Discovering Christmas Peace in serving others!

“ ’I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May your word to me be fulfilled.’ Then the angel left her.” is Luke 1:38.

Serving in Love Graphic

The astronomer measures time by light-years, the geologist by vast cycles, the historian by epics and centuries, the industrialist by the fiscal year, the laborer by the weekly paychecks, the child by the birthday party.

But the common measure of time begins with the awkward motions of rising in the morning and putting one foot in front of the other. Mary’s obedience teaches us the integrity of life is measured in our response to God and his love. As God’s word is fulfilled in our lives, he measures time in terms of responsible living, even when the circumstances challenge us.  Christmas peace is serving others in love … Christmas peace is that our actions speak louder than our words. Are you the Lord’s servant?

You know I love ya, Don

Hippies ... someone the Shepherd brought home.

Carl Ketcherside served with and was instrumental in a strict branch of the Restoration Movement. However, the Lord made a lot of changes in his life. In his later years he moved to St. Louis and ministered among the down and out. At this time, Ketcherside began to work with a group of teenagers he described as "a crew of ripped off long haired kids," with a history of drug addiction. He loved them, listened to them, and one by one baptized them into Christ.

An affluent member of the church asked, "How are you making out with the hippies--those long haired, sad looking specimens you have been meeting with?"

Carl responded, "Those are not specimens, they are children of God. You are talking about my brethren in the Lord."

Condescendingly the other man continued, "They look to me like something the cat dragged in."

And Carl replied, "They look to me like someone the shepherd brought home."

At one time in your life … you were the one that cat dragged home and Jesus stepped in and reached out to you and brought a change and a brighter future. You look someone the shepherd brought home…

Ephesians 2:10 states it this way, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” The question becomes … what are you doing for God? If I were a non-believer looking at your life, would I want to know Jesus because of you? Because of how you live your life and how the hope found in Christ brings a brighter future?

God has made it very clear that He uses ordinary people on a ordinary journey to make EXTRAORDINARY changes in the world around them. You and I have a mandate, a message, a calling that is very clearly laid out and it is for every believer that truly believes. Jesus said … “Go, make disciples and preach and teach and Baptize and LIVE the truth that He is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Are you? Are you listening? …are you seeking? Are you doing? These things are not for a special person over there…they are for the special person living inside of you.

You know I love ya, Don

The Greatest Serve with Expectation!

Jesus offers the expectation for those who serve in the Kingdom of God. He states in Luke 22:29-30, “And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

Jesus teaches that the greatest in the kingdom serve with the method of expectation. Jesus expects us to serve and he also tells us to serve with an expectation that God is a good God, with the expectation that we can expect the person in who we are serving will receive a blessing from our service...even if that person does not appreciate it. At the time Jesus tells his disciples these declarations of a kingdom, they did not appreciate that God's kingdom is a kingdom built on serving others.

I love this picture...so many of us serve with the expectation that we will be served in the process. That we will serve and turn into this super buff spiritual Christian...yet we are so busy thinking about the “me” that we forget that service is about the “THEM.” The church is filled with soft cuddly puppies sitting on a cushion waiting for God to rub their belly because of their service...the greatest in God's Kingdom serve with the expectation that God will be served, God's name will be recognized as worthy of allowing me to serve, and transformation will take place within the one serving....

Serving with expectation is not about the “me,” serving in God's Kingdom is about serving the “THEM.” 

You know I love ya, Don 

The greatest serve with persistance!

Luke 22:28 Jesus says, “You are those who have stood by me in my trials.” Persistence is defined as continuance till the end. And endurance is defined as using strength to continue despite pain and fatigue. The difference between the two is that persistence is remaining steady in hopes to finish while endurance is bearing pain so that you can finish. Christ-followers cling to the hope that “Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, Son of God and that he will carry them through.

I am always amazed at water. It is the model of persistence. Water has a way of pushing through amazing obstacles, one drip at a time. There have been many instances where what seemed to be an insignificant drip was really a tiny part of a dam pushing through a little at a time. Water is also very adaptable to what it wants to accomplish. Water can be calm and peaceful, but become raging and destructive. A lake can rise inch by inch and suddenly become a flood. A bay can combine with wind to be an agitator and bulldozer.

