you extremely disappointed.  🙂  I will post something Tuesday night which will run all day Wednesday (which I will be able to respond to).

So I give you this video to watch, listen to, and be inspired by.

Commendation

Thursday, February 19th, 2015

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Our recent paper had this to say about someone chosen to serve our local government:

“The retired Infantry Captain with the Indiana National Guard was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for service in combat in Iraq and received four Meritorious Service Medals, six Army Commendation Medals, five Army Achievement Medals, and was awarded the Order of St.Maurice by the National Infantry Association. Airborne qualified (name) served as company commander in Iraq, responsible for 131 men and $38 million in government property for one year. His background also includes serving as a human resource officer for 700 soldiers and he managed three unit bank accounts.”

That is some commendation and list of commendations!  And I have absolutely no problem with that.

My problem comes when we make a big deal of things in the church. You know…our own pews, our own chairs, name plates on communion trays or offering plates, naming buildings after people. Somehow I have trouble seeing Paul wanting the church addition honored in his name. 🙂

One of the problems the American church has (and probably all really) is believing-or at least practicing-that one person does all the work. The pastor or youth pastor or whomever is looked up to as the Grand Pooh-Pah of all things holy in the local church. Dangerous business if you ask me. It takes more than one or two individuals to make a church “work.” It takes a team.

That is the theme for this Sunday’s message from Galatians 2:1-10. Your church needs YOU!

Answers???

Wednesday, February 18th, 2015

Over the past few weeks I have expressed here and here that I feel God is calling me to draw near to Him. One of my readers commented saying:

“God calling me to a time of drawing near to Him” is a totally foreign concept to me. What is it you are waiting on? What do you expect to happen that would end the wait? ”

To be honest: those are very fair questions.

And to be equally honest: I’m not sure I have the answers to them.

It is harder to explain to one who does not share my faith (which he readily admits he doesn’t). But please don’t take that as a slam. I know he won’t. I have often written about using Christianese in our speech-using words and phrases only an “insider” would know. So, yes, it would be a foreign concept to him since he has no idea what I mean.

However, his questions are valid. Very much so. Some of the answers I am waiting for involve the church. Some involve me personally. Some involve my ministry.

The church is in need of some space but we have chosen not to add to our mortgage and finance a huge debt. We want to pay off what we owe first. But it may take awhile since we are not a rich church by any stretch. What to do in the meantime…besides wait?

My wife is retired and that means a change in income. Which also means a change in ability to help. It bugs me I can’t do what I used to be able to do. Some other personal things as well.

Am I leading as i should? Am I setting the example of forward thinking? Am I setting an example of seeking after God? Of being a grace-giving person?

I just know the approach I was taking was not getting me anywhere. I wrote this on February 9th in my Moleskine: “Father, I’m not really sure what is happening in me. I should but I don’t. I don’t know if it is a call from you to realign my priorities better. I’m not sure if you are preparing me for a major life change…I want You more alive in me. I want You to burn in me so I can burn into others. I want to be a world-changer, even if my world is only Spencer or my family or OVCF…You could be using me in a way I never thought…You could be planning to rock my world in a not-so-good way. I don’t know. I just want to be prepared spiritually.So prepare me please. Show me my next step/door. Let me be willing to walk through it, to walk where Your hand leads. My steps are ordered by You.”

I’m not sure I answered Jeff’s questions because I’m not sure I have the answers. But this sort of touches on what I am talking about and what I am asking prayer for.

Got any thoughts?

I apologize for the long post. I try to keep them between 100-250 words. I’ve gone way over that. If you stayed with me, thanks. 🙂

And if you are from OVCF and reading this: this DOES NOT mean I am leaving, planning to leave or want to leave. So don’t even go there. 😉

Benefit

Tuesday, February 17th, 2015

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In chapter 3 of his book, Bobby writes this: “God doesn’t exist for our benefit. We exist for His glory!” (p.59)

In my morning devotions today (Tuesday) I read these words: “Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness.” Psalm 115:1

In the last post about this book, I talked about the cost of following Jesus. The basic idea is we have adopted a consumer mentality when it comes to serving God. We present to Him our never-ending shopping list. It is like God is our magic genie in the sky.

