“Perfect Communication”

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. - The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:1-2,14

A lady from England was coming to America and was looking for a place to rent. A real estate agent she had found on-line helped her find a nice little cottage to rent and she was looking forward to moving to her new home in the states. About a month before she was scheduled to leave, it occurred to her that she had never asked about the bathroom in the cottage. So she wrote another email inquiring about the bathroom. A complication came up however when she used an Old English reference for a bathroom. Feeling uncomfortable calling it a “toilet” or “water closet” she finally settled on the old term “bathroom commode.” Just as she was about to send her email she thought that was still too delicate, so she decided to abbreviate it to just the initials. “Could you please tell me about the bc?” (meaning bathroom commode) The real estate agent wrestled with the meaning of “bc” for awhile but finally arrived at the conclusion that it must mean “Baptist Church.” So he wrote an email back to tell her about the “bc.”

Dear Madam, I take great pleasure in telling you that the bc is situated 9 miles from the house, in the center of a beautiful grove of pine trees, surrounded by lovely grounds. It is capable of holding 229 people and is open on Thursdays and Sundays only. As there is often a great number of people expected during the summer months, I recommend that you come early, although there is usually plenty of standing room. (It seems that more people go during the summer than winter.) This is a rather unfortunate situation; especially if you are in the habit of going regularly throughout the summer. I recommend that you plan to arrive early so that you can be sure to get a space. It may be of some interest for you to know that my daughter was married in the bc. It was there that she met her husband. I can still remember how crowded it was that day. There were ten people for every seat that was normally occupied by one. It was wonderful to see the expressions on their faces! You’ll be glad to know that a number of people bring their lunch and make a day of it. I would especially recommend that you go on Thursdays when there is often an organ accompaniment. The acoustics are absolutely excellent, even the most delicate sounds can be heard everywhere. The newest addition is a bell which was donated by a wealthy resident. It rings out loud enough for the entire community to know that things have started inside. I recently heard that a yard sale is presently planned to raise money for new plush seats, which have been needed for so long. The old wooden ones can sometimes be hard to sit on, especially if you are required to be there a long time. My wife has not been feeling well so she can not go very often. In fact it’s almost a year since she went last. Naturally it pains her not to be able to be more regular. I shall be delighted to reserve the best seat for you. Please plan on sitting next to me and my family. We’d be glad to introduce to the others. Hoping to be of service to you – your real estate agent.

This humorous story reminds us of the importance of good communication. Aren’t you glad today that God is a great communicator? Have you ever wondered would it be like if God was silent? What would it be like if God never took it upon Himself to communicate with us? What if God started the world spinning and then left us to ourselves never to speak with us ever again? Consider the dilemma that God faces for a moment – how do you communicate a message that gets beyond all the cultural barriers, the language barriers, the educational barriers that exist between all the people all over the globe? And at the same time you have to recognize that none of these things are constant. Culture, language and human knowledge are constantly in flux – they are constantly evolving. If you have a message that means the difference between life and death for every man, woman and child on the face of the planet from the beginning of time to the very end of creation’s existence; how do you present that message so that nothing will be lost in translation and nothing will be mistranslated and misinterpreted due to shifting cultural norms? How do you break through all the confusion that exists in people’s minds when it comes to relating to God?

The answer? Jesus. Jesus is the language of God. Our God has not remained remote and unapproachable; he has come to us in person. He did not just write us a letter. He did not just send us a representative. He did not just speak his laws from a mountain. He came to us as one of us. The Infinite became an infant. The Eternal, Self-Existing One - the Great “I Am” - became dependant. Christ took on human flesh - not that he might know us, but that we might know Him. The content of everything that God desires to reveal to us is clearly revealed in Jesus, the Word of God. Jesus communicates the mind and heart of God the Father better than anyone. In a world filled with an almost infinite amount of information, nothing is more vital than what Jesus communicates through his life, death and resurrection. The Eternal One still speaks. Are you listening?