We need to be more like water. We need to be determined to push through our obstacles to serve whether by peace or by force. Imagine our lives as if it were a stream. It can trickle along gently, flowing across pebbles and shaping them as we move over them. Water changes things...persistence changes things. It exerts gentle pressure over time and softens hard rocks into rounded pebbles. Water combines with others to gain power. A stream joins with other streams to make a river. A river combines with other rivers to make its way to an ocean. Water is not satisfied with being a mere drop, but makes its way drop by drop to being a grand ocean.

Water carries things. It carries life along its banks. It carries progress from place to place. Water moves people and things from where they are to where they need to be. The persistence of waters..serves others...the persistence of believers also serves others.

Water is a change agent. It changes barren lands to fertile grounds. It can cut off or it can bring together. Even when it divides, it can still be crossed. Water changes the power balance. Water rises to the occasion. When life pours too much in it, it just finds new paths for it to flourish. When life tries to contain it, water pushes through to where it wants to go. 

As a servant... we need to be more like water and find a way to push through. Water is persistent. We need to be persistent as well. We need to move towards our goals, one step at a time. Our goals will not be reached overnight, but through the diligence of continued steps. We need to combine our strengths with others to form alliances that get us to where we want to go. When we add and multiply our strengths, we will eventually overflow our present boundaries and flow out into our full destiny. We need to carry ourselves from dream to reality to prosperity. We should not be satisfied with stagnancy, but keep current and keep moving toward a life full of productivity and creativity and fruitfulness.

Most of all, we should be full of life. Full of life-giving nourishment. Full of life-giving hydration. We should add to, not take away from. We should rejuvenate, not suck the life out of others’ dreams. We should bring forth creativity, not stifle.

If ever we need encouragement, we should think about a drop of water. We should think about how water gets where it wants to, drop by drop, building pressure that eventually results in a breakthrough. There is so much power in a drop of water. It is just the beginning. It is only the promise of what is yet to come.

If a drop of water can move a mountain through persistence, then surely we can serve through the method of persistence as well.

Serving with persistence is not about the “me,” serving with persistence is about clinging to the hope of our salvation and serving the “THEM.”

The greatest in the kingdom of God serve by methods of persistence.

You know I love ya, Don

The Greatest Serve with Endurance!

The greatest in the kingdom of God serve by methods of love, endurance, persistence, and expectation.

 

The Greatest Serve with Endurance:

Consider Luke 22 verse 27 where Jesus says, “I am among you as one who serves.” God could have easily walked away from his creation. We certain walk away from him. We chose to do it our way. Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley sang it...”I did I've loved, I've laughed and cried , I've had my fill, my share of losing And now, as tears subside I find it all so amusing to think I did all that and may I say, not in a shy way not me, I did it my way.”

In contrast, God faithfully served and demonstrated his love our direction. Romans 5:8 states, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” He faithfully served. Jesus also demonstrates to us that the greatest do not consider their way...but consider the way of serving faithfully. Believers serve through rejection, through hurt, through sorrow, through hard times...the greatest serve with endurance.

During World War II, England needed to increase its production of coal. Winston Churchill called together labor leaders to enlist their support. At the end of his presentation he asked them to picture in their minds a parade which he knew would be held in Piccadilly Circus after the war.

First, he said, would come the sailors who had kept the vital sea lanes open. Then would come the soldiers who had come home from Dunkirk and then gone on to defeat Rommel in Africa. Then would come the pilots who had driven the Luftwaffe from the sky.
Last of all, he said, would come a long line of sweat-stained, soot-streaked men in miner's caps. Someone would cry from the crowd, 'And where were you during the critical days of our struggle?' And from ten thousand throats would come the answer, 'We were deep in the earth with our faces to the coal.”
Not all the jobs in a church are prominent and glamorous. But it is often the people with their "faces to the coal" who help the church accomplish its mission. Those with there faces to the coal are serving with endurance. Christ-followers serve when it is not easy to serve, they serve when it is not pleasant to serve, they serve even when it is painful....

Serving with endurance is not about how much pain this is putting on “me,” … serving with endurance is about being comforted in the hope of our salvation and serving the “THEM.”

Let me ask you....do you serve with endurance?

You know I love ya, Don

The Greatest Serve with Unconditional Love!

 Jesus reminds us that the greatest serve. The question develops on how does Jesus expect us to serve? What are the methods of service that Jesus teaches His disciples? What methods are God's expectation in serving in His kingdom?

