I’m praying this for my church. I’m praying this for our nation as we approach elections.
May the Tribe of Issachar arise!
Issachar –
-9th son of Jacob.
-5th son born to Leah.
-Granted territory on the West Bank of the Jordan close to the Sea of Galilee.
Issachar –
-Whose name meant “hired workman” and who was seeming slighted in the blessings of Jacob at his deathbed.
-a rawboned donkey
-bending his shoulder
-submitting to the labor at hand. (Gen 49:14-15)
May the Tribe of Issachar arise!
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
May the Tribe of Issachar arise! Part 1
That’s it.
That’s my whole prayer for you as a leader.
It is the most profound prayer I can utter for you or any other leader.
May the Tribe of Issachar arise!
Looking for clue to the blessing?
Seeking understanding of this prayer?
Read 1 Chronicles!
May the Tribe of Issachar arise!
Friday, October 17, 2008
Time Turns
Time Turns
It’s just mid-October
The staff has met in detailed planning about Christmas events.
Monday night a men’s event was planned for January.
Easter designs and ideas are moving from abstract to concrete.
A summer mission adventure is forming.
Wow! Time Turns!
Friday marks 28 years of marriage.
Sunday begins my 4th year as Lead Pastor.
In May my son graduates from college!
Wow! Time Turns!
If I live to be 80 – just 10,950 days left.
If I live to be 80, in less than 3 years I drop below 10,000
– a 4-digit midget.
Wow! Time Turns!
What if it’s only 75 – that’s 9,125 days left.
If it’s 70, then 7,300 days.
I might already be a 4-digit midget.
Wow! Time Turns!
No wonder Paul said this, “Be very careful, then, how you live-not as unwise but as wise making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Eph 5:15-16
Friday, October 10, 2008
The Power of A Life Lived Well
Fall arrived on Monday morning. It had me thinking of life and leaves. It seems that the power of a life is not lived in the moments for they pass like leaves falling to the ground. The impact of a life is found when those moments are seen together as a meaningful whole, like sitting in the shade of a towering elm. The shade is the result of the composite of each leaf on each branch.
Therefore, while the little choices I make today may seem inconsequential—like a leaf falling to the ground, each choice contributes to the composite, the whole. I hug my wife. I praise my daughter. I listen to the heartache of a friend. I pay a bill. I write a note. I do a chore. I worship the Creator. Little choices—leaves falling, passing, seemingly unnoticed.
I lie to a friend. I cheat on a time card. I lust for another. I entertain the racist joke. I berate my son. I flee from the challenges. I shun my wife. I give up hope. I embrace bitterness. I ignore the Creator. Little choices—leaves falling, passing. Leaves that point to a tree—a life lived well or poorly.
Fall arrived on Monday. It reminded me that a life lived well, tends the leaves.
Therefore, while the little choices I make today may seem inconsequential—like a leaf falling to the ground, each choice contributes to the composite, the whole. I hug my wife. I praise my daughter. I listen to the heartache of a friend. I pay a bill. I write a note. I do a chore. I worship the Creator. Little choices—leaves falling, passing, seemingly unnoticed.
I lie to a friend. I cheat on a time card. I lust for another. I entertain the racist joke. I berate my son. I flee from the challenges. I shun my wife. I give up hope. I embrace bitterness. I ignore the Creator. Little choices—leaves falling, passing. Leaves that point to a tree—a life lived well or poorly.
Fall arrived on Monday. It reminded me that a life lived well, tends the leaves.
Friday, October 3, 2008
If only my heart will yield.
2 Corinthians 5:17 -- Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! NIV
Yesterday has no power over me, it was broken at the cross, tomorrow has no power over me, it must yield. It must yield to the new man, the new creation. Nothing now looms over me, no ill fate, no dire circumstance that will not yield to the seed of righteousness sewn in my heart. Alive! Redeemed, bought back from death, bought back to life. Accounted righteous, purged in holiness, reflecting the invisible, image of the Justifier.
Everything will yield. Everything. If only my heart will yield.
If anyone is in Christ, he is new. Let the new come!
Yesterday has no power over me, it was broken at the cross, tomorrow has no power over me, it must yield. It must yield to the new man, the new creation. Nothing now looms over me, no ill fate, no dire circumstance that will not yield to the seed of righteousness sewn in my heart. Alive! Redeemed, bought back from death, bought back to life. Accounted righteous, purged in holiness, reflecting the invisible, image of the Justifier.