Live the victorious Life,
PT

Contagious Disease Strikes Our Area.

“The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.”
(1 Cor. 12:12)

“You Might Already Be Infected!” Please Read Further For More Information:
I recently read a story about a guy who had a problem with his golf game. Now I’m not really much of a golfer but I found this article intriguing. The article was about a guy who was a fairly avid golfer, but had never taken lessons and thus he had never come to a point of feeling competent in the game. He realized that he would never improve his game until he gave in and signed-up for lessons. So rather reluctantly, he did so. When he arrived at the club for the first lesson he was greeted by a young man who looked to be half his age - only this young man turned out to be the club’s golf pro. At first the guy was a little put-off by the golf pro’s age, but since he had already paid for the lessons, he decided to see what the kid knew. They went out to the driving range where the golf-pro began setting up all this video equipment. By this point the fellow was beginning to become a little frustrated. He’d signed up to learn how to play golf – not make a movie. But he humbled himself nonetheless and decided to follow the pro’s instructions. The kid instructed him to take a couple of swings at the ball. So that’s what he did, and took what he thought were some pretty good swings. The young instructor then took him inside to a computer screen. By this time he was beginning to think he had wasted a lot of time and money. The young trainer pulled this guy’s swing up on the screen and then split the screen and placed a video of Tiger Woods and his swing on the other side of the screen. Slowly and painfully the golf-pro went through and compared his swing to Tiger Wood’s swing – pointing out all of the flaws in his execution.

When all was said and done, the guy asked the pro what the root of his problem was. The young pro hemmed and hawed a bit before he said, “Well sir, to tell you the truth, the primary problem is you have a stagnant bottom.” A stagnant bottom! He expected a dropped shoulder, a lazy hand-grip, or wrong placement of the club - but a stagnant bottom! The pro went on to say, “Yes sir, you see when you execute your swing - your back side, if you will, just kind of sits there and does nothing. If you really want to experience the full power of your swing then you have to get your back side, your whole body into the swing.”

Now I admit I know nothing about what it takes to be a good golfer. But as I read this story, I wondered if part of the problem in our churches is that we have people who are infected with the same affliction? Could it be there is an epidemic of stagnant bottom disease spreading across our country and no one knows anything about it? How is this disease transmitted? Is it contagious? Everyone in our country is presently concerned about the spread of the H1N1 virus. Vaccines are just starting to become available to people in our area, and many people in our region are hoping to avoid catching this very contagious illness by getting immunized against it. Perhaps there is need to issue a Church Body Health Alert to help curtail the infectious stagnant bottom disease? It there is a way to prevent catching it? How do we stop it from spreading?

My guess is this affliction is not isolated to the world of golf nor is it something new. Stagnant bottom disease has been around for eons and continues to afflict many today. I suspect Paul may have had this in mind when he wrote the verse; The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts and though all its parts are many, they form one body. In order for the body (the Church) to function properly, all the parts have to work together. No part of the Church body is insignificant. There are no insignificant jobs in the Church. Everyone that works for the betterment of the Church plays a role in making the Church body healthier. The Church is one in Christ. And we all contribute in different ways. The nursery worker is just as important as the Sunday School teacher who is just as important as the janitor who is just as important as the youth worker who is just as important as (well, you get the idea). Every part of the Body is important and needed. When any part of the body isolates itself from the others, it is doing exactly the opposite of what the Bible teaches. We are all interdependent parts that can only function properly when working in unity with one another.

A healthy body is one in which each part is making a contribution. That’s the way God has designed the Church. The thing that undermines His design is when members are afflicted with stagnant bottom disease. When one part doesn’t make the contribution it’s designed to add, it affects the whole body. You might be sitting here, on your stagnant bottom, thinking that you really don’t have much to contribute. Don’t believe that! God made you with a purpose in mind. He has planned your contribution to the Body of Christ. And He is counting on what you will add. In fact the Church will not reach its full potential unless every member contributes their individual part.