The greatest in the kingdom of God serve by methods of love, endurance, persistence, and expectation.

Consider Luke 22, verse 26 where Jesus says, “The greatest among you should be like the youngest.” Jesus says that we are to serve like the youngest...how does the youngest of children serve...unconditionally loving those around them. A servant that desires to be the greatest, will serve unconditionally. This person will not be driven to serve because they love praise of service...but will serve with love and never expect to be praised in return. Just like a young child will love those around him or her.

This is a picture of our youngest, Nathan. He is a bundle of love. You just have to kiss those big chubby checks. All babies are made to love and be loved. Jesus says we are to be like the youngest and love unconditionally. Believers in Jesus are the ones that reach out and serve in love...unconditionally.

Just a few weeks ago, we celebrated the 40^th anniversary of the Martin Luther King Jr's, “I have a Dream” speech. Dr. King believed anyone can serve...he said, “"Everybody can be great... because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love." I could not agree more!

Serving with love is understanding that serving is not about the “me,” serving with love is about serving the “THEM.”

Let me ask you....do you serve with unconditional love?

You know I love ya, Don

Happiness...to love another person is to see the face of God!

 Serving others is living the power of heavenly grace today. Dave Stone says that "service is the language of grace” and grace is the language for entrance into heaven.

One day a couple of church members were out distributing loaves of bread in a low-income housing complex. They came to an apartment where they heard arguing through the door, but they decided to knock anyway. A man opened the door and asked what they wanted. One of the visitors said, "We don't want anything. We just wondered if you know anyone who could use some loaves of bread?"

"Why are you doing that?" the man asked.

"Just to let people know that God loves them."

"What did you just say?" the man asked, rather anxiously.

"We're just handing out loaves of bread to let people know that God loves them."

The man stared and said, "I can't believe this. We just buried our three-week-old son yesterday, and now here you are at our door."

The visitors offered to pray with them, and the couple accepted their offer. As they were leaving, and the door was being closed, they heard the husband say to his wife, "See, honey? I told you God cares. We thought he wasn't paying attention to us, but he sent those people here to make sure we knew."

Too many people make excuses as to why they can't serve. Can you bake a cake? Can you cook some food item? Can you cut some one's grass? Can you call people and give them an encouraging word? Can you do housework? Can you do handy work? Can you donate anything of value? Can you stop along your way and give a smile? Can you invite someone to sit in church with you? Can you take an interest in someone's life?

The big thing is that you have to be ready to serve. You have to open your eyes and your ears to the needs of others. 1 Pet. 4:10 -- "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." It is in serving God and others that we truly receive the reward of heaven today.

Get out and serve...you know I love ya, Don

Serving in a spirit of restoration!

Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. Galatians 5:26

True servants concentrate on their God-given assignment - not what somebody else is doing! Competition between God's servants is illogical: we're all on the same team. Our goal is to make God look good, not ourselves. Listen: "We will not compare ourselves...as if one of us were better and another worse. We have far more interesting things to do...Each of us is an original" (Gal 5:26 TM).

Grow up! Get over your petty jealousy! When you're busy serving you don't have time to be critical. When Martha criticized Mary, she lost her servant's heart. True servants don't complain of unfairness, don't have pity-parties and don't resent those not serving in the same way. They just trust God and keep serving. It's not your job to evaluate others. Listen: "Who are you to criticize...The Lord will determine whether his servant has been successful" (Ro 14:4 GWT). God determines who's successful, not you!

Nor is it your job to defend yourself against criticism. Let God handle it! Nehemiah's response to his critics is a classic: "My work is too important to stop now and...visit with you" (Neh 6:3 CEV).
One of the most beautiful acts of love shown to Jesus was criticized by His own disciples. When Mary took the most valuable thing she owned, expensive perfume, and poured it over Jesus, they called it? a waste'. But Jesus called it, "significant" (Mt 26:10 TM). There's only one opinion that matters - His! Your service for Christ is never wasted, regardless of what others say.

Pride is the root of competition. As fellow servants, competition should always take a back position. We make it our goal to please the One we serve by showing compassion and grace to others in service as He has graciously immersed us in the same. Thus, we serve in unity while developing hope in those we attend to.

You know I love ya, Don

I'm Hungry in a whole new way....

