So, I got a new puppy on March 19.  My family has had dogs through my time at home, and our last dog we got when I was a senior in High School.  In my mind, I remember that he was very easy to train, and was housebroken within a week or two.  well, apparently, I was just remembering the good times.  It is alot harder than I remember.  My dog, Titan, HATES being told ”no”.  he barks at me when I tell him no, and that makes me have to say no to him more and more.  that is a vicious circle.  potty training is another story.  we are getting closer, but not there yet.  and the thing is, we will be playing, or he will be running around in the house, and all of a sudden, there is a little trail that you can follow on the carpet.  but it is always in places that he as soiled before.   And this is only part of what I am learning again about puppies.

but I was thinking about this, and I guess this comes with the job of being a Pastor, but I was thinking about how this is so much like us and God.  We are like a little puppy, but we don’t really grow up.  we have to learn.  and we HATE being told ‘NO’.  when we hear or sense God telling us no, we get upset and yell at God.  talk back to him, or like a puppy, growl and bark at him.  “I want to do what I want to do.  Don’t try to tell me what I can or can’t do.”  and like a puppy that is being housebroken, we need to learn.  often times, we are running around in this world, with not a care in the world, and all of a sudden we stop and we are in that spot where we have been before, at the place where we have done things before.  things that are contrary to God’s will.  that spot is different for each of us.  maybe it is pornography, drugs, alcohol, or other things.  but we find ourselves in that spot, and we remember what we have done there before, and we fall into the same routine.  we do the same things we have done before, things that are not of God’s will.  And, just like a little puppy, we know we have done wrong.  we don’t want to look at our master, we try to avoid him, we try to hide. 

But puppies are cute, aren’t they?  you look at them, and can’t help but love them.  And for God it is the same.  he looks at us, and we certainly aren’t cute, but he loves us anyways.  he loves us so much that he reassures us of his love, his love which sent Christ to the cross and brought him from the grave.  We are God’s puppies, getting into mischief, going where we shouldn’t go, testing the boundaries.  He is our loving master who pulls us away from danger, cleans us up when we get dirty, and loves us and cares for us. 

this is just one of the things that has been on my mind the past several weeks.

2 things I saw on facebook in the last couple of days.

1.  The “Today” show has had some segments about Navy Seals, and what they look for in recruits is not so much physical strength but “mission focus.” If only we disciples could boast about this as well. 

what is your thought on this?  do you think we have a “mission focus”?  if so, what would you say it is?  if not, why not? 

2.  http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2009/news/story?id=4857753

I saw this and thought it was interesting.  Tebow has really been a great figure for college Football.  from bible verses on his eye black (did you know that According to Nola.com, “Tebow’s choice for last season’s BCS championship game against Oklahoma, John 3:16, drew a reported 93 million Google hits that day.”)  pretty cool.  I google searched to find that, and as I was looking for that fact, i ran across this:  this is what Tim Tebow has had on his eye black the last 2 years.  really cool way to witness. 

Through the entire 2008 season, Tim Tebow wore Phil 4:13 which says “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” However, during the National Title game he wore John 3:16 which says “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Now on to the 2009 games:

Charleston Southern: Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”

Troy: Mark 8:36 “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul.”

Tennessee: Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”

Kentucky: Isaiah 40:31 “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they.”

LSU: Thessalonians 5:18 “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. That’s pretty fitting for last nights game don’t you think?”

Arkansas: Psalms 23:1 “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.”

Mississippi State: Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

Georgia: Philippians 4:6-7 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Vanderbilt: Colossians 3:23 “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.”

South Carolina: Joshua 1:8-9 “8- This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. 9- Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”

Florida International: Romans 1:16 “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.”

Florida State: Hebrews 12:1-2 “1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

SECCG: John 16:33 – “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Sugar Bowl: Ephesians 2:8-10 – “8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

wow, can you believe it?  only one week till christmas!!  how are you celebrating?  My brother will be flying up here on Christmas Eve and will be here until Tuesday.  Is your house ready for guests?  mine isn’t yet.  is your christmas tree up?  mine is.  is your tree decorated?  mine has lights and my one ornament.  that’s right, ONE ornament.  is your house decorated on the outside?  mine isn’t.  and it won’t be either.  There are so many things to think about at this time of year, we get so caught up with everything, we need to stop and reflect sometimes.  we need to stop and think about what’s important.  not the turkey, the lights, the trees, the clean house, but the dark, dirty stable.  We celebrate the humble coming of our Lord.  is your house clean?  his stable was dirty.  is your house decorated?  his stable probably had tools of the trade around and about.  we like glitz and glamour, his beginning was dark, damp and not glamorous.  So, I ask, are you ready?  I am not ready for human guests at my house yet, but I am ready for the heavenly guest, Christ.  I am always ready for him.  are you ready for Christ?