Everything will yield. Everything. If only my heart will yield.
If anyone is in Christ, he is new. Let the new come!
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
SHADOWS
Wall Street is in an uproar. Hurricane Ike’s battering of the “oil coast” in the gulf has left refineries off-line and rigs toppled. Gasoline has jumped 70 cents in a week. Wind storms have leveled trees, downed power lines and hammered homes.
Clouds overshadow not just the storefront in which I write, but they seem to be overshadowing the community.
Tenneco lays off. Norwalk Furniture closed. Insurance is cancelled. Jobs are few. The shadows, the clouds, they seem to darken.
Jeremiah wrote in his days of darkness; in his time of lament. “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lam 3:22-23
Therefore today in my time of shadows, Jeremiah continues, “I also will say to myself, The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” Lam 3:24
In the wake of job loss, in the midst of job searches, “I will wait for him.” When the weight of the bills exceeds the limits of a checkbook, “I will wait for him.” When I fret over insurance and the loss of benefits, “I will wait for him.” In the days when the shadows hang heavy, “I will wait for him.”
If this week finds you in the shadows, say to yourself, The Lord is Good, I will wait for Him.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Walking with Inhumans
Okay, I’ve been thinking about leadership again. This time from my childhood.
As a kid I read a lot of comic books. For a while I enjoyed reading The Inhumans, a fictional race of royal superhumans. Each possessed some power of immense magnitude, yet each was also marred in some significant way. Each had some handicap or frailty. Black Bolt, their king had the power to generate quasi-sonic energy through his voice. As a youth, to protect the community, Black Bolt was placed inside a sound-proof chamber and given an energy-harnessing suit and never allowed to re-enter society until he vowed never to speak. Gordon possessed immense strength but with feet of hooves. Karnak had the ability to find the weak point in any person, plan or object, but possessed no other powers. Many of their adventures concerned how to accomplish their mission making best use of their powers while compensating for their weaknesses.
When a random thought recently sent my mind wandering down these dusty memories, I began to think of how similar the Church is. We are a group of redeemed people (royal priesthood), each given unique talents, gifts, (God giving power) yet each of us handicapped, and sometimes hamstrung, by our innate weaknesses and frailties. We have been charged with an incredible mission, the great commission, the battle for humanity. Together we learn to utilize each other’s strengths to the greatest benefit while at the same time compensating for each other’s weaknesses.
What made reading comics like the Inhumans so intriguing is that no matter what the challenge, they figured out a way to get it done. Real leaders know this- incredible teams (churches) rise to the challenges before them using their gifts and talents, overcoming their weaknesses and frailties to advance the mission.
Hmmm! I’m in the mood for a comic book.
--The Man in the Window!
As a kid I read a lot of comic books. For a while I enjoyed reading The Inhumans, a fictional race of royal superhumans. Each possessed some power of immense magnitude, yet each was also marred in some significant way. Each had some handicap or frailty. Black Bolt, their king had the power to generate quasi-sonic energy through his voice. As a youth, to protect the community, Black Bolt was placed inside a sound-proof chamber and given an energy-harnessing suit and never allowed to re-enter society until he vowed never to speak. Gordon possessed immense strength but with feet of hooves. Karnak had the ability to find the weak point in any person, plan or object, but possessed no other powers. Many of their adventures concerned how to accomplish their mission making best use of their powers while compensating for their weaknesses.
When a random thought recently sent my mind wandering down these dusty memories, I began to think of how similar the Church is. We are a group of redeemed people (royal priesthood), each given unique talents, gifts, (God giving power) yet each of us handicapped, and sometimes hamstrung, by our innate weaknesses and frailties. We have been charged with an incredible mission, the great commission, the battle for humanity. Together we learn to utilize each other’s strengths to the greatest benefit while at the same time compensating for each other’s weaknesses.
What made reading comics like the Inhumans so intriguing is that no matter what the challenge, they figured out a way to get it done. Real leaders know this- incredible teams (churches) rise to the challenges before them using their gifts and talents, overcoming their weaknesses and frailties to advance the mission.
Hmmm! I’m in the mood for a comic book.
--The Man in the Window!
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