Karen S. Wylie (Texas, USA) offers this story and it resonates with me today....

Four-year-old Brenda slipped unseen from her mother’s pew. She walked down the aisle to the front of the church, where her pastor stood making the weekly announcements. Taking the pastor’s hand, she announced, “I’m hungry!” The embarrassed mother hurried to retrieve her child and bring her back to the pew. She assured the youngster that they would eat when they got home. The little girl’s statement stuck with me as the service continued. How many of us have come to church “hungry” today? Are the others in the congregation spiritually hungry for more of God? Am I? Did I enter the sanctuary expecting to be spiritually fed from the Lord’s table? 

Now each Sabbath I make a conscious effort to come to church hungry. I wait expectantly for the Holy Spirit to feed my heart and soul. Then I continue my spiritual journey, nourished, invigorated, and fed.

This is a great story and it has some very strong teaching elements to it. It reminds me of Matthew 5:6 which states; "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." I want to know God more in everyday. 

You know I love ya, Don

The Church's Spirituality and the 1900's

Jesus said that we are to go to all the world and preach the message the he has started. The era of the church in the west since 1900 has many interesting figures. These figures are dedicated to preaching along with bringing a renewed since of social justice. Jesus commands with the goal of baptizing the new believers and then to teach them that he had taught the early disciples. The 1900's separate themselves in that this era grabs the concept of going to all the world. Mission efforts increase and the actions of the dedicated believers is so proclaim the message throughout all the world, through all social classes, beyond race barriers, and beyond gender distinctions.

Mother Teresa seemed to cross all cultural and denominational barriers in her calling. She saw her faith and action as a dedication to God and his calling on her life. She stated, “As to my calling, I belong to the whole world. As to my hearts, I belong entirely to the heart of Jesus.” The personalities of the era look beyond their limitations and allow the Holy Spirit bring to fruition the goals that Jesus established in his great commission to go, baptize, and make disciples. God's power of grace and truth permeate the anti-God culture that emerges in the second half of the 1900's. It is this dedication and search for God on a global scale that transcends cultural barriers so that the good news of Jesus is preached.

Thomas Merton writes on these thoughts prolifically. His confessions follow that of Augustine and is a story of a worldly young man who radically changes the direction of his life so as to devote himself to God. Merton changes his perception that he is to escape the world, but that he is to serve the world as a member of it. Holt records of Merton as: “Merton saw his responsibility in that world to be wider than prayer for it.” Merton himself writes, “Christian holiness is our age means more than ever the awareness of our common responsibility to cooperate with the mysterious design of God for the human race.” It is this since of responsibility that calls and spurs us on to serve the world in which we live so as to bring a message of the good news of the gospel to those around us on a daily basis.

Alcoholics Anonymous is a great illustration to this era's endeavor to reach beyond the message into helping the world see the message. The task is accomplished in the servant attitude that is so desperately needed through out all cultures. A servant heart looks to Niebuhr’s Serenity Prayer: “God grant me the grace to accept with serenity the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference” and establishes a sense that change needs to take place and through God's grace and truth, believers present the message of Jesus for change.

Church has also developed the outreach programs in order to develop the spiritual life within the believers through the 1900s. Development of education, communication, and technology has advanced the work of the church in connecting people to Jesus and to each other. Richard Foster describes twelve spiritual disciplines that are organized into three categories. These categories are: “the inward, the outward, and the corporate disciplines.” Each of these disciplines bring about change with in the believer for the transformation of the soul. Foster writes: “The disciplines are the path of the spiritual life. This path leads to the inner transformation and healing for which we seek.” The healing of the soul and restored connection with the creator are realized in the practice of the spiritual disciplines.

Another development is in the area of equipping the believers for individual service. This was not a new development for the church, but that the equipping is accomplished through embracing of psychology and the recognition of individual talents for the purpose of propagation of the message and increased effectiveness for service. Karl G. Jung embraced this union of psychology and spirituality. His work is a major contributor for the development of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Test that is widely used as a resource for spiritual direction and mentoring. The church in the 1900's is a church that takes the message and uses the knowledge of the psyche so as to maneuver an increased effectiveness in kingdom advancement.