What do you think of when you hear the word Christmas or the word Advent?  For me, I think of music.  I think of all the advent songs and christmas carols.  I remember when I was young, my parents had a record player.  (I know some of the younger people might wonder what that is.)  As soon as thanksgiving was past, our house would be filled with the deep rich sound of Tennessee Ernie Ford singing the christmas songs.  My parents later got me a christmas cd by Tennessee Ernie Ford, and for me, after thanksgiving, it rarely leaves my cd player in my car.  but on the record we would listen to, my favorite song was “The friendly beasts.”  I loved it because my mind would take me back to that starry night and I could picture Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus in the stable, and I could see the animals there.  and as each had their own verse, I could picture them standing/sitting close to Jesus and looking at him as they told their part of the story.  The donkey, shaggy and brown,  who gave his back to mary on the road to Bethlehem, the cow all white and red who gave his manger for a bed, the sheep with curly horns who gave his coat/wool for a blanket warm, the dove from the rafter high who cooed him to sleep so he would not cry.  Each in their own way gave a gift.  it wasn’t much, but it was what they had to give.  can I say the same thing this Christmas?  can you say the same thing this christmas?  are you giving a gift to Jesus?  are you giving what you have to give?  could you give more?  could I give more?  We can all take a page from the friendly beasts and give whatever gifts we are able.  what would your verse say?

if you haven’t heard of this book, check it out online.  this book is by Francis Chan, a pastor in California.  the back page says this:  “It’s crazy, if you think about it.  The God of the universe — the Creator of nitrogen adn pine needles, galaxies and E-minor — loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love.  And what is our typical response?  We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss.”

He talks in the book about the majesty of God, and how it’s amazing that this God who created all things loves us and wants to know all about us.  the phrase that hit me the hardest was this ” He doesn’t have to know us so well, but he chooses to.”  God wants to know everything about me and about you.  How amazing is that?  how humbling is that? 

what I got to share last night is that GOD LOVES YOU!!!  sometimes we take that for granted, we think “I know that”  but we need to hear it more and more.  Chan states that the love we have here on earth, the love of a parent for a child is a mere shadow of the love that God has for us.  and the verse that shows us this is 1 John 3: 1 – See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.   this verse shows that being a child of God is a special love.  “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God…”  that is a great love. 

We love, but God loves greater, more deeply, unconditionally and wholeheartedly. 

so hear it again, GOD LOVES YOU!!!!!

As I perused the world wide web a couple of months ago, I ran across this gem.  As I read through some of teh postings, I realized, “hey, he is talking about me, at least most of the time.”  I had some good laughs from this.  hope you can find some humor in this as well.

http://stuffchristianslike.net/

In my last post, I got a little sidetracked.  My focus was supposed to be on what we think we need to do.  as with my first post, we need to Go to God first.  rather than looking at what I think I need to do.  God’s timing is better than mine.  often I have my idea of how things are supposed to go, which things need to happen first and so forth.  God has been teaching me that my plans are not always the best plans, they are not his plans.  And as I think about that, I think about how it is often so hard to give my plans and timing over to God.  my prayer often times is that God would give me his timing for the day and for all the things that I want to get done.  it has been lots of trial and error.

We always are looking at what “needs” to be done, aren’t we.  This weekend was a busy weekend for me.  Friday I was with the group that went to Chicage.  left at 5:30 AM and got back about 10:30 PM.  Saturday was busy as well.  Bible study, Confirmation practice, raking leaves for others, putting together a bookshelf, handing out candy to trick-or-treaters.   Sunday was Confirmation and Bible Study in the morning, then getting the last few boxes that I had left unpacked.  and of course I had to watch a bit of the Packers/Vikings game.  But things were so busy, things were so hectic.  On Friday, as I thought about all the things that I had to do, I was worried about not getting them done.  but as the weekend progressed, I would stop at times and give it over to God.  My first prayer was like this:  “God, you know how much I have to do, and I don’t know if I can get it all done.”  short and simple.  but the fear subsided.  there are still things that I need to finish up, but I know that God knows about my fears and worries and he takes those from me.  Psalm 55:22 says “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you…”that is what I needed to hear this weekend.

2 Chronicles 20:15      Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.

How often do we look at the situations that we are in and say “I can’t do it.  It is too big, this thing that I am facing can’t be beat.”  We look at our strength and our might and we look at the perceived strength of the situation that we are in.  But often we don’t look at God’s strength.  Often we only go to God at the end.  when we are exhausted, when we are tired and worn out.  when we can’t fight our situation any more.  then we go to God.  But what if we went to God at the beginning.  What if we remembered from the start that the Battle is not ours, but God’s.  When we face life with God as our General, with God as our commander, knowing that he is in charge of the battle, it doens’t seem insurmountable.  often the fear of the situation is lessened or not there. 

So let’s step out today with God as our Commanding Officer, The General of the battles that we face today.

Pastor Paul