If someone were to put your life on a split screen for comparison next to what God says in the Bible, what might it reveal? Would the diagnosis likely be a stagnant bottom? If you find you are infected, the good news is the cure is relatively simple. You don’t need to see a doctor to get cured. Our Great Physician has already given us the cure. Simply rise up, dust it off and get to work. When you do, you will find joy in knowing you are contributing to the greatest change agent this world has ever known. The Church will be healthier and more effective. And the world will see the Body functioning as Christ has designed it.

Live the Victorious Life,
PT

The Heart of Our Heavenly Father

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 7:7-12)

I recently read an amazing story about David Livingstone. He was born in 1813 in Scotland and died in 1873 in Zambia, Africa. He was an extraordinary man with a heart for God and others. His adventuresome spirit took him to places few if any had seen up to that time. His skill with medicine gave him a doorway to ministry. He was the first medical missionary to Central Africa. Toward the end of his life, he lost contact with the outside world for about 6 years. Henry Morton Stanley, a reporter for the New York Herald was sent to find him in 1869. He found Livingstone in the town of Ujiji in October of 1871. He greeted him with the now famous words, “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” to which he responded, “Yes, and I feel thankful that I am here to welcome you.” In less than two years Livingstone would die of malaria and dysentery. After his death, Britain wanted the tribe in Zambia to return the body of their countryman for a proper burial. At first the tribe refused. Eventually they sent his body back, but without the heart. They placed a note on his body that said, “You can have his body, but his heart belongs in Africa.” Livingstone's heartless body is buried at Westminster Abbey in London. Today there is a statue of Livingstone at the place where they buried his heart.

Question: If your heart were to be buried at the place you loved most, where would that be?
The above passage tells us a great deal about the heart of our Heavenly Father. It teaches us:

* Our Heavenly Father Is Approachable. Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Three times he invites us to approach him. “Ask!” “Seek!” “Knock!” The repetition is meant to get across the idea that the door of your Heavenly Father’s house is open. He wants us to approach him. If you ever need anything from him – just ask. If you need it real bad, seek. And if you’re desperate knock on the doors of heaven – he won’t mind. He’d love to hear from you, He’d like to know your concerns. There is no red tape – no hoops – no drills – no appointment secretaries to mess with. Just ask anytime, anywhere – any of you, and you’ll have an audience with him.

* Our Heavenly Father Is Benevolent “Ask,” and it will be given to you; “Seek,” and you will find. “Knock,” and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.” Your Heavenly Father is kind, He is compassionate – He is generous. Be encouraged to come. Pray to him. It is not in vain that you pray. God is not toying with you. He answers. He gives good things when you pray. Understand His benevolence.

* Our Heavenly Father Is Wise. “Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! We have a heavenly Father who is willing to answer and wise enough to give us what we really need. The emphasis here is on God’s wisdom. We often don’t know what to ask for. But God knows what we need – and he will not answer our prayers by giving us anything that contradicts his heart of love towards. A loving human father wouldn’t give his child a stone or a snake when he is hungry. That would violate the boundaries of common sense and concern. If we know who to respond to our children in loving ways – how much more will our Heavenly Father know how to respond to us when we ask anything of Him?

What’s the point of all this? If you knew his heart, you would never stop pursuing Him. When you pause to consider that God is infinitely strong and can do all that he pleases, and that he is infinitely righteous so that he only does what is right, and that he is infinitely good so that everything he does is perfectly good, and that he is infinitely wise so that he always knows perfectly what is right and good, and that he is infinitely loving so that in all his strength and righteousness and goodness and wisdom he raises the eternal joy of his loved ones as high as it can be raised—when you pause to consider this, then the lavish invitations of this God to ask him for good things, with the promise that he will give them, is unimaginably wonderful.