The 1900's were an exciting time for the Kingdom of God. The advancement of the good news began having an greater global impact then ever before. The church in South America and Africa grew in great numbers. The church in Europe slowed down in its growth, yet the dedicated maintained a remnant of believers for the purpose of advancing the message of grace and truth. The Catholic and Protestant movements started seeing more cooperation, especially in the area of praying for unity. Believers also began serving other religions and cultures in the name of Jesus so as to win them. The words of Jesus to go, to preach, and baptize were embraced and expressed in new and creative ways that transformed lives and connected people to their creator for all eternity.

 Seeking transformation....you know I love ya, Don

Bradley P. Holt. Thirsty for God. (Fortress Press: Minneapolis, 2005).

Set free to serve

 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash. When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law." - Matthew 7:24-29

Jesus' words are refreshing...It takes work to build your house on the rock. It takes commitment to God, to each other and to life. Over the last few weeks, I have strategically been blogging about orthopraxy...this is the belief that right action is as important as religious faith. In other words, it is to live a full life being putting into action things that are right.

A Christ-follower is set free by exercising prayer & fasting, exercising meditation, exercising worship, exercising right living, and exercising faith.The truth does not set you free for fleshly desires, but in contrast the truth sets you from fleshly desires and the truth makes you a servant.

     What is holding you in bondage today?

           What sin in your life is keeping you a prisoner?

                    How can you renew your commitment to Jesus and His purposes in your life?

The parole board has come to you. It is time for renewal in your life...let the truth set you free through prayer, fasting, meditation, worship, and faith...be set free...become a servant.

You know I love ya, Don

God's Love... a Member of the Redeemed!

 

God's Love...God's love is His strong affection He has for us as His creation. God's love is like the father welcoming back the lost son while at the same time putting his arm around the older brother and demonstrating graciousness and sincere love for His older son. It is God's unselfish, loyal and benevolent concern that He grants us.

We were able to go home 42 days after Matthew birth. We went home with an antibiotic pump and an Nasal Feeding tube. It was October 31^st of 2003 and in that year it was a Friday. On Monday, we received the hospital bill for over $473,000. We had no idea how we were going to pay that bill. On Tuesday we received a letter from our insurance company informing us that we had an clause in our insurance that if we were transferred from a participating provider to an non participating provider, the company would cover everything as if it were the original hospital.

Instantly, I recollected my original prayer 45 days earlier... “God, just let us take him home” and God said, “no.” If we had left the hospital...the insurance would not have paid anything. The right answer was, “no.” God's love was willing to say, “no” so that God's love could draw us in to His story of the redeemed.

The insurance paid everything but our co-pays. We had a ten dollar copay for every doctor we saw and that bill was over $3000 in co-pays. The insurance paid the bills while church members and friends raised the funds to make up the co-pays. Every medical bill had been paid and cleared by the end of the month of November. We never asked for financial help...God just does what he does best and demonstrated the truth “everything belongs to the ones that are redeemed.”

Matthew is now nine years old and since his birth, God has continued to draw us into his story with four more children. Another biological child in our six year old girl that does not have down syndrome, but is very special in every typical way. We adopted Nicholas Mark, who had down syndrome and who died in our arms at two months old from complications from heart surgery. Nicholas is our treasure waiting for us in heaven. We have adopted Kendyll Andrey who has down syndrome and he is three years old. We have also adopted Nathan Israel who is a year old and he also has down syndrome.

I started these blog post last Monday with the following question in mind, “How can a person become a character in the story of the redeemed?” The answer is, “By spending time with Jesus and he will give you a story...not because of you, but because of who He is! And when you have been with Jesus and you have experienced God's intimacy, God's Concern, and God's Love, you can't help but tell your story as a member of the redeemed.

You know I love ya, Don

Are you a lead dog?

"Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all." - Mark 9:35

I read this scripture this morning and remembered this sermon I was study of Leonard Sweet. He has a great story on not stepping on others in order to make a difference. That are many times we strive and work, even in the Christian Kingdom, in order to save our own pride and seek to advance our own desires. The following is a great story that causes us to think

The world of sled dog racing is famous for a truism: "If you aren't the lead dog, the scenery never changes."

In other words, only the lead dog gets to see what is up ahead. Only the lead dog gets to sniff out new possibilities, gets to choose a new path. For the rest of the pack, there is nothing but a view of bushy backsides. No wonder in life we are all constantly striving to be "lead dogs."