The hard truth we have to come to realize is we do exist for His glory. Our My main purpose was never supposed to be promoting Bill. The moment “I” become more important than Him, and in seeing His name “in lights,” is the moment I have lost my focus and am trying to steal His glory. The Bible is very clear on God’s thoughts on that scenario. He says, “I will not share my glory with another.”

Long ago I came to the point of saying to myself, “Bill, you’re a hog, a glory hound. You may say you want to lift Jesus up, but those tend to be just words. Words & life go hand in hand.” I won’t lie and say I have that conquered. The old man in me still wants to have the preeminence. But as I grow in Christ, I also am learning to relinquish more and more control of my life to Him. As I do that, the chief by-product is He gets more glory. 🙂

Do you have trouble with wanting the attention and accolades?

Control

Monday, February 16th, 2015

Me and my big mouth! I know some of you are not surprised so no comment from the peanut gallery. 🙂

We were eating lunch at Wendy’s after church on Sunday when I made the comment about not having to shovel snow and maybe our kids will actually have close to two full weeks for Spring Break. Aaaaah Yeah. Me saying that was like someone washing their car. You just know it is going to rain! I woke up at 4 this morning with snow falling-enough which required shoveling at home; cleaning off my truck and Jo’s car; then heading to the office where I proceeded to shovel some more.

WHO IN THE WORLD TOLD ME TO SAY ANYTHING ABOUT NOT SHOVELING? Oh yeah, that be me. School was cancelled and as I write this it is still snowing and I suspect school will be cancelled tomorrow as well. Owen County has tons of back roads. Uneven back roads. Treacherous back roads.

The weather has and will change a lot of plans. Oh yeah…that old thing of not being in control. Know what I’m talking about? It seems like I have been talking to my share of people lately where control/not having it is an issue.  Ironically, I read this again today:

Your dreams may not be happening, and things aren’t turning out the way you expected, but that doesn’t mean your life is spinning out of control. It just means you’re not in control.  Plan B by Pete Wilson-p.22

Control also comes back to waiting. Waiting patiently or not. I’m still working this thing out in my mind. If you don’t mind, I will do more thinking out loud in another post. 🙂

So…is having control a major issue with you? Do you freak if you don’t? Do you just go with the flow?

Waiting

Sunday, February 15th, 2015

Waiting is on my short list. I am generally a pretty patient person, except when I want something now yesterday.  I can look back over my 40+ years as a pastor and see so many times I would have been so much better off waiting rather than pushing the envelope.

Personal decisions (especially financial) influenced by my failure to wait. Cars, trucks, credit cards all translate to UGH!

Church leadership decisions pushed because of a failure to wait.

The list can go on but I really don’t need to air my dirty laundry to get the point across.

They say patience is a virtue. Well, all I can say is in many cases I was a very un-virtuous man. 🙂

Case in point of lack of waiting: right now. I mentioned in this post that I sensed God calling me to a time of drawing near to Him. But you know what? I don’t want to wait! I want it NOW! I don’t want to wait until tomorrow. I don’t want to wait until next week. I don’t want to wait for a month. I want it now yesterday.

Funny thing: I’ve heard patience is a virtue. I’ve heard “Good things come to those who wait.” I’ve also read patience is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal.5: 22). I’m not sure there is any significance but patience comes right after the big three of “love, joy, and peace.” There are others who learned waiting was essential: Abraham. Elijah. Job. David.  Reckon I ought to throw my hat in that ring.

As I have thought about waiting, a song hits home. Hope you will take the time to listen here. So, wait I will because even though it may be uncomfortable, it is best.

Do you have trouble waiting?