Livingston’s heart was kept by the people to whom he gave it. Your Heavenly Father wants you to know that he has given to you His heart through the cross of Jesus Christ. Will you receive it today?

Live the Victorious Life,
PT

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me” John 10:27

The week before his wife turned 45, a husband asked his wife what she really wanted for her birthday. She thought for a moment and said, “I’d like to be 10 again.” So bright and early on her birthday, he got her up and they were at the gates of the local amusement park when it opened. He ran her from ride to ride. They rode the Death Defying Roller Coaster, the Scream Machine, and every other ride two or three times while eating ice cream and hot dogs as they were waiting in line. Six hours later she staggered out of the theme park with a splitting headache and an upturned stomach. Then he took her to a crowded IMAX theatre to watch an action movie with all the special effects and the volume cranked up to the max. While there, he fed her popcorn, candy, and soda. On the way home, he stopped by McDonald’s and bought her a supersized Big Mac meal and then they climbed into all the passages of the little playground out front. Finally when she fell into bed that night, he said, “Well, how did you enjoy your day? Do you feel like you are ten again?” She looked at him through one eye and groaned, “Honey, I was talking about my dress size - not my age!” --- Oh, if we only better listeners!

Most of us have seen the commercial on TV done by a wireless cell phone company. It’s the one where the guy walks around to various places where a phone normally would not work. He goes out further and further away from the main connection and asks the question, “Can you hear me now”? I think the worst job in the world must be the guy on the other end whose job is to sit at a desk say all day long, “Yes, I can hear you now!” The commercial is trying to make a point about how good the reception is for their phone service. No matter where you are; no matter how far away; their service is still available and usable.

In the verse above, Jesus reminds us that you don’t need a cell phone to stay in touch. If you know Jesus, you can always hear and respond to his leading in your life. No matter where you are, no matter how far away from God you might presently feel, you can never be so distant that His voice will not reach you. Now you might not necessarily feel that way today. You might feel as if there is a disconnection between you and God. But that’s not because our shepherd is not speaking. It might be because you have decided not to listen for His voice. What does this verse teach about staying connected?

* Train your ear to listen to His voice: In the verse above Jesus says, “My sheep listen to my voice.” Two things these particular words say to us: (1) Jesus is speaking – The voice of our Lord still rings out every day through His Word and His Spirit. In the past, God has spoken – in the present, God is still speaking. (2) His sheep listen – hearing the voice of the shepherd is not just for the “super-spiritual.” All of his sheep, at least the ones who are listening, hear Him. But note: listening is an active responsibility, not passive. The idea expressed here is that the sheep are constantly listening – seeking to hear the voice of their shepherd. Listening is not the same as hearing. You can hear something, but still not pay attention to it. (like elevator music) To “listen,” you must pay attention. It involves focused concentration. Train your ear to listen.

* Train your heart to relate to His voice: “I know them” Here Jesus makes reference to His desire to have relationship with you and me. A good shepherd knows all about his sheep. He knows their weaknesses and their strengths. He knows and understands each one, individually. The reason the shepherd speaks is relationship. He wants to know us. Conversely, the reason the sheep listen is also relationship. They listen for his voice, because they they’ve learned to depend upon and trust him. The sheep, who listen, are the ones who trust him. They want to know the shepherd. Train your heart to relate.

* Train your feet to follow after His voice: “And they follow Me” Staying connected is more than just hearing the voice of our Shepherd, it also involves obeying his instructions. It does no good to listen to his voice and then make a decision to do your own thing or go your own way. Stay connected by determining to obey what the shepherd teaches. His instruction is for our own good. Train your feet to follow.

Take a moment right now and hear the voice of your shepherd asking, “Can you hear me now?” If you sense there is disconnectedness, ask yourself, “What is it that is preventing me from hearing God speak?”

The answer to that question is the area you need to change.

Live the Victorious Life,
PT