Across the political spectrum, there is one common refrain. As the 2012 political races heat up every candidate, Republican or Democrat, conservative or liberal or libertarian, encourages their audiences with calls for America to reclaim her leadership status — in manufacturing, technology, production, influence, economic growth. Whatever the topic, it is being "in the lead position" that is the most important point.

We all want to be "large and in charge." Who doesn't want to chart our own destiny? Who doesn't want to choose our life pathway? Who doesn't want to decide for oneself? The problem for Christians is that Jesus had a rather startling response to that kind of an attitude: "Get behind me, Satan!"

Jesus' harsh "rebuke" of Peter ("rebuke" here is a word used in demonic exorcisms) doesn't sound so bad when it is directed at a dimwit disciple who had the audacity to try and tell Jesus he was wrong. It is another thing to have Jesus' words directed at each one of us, reminding twenty-first century disciples that none of us are "lead dogs," that none of us get to be "large and in charge."

Jesus' disciples are reminded by today's gospel text to "know our place." And where is our "place?"...

I know my place and I am grateful for the opportunity and the honor to serve. You know I love Ya....and keep serving! Don

Ordinary & Wonder Filled to the top and over-flowing!!!

Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her"

She was a beautiful, young, vibrant, bubbly, jewish girl. She had dark hair and dark eyes. She was around 14 years old and had it all planned out...she was going to have it all. The wonder in her eyes said enough....Her parents had arranged a marriage to a good man, a solid man, a man with a skill and was well known among the people. He was even a descendant of King David. He was a carpenter and could make anything out of wood. He also handsome and bring great envy among her peers.

He might someday have a seat in the Synagogue. He could build them a nice house and fill it with great carvings, and cabinets, and furniture, and happiness. They were going to have many children and she would be the rave among all the other woman... a wonderful husband, wonderful children, a wonderful house, and a wonderful life.

Mary was an ordinary girl that was given an extraordinary life through the Wonder-filled Counselor.

I don't know what wonders are in store for you this Christmas. Some will sting, some will make you jump for joy, some will take you down uncharted paths, others will stretch you in ways you never imagined. But each surprise comes from the hand of the Father who loves you. And I pray that you respond with the words of Mary . . . "I am the Lord's servant, may it be to me as you have said."

If you respond in that way, who knows, maybe God's wonders in your life will change the world. Yet, if not the world . . . they will certainly change you. I am chosing to make a point and follow Mary's example. You know I love ya, Don

A Name that Brings Me Comfort

Philippians 2:10-11, "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

The mention of Jesus' name is so comforting to me. I have experienced great joy and tremendous sorrow over the years. Jesus promised we would have abundant life. He did not say, "abundant happy life...but abundant life." It is in that abundant life that the name of Jesus is discovered in full power and strength. Why? Because Jesus is the unifying force the holds the universe together. His name is also the source for strength in the abundance. I recall a reading written by Gloria Gaither...

Jesus....
The mere mention of His name can calm the storm, heal the broken, raise the dead.
At the name of Jesus, I've seen sin hardened men melted, derelicts transformed.
The lights of hope put in the eyes of a hopeless child.
At the name of Jesus, hatred and bitterness turn to love and forgiveness, arguments cease.
I've heard a mother softly breathe His name at the bedside of a child delirious from fever,
and watched... as that little body grew quiet, and fevered brow cooled.
I've sat the side of a dying saint. Her body wracked with pain, who in those final fleeting seconds summoned her last ounce of ebbing strength, just to whisper Earth's sweetest name.
Jesus...Jesus....
Emperors have tried to destroy it.
Philosophies have tried to stamp it out.
Tyrannts have tried to wash it from the face of the Earth with the very blood of those who claimed it. Yet it still stands.
And there shall be that final day when every voice that has ever uttered a sound, every voice of Adam's race, shall raise in one mighty chorus to proclaim the name of Jesus.
For in that day, every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess, that Jesus Christ is truly Lord.
You see, it was not by mere chance that caused the angel one night, long ago to say to a virgin maiden: His name, His name shall be called Jesus....Jesus....Jesus.....
Ya know, there is something, something about that name........ (~Gloria Gaither)

It is so true. Just the mention of Jesus brings comfort to those who know Him. It is so true because He is so wonderful to me and He is a servant always willing to serve the needs of others.

