Rules or Relationship?

 ²⁰ You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following the rules of the world, such as, ²¹ “Don’t handle! Don’t taste! Don’t touch!”? ²² Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them. ²³ These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires. Colossians 2:20-23 (NLT)

What is holiness?  Is it adherence to a rigid set of rules?  Rules that are designed to tell you what is right and wrong!  Or is it searching out the Scriptures to discover how God wants you to live and then having such close, intimate fellowship with the Holy Spirit that you allow the Spirit of God to guide your thoughts and actions?

I grew up in an era of legalism: don't go to movies, don't play cards, don't smoke or drink.  Why?  Because it broke the rules.  Did those rules make me holy?  Not at all!  They frustrated me and made me resentful.  When I search the Scriptures I don't find injunctions against those activities, but I do find that I am called to fill my mind with the Word of God and my heart with the love of God and be led by the Spirit of God.  Did those rules prevent me from going to movies?  No!  Does the fellowship with the Spirit and the need for that intimacy with God cause me to say no to certain movies or other activities?  Yes!  Does my relationship with Christ make me holy, yes.  He makes me holy!  My relationship with Christ shows me the parameters and the Spirit of God guides me in and around those parameters.  The rules bound me; my fellowship with the Holy Spirit frees me to be all that God intends for me to be.

God knew that the power of relationship would be greater than the power of rules.  The old adage, "rules are made to be broken" proves that point.  But when I am in a relationship with someone that I love then I go out of my way to find ways to please that person.

What do you think?  Is holiness found through adherence to a rigid set of rules or through the fellowship with the Holy Spirit?

Review of CHURCHED by Matthew Paul Turner

      So I read Matthew Paul Turner's book, CHURCHED.  I had to take my time reading the book, not because it was hard to read.  Indeed it was witty and insightful and actually a very easy book to read.  What it wasn't was easy to DIGEST!
     I laughed with and cried with Turner through out the book because I could relate to his heart's cry which I think was best captured when he said, "What I'm hoping to find in a church is a place all about joining God in the resurrection story.  I want to be a part of the solution, not the problem."
     That's what made CHURCHED difficult to digest. It describes a church that is self-absorbed, closed and narrow in its focus.  It made me stop and think about my own church, what kind of church am I a part of?  There certainly are elements of self-absorption and narrow-mindedness, but for the most part we are a church that is learning how to embrace the grace of God and extend that grace to everyone within our sphere of influence.
     That's what Turner is looking for in a church.  A church that is honest and open and genuine in its pursuit of God and in its presentation of the Gospel to the world around.

Vision and Strategy Church Trends for 2011 and Beyond

Vision and Strategy Church Trends for 2011 and Beyond

Going Back!

We are so excited to realize that we'll be going back to Venezuela in a little over a month!  We've not returned to that beautiful country that was our home from 1991 to 2002.  We've been priviledged to have the opportunity to renew acquaintances and encourage the church that we planted in 1995 in the city of Maracay.  We'll be leaving October 12 and returning to Canton on October 22nd.  We have the opportunity not only to revisit some of the beauty of the area but also to preach and teach and sing (Avril) in the church.

I am a bit overwhelmed with the challenge of preaching and teaching in Spanish.  It has been sooooo many years since I've done that.  Pray for the enabling of God's Spirit to be able to effectively communicate the Word of God to the church and to their invited friends.  Pray for Avril as she has opportunity to sing; pray for a freedom in her spirit to not only enable people to worship but also to come to faith in Christ through her songs.

We have a full schedule.  October 15 give a devotional to the young people.  October 16 lead a seminar for the small group leaders.  October 17 to 19th preach to the church and their invited guests in a mini evangelistic campaign.  October 20 lead a seminar for the church leaders.

Very excited!  Also very humbled!  We need the grace of God to overshadow us so that we can accomplish God's purposes for our visit to Maracay.

More postings to follow.  We'll let you know about the Country and the City and the Church.  We'll walk you through our daily journey once we arrive.

Sooo excited!!

Gideon - From Good to Not So Great

Gideon was a man of mediocrity. He battled fear, discouragement, and disbelief. Yet God slowly but surely moved Gideon from good to great. When Gideon finally believed God’s promises and acted upon them, the Lord used him to conquer the Midianites and save Israel.

If the story ended there Gideon would forever be remembered as a man of greatness. Unfortunately, not all stories have happy endings.  Gideon did something that led not only his family, but his nation into disfavor with God.  In one simple act Gideon went from good to not so great.  His legacy is forever tarnished.

No man wants to go from good to not so great.  No man wakes up one morning and decides that today would be a good day to ruin his legacy.

Casting Crowns sings a poignient song, "It's A Slow Fade".  The chorus describes the slow fade,

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away

It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray

Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid

When you give yourself away

People never crumble in a day

The journey from your mind to your hands Is shorter than you're thinking

Be careful if you think you stand You just might be sinking

Come and join us on this Saturday morning at 7:00 am at the "Band of Brothers" as we learn from Gideon's experience about how to detect and avoid the "slow fade."

"The fear of the Lord - that is wisdom,

and to shun evil is understanding."

Job 28:28

Marriage Built to Last

Beginning Sunday, September 12th @ 9:30 am we begin a 6 week journey together of learning to Live Intentionally and Love Biblically! Our journey is going to take us through 6 critical themes for developing Marriages that are strong and built upon a firm foundation. Beginning Sept. 12th and concluding on Oct. 24th we'll be diving into:

Sept. 12th - Adjusting to Expectations: We all bring certain expectations into a marriage, rightly or wrongly. What do we do with those expectations when they are unfulfilled? Unmet expectations or unrealistic expectations are marriage killers! But there is hope and an answer for the question of "expectations."

Sept. 19th - Learning to Communicate Clearly: Dr. Norman Wright wrote a book years ago with the title, "Communication - the Key to your Marriage." What is your communication style? Are you sure that what you're trying to communicate was clearly understood? How important is communication to you? These are some of the questions we'll examine. We can ALL become better communicators - and we need to if we want to build marriages that last!

Sept. 26th - Breaking Down Walls: Unintentionally or intentionally, we begin to construct walls in our marriage. Walls protect, they shut out, they block off, they isolate! Walls break down what should be good, solid marriages. In this session we'll identify some of the walls and learn how to deal with them. We need to deal with them if we want to have open and honest communication and build a marriage that lasts.

Oct. 10th - Resolving Conflict: "A little conflict is healthy, right?" Perhaps! You can't help but have conflict when you bring two individuals together in an intimate relationship such as marriage. But how do you handle the conflict, that's the key to building a lasting marriage. We'll learn together how to D.I.F.U.S.E conflict in our marriages.

Oct. 17th - Restoring Sex and Intimacy: Have you heard this before, "Sex begins in the kitchen"? What is that all about? Sex has more to do with a loving, intimate relationship than the actual act of sex. Sex is a gift from God to married couples but it is enhanced, not through pornography, but through healthy, loving communication. Sitting down at the kitchen table to talk is the key to a healthy and fun sex life. Restoring sex to it's rightful place and growing in intimacy as a couple are two keys to building a marriage that lasts.

Oct. 24th - Striving for a Christ-Centered Marriage: A marriage that lasts through all the storms that come against it is one that has Christ at the center. Christ is the stablizing factor. Christ is the organizing factor. Christ is the model. If we can learn to build our marriages around how Christ loved and cared for the Church, we'll be building strong and lasting marriages that serve as models to our children and our grand children.