"Almighty God, you are truly an awesome God. You bring joy and strength in the hard days. Help me to speak your name with reverence and with comfort to others. Thank you for bringing the name to me. It is in His name that I ask you make these things possible, Amen."

Jesus loves you and so do I, Don

High Places!

Philippians 2:9 "Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name."

Have you ever stood on the top of a very high place. I have several memories of high places. One was over looking the Grand Canyon. Other is looking through a clearing at a cascade in the Smoky Mountains. I also recall hiking to the top of the Chimney's in the Smoky Mountain Park with Josh Petlitzer. I have memories of standing on a bridge and over looking a great river flowing underneath and looking out of an observation deck in a high rise in in San Diego, CA and New York City.

There was something special about the high places. It was a little frightening. Heights don't usually both me, but being up high is not a normal place for me to be. My legs get a little shaky and I try to find a balance to hold to. I need an additional balance because my senses were telling me that I was up high and not in a typical location for me to be.

Another attribute that each of these place had was that I could see out. The memory I have is that it was clear and that I could see forever. Even on the bridge and it was a little foggy, I could see. I could also be seen. I remember people looking up at us on the Chimney's in the Smokies starting their trek up the tall mountain. There is was small clearing an they were looking up at us and we were looking down at them. They waved their arms at us and we waved our arms back at them. They could see us....

Jesus had the attitude to be a servant and was willing to work for the others best interest. He was even willing to go to the Cross in our place because He was thinking of our best interest. God responded to this attitude. God responded to this action and willingness to serve. God lifted Jesus to the highest place and gave him a high place. In the high place, everyone can see Him. The key is to take our eyes off of ourselves and our low places and look in His direction. It is a direction of service and thinking of others first. It is then we look up and see Jesus lifted up and God praised. It is a little frightening and doesn't feel as natural as it should, but the place is an awesome view and we are testimonial views for God.

"Dear God, help me to see beyond myself and look up on the high place the great servant lifted up. My I follow His example and please you with faith and action that seeks the well being of others. Please make me a Christ-follower that seeks to bring you and you alone glory! Amen"

You know I love ya, Don

The Next Best Thing!

"In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness." Philippians 2:5-7

Jesus was God and He know that in the flesh, equality with God was something we could not achieve. In response, He chose the next best thing...He become a servant. In order to be a servant, He had to make Himself nothing. Other translations of the original Greek, state that Jesus "emptied Himself."

If He emptied Himself, what did He let go of? The answer is obvious and profound. He emptied Himself of the power and majesty of God. Literally, He made himself nothing. He openly chose to be a nobody so that He could serve. He freely gave up all that would attract prestige, influence, wealth, and security so that He could serve. He chose to serve because in the flesh He did not consider equality with God something to be grasped.

Jesus took the nature of a servant and was found in human likeness. This is God incarnate. I like chili con-carne. That is chili made with meat and no beans. The crudeness of the illustration doesn't hinder the reality of the teaching. The root of the words are the same..."carne" and "incarnate." Both words are talking about meat or the flesh. Jesus was God in the flesh. He also realized the inability to defeat sin and the flesh without the servant attitude required. So, He was found, discovered, realized, and experienced in human likeness.

The writer of Philippians was the Apostle Paul, He writes, "Our attitudes should be the same as that of Christ Jesus." We are also found and experienced in the flesh...we live in the "con carne" state. In addition, we should never consider equality with God. So, the next best choice is to take on the very nature of a servant and follow in Christ's example. In other words, a Christ-follower's attitude should be to fulfill the needs of others. I wonder how many of us are doing that?

"Dear Lord, help me to follow your example and have a servant attitude. Forgive me for my unbelief and my lack of faith. Please give me eyes that see, ears that hear, and hands that serve the needs of others. I need your help in emptying myself of pride, bias, and selfish desire so that I may be filled with you. You know I love you and desire to serve you in all I do. In Jesus Name, Amen."

Thanks for reading and you know I love ya, Don

Loving through the Roof

Yesterday Dave spoke about serving others and loving through the roof...much like the friends of the crippled man loved the friend by lowering him down through the roof to Jesus as recorded in Mark 2. Laura Bryan wrote:

AFTER his father died, my father as a teenager willingly became "the man of the house" to his six brothers and sisters, briefly dropping out of high school to work so their family could stay together. My mother as a teen dropped out of school after her mother died, caring for her four younger siblings, one still in diapers. Both of my parents took on weighty roles at a young age.

No one in my immediate family pursued a college degree, but I decided that I wanted one. My parents supported me in that dream. My mother returned to work, and, with my father, sacrificed to make my heart's desire a reality. Neither was reluctant; never once did either say it was a hardship, but it was. Devoted Christians, they showed me what it means to love deeply and sacrificially.

God gives each of us that opportunity; we exist in relationships to love and be loved. In Jesus, God risked taking on human flesh to reveal the way righteous relationships are lived out. Love sacrifices for others and promotes their well-being. Love builds up, provides for, and initiates goodness. Love gives freely so others benefit. Made in God's image, each of us chooses if we will express its essence - costly love lavished on others.

I choose to love! - Don

Serve the Song, the Story, the Life

George Clooney said about his Aunt, Rosemary, "She serves a song better than anyone I have ever seen, At some point in her career she learned she didn't have to show off, but could just serve the song. That's what she does. She serves the song and the audience receives the blessing of seeing the service...she would take your breath away." To see the interview - click George and Rosemary

You can always tell the masters from those just trying to be a master. There are several in music that come to my mind, Sandi Patti, George Strait, Rosemary Clooney....all masters and the list could go on. It is amazing how a duet between one of the masters and one of those trying to be a master reveals the truth of pure talent. There is a scene in the movie of "Hello, Dolly!" that has a duet between Barbara Streisand and Louis Armstrong. This is a perfect scene of two masters. The entire movie is worth seeing just to experience the two minute duet between the two of them.

I want to be known as a person that serves a song, a story, and a life. I don't want to try to be a master, but to be a master. The difference is in the heart. A person trying to be a master is using talent to drive ambition, yet the master allows the ambition to rest and lets the talent shine forth. The talent is the God given gift that reflects the creative spirit of a generous God. Even if the person is not willing to recognize that God.

A Christ-follower allows the "mastery" of the God given gift to be guided, nurtured, and molded by the Holy Spirit. That is why we can not only be servants of the song, but of our story, and our life. We serve in humility so that He can make us into a great song, great story, and great life. It is the submission that is so difficult. 1 Corinthians 12:4 states, "Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit." Thus, we make it our goal and we strive for His direction. He is willing and able to guide us through His Spirit. It is also so very worth it.

"Lord, peal all away that which keeps me from being a master of the gifts that you have given me. Help me to relax and serve the gift with truisms of life and not the ambitious things I make it. You are my God and I bow to your direction in all that I am. You are also my master, so train me as you see fit. I ask for this through the power and wisdom of Jesus. Amen."

Serving together, you know I love ya - Don

I'll do it myself!

I am amazed at how great the team of servants are that I have the great honor of serving with. Our musicians, tech crew, and worship choir are dedicated and real to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Yesterday was a prime example of that. What a great day of worship and the thanks goes to a great God that allows us to work together. It reminded me of the following story I pulled from my sermon archives...

It was just after midnight on November 20, 1988. A 19-year-old Los Angeles woman apparently fell asleep behind the wheel of her car. The car plunged through a guardrail and was left dangling by its left rear wheel. That one wheel was all that prevented the young woman from falling to a certain death.

A half dozen passing motorists stopped and attempted to help. One of them had some ropes in his vehicle. They tied the ropes to the back of the young woman’s car, and hung on until the fire units arrived. A ladder was extended from below to help stabilize the car while firefighters tied the vehicle to tow trucks with cables and chains. “Every time we would move the car,” said one of the rescuers, “she’d yell and scream. She was in pain.”

It took almost 2 1/2 hours for the rescuers about 25 of them in all to secure the car and pull the woman to safety.

“It was kinda funny,” L.A. County Fire Capt. Ross Marshall recalled later. “She kept saying, “I’ll do it myself. I’ll do it myself.”

People are funny like that. “I’ll do it myself.” Against all evidence to the contrary, we somehow think we don’t need other people. And we think we don’t need God.

Eph. 2:19-22, "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit."

"Lord, thank you for giving me the privilege to serve along side such wonderful servants. You are a great God. How can we help but celebrate your greatness in all we are. We love you, Amen."

You know I love